Tessa stands abruptly, making her chair screech loudly. "Yeah, and so am I. Shall we?”
“Excuse me? Where do you think you’re going?”
She frowns, “I'm coming with you guys."
Ilay's frown is instant. "No."
"Yes," she counters flatly. "You think I'm staying here alone with that creepy ginger guy who won't stop staring at me? Hard pass."
I sigh, rubbing my temples. "Fine. Just... stay in the car when we get there."
"Deal."
We get to the car and I can see Tessa scanning the area for something.
“What are you looking for?”
“No body guards today?”
Ilay just looks at her like she an annoying fly he can’t wait to swat.
“There’s no use for them right now” I say trying to dispel the tension. “We’re heading to a farm.” Besides we don’t want to scare him.” I say pulling up my google maps so we could head straight to the address listed in Professor Lev's notes. When we arrive, the stench hits us before the view does.
Cows. Hundreds of them. The property stretches out endlessly, a patchwork of fences, barns, and pastureland in every direction. There’s a forest off to the side of the farm but it doesn’t seem like it’s very close. I wonder how he keeps everything intact all by himself.
His home, or what looks to be a home sits smack in the middle looking abandoned but I know it is anything but.
"Wow," I murmur, blinking against the sun. "Did he spend all his money on this place? It's massive."
The animals look healthy, well-fed, and content. But beside me, Ilay is full-body recoiling, looking as though someone has just shoved a pile of manure directly under his nose.
"This place smells like shit," he mutters, his lip curling in disgust. "Literal shit."
Tessa snorts from behind us. "That's because cows shit, genius. What did you expect? Lavender fields?" I shoot him a look. "Animals defecate, Ilay. You think their crap is supposed to smell like roses just for you?"
"I fucking hate this place," he snaps, adjusting his pristine cuffs. "Let's get this over with so my lungs can breathe real air again. Even that filthy inn air is preferable to this."
Tessa cackles. "Oh my God, you're such a princess. Do you need a fainting couch? Maybe some smelling salts?"
Ilay turns a lethal glare on her. "Do you need to be left in the car with the windows rolled up?"
"Try it," she shoots back. "I'll hotwire the car and leave your bougie ass stranded in cow country."
"And I'm the dramatic one," I say, walking ahead to cut the tension. "You're about to pass out over a little manure."
We move deeper into the property, our boots crunching against the dry earth. Eventually, we spot a man near one of the sheds. He's somewhere in his mid-thirties, lean to the point of looking stretched thin, with a kind of nervous energy that clings to him. His eyes dart, his fingers twitch, and it takes only one look for us to put the name to the man. Spencer.
We start walking toward him, and I raise my hand to wave, but the moment he sees us, he freezes.
His eyes lock on Ilay, and pure terror washes over his face. He turns first doing a power walk, then a full-on sprint.
"Wait—sir! Wait!" I call out. "Sir!" Ilay barks, his voice booming. We break into a run, but he has a head start. He disappears inside his farmhouse and slams the door shut. We catch up seconds later, banging on the wood.
"Sir, can we please speak to you?" I plead, breathless. "Aren't you Spencer?"
From behind the door, a muffled, panicked voice replies, "There are a lot of Spencers! I'm not the only one! Please, just leave me alone!"
"Sir," I say again, trying to keep my voice even. "I'm a lawyer. I need to speak with you on behalf of my client regarding the documents entrusted to you. Keeping them is illegal."
