And before I can answer Lev—
That’s when I see it.
Shadow.
Far end of the complex, just beyond the flickering security light. Movement. Fast, deliberate.
I tense. Then—there she is.
Mary.
That familiar walk. Hood up. Legs bare. Bag cross-slung over her chest as she hurries past the broken pool and toward the stairs.
The second I recognize her, I step back. Fast. Shift into the shadow of the doorframe like I’ve been burned. Six-four, trained to kill, and I’m ducking like a fucking teenager in a closet.
Lev doesn’t move.
“Unbelievable.” He hums under his breath. “That’s… new.”
“Shut up.”
“You’re hiding.” He flicks his eyes toward the stairwell, catches where mine keep drifting.
Chert.
“I said shut up.”
I look again, eyes narrowing.
Behind us, the door creaks. Dima steps out, silent as ever, but his gaze flicks to Lev, then to me, then to the parking lot.
He follows my line of sight. Lev elbows him once, half-grinning. Now both of them are standing there; two big men pressed up near a tiny, rusted railing like they’re trying to spot a celebrity across the street.
All six eyes are staring now.
She’s moving too fast. Head down. Keys in hand. No headphones, thank fuck, but no awareness either. Just a woman walking home near midnight like the world doesn’t notice. Like men like me don’t exist.
She walks past the dumpster. A cat hisses from behind it. The dog starts up again.
One light above her flickers. The other’s completely out.
Does she even think?
What if someone’s watching her?
Someoneelse?
I grip the sliding door frame harder.
If someone jumped her right now, she wouldn’t hear them coming. Wouldn’t even know what direction to run.
And, why the fuck do I even care?
“Tell me something,” Lev drawls, “You hiding because you’re embarrassed… or because your dick twitched and now you don’t know what to do about it?”
I ignore him, because my eyes are still on her.
Mary crosses the lot, her shape lit in flashes: broken light, window reflection, the blue hue from a TV screen upstairs. Her skin catches the glow in parts. She reaches her door. Keys in. Looks over her shoulder once.
