Page 22 of Zach
need them repainted, let us know.”
Curiosity drives me to the door. He swings it open, revealing not just pink walls, but sparkling
pink walls. I can’t resist touching them, my sensitive fingertips feeling the tiniest of bumps from the
glitter. I stroke over them as I study the room, imagining it filled with the little girl’s things. Maybe
it’s fanciful of me, but I can almost feel the joy in this room and hear her happy giggles.
So unlike where I grew up. Who would I be today if I grew up in a family that cared enough to
paint glitter on my bedroom walls?
Finally, I find my voice. “This is fine. I won’t need this room.” I turn my back on it and return to
the front door, twisting my hands together. “Thank you for seeing me up. I’ll see you tomorrow at
work.”
Zach’s eyes are icy as they rest on me. Jonas moves to the door and pulls it open, shooting me a
calm nod. “Understood. You’d like us to leave now. We will be leaving for work tomorrow at 8:15
am. Just push the P3 button, and you’ll find us.”
“Oh, no. There’s no need for you to pick me up. I’ll find my own way.”
“We’re not picking you up,” Jonas says simply. “We live upstairs. We all go the same direction
anyway, so there are always rides available.”
My mouth is dry. “All go the same direction?” Who is all?
“Yes. There are nine of us. Well, eight. Our brother Micah works elsewhere. But the rest of us all
work at the compound.”
“Wait…so you all live here? In this building? I’m living in the same building as all of my
bosses?” Yep, my voice cracked at the end.
Of course it did.
There is no escape from them. Am I going to have to be office me all the time? They’re going to
expect professionalism and propriety all the time. I can’t live like that. I’ll suffocate. I won’t do it. I
can’t go back to the cold, reserved person I was in New York. I’m supposed to be different here.
It’s Zach who answers. “We own the building. Where else would we live?”
Crap. Maybe I shouldn’t bother unpacking.
4
MAYA
I arrive in the parkade at precisely 8:15 am. I nearly called a cab twice, but decided that offending
