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CHAPTER 7
Knox
“What’s she doing?”
“Finishing up her call.” I pull the side door closed, watching as she wraps things up with her significant other. It’s no surprise Sage is dating someone. But it’s puzzling she would drive cross-country without looping him in. She followed her dead brother’s instructions instead of going to this guy. It doesn’t speak well of him.
We’ll have his number after this call. Erik can gather basic information on him. Run a background check.
I back away from the window, but not before gaining a good view of her backside. Those jeans hang loose over her legs, but the denim hugs her bottom tightly, revealing firm, full contours. A sliver of skin, the curve of her waistline, shows between the bottom of her cropped tee and her jeans.
She turns, and I twist to avert my gaze. The last thing she needs is to think I’m ogling her.
Max types away, presumably on the team Slack channel.
The screen door slams behind Sage with a creak and pop.
“Everything okay?”
“All things considered. Thanks for letting me call him. He was worried.” She sets the phone on the kitchen table. “He said that he told the cops my car is missing. And they suspect arson. I asked him to not tell anyone he spoke to me.”
She shoves her hands in her front pockets.
“Good. If he tells the police, they’ll update their report. Once they upload the police report, anyone with access to the server will have the information,” Max says.
She shifts on her feet and moves her hands into her back jeans pockets. The action presses her chest out and lifts the hem of her cropped tee, exposing a wider stretch of smooth skin and the dip of her bellybutton.
“Jimmy said they’ve been searching for my license plate. I guess it’s good that Sam gave me an alternate plate.”
“I find it fascinating Saint packed an alternate license plate for you,” Max says, crossing his arms over his chest in a way that makes him look like a bouncer at a bar with a queue to enter. His stance says he’s calling bullshit on her story, but he’s running the wrong angle.
“I’ll go move your car,” I say, giving Max my best stand-down expression. “We have an extra spot.” Millie pads over to Sage and sniffs her feet. “One of our colleagues, Kairi, the one who works with Erik on the tech side, has some questions for you. Can I set you up on a laptop? She prefers to communicate on Slack, which is like a system for texting. Keeps everyone in the loop. She’s got a team of minions doing research for her.”
“Sure.”
Max stands and gestures to my laptop. “Here, you can use this one. I’ll go with Knox to move your car.”
Given I don’t exactly need help moving a car, I figure Max has either learned something or he has more questions.
The second the front door closes behind us, Max says, “Erik made some headway.”
“Is that right?” The streetlamps flick on. A passing car slows for a speed bump. I wave at a neighbor several houses down.
“What do you know about her sister? Sloane Watson?”
“Like I told you, I didn’t know her well. Back in high school, she was studious. Quiet. Head of the debate club. If I remember correctly, she won a STEM competition and was nominated for homecoming court, but that would’ve been two years after I left. My memory could be off.”
“So, she’s attractive and smart?”
I stop in front of Sage’s car and cock my head at Max. “Why?”
“Interpol’s been watching her.”
“Seriously?” What the fuck?
“Erik went to file a yellow notice, you know, missing person’s alert, and received an alert from a contact within Interpol. Her name flagged on a case file. Nothing so serious as to warrant a purple notice, or official watch, but still.”
“Was Interpol watching her specifically, or her company?”
