Collins snorts softly. “That’s not an answer.”
I look up at her. “It’s the honest one. I have nothing.”
She looks at me, one hand rubbing her chin while the other rests on her hip. “I’ll buy you more time,” she says, “but we need to have something soon.”
As she turns to leave, I whisper, “Rourke found something else.”
She rolls her eyes. “Did that buffoon contact you again?”
“Last night he brought a file. The doctor you mentioned had a son. He thinks it’s Mercer,” I say. “If he’s connected to Project Gemini, this whole case will get compromised very soon.”
“Fuck,” she says, stepping closer. “Don’t say a word to anyone.”
I nod.
There’s a moment of silence between us. Then I ask, “Do you think Mercer can leave here whenever he wants?” I look down at the floor, then back at her. “I mean, do you think somehow he can be in two places at once?”
She chuckles. “No.”
I nod, then whisper, “Good.”
My heart starts pounding again, insisting that Mercer was just a dream, that he couldn’t have slipped into my apartment last night.
“Call me if Rourke contacts you again,” she says, then walks away, leaving me leaning against the wall.
My mind is playing with me. Mercer is playing with me. And I’m losing in this game.Worse,my mind is takinghis side.
I exhale softly when my phone starts buzzing. When I lift it, the number is unknown. I hesitate, then answer anyway.
“Hello,” I say.
“Hi, this is Jane, your neighbor next door,” a woman says. “Your landlord gave me your number in case of an emergency.”
“And what’s the emergency?” I ask, my voice sharp, my mind already spinning through scenarios.
“There’s an old lady outside asking for you,” she says. “She seems really lost, but she has your address. And she said someone named Zayne sent her.”
I freeze.
Fuck.
“I’ll be there,” I say quickly. “I need at least ten to fifteen minutes to get there.”
“Okay,” she says. “She’ll wait here.”
“Thanks,” I reply, ending the call.
I shove my phone into my pocket and push off the wall. I start walking, then realize my legs are already moving too fast. The hallway blurs as I head for the exit. Every reflection in the glass makes me flinch.
What the fuck is happening?
Nothing.
You’re spiraling, I tell myself.That’s what he wants.
I step outside, scanning left and right, trying to understand how any of this is possible.
I notice a taxi parked out front. The driver leans against the car, a cigarette hanging from his mouth. When he sees me approaching, smoke curls into the air.
