Page 38 of Lethal Weakness

I’ve never wanted to fucking cleanse my soul like I do right now. I want to tell her every fucking bit of the truth and then be the one to assure her that it will be alright.

I want to tell her all the things she should be afraid of, and that I’m not one of them.

“Sorry. I’m just frustrated that you’re driving this piece of junk car. It’s not reliable.”

Her face falls.

Yeah, not the right direction to go.

“I know it isn’t ideal. Not like I have any options right now, but thanks for shoving that in my face.”

This is good. Push her away. Keep her at a distance so you can do your fucking job.

“I’m not shoving it in your face. It’s just the reality. You need a safer car for Avery.”

She huffs in offense. “Thanks, Captain Obvious. Send me the bill for the tow, and their number, so I don’t have to bother you next time it croaks.”

She whips around and stomps back into her house, and I let my head fall.

I hated every second of that.

I don’t ever want to see her recoil from me like that again, but it’s inevitable. I’m not meant to be around her.

I don’t have the luxury of being close to anyone like Linden.

I can still keep them safe, but it has to be from a distance.

* * *

Over twenty hours of fucking audio, and it’s all useless. I’ve spent all my time this week combing through everything that has been transmitted through the bugs that I planted in the Scotts’ offices.

They’re either talking plainly about their above-board professions, or occasionally speaking in French. I don’t fucking know French. I’ll have to wait days for a breakdown of the translation.

The best bet at this point is to go back in and retrieve the cloners on their computers. Those devices will have everything that is on their hard drives. Passwords. Emails. Internet history.

I have to get back in asap.

But that means finding a way in without being caught. As far as I know, there aren’t any large gatherings planned for at least a few more weeks.

I have been avoiding Linden like I swore that I would, so I don’t have any inside knowledge about the happenings of the Scott family.

I also can’t make myself use her in that way.

She and Avery are innocent in all of this. That I’m sure of.

I watch my monitors closely as I gear up. Watching the house next door.

Thigh holster, chest holsters, calf holster. I double-check each gun and silencer before securing them in each holster.

Mask. Knife. Zip ties. Flash bang.

A couple of bugs in case I get the opportunity to plant them somewhere useful.

When I slip through my backyard just after dark, I can’t stop myself from taking one last glance through their kitchen window.

Every night I look into that window, hoping for a show. Some semblance of joy in my cold world.

That’s why I didn’t tell her about the tracker on her car. Whoever else is trying to watch her is doing so to scare her. Not like me.