For the next couple of weeks we set into a routine. Her training was still ongoing, I was still teaching her new things, breaking down her walls and freeing her from all the little hang-ups that she’d been carrying around.

Her self-esteem was growing daily under my tutelage, as did the bond between us. I kept her well isolated from the goings on where the investigation was concerned.

On a hunch I’d decided to put men on Marion just in case my suspicions proved to be true. ...