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“That’s the whole picture? Nothing else?”
He’d only told Wander about the threats, but something more was weighing on him. Strange occurrences he couldn’t explain. Incidents that made him question his sanity.
Perhaps sensing Roman’s unease, Wander said gently, “It’s me, Ro. You know you can tell me anything. I won’t judge.”
Roman met his brother’s earnest gaze. If anyone would understand, it was Wander. “It’s not your judgment that I fear. It’s that you’ll think I’m crazy.”
“You’re not crazy.”
“You may want to hold off on that conclusion until you’ve heard my story. There have been some…bizarre incidents lately. Things that make me feel like I’m losing my mind.”
“Like what?”
Roman sighed, dredging up the first inexplicable event. “It started a few weeks ago when my secretary quit out of nowhere. She claimed I had sent her inappropriate sexual messages.”
Wander’s eyebrows shot up. Roman held up a hand to stop any assumptions. “Betty was with me for five years, totally professional. You know me. I’d never fuck around at my job. I take it way too seriously for that. The accusation was insane, and I could prove I was in back-to-back meetings when the messages were sent. My phone records showed I hadn’t called or texted her once that day.”
“Any idea who could’ve sent them?”
“None. I alerted the FBI, and they checked my phone and laptop, but they found nothing. It must’ve been some software that spoofed my phone and made it look like the messages were coming from me. Modern technology, man. It’s scary.”
Wander pursed his lips. “What else?”
“This is going to sound crazy…” He hadn’t told anyone about the laptop incident, not even the FBI. They’d think he was going mental for sure. “Four weeks ago, I opened my work laptop, and my files were a complete mess. All the folders I’ve meticulously created over the years were gone.”
“You sure you didn’t reorganize them yourself?”
“Positive. My laptop is encrypted and password-protected. I’m the only one who can access it. And you know how particular I am about my sorting system.”
“You do like things just so,” Wander said with a small smile.
“Exactly. I spent hours fixing it. It was maddening.” Roman dragged a hand down his face.
Wander grew serious again. “Is there anything else?”
Roman exhaled sharply. He might as well air it all. “This is the thing that scared me most. I got in a car accident last week. Rear-ended someone at a traffic light.”
Wander’s eyes widened in alarm. “What? Are you hurt?”
“No, just minor damage to my BMW. But, Wander, I have zero memory of the accident happening. If the insurance company of the other driver hadn’t contacted me, I wouldn’t have known about it.”
“Jesus. But if your car was damaged, you must’ve been driving, right?”
“I guess so,” Roman said helplessly. “But I don’t remember any of it. According to the form I apparently filled out with the other driver, it happened around midnight. All I know is that I wasn’t feeling well the night before and woke up the next morning with the mother of all headaches, so I took some Advil, and that was it. Until the insurance company contacted me later that day. I must’ve sounded like a moron. I had no clue what they were talking about. The lady even asked if I had been under the influence, since it was clear I couldn’t remember.”
He dropped his head into his hands. Wander stood, crossed over to the couch, and gripped Roman’s shoulder firmly. “Ro, listen to me. We’re going to figure this all out, okay? We’ll get you checked out medically. Maybe do a brain scan to rule out anything neurological, yeah?”
Roman lifted his head. Thank fuck he’d reached out to Wander. Talking to him already felt like unburdening himself, like lancing a festering wound. At least he wasn’t facing everything alone anymore, whatever it was. “Yeah…that’s probably a good idea.”
Wander gave his shoulder a reassuring squeeze. “I promise you we won’t stop until we get answers. You’ll stay here as long as you need. My team will keep you safe, no matter what.”
For the first time in weeks, a spark of hope fluttered in Roman’s chest. “I know you’ve got my back. Couldn’t ask for a better brother.”
Wander smiled and pulled Roman into a bear hug. Roman returned it fiercely, the knots of anxiety unfurling bit by bit.
“We’re going to get to the bottom of this,” Wander said as he let go. “In the meantime, you’ll stay here where we can keep you safe. No one will get to you, I promise.”
Roman’s watch buzzed with an incoming message, and he read it. Anxiety blazed through him, spiking his pulse.
