“Let me grab my stuff, and we can go.”
As we drove to the bar, my thoughts drifted to my staff. I’d spent so much time worrying and fretting about Abi that I hadn’t really had the chance to think about how they were doing. I’d continued to send them paychecks every week, so they were being taken care of. I was sure they were enjoying the paid vacation, and I knew this was all temporary. Still, I loved the bar and the people who worked there.
Unable to help myself, I glanced at everyone we passed, wondering whether they were agents of the royals. They probably thought they had a boot on our necks, so the chance of them actually trying something right now was low. They needed me, so I was physically safe, but there was no reason they wouldn’t try to kidnap me again. Having Nico by my side made me feel much safer.
A wave of sadness hit me as we stopped in the parking lot. I got out of the car and looked at my place. It looked dead and lifeless. It hurt my heart, and I promised myself things would change one way or another.
“I’m gonna go in and check around for a second.”
“Need me to come in?”
“No, I won’t be long. Just stay by the door. If I need you, I’ll text you.”
Nico seemed anxious about letting me go, but he didn’t argue. I walked up the steps and unlocked the door. As soon as I stepped in, I relaxed. It was almost like coming home. Iwas happy to be there, but it also filled me with sadness. Abi wasn’t here. She always helped me open. We’d spent so many hours here. The smell of the wood floors, the sweet-sour smell of spilled alcohol, and the scent of cooking grease from the kitchen mixed together. I smiled as a strange nostalgia came over me.
The smile that formed on my lips died as a new scent came wafting in, canceling the rest. The smell was both new but strangely familiar, and it absolutely shouldn’t have been here. I yanked my phone out and sent Nico a text. I would have called out, but if anyone were in here, they’d hear me shouting.
Within seconds of me sending the text, Nico burst through the door. His head swiveled as he tried to see whether every shadow was a threat. He came to me and put an arm around me protectively.
“So you smell it?” I asked.
Nico sniffed at the air, then nodded. “I do. I think it’s coming from the back. It’s stronger toward your office.”
Nico eased me behind him as we walked to my office. He moved slowly, cautiously. Even though the scent was faint, there was no telling what was back there. Every step forward was like a step toward the unknown. My office had always been one of the places I felt safest. Now, the wooden door held a fear of the unknown. My wolf was pacing inside my mind. She was as anxious and nervous as I was.
Nico reached out, his fingers brushing the doorknob. I had the strangest urge to yank his hand back as though he was going to burn himself. Clenching my jaw, I stopped myself from doing that. He spun the knob and pushed the door open. Instead of a dangerous enemy, a monster, or poison gas, all we saw was my empty office. It was a bit anticlimactic. I frowned as I glanced around, sure something had to be hiding in there.
Nico stepped through the threshold and turned in a circle, checking every corner. He looked at me and gave a little frown. “You came in here before you texted me?”
“Huh? No. I only made it to the main room out front.”
His frown grew deeper, and he looked around the room once more. “That doesn’t make sense. When’s the last time you were in here?”
What the hell was he talking about? I shook my head, trying to remember. “It’s been weeks. The last time I was in my office was when we came to shut everything down. I haven’t even been in the building since then.”
“Then why does this room smell like you? Not just like you, but like you were just in here not long ago?”
63
NICO
Maddy stared back at me like I was insane. I could tell by the look on her face that she was being honest. Then it hit me. Maddy’s mother. That’s who had to have been in here. I sniffed the air again. The smell was very similar to Maddy, and if you weren’t paying attention, it could be mistaken for Maddy. She’d been here. In this very room.
After coming to that conclusion, I looked at Maddy. In her eyes, I saw that the same thought had occurred to her. I could see it dawning on her.
“Gabriella,” I said, stating what was becoming obvious.
Maddy took a few tentative steps into the room and put her hand on the desk. “She was here? Right here?”
“It’s the only thing that makes any sense.”
“Yeah,” Maddy said, nodding, “I guess it is, but why? Why would she come here?”
“I think she was the one who set fire to the house in Naples. She was the one who snuck in and made sure we found that safe. I never thought she'd follow us here, though.”
Maddy huffed and started moving around the room, checking drawers and shelves. She was looking for anythingthat may have been left behind. It made sense. The last time Gabriella had snuck up on us, she’d left a massive amount of information. I joined Maddy and started to move around the room. We spent nearly ten minutes turning the place upside down. We even took the time to get on our hands and knees and look under the furniture.
When it became obvious that nothing had been left, Maddy’s irritation kicked up a notch. Instead of placing things back neatly after she’d checked them, she let the items fall to the floor. After checking the last drawer of her desk, Maddy growled and yanked the entire drawer out, slinging the contents across the room.
