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SERAPHINA
Since the day I met Alex on the beach, I’d taken to stopping at my apartment after work each day before going to Seahorse. It gave me time to wind down, so when I did see my mom and sister, I could put on enough of a brave face that they wouldn’t know how much of a disaster my life had turned into. I limited myself to a half glass of wine after I’d changed out of my work clothes, turned on music, put my feet up, and closed my eyes.
It had been nine days since we left London and returned to the US. My sister had good days and not-so-good days, but she was gradually improving due, in part, to the counselor Press had hired for her. The woman had been to the house every day, and when she left, my sister was usually in better spirits than before she arrived.
It was only one of the things I’d forever be indebted to Press Barrett for. Not that he’d ever accept thanks from me. He tolerated me for my sister’s sake. Nothing beyond.
I still wondered whether it had been wise to tell Alex exactly what was happening behind the closed doors of the DA’s office. However, the woman was as relentless as she was good at getting people to spill their guts to her.
Of everything I’d confessed to Alex, the hardest was my feelings for Noah. Yes, I was in love with him. Head over heels. However, until I could find a way to end the DA’s obsession with bringing down Los Caballeros, I couldn’t see or talk to him. I’d had a hard enough time convincing Cooley there was no way I could get my sister or my mother to leave Seahorse. He’d finally given in, tasking me with gathering as much dirt on the Barretts as I could while I was there.
I knew the hamster wheel I was on with my boss couldn’t continue. There were only so many times I could swear on my own life I hadn’t found incriminating evidence on Press or the other members of Los Caballeros. Not that I’d confirmed there were actual members. Or that I was indebted to every one of them for rescuing my sister.
Every day, I pretended to be searching for evidence while, at the same time, working my tail off to find what Cooley had on them. It had to have been something to get a judge to sign off on a search warrant. Either that, or the judge was as dirty as the DA.
Soon, though, the tenuous hold I had on my job would slip away, and I’d find myself disbarred or, worse, in jail on the same trumped-up charges Cooley intended to use to take down Los Caballeros.
While I knew without any doubt the reason he had it in for them was personal, I hadn’t been able to find a single justification for it.
I’d just finished the last of the wine in my glass when I heard a knock at the door. I considered pretending I wasn’t here, but my music was turned up too loud for me to get away with it. Maybe it was one of my neighbors about to ask me to turn it down.
I checked the peephole, spun around, and rested my back against the door. What was Noah doing here? Alex swore to me she wouldn’t tell him anything I’d confessed to her, including my feelings, and I’d been stupid enough to believe her.
I pulled open the door and was about to tell him to go away when he pulled me outside, closed my door, and put two fingertips on my lips. He opened the palm of the other hand. In it was a small black wand, no more than five inches long and less than an inch in diameter. He gave it to me. “Wave it around,” he whispered into my ear, motioning up and down, back and forth with his arm. He opened the door and gave me a push inside. My place wasn’t very big, so it didn’t take long to walk its perimeter. Every few feet, a red light would come on, then go off. I did this twice and, when the red light didn’t appear again, opened the front door.
Noah took the device from my hand, flipped it over, pressed a button, then nodded. “We can go in.”
“What the hell was that all about?”
He pressed the same button he had outside. “See this?”
On the tiny screen, I saw the numbers two and seven. “Yeah?”
“Two cameras, seven listening devices.”
I twisted around, trying to remember where the red light had gone on. When I couldn’t recall exactly, I held up the middle fingers of both hands and spun in a circle.
Noah put his hand on my wrist and smiled. “They’re all dead now.”
“Why didn’t you tell me before I zapped them? That motherfucker. He’s been watching me?” The idea of the slimy bastard watching me undress made my skin crawl. “Cooley hired the guy who took photos of us in London.”
“I know.”
I put my hands on my hips. “As mad as I am at my boss, I’m also really pissed at Alex. How dare she?”
“Alex? What does she have to do with anything? I mean she has something to do with something, but not this.”
I cocked my head, trying to make sense of what Noah had said. “She has something to do with something?”
Noah smiled. “Sorry. I’ll explain. I promise. But for now, don’t be mad at Alex.”
“She’s the only one I told.”
“I found out from someone else.”
“Who?”
“Before I answer that, come here.” He grabbed my wrist, pulled my body flush with his, and cupped my cheek. “I have missed you so much.” He leaned down and kissed me. Once. Quickly. But it was a kiss. “Is this okay?” he asked.
