Page 78 of No One’s Daughter

The kind the Ninth would kill for.

Which was precisely why I’d avoided him for so long.

Until now.

I exhaled slowly, dragging a hand down my face as I considered how much to say.

If there was anyone I could trust with this, it was him.

“We need to disappear,” I said plainly. “Completely.”

His expression didn’t change, but his eyes focused.

“How far?”

“As far as you can take us.”

A beat.

“And why,” he asked carefully, “do I get the feeling you’ve fucked something up?”

My gaze flicked briefly to Ailsa.

“Can you help or not?”

“I can.”

Niko held my gaze for a moment longer, weighing something unspoken before exhaling through his nose and stepping back, rolling his shoulders as though physically setting the problem aside for later.

“Alright,” he said, voice lighter now, though the tension hadn’t left his eyes entirely. “You both look like you could do with a break, so, sit. Both of you. I’ll see what I can do.”

He gestured vaguely toward the worn sofa and a chair that looked like it might collapse under anything heavier than a strong opinion.

“I’ll need a minute,” he added, already turning away. “Or several. Depends on how complicated you’ve made my life.”

“Story of my existence,” I muttered.

He huffed something that might have been a laugh and disappeared through a narrow doorway at the back of the room, leaving us alone in the dim, cluttered space.

Ailsa hesitated for half a second before dropping onto the sofa, testing it much the same way she tested everything.

I remained standing.

“Sit down, you’re making me nervous,” she said, glancing up at me.

“You’re nervous?” I scoffed.

“Yes,” she said plainly. “You hovering like a brooding statue isn’t helping.”

I ignored her for all of five seconds. Then sat down beside her.

“What exactly does he do? She asked, her voice quieter now.

“Things you don’t need to worry about,” I replied.

“That’s not an answer.”

“It’s the only one you’re getting.”