He offered me an unmarked letter inside an open envelope. “Why is it open?” I asked as I took it from him.
He frowned pointedly at me. “Jasmine tried to read it.”
“She can read my mail. I don’t mind.”
“Evidently not.”
I scowled at him. “Goodbye, Sterling.”
He hesitated, and then he nodded once. He didn’t even say goodbye.
In the morning, he was gone.
STERLING
The walk back to Ladiall was a blur. Cassian’s reaction shocked me. I knew he wouldn’t like the answer, but I didn’t expect him to break up with me. He had torn my heart right out of my chest and left me empty.
And I was about to do the one thing Commander Decker told me not to do: return with an unsolved case. I would be demoted the moment she found out.
The snow felt colder than ever that morning. I felt foolish carrying my fully packed bag back to the city. I really thought I would have a nice stay with Cassian while we collected evidence against Jasmine. I should’ve known he wouldn’t want me anymore when I gave him an answer he didn’t like.
The conversation with Commander Decker would not be fun. Demotion aside, I would have to find some way to explain this without revealing my relationship with Cassian.
I dropped my things off at home, cleaned up, and then headed to the Force headquarters, arriving around midday.
“Sterling. Back so soon?” she asked as I stepped up to her desk.
“Yes, ma’am,” I said.
“Have you solved it?” she asked.
“Cassian Fibbersnap no longer feels our presence is necessary at Fibbersnap Inn. He requested I close the case,” I said.
Commander Decker leaned forward, folding her hands together. “Didn’t I specifically instruct you to come back with a solved case, Thorndrop?”
“Yes, ma’am. Cassian Fibbersnap requested it himself.”
“Why?” she demanded.
“The person responsible for cursing the inn is his cousin, Jasmine Bloomday. He wouldn’t accept it,” I said.
“Her arrest is not up to Mr. Fibbersnap. You should have brought her in regardless,” Commander Decker said.
“I didn’t yet have sufficient evidence to arrest her,” I admitted.
“Thorndrop,” she said, leaning back in her chair with a heavy sigh. “Do you remember why I sent you out there?”
“To fix my priorities,” I answered.
“And what did you prioritize while you were there? The safety of the victim? Or something else?” she asked.
I frowned at my feet. She was right. No matter how I felt about Cassian, I should not have left him there with Jasmine free to ruin his life. He didn’t believe me, but that didn’t matter. I didn’t do my job.
“You’re too soft to be an investigator, Thorndrop. I’m demoting you to patrol.”
My head snapped up. “Commander?—”
She lifted a hand to stop me. “I gave you a chance, and you failed. I put you on that case to test your ability, but you got too close to the victim. You closed the investigation because the truth hurt Mr. Fibbersnap’s feelings, which is absolutely unacceptable and downright absurd. You should know better.”
