He said what I’d hoped he wouldn’t: “Unfortunately, yeah.”
I wanted to be wrong about that. “Like we’re missing the bigger picture and falling for a trick? Probably just my dad’s training drilled in my head that has me always questioning everything I see—but I don’t know, man.”
“In this case, I’m with you. Just get back to the hotel for now, will ya? Get some sleep; then maybe you can see the truth for what it really is.”
He lifted his head, eye off the scope to park his focus on me, ensuring I’d heard him loud and clear and read his secondary message.
“Go make up with Audrey. And kindly remove your head from your ass so I can go back to being the grump on the team. Not a fan of sharing the spot with you.”
Chapter Forty-Nine
Alejandro
By the time I returned to the hotel, feeling like shit, I was met by my opposite. A woman who appeared to have sunshine radiating out of her despite her supposed bad night of sleep.
She slowly turned away from the window, her arms over her chest like a shield, and her eyes softened as they landed on me, but she didn’t smile.
I didn’t deserve it anyway.
I let the door click shut behind me as Hollis announced, “The brunette doesn’t exist.”
“What do you mean?” I blinked my way from Audrey to Hollis.
Ryder came into the room from our shared bedroom, spinning his ball cap backward as he joined us, a toothbrush hanging from his mouth, which he removed to share: “She’s an unknown variable. No one has anything on her. Not us. Interpol. MI6. No one.”
“Which means she’s good. Really, really good,” Hollis said, standing alongside Audrey, who’d yet to budge from her fixed position.
She had to hate me by now for my attitude, and she had every right to. I hadn’t handled what happened all that well.
“Are you saying this woman is our hacker? Is she Cipheria?” I kept my back to the door. “And if she is Cipheria, why’s she working with Helix? I thought she was helping Mitch. Aren’t they enemies? Or is she an insider plant helping Mitch out?”
I was losing track at this point. Whose side was who on? Who was really dead?
“I don’t know. This is all so fucked.” Ryder shoved his toothbrush back in his mouth.
“Maybe she’s not our hacker, then,” Audrey proposed.
“Give me a second,” Ryder said around his toothbrush before returning to the bedroom.
Audrey let her arms fall to her sides, and I slowly worked my eyes up to her face, then regretted doing so immediately.
I couldn’t look at her and stay angry. It was impossible, like asking someone to hate the sun when it gave us light and life. It just, you know, also burned you if you weren’t careful.
And here I was, standing here, decidingfuck it. Fuck the burn. I could take it. Maybe even stand in the way of Chase’s family being reunited to fight that fire now.
I hung my head, thinking of that cute kid.Nope, can’t do it to him.If Audrey made her choice, then I had to respect it and their family.
“I’m glad you came back,” she finally said.
Ryder returned before I could respond, toothbrush gone now.
“I’m going to check in with my brother to see if he can help out. Maybe he’ll have better luck in finding her,” Hollis suggested. “The brunette clearly exists; you saw her this morning. We’ll find her.” She brought her phone to her ear and nodded at Audrey, then took off for her bedroom.
“When you learn anything, let me know. I’m going to change my bandage and get some rack time.” Maybe work on getting my head back on straight, too.
“And my sister will be helping you change it.” That sure as hell came out sounding like an order, not from my best friend, but from Delta One.
I opened my mouth to object, but he lifted his hand, jaw tight, letting me know not to argue.
