Page 325 of Eight of Swords, Part Two

Mimi wakes with a headache, subdued after another night of bad dreams. Lachlan doesn’t have time for breakfast with her today.

Tomorrow, he promises himself.

Before he leaves to go on shift, he kisses her cheek and removes the leaf necklace from around his neck, fastening it carefully around hers instead.

‘This’ll keep you extra safe,’ he promises. ‘Bodygarden levels of super safety for my little Shadowsneak.’

She giggles and tucks it under her shirt. ‘Love you, Daddy.’

He doesn’t know it’s the last time he’ll hear her say it.

‘Love you too, babygirl.’

Lachlan makes his rounds, standard alignment checks, sensors, all kinds of minutiae that contribute to what is, in his opinion, the model of safety.

The Estate has never been so secure.

Throughout the day, he hardly sees Jules.

Lachlan is going to talk to him properly soon, but Penhalyx arrives tomorrow and everything needs to be airtight. He’s on his way to check the door alarm issue again when he runs into Vasily, and the poor boy is so distracted he nearly collides with him head-on before Lachlan catches him.

‘Whoa, careful!’

‘Sorry, I’m sorry,’ he pants. ‘I w-wasn’t looking.’

‘Both eyes open, then,’ Lachlan tells him. ‘Everything OK?’

‘Yes, of course. All good.’

‘You sure?’

‘Mm-hm, sorry.’

‘We’ll talk later.’

Vasily doesn’t meet his gaze. ‘Sure.’

The kid is still shy and awkward, so Lachlan thinks nothing of it.

Come late afternoon, he meets Jolene at the Estate.

She quite literally brings his things to the door in a box.

‘The electronic organisers, a new rollout system plus a few other upgrades,’ she tells him, glancing inside the foyer while Lachlan peers into the box.

‘I didn’t ask for more Somnex-V.’

‘Yes, I have since improved the compound.’ She snorts at his expression. ‘You’re welcome, by the way.’

‘Right, sorry. Thank you. Much appreciated, all of it. Isn’t it a little risky for you to come here, though?’

‘Your Estate is entirely blind to satellite surveillance, and your employer told me I was free to come by anytime. We could not meet in our usual place anyway. I gave it up.’

‘Why?’

‘I am making plans for travel.’

‘Where to?’