“Syd, stop.”

She ignored Micah and tried to kick the man again, but he shook her, yanked—

And then suddenly he jerked away from her. Had Micah—? No, he was over by the window now, trying to lift it open. “Micah, please, no—”

The pop of a fist against bone and the sound of a body hitting the floor. The man who’d been holding her landed at her feet.

But who—

Neil?

She spun. Not Neil.

Tate Carter rubbed his fist, the barest wince on his face as he eyed Micah. “Give it up, kid.”

Neil raced toward the house. He didn’t stop at the police car in the driveway, lights spinning. Didn’t have a thing to say to Micah, handcuffed and standing with an officer. Didn’t even care who the other man cuffed beside him was.

He burst into the front door, heart hammering every bit as much as when Carter had first called, telling him things that didn’t make sense. Until one sentence drowned out all the rest.

“Sydney was trying to fight him off when I got there.”

Sydney. Sydney had gone home. She’d walked into the middle of a robbery. She could’ve been hurt.

His panicked gaze found her immediately, sitting on the living room couch, Carter’s arm around her.

But another officer blocked his path, stepping toward him the moment he spotted him. “Oh, good, Neil. I’ve got Carter’s statement and your houseguest’s, but if you could confirm that she actually is your houseguest—”

“Sorry, Tompkins, you’ll have to wait.”

He strode past the police officer and reached Sydney just as she stood. Ignoring Carter, he pulled her to him, smoothing his hands down her back. “Are you all right?”

She nodded against his shoulder. “I’m fine. Tate got here before anything could happen.”

He pulled back, palms on her arms. “Not before anything could happen. Not the way he told it. He said you were trying to fight someone off. Micah?”

She shook her head. “No, the other one. I don’t even know his name. Just that he works for someone named Harmon and . . .” She fell into him again. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know Micah was this desperate. I had no idea . . . He said something about a ring and he owes someone twenty-five thousand dollars . . .”

He stilled her with his hand on the back of her head. “It’s okay. None of that matters as long as you’re okay. I had to come . . . I . . .” He tucked her head against his neck. “Wilder had just gotten to the hospital when Tate called. I took his car.”

She was the one to pull back now. “Maggie?”

“She’s in surgery now. It’ll be a couple of hours before we get an update.”

“You didn’t have to come.”

He did. Of course he did. He looked over her shoulder to Carter. “Any chance we could get a minute?”