Page 64 of A Cursed Heart
So Close
Ryan
HowwasitMondayalready? With everything over the weekend, I barely felt ready for a working week. Freya, though, needed to get out of the apartment or she was going to be climbing the walls with boredom. Mal wasn’t all that keen on taking her, saying, “I worry something will happen before I can return.”
Was he being overprotective, or sensible? I couldn’t tell.
We had to be careful with his magic use to ensure he had enough power to vanish Freya out of there if needed. I wasn’tunder any illusions about the situation we found ourselves in. Scythe would come for us if he figured out I was behind the raids on his company and Mal was struggling to balance the greater protections on the apartment, finding them to be more draining than he thought.
I wanted him to dial them back again, but his protective instinct wouldn’t let him. Usually he wouldn’t fight me if I suggested something, this time he did, so I left it. He knew what he could handle. All the sex we were having was helping with his energy levels at least.
“Sources state that Sloane Salvatore, better known to some in the city as Scythe, is under investigation for a number of crimes and allegedly responsible for the tainted fentanyl that killed twenty people. Rumors are that the FBI has an insider feeding them information from Salvatore Holdings offices. When asked, no one there was available for comment. They have reported a cyberattack, wiping much of their data.”
I switched off the TV before they could give the rest of the report. All the news stations had been yelling the same thing all day. When I woke up, there were dozens of messages from Lydia and Conrad about it. All my socials were flooded with speculation.
“We’re just heading out,” Mal said, coming up behind me. “Will you link with me? I worry…”
“Of course.” Anything to make him feel better about leaving me in the apartment. “I’m going to clock in and do a few hours’ work.”
“Alright. I’ll be back soon.”
“Bye, Daddy!” Freya ran at me for a hug and kiss, then returned to Mal’s side. She took his hand like she had always been doing it.
As soon as they left, I logged onto my computer to check what needed done first. There were the usual messages from co-workers and my boss. The targets for the week were pretty easy. All in all, a straightforward week if I didn’t have all the shit from Salvatore hanging over me.
Mal looked a little breathless when he returned.
“Did you run the entire way?”
He frowned. “I was concerned.”
“Babe, the FBI is all over his ass. He’s not roaming around in broad daylight.” His humph noise made me grin. “What have you got planned today?”
“I—”
My phone rang, interrupting what he was going to say. “What did you do?” a familiar voice barked.
“Anders?”
“Be careful. Salvatore has fled.” Then the line went dead.
My eyes met Mal’s, seeing the same panic reflected there. “Should I get Freya from school?”
I tried to be rational. Having Freya at home underfoot would only stress her out. She was safer at school than anywhere else. Besides, I reminded myself it was only morning. There were too many people going about who could spot him.
“No, she’s better off there. I’ll call Con and ask for some people to watch the apartment.”
Mal only nodded, looking displeased. He went to the kitchen instead of trying to convince me to take Freya out of school. While I got he was stressed out, he had to see things from my side. The school had great security.
The call to Con was not helpful.
“Hey,” I said, leaning against the breakfast bar. Mal was going to hate this. “Con said they can’t spare anyone to watch the apartment since there’s been no direct threat.”
“What about Anders?”
“I couldn’t tell them because it opens a whole new can of worms.” He cocked his head. “It’s an idiom. Don’t worry about it. Would you rather I came with you at pickup time?”
“No. I will vanish there and back. It will be quicker.”
