“Or at least, that’s my take.”
“It’s probably correct,” he says, loosening slightly.“Wouldn’t know.I don’t spend much time with Adrien.”
“Oh?”
“No.I’ve worked for Eddie for six years.Adrien’s pretty hands-off.Works directly with Eddie mostly.”
Well, that’s about to change.
“Are you from New York?”
“Grew up in Rochester.Went to Syracuse University.Worked in Jersey City for a while.Still live in Hoboken.”
“What’s that commute like?”
“Take the ferry mostly.It’s not bad.”He glances at his watch, probably getting anxious with our small talk.I can’t say I blame him.“What about you?Where are you from?”
“I’m from all over.My father was a Marine.”
“Ah.”His grin widens.“Military brat.”
“Not so sure about the brat part… My father didn’t spoil.But yes.And my mom was a translator for the State Department.”
“Nice.”My background information relaxes him, which is interesting.Many people I’ve interacted with over the years would have heard that background and immediately tensed, expecting CIA or NSA.“So what languages do you speak?”
I hesitate, as there’s value in keeping cards close to the chest, but if he’s complicit, there’s a good chance he already knows.I’m not working under a cover name, and even if I were, these people accessed my home with all of my aliases stored away in bags.“I’m fluent in French, Spanish, Arabic, and conversational in Mandarin and Russian.”
He whistles his appreciation.“Do you live in France?That’s where you met Adrien, right?”
“I live in New York.Upper West Side.But I did meet Adrien when I was abroad.”
“And a consultant.”He slides his fingers over the corners of his lips, contemplative, and if he didn’t immediately think to himself CIA, he does now.
My gaze falls to my wrist.What’s taking Adrien so long?Is Margot grilling him about me?Warning him off?The thought shouldn’t bother me—this is a job, after all—but it does.It bothers me that his sister might be telling him all the reasons I’m wrong for him.Because she’d be right, wouldn’t she?
“I wonder if I should go check on Adrien.Possibly rescue him from his sister.”
Macon’s gaze flicks to the monitors.“Have you seen him enter the building?”
“No.Movement would have caught my attention.”Perhaps I shouldn’t have admitted that, but it’s the truth.I wasn’t studying the monitors, but these grayscale screens are of empty spaces.The presence of any living being would have caught my attention.“You don’t watch the restaurants?”
“Dining facilities aren’t open yet.But, no, we don’t monitor those areas too heavily.We have staff in place to notify us if there’s a problem.Really, we sit here looking for issues.”
“What constitutes an issue?”
“Oh.You know.Too much alcohol.Or a substance that impairs judgment.Drug deals—not allowed.Angry outbursts.Fights.We jump on those.The goal is to stop trouble before it starts.”
“And I guess you also step in to protect any women from being manhandled?”The corridors his screens are set to monitor look like the ones that lead to the suites.
“Always.Adrien’s turned this place around.Used to be...Well, let’s just say the previous owners had different standards.He’s taken things up a notch.My take is he’s a good guy.I don’t know how long you’ve been dating him; but figure I’ll go ahead and offer you my endorsement.”
“Thank you for that.”We both smile at each other, and glance at the monitors to cover for a lack of conversational topics.
I could be wrong, but I don’t think Macon Chen is involved in anything nefarious.He doesn’t seem to be a techie, which is how Eddie has managed to pull off his little side hustle without raising any of Macon’s suspicions.
“Yeah, the way this place used to be run—wild times.But d’Avricourt’s really cleaned the place up.Clientele’s increased.It’s been good for business.At least in this location.I know in other countries, laws are different.”
I assume he’s referencing sex work.“I wouldn’t know.I’ve only been to this location.”
