“The camera timestamp is off,” Coulson says. “They appear to have rebooted.”
Meg stands frozen, eyes moving between them. “I grabbed an Uber. I had them drop me at the street and walked in. I didn’t want to deal with the guard shack.”
Coulson heads for the front door. “I’m checking the perimeter. Lock the door behind me.”
“Ruiz,” Erik snaps. “What is going on?”
“We’re not sure,” Ruiz replies evenly. “Right now, we’re verifying.”
Madame, unperturbed, rises and looks at Meg. “Come say hello to your Mama,” she instructs.
Confused, Meg moves on instinct. She approaches her mother, gives a small curtsy, and presses her lips to her cheek.
“What a surprise. I didn’t know you were coming over.”
“I had not expected you to be returning here tonight, or I would have mentioned it,” comes the dry reply.
“Are we talking about this now?” Meg asks, her voice barely steady.
Mama studies her for a long moment. “No. Not tonight. There will be time to address your beaux issues later.”
She claps her hands once. “Now, I would like another Scotch.”
“Right away. Anyone else?” Meg asks, already turning toward the cart.
Erik is stiff next to me.
“Maybe we shouldn’t be drinking during a security breach,” he suggests, his voice cold.
“I trust Remy has hired competent security,” Madame replies.
Ruiz has moved to the corner and is on the phone.
From the sunroom, Colt calls out, “Movement, Charlie side.”
“That’s Coulson,” Ruiz confirms.
I freeze at the exchange. The dogs grow restless, Bass stiffening with a low growl. Whether it’s my nerves or something he hears, I don’t know.
Remy steps in front of me. Erik’s attention shifts fully to Ruiz and Colt, while Madame sips her Scotch and Meg hovers beside her, hands twisting.
“I’m fine.” I push to my feet. “Come on, Notes. Let’s get a bone.”
I head toward the pantry.
Ruiz intercepts me. “I’ll bring it to you. Right now, I need everyone in one location while we determine why the system glitched.”
I nod and watch him retrieve the bones from the pantry.
Taking them, I settle the dogs on the rug. Treble grabs his, vibrating with joy, tail whipping as his front paws tap while he struggles to stay seated.
Bass is more reserved than usual. He takes his gently and lies down, still watching me.
“It’s okay, Bass. You’re a good boy. Eat your bone,” I murmur, stroking his head. He gives a tentative wag and begins licking at it.
I turn back to Ruiz, who is conferring quietly with Remy.
“Do you need us to do something?” I ask.
