Page 59 of The Secret Mate Society

"Nothing," I said quickly."Just...thought I saw someone lurking around.Probably nothing."

Jake studied me for a long moment, his reporter's instincts clearly sensing the lie."You sure it wasn’thimsneaking around?"

“What?!”I baulked.“Of course it wasn’t him!”

“And let me guess, you called him and he was there a little too fast, right?”

My stomach turned, twisting into a knot.“I mean… yeah, but that’s just because he was?—”

“Just happened to be in the area?”Jake shook his head with a sigh.He walked over, grabbing the chair next to me and took a seat, his coffee now perched on the edge of the desk.“This is classic stalker stuff, you know that right?”

“Calder isn’t like that…”

“He’s always nearby when you need him, someone is sneaking around near your apartment, you said yourself he was protective, and he didn’t even let you come to the office alone today,” he continued, ticking off each item on his fingers.“That’s kinda suspicious, don’t you think?”

“I don’t know aboutsuspicious.I just thought it was nice.Someone actually cares about me for once.”

“Have you seen the movieScream?”Jake asked, his eyebrow lifted.“Because you are dangerously close to making the same mistakes Sidney did.She didn’t believe her new boyfriend was the problem either until he tried to kill her.”

"That's not—" I started, but Jake held up a hand.

"Look, I'm not trying to scare you.I'm trying to look out for you."His voice softened, taking on that concerned tone that had drawn me to him in the first place."You're new in town, you don't know anyone, and suddenly this guy appears in your life right when weird stuff starts happening?Come on, Ethan.You're smarter than that."

I wanted to argue, to defend Calder, but doubt was creeping in around the edges of my certainty.Jake was right about some things.Calder had appeared at my apartment suspiciously fast.He was secretive about his past, his work, his friends.And he did seem to know things about the attacks that he shouldn't.Maybe that’s because he believed in monsters like I did… or maybe it was because of something…else."I should get back to work," I said, turning back to my computer screen.

Jake's hand landed on my shoulder, warm and reassuring."Just promise me you'll be careful, okay?If something feels off, trust your instincts."

I nodded without looking at him."I will."

"Good."He squeezed my shoulder gently before standing."And Ethan?If you need anything… anything at all, you know where to find me."

After he left, I sat staring at my screen without really seeing it.Jake's words echoed in my head, mixing with my own doubts and fears.Was I being naive?Was Calder really the protector I thought he was, or was there something darker beneath that carefully controlled exterior?

My phone buzzed with a text from Calder:Everything okay?You've been in there longer than planned.

I glanced at the clock.Forty-five minutes had passed without me realizing it.I quickly gathered the files I needed and headed for the door, but Jake's voice stopped me at the elevator.

"Ethan, wait."

I turned to find him jogging toward me, his face serious.

"There's something else," he said, glancing around to make sure we weren't overheard.He reached out a hand, stopping the doors from closing."About those cattle attacks.I've been doing some digging, and I think there might be a connection to some older cases.Cases that go back years."

My pulse quickened."What kind of connection?"

"Missing persons.Always alone, always found with their hearts removed."Jake's brown eyes were intense, focused."The earliest cases I can find go back to the sixties.But there was one that caught my attention from fourteen years ago.Upstate New York."

The world tilted sideways.Fourteen years ago.

"Why did it catch your attention?"I asked, my voice barely a whisper.

“I think you know why, EthanMurphy,” he said, stressing my last name.“And I think I know why you’re so interested in being a journalist too, why you’re so motivated to solve this mystery.”

“Please,” I said, not bothering to deny it.“Don’t tell anyone.I can’t lose my job.Not again.”

“Cross my heart,” Jake replied, making a little X over his chest.“But I get it, Ethan.I getyou.Please don’t forget that.”

I nodded, not sure of what else to say.Jake stepped back, letting the elevator doors close, leaving me alone in a tiny metal box with my thoughts.