I looked around Gabe’s new place, all the same “smart” tech features from the apartment we shared had been moved here.
Walking down the hallway toward his bedroom, I rolled my eyes at the display screens that turned on as I moved past them. All of this was dumb and redundant. AI controlled thermostats and light switches that took more time to activate than they saved.
As I passed the office, Leo was inside, opening any drawer that wasn’t locked. And then I stepped into his bedroom. It was more bleak than it had been the last time I’d been in here. The bed was covered in a deep gray duvet and silk sheets — something I had vetoed because Gabriel sweat like a pig.
Mean to pigs, honestly.
Following behind me, Spencer stepped into the room. “Terrible taste.”
“Yep.” I nodded before walking toward the closet, knowing what I was hunting for.
Spencer wasn’t shy about going to the nightstands, ripping open the drawers. Inside were Gabe’s Magnum condoms. Raising an eyebrow, Spencer waited for my confirmation.
“Yeah, that’s a vanity purchase. Waaay too small for them.” That’s when my eyes caught on the opposite nightstand where a second wine glass was half-drunk, a lipstick stain along the rim.
Scoffing, I headed to the closet. “So much for the whole grieving boyfriend act.” It was typical Gabe and exactly what I expected. But it did validate everything Dom had told me: I was part of Isaac’s plan and Gabriel was happy to use me for the convenience of his new mentor.
His closet was stuffed full of suits, more than I’d ever seen. Clearly he’d been spending that acquisition money.
“Bingo.” I laughed when I saw the safe. Something he always had but I’d never bothered to look in. When we were together, I just assumed it had some cash, maybe his passport. Now, I knew everything we needed would be inside.
How The Oracle knew he was hiding something in here, I wasn’t sure. But it didn’t matter.
I fiddled with the flat metal door, no place for a keypad or code entry. On the bottom, the label for the company explained itself: “SmartSafe.”
From behind me, Spencer pulled out a lock-breaking kit.
“That won’t work, it’s opened through some app.” Biting the inside of my cheek, I scrubbed my mind for other ways.
“Shit.” Spencer grumbled as she examined each side of the metal box.
A dumb idea came to mind, one that was so stupid it just might work. Lowering my voice in pitch, I did my best Gabeimpression. “House, open safe.” I tried to hone in on his douchey vocal fry.
Wincing as I waited, I felt my pulse in my throat. If the safe unlocked, the security team would likely be alerted and then we’d have just a few minutes to get the fuck out of here.
Click.
“Nice work, Bunny.” Spencer jolted forward, swinging the safe’s door open and peeking inside.
“So much for a smart home. Fucking dumbass.” It was always about the aesthetic of clean tech for Gabriel, never about what was actually secure or safe. He was never a tech genius, just some lazy asshole who wanted dumb shit to seem cool. Spyre had been sued half a dozen times for sensitive date leaks
I was right about what was inside: stacks of cash, a passport. But two things inside surprised me: a glock, pristine and never touched; and a hard drive.
Spencer reached inside, scooping the cash into a duffel bag along with the gun. She left his passport, never too late to flee the country.
But I grabbed the hard drive. Without another word, I moved back to the living room where Dom was pulling a laptop out of her bag. “Try this.”
Holding out her hand, Dom plugged the drive into her computer and booted it up. “Good find, Viper.” As soon as the files loaded, Dom’s jaw tightened. “Fucker.”
I peeked over her shoulder as Spencer and Leo came back to the living room. The drive was loaded up with mp4 files. Videos.
Dom didn’t need to open them to know what they were. But she selected all of them, mass opening each of them. On the screen, a trove of home videos started playing.
My stomach fell out of my body, a wave of bile rising in my throat as I saw what was in the files. Trafficked women, drunk ordrugged or both. None of them were able to function. And men, doing as they pleased.
“Jesus.” Leo shook her head.
Despite myself, there was no pulling my eyes from the screen. Something Spencer was having an easier time doing than I was. But then again, Spencer knew what had happened to her own mother, the last thing she needed was to see it herself.
