A knock draws my attention to the door Marjorie entered not too long ago. This time it's a younger guy with a patchy beard.
"Could you stay on the phone with me another minute? This alley by the diner gives me the creeps."
I press my finger into the air to signal to the guy to wait.
"Of course. I'll stay on as long as you need me to."
"Thanks." More muffling comes through. "I take it you're back in town if you're wanting to get together tomorrow?"
"Yeah, I am. I'm sorry it took me a while to get back to you. The trip took longer than expected. I hated having to leave you like that."
"Oh, it's totally okay. I've been busy since then anyway, you know?"
"And Silver took good care of you?" I hate that I wasn't there for her and another man was, but at least he's highly skilled and trained in that sort of thing. There's never been a job that he hasn't been capable of taking care of, so I felt fully confident in tasking him with keeping her safe.
"Yeah, he's great, actually. Really nice guy."
I laugh. "Wait, are you serious?"
Cora giggles, too. "I am totally serious. Did you know he doesn't have a single television in his entire apartment?"
"You went to his apartment?" I figured he would take her to one of the safe houses or to her own home, not his.
"I, uh, didn't have anywhere to clean up. I didn't want to involve June or the guys. I kind of panicked and he offered, and I figured if you trusted him enough I could, too. I hope I wasn't wrong."
"No, not at all. Silver's a reliable guy. One of our best. I'm just surprised." I don't add that I'm a tiny bit jealous, too.
"Well, he did a great job of keeping my mind off things. Sorry, I feel like I'm being cryptic. I don't know how much I can or can't say over the phone."
"We can talk more about this tomorrow, if you want."
"Yeah, that'll be good. I'll bring the portfolio and we can go over designs. But hey, I'm past the creepy alley, I can let you go. Thanks for keeping me company."
"Are you sure you don't want me to stay on any longer?"
"It's okay, my battery is dying anyway."
I shake my head. Lost her wallet. No ID. No cash or credit card. And a phone battery that's dying on her walk home. Can she stress me out anymore?
"Will you text me and let me know you made it home okay, at least? I worry about you."
"Little ol' me? I'll be fine. But yes, I can shoot you a text."
It's either she does that or I drive every block between the Haven District and her parents’ house looking for her.
"Thanks, Cora."
I keep my finger in the air, the poor guy outside the boardroom waiting semi-impatiently.
"Talk to you later, Miller."
"Bye."
"Bye."
I don't hang up. Instead, I listen to the static between us and wonder where exactly she is and try to trace her steps in my head. I'm not completely familiar with this side of town but I'm knowledgeable enough to know she shouldn't be out there walking around by herself. Without a weapon. Without someone to protect her.
Hell, look at what happened at her work. A place where she's supposed to be guaranteed safety. Yet it was her very boss who pushed the limits and ended up with stab wounds all over his torso...every single one of them rightfully deserved. If she hadn't ended him, I would have tied him up and had one of Dominic's finest men guide me in delivering the maximum amount of torture. I've been known to fuck a person up here or there, but it's been for business, not for pleasure. And getting my hands on someone who even considered harming a hair on Cora's beautiful head would absolutely be for reasons completely foreign to my day to day.
