Page 2 of Forced By an Obsessive Bratva Stalker

A pause.

“Wanna check?” I asked him. “I can pop it open right now if you want.”

He held my gaze a moment longer before straightening, hands on the buckle of his belt. “Carry on,” he said after handing me the visitor’s badge.

“Thank you.”

The red-and-white barrier arm in front of me lifted automatically, and I drove under it. The road stretched ahead, and I drove ten more minutes before spotting the administrative building ahead.

I pulled over at the parking lot, killed the engine, grabbed my bag from the front passenger seat, and stepped outside. It was drizzling by now, and I hurried toward the main entrance, my shoes clicking rapidly on the pavement.

The lobby was warm, the air scented with the faint aroma of coffee and recycled air. A tall blond with wire-rimmed glasses sat behind the curved laminate counter ahead. Her manicured fingers rattled across the keyboard, her eyes glued to the lit screen.

She looked up when she heard my footsteps. “Bennett?”

I halted before her. “Yes.”

“Take a seat.” She gestured toward the two gray chairs and a low table in the sitting area to the left.

“Thank you.” I headed over there and sank into one of the comfy chairs.

I sat there in silence, drinking in the interior design: floral arrangement, wall art, and the painting up on the ceiling.

“There you are,” a familiar voice snapped me back to the present.

It was Frank Donovan.

Short. Dirty-blond hair. Dressed in a suit.

“Hey, Frankie—I mean, Mr. Donovan.” I rose to my feet, meeting his gaze.

He halted before me with a small smile.

Frankie was an old friend of mine who always helped me get information that wasn’t exactly public. When I found out he was working at Meridian Solutions, I knew more than half of my problems with this paper were solved.

He was always ready to be my inside man whenever I needed him to be. For that, I was grateful.

“You look good in a suit,” I said to him. “You should wear it more often.”

“I’m not gonna look so good if I get caught sneaking you into our archives,” he whispered, his eyes discreetly scanning.

“Relax. This ain’t our first rodeo,” I replied with the same tone.

“Remind me again why I always risk everything just to help you.”

I beamed at him with a hand on his shoulder. “Because you’re a kind man with a big heart.”

His cheeks flushed. “Flattery will get you nowhere, Aria.”

“But at least it’ll get me into that archive, won’t it?”

He shook his head with a smile. “You’re lucky my superiors aren’t around today.”

Frankie picked up his pace, and I followed.

“Cameras. What about the cameras?” I asked softly.

“As you said, this ain’t our first rodeo,” he said without slowing. “They’re all temporarily disabled.”