“It’s about your father,” I said evenly.“You’ll need to come with me.”
“No.”
The refusal was immediate. Instinctive.
“Sorry?” I asked, as if I hadn’t heard her correctly.
“I’ve done this a million times,” she said, shaking her head.“I’m not bailing him out. I’m not fixing whatever he’s done now. He did this constantly when we lived in—” She stopped, inhaled sharply.“I’m sorry you wasted a trip tonight.”
That… wasn’t what I’d anticipated.
“Miss Constantine,” I said, lowering my voice, softening it.“He might not make it this time.”
Her eyes widened.
“It’s bad.”
The shift was instant. Panic flooded her face, wiping out the resolve she’d just found.
“What?” she whispered.“What happened? Wait—let me get changed.”
She stepped back from the door.
I stepped forward.
“There’s no time,” I said calmly, planting my foot just inside the studio apartment.“If you can grab your essentials, I’ll take you straight to him.”
Her gaze flicked to the small bathroom. The sink. The mirror.
I followed it—and blocked the thought before it could form.
“As you are is fine,” I added, already certain she’d comply.“Every minute counts.”
She hesitated.
Then nodded.
We wasted no time. She jogged behind me all the way to my car.
I was wasted as an accountant.
???
I pulled into my reserved spot at Dominion and cut the engine. I’d avoided her questions the entire drive, but I could feel her staring at me.
“He had an accident… in a casino?” she asked.
“A very bad one,” I replied solemnly, opening my door.
She followed without hesitation.
I led her through a service entrance and down into the basement, deliberately bypassing the casino floor. Other than a few shaky breaths and nervous fidgeting with her phone, she hadn’t spoken during the ride back.
I knocked three times.
Rowan opened the door. His eyes flicked past me to her, and he muttered something under his breath.
Like a sacrificial lamb, she followed me inside.
