I work for him. He’s my client. This is a bounty hunt, just like every other hunt I’ve ever done. When I finish—when Iwin—I’ll be on my way back to New York and never have to take on another hunt again. And yet, here I am, sharing something about my mother that I haven’t thought about in years. I think back to the look in his eyes. Who had he lost from his life?
I’m starting to think I won’t see Hideo again tonight when something warm is draped around my shoulders. It’s Hideo’s graypeacoat. I look up to see him pass me by. “You looked cold,” he says as he sits down again.
I slide his coat down over my shoulders. “Thank you,” I reply.
He gives me an apologetic shake of his head. I hope he says something to acknowledge the spark that had danced between us, but instead, he says, “I’m afraid I have to leave soon. My guards will escort you out of a hidden exit, for your privacy.”
“Oh, of course,” I reply, trying to hide my disappointment behind something that I hope sounds upbeat.
“When can I see you again?”
I look sharply at him. A swarm of butterflies stirs in my stomach, and my heart starts hammering again. “Well,” I start to say, “aside from what we already discussed, I’m not sure I’ll have much more to report until after—”
Hideo shakes his head once. “No reports. Just your company.”
Just my company.His gaze is calm, but I notice the way he’s turned toward me, the light in his eyes. “After the first game,” I hear the words stumble out of me.
Hideo smiles, and this time, it is a secret smile. “I look forward to it.”
19
The morning ofour first official game begins with Asher ramming his wheelchair repeatedly against my door. I startle awake, squinting and muttering, barely able to process his words.
“Level’s in!” he’s shouting as he moves on to ram Hammie’s door. “Get up! Up!”
Level’s in.My eyes fly open, and I bolt upright in bed.Today is the first day.
I fumble around in my blankets until I find my phone, then do a quick scan of my messages. There’s only one new message, and it’s from Hideo.
Best of luck today. You’ll hardly need it.
I can’t tell if the flurry in my stomach is from the anxiety of my first game or from his words. In the last couple of weeks since our dinner, I’ve talked to Hideo almost every day. Most ofour exchanges are innocent, strictly business, but sometimes—when our chats happen late at night—I feel the tug that reminds me of the moment during our dinner when he’d leaned close.
See you in the dome. And thanks—believe me, I could use the luck.
I don’t think I believe you at all, Miss Chen.
Now you’re making fun of me, Mr. Tanaka.
Ah. Is that what you’re calling this?
What should I call it instead?
Moral support, perhaps?
I smile.
Your moral support is going to distract me in the arena.
Then I apologize in advance.
I shake my head.
You’re such a flatterer.
I’m no such thing.
See you in the dome, Emika.
