Page 90 of Spies Don’t Fall for Their Best Friend

His shoulders loosen.

“And also no.” I turn toward him. “Seeing it helps me understand. But it also makes it more real. All the times you said you were meeting a client, you were coming here. All those nights Charlie said she was fixing a server problem, she was sitting at those screens.” I look at his desk again. “But somehow it helps knowing you kept my stupid Batman mug here.”

He smiles. “It’s an excellent mug.”

“You hate Batman.”

“I don’t hate Batman.”

“You gave a twenty-minute speech about the impracticality of the cape.”

“Because it creates several tactical disadvantages.”

“And yet you still use the mug.”

“Every day.”

Evelyn checks the time. “We should conclude the visit. The longer Reese remains, the more difficult it becomes to maintain operational restrictions.”

“Understood,” Miles says.

I nod, even though I’m not ready. I look back at the desks. Charlie turns and waves at us, and Emerson raises one hand in a brief wave without looking away from his work. Then Miles, Evelyn, and I step into the hall.

Behind us, the CSA continues operating. No one transforms it back into Lancaster Business Solutions when I leave. I don’t know whether that means anything, but it feels like it does.

Once we’re through the door into the lobby, Evelyn tells us goodbye and heads back inside. I retrieve my purse, phone, keys, and watch from the security lockers, and Miles grabs his. It immediately begins vibrating with messages, but he silences it without looking.

“You can check it,” I say.

“Charlie will call if they need me.”

“And if they do?”

“I’ll tell you I have to go.”

“Not that a client has an emergency.”

He smiles. “Nope.”

Honestly, it makes me smile, too. This is a lot to take in, but I’m glad I know.

Outside, the night air is cool and smells like damp earth and trimmed grass. Miles walks me toward his car, then I look back at the mansion. From here, it appears exactly the way it did when we arrived. Beautiful. Imposing. Quiet. No hint of the agency inside it.

“Your family is extremely weird,” I say.

“I know.”

“And impressive.”

“I know.”

“And possibly responsible for permanently damaging my ability to trust dentists.”

Miles laughs. “Blake really is just a dentist.”

“That’s what makes him suspicious.”

Miles opens the passenger door for me. I get in and look up at the mansion again. Now, when Miles says he can’t answer, I’ll know the door is real. And I’ll know he is no longer pretending it doesn’t exist.