“Our real selves.And I think we’re both still evolving.Still figuring out who we are.The question is whether we can build something genuine while we figure it all out.”
“I believe we can,” he says, reaching for my hand.He toys with my fingers.
“Me too,” I say, breathing in deeply and becoming aware that this talk has me feeling lighter.
“You’re going to stay here for a while, right?I mean, we know it was Elena who sent someone to your place.”I narrow my eyes, well aware he packed everything he could jam into my suitcases when he brought me here.It feels like we’re moving too quickly for caution, but I’m also aware that I’d rather be with him until we’ve got a handle on Elena’s whereabouts and plans.
“Brie.Please.I’ll sleep better and?—”
“I’m fine staying here.As long as you recognize I’m not giving up my home.I own that apartment, by the way.”It’s a pittance to someone like him, but it’s my biggest investment.
“Completely understand,” he says, lips curving on the ends.Victorious is the word that comes to mind.
“Besides,” I take a sip, “I suppose I can get used to living in a place where the flowers in the foyer are replaced daily.”
“They aren’t replaced daily,” he says, scoffing as if I’m being ludicrous.
“Oh.Excuse me.Seasonally.”He tilts his head, questioning.“That gorgeous white orchid arrangement that I’m going to guess cost thousands is being replaced by that equally stunning fall display.But that’s one that has to be replaced weekly, I’d imagine—black dahlias don’t keep.”I don’t actually care about the flowers; I’m just teasing him and reveling in the subject change.“What do you do?Ask the florist from The Sanctuary to deliver flowers weekly to your home too?”
“What are you talking about?”He looks genuinely stumped.
“You walked right by them…” I gesture in the direction of the foyer.
He looks down the hall, possibly seeing the flowers for the first time, and pushes up.He strides to the flowers, which have been set in front of the orchids.Perhaps Maria was going to ask him where to put the arrangement.It is huge.More of something you’d see in a hotel lobby than in a home.
He pulls out his phone and dictates a message.
Adrien
Where’d the flowers come from?
Maria
A business associate.I messaged you earlier today asking where you wanted me to place them.
I’m reading the messages as he says, “An associate?”
We look at each other, and my stomach balls into a pit of dread.Adrien moves to the flowers, and I call out, “Wait.If Elena sent something…”
But he’s already at the entry table, looking at the elaborate arrangement.Dahlias, lilies, asters, and sunflowers fill a vase of maroons punctuated with golden yellows, accompanied by a small, wrapped box tied with silver ribbon.The card reads:Congratulations on your successful negotiation.–E
It’s from Elena, but did she send it before or after the DOJ authorized picking up Pierce?
“Don’t touch anything,” I say sharply, phone in hand, wine glass left on the table.“Hudson, we need bomb tech at Adrien’s penthouse.A gift from Elena.”
The next few minutes blur together—evacuation protocols for the entire condominium tower, emergency responders flooding the building, residents being moved to safety while specialists examine Elena’s gift.Adrien and I wait in the lobby, watching through his hallway monitoring system as figures in protective suits carefully dismantle whatever Elena left for us.
“Sophisticated device,” the bomb tech reports over radio.“Pressure sensitive, motion activated.Would have taken out half the floor.”
I think about Maria placing them carefully on the entry table.If the device had been slightly more sensitive, if Elena had chosen a different trigger mechanism, if Maria had decided to transfer the flowers...
“She was sending a message.”But what is the message?The goal?“She could have killed us anytime she wanted.This was about showing us she could reach us anywhere.And she’s not particularly worried about our deaths tracking to her.”
“Nor is she worried about collateral damage.”
She’s out for vengeance.Elena Vasquez doesn’t just know where we both live—she knows who matters to Adrien, who he’d move to protect, who could be used as leverage against him in the future.Fortunately, she doesn’t have the same intel on me.It’s a benefit to maintaining walls, the reason behind the CIA’s protocol.Hence, Adrien has more to lose, and she’s probably far more interested in hurting him than someone doing a job.
My phone buzzes with a news alert:BREAKING: Exclusive photos and video leaked from Manhattan's most exclusive private club.
