His Broken Submissive : Mercy

42 Scared

Turning to face Izzy the sight in front of me guts me. She looks terrified. Her sapphire eyes are impossibly wide and locked on mine, full of tears.

"Sorry." Izzy wails, unable to hold back the tears any longer. She wraps her arms around herself, hugging tightly to try and hold it together as she breaks down.

"Jezus," I breathe out. Instantly I hug her closely, feeling her whole body shake as sobs wrack her. "I'm here, everything is okay."

"What did I do wrong?" She whimpers.

"Nothing Angel, not a thing!" She pushes against my chest and looks up at me in total confusion.

"B-but you're mad?" She stammers.

"No, I'm scared. I can never be mad at you!" I pull her close once more and try to relax, but I can't.

"I didn't open it," she whispers against my chest. "I was gonna wait but Becca-"

"Shhh, honey, I'm not mad I promise! You didn't do anything wrong." I pull back and grab some tissues from Anne's desk. As gently as I can I clean off her tear-stained cheeks.

"I don't understand." She looks up at me so raw it hurts.

"I know angel, I know." Thankfully the small sofa is empty and I guide Izzy to take a seat, afraid to upset her more. "I didn't send that package."

"But you said I was getting a present tonight?" She furrows her brows at a total loss.

"I did, but I wanted to see your face when you opened it." I reach into my pocket and pull out a small black and purple box.

Soft knocking on the door is followed by the jingle of keys as Anne lets herself in. The troubled look on her face makes my stomach drop. She says nothing but shakes her head.

"What's going on?" Izzy asks, her voice shaky and uneven.

"I've called it in," Anne assures me.

Fuck.

Taz shows up a moment later and motions to the front. Two uniforms from patrol are in the hall behind him.

I stand up and bring Izzy with me. "You're familiar with the case?" I ask, cutting straight to the point.

"Yes Sir, the detectives are on the way."

"Does she need to stay?" Right now all I want is to get Izzy as far away as possible. "She didn't see the contents or who delivered it."

"We have your contact information if they need anything more, you'll hear from us," the seasoned partner answers.

"Thank you, officers." I guide Izzy out the back door and tuck her into her seat, making sure I do up her seatbelt.

She's stopped crying and sits there deathly quiet and unfocused. I know that look, her mind is racing a mile a minute.

"Izzy?" I murmur.

"Hmm?" Her gaze shifts to mine but I can see her worry clear as day.

"What did Natasha give you?" I ask, wanting to put her mind on something more productive. Of course, I already know but I need to get her talking.

"Oh," she mumbles, snapping out of her trance. "She gets to present in a fancy gala and asked me and Becca to model her dresses, can I?"

"Of course, you can, angel." I smile seeing her begin to relax. "What did Becca think?"

"She was so shocked." Izzy furrows her brows as a troubled look takes hold. "Like she couldn't believe Nat was serious."

"Hmm, well Becca had some pretty bad friends before you guys. Unfortunately, she's probably just worried that something will happen again" I reason.

Tony hasn't gone into details, but he's said enough to paint a less than ideal picture. Her past 'friends' were all manipulative users who were only interested in partying and drugs.

"But she's so nice?" I can't help but chuckle at her innocence. Someone like Izzy could never understand using people.

"The nicest people are often taken advantage of." I sigh, knowing she's dealt with more than her share. "That makes having friends like you just that much more important."

Izzy smiles and nods. "I feel the same way," she whispers.

I reach over, lacing my fingers with hers, instantly she squeezes back. Some of the tension leaves me at that simple contact. I just need to remember nothing has happened yet. Izzy is still safe, and not let her mind drag her back down.

Her gaze flickers to mine once more, I can see the trust and it's everything.

"So tell me about the dress..."