Page 50 of The Specialist

“Do what you must. If you lose your heart, the world will no longer be your home, Egan.”

Sofia was my heart. And my home. A world without her was a place I didn’t want to inhabit.

I looked down at the woman slumbering in my arms.

I would do whatever I had to do to protect her.

No matter what.

* * *

My dream stayed with me all day. I made the rounds, dropping off the finished paintings at the gallery and talking to Carmen for a while. At the gym, I sat with Mack, going through membership applications, discussing some repairs that needed to be done.

“Anything out of the ordinary happen lately?” I asked, flipping through the documents. I paused to study one, handing him back the application. “This one is not complete.”

He took it with a frown. “I didn’t notice that. Sorry. One of the other staff must have accepted it. We had quite a few people come ask for a tour.”

That was good. Business was excellent, and my gym had a stellar reputation. Hand-selecting the members made it attractive to many. I nodded and kept perusing the paperwork.

“You mean any more strange visitors?” he asked as he slid the papers into another file.

I sighed. “That or anything else? Anything out of the ordinary?”

He frowned as he gave my question some thought. “Not that I can think of. The shower backed up in the women’s locker room again. I had to fine two members for fighting in the men’s locker room and breaking a door.”

“What were they fighting about?”

“Which one of them got to take out Cindy. They were quite upset when I informed them staff was not allowed to date members. More upset than the fine and the week suspension.”

I chuckled. “You didn’t mention she was your fiancée?”

He grinned at me. “I might have withheld that information.”

I shook my head, my hand stilling at one of the applications. “Who accepted this one?” I asked, holding it up.

He took it from my hand and scanned it. “I don’t know. I don’t recall seeing it before.” He frowned. “That’s odd. I went through these the other day. It wasn’t there then.” He scratched his head. “I don’t think it was.”

I took it back, the name staring back at me. Ivan Jones. He had been here. In my building. Walking around.

What was his game?

I flipped the pages, noticing most of the spaces were blank. His name, phone number, and what I assumed was a fictitious address were filled out on the front. He wanted me to see this application. For me to know he’d been here.

“I’ll handle it,” I said.

Mack left, and I turned to my computer, going into the security feed. I scanned the footage, stopping when a familiar face was in the frame. Alex. Not noticeable with his hair tucked into a beanie and scruff on his face. He wore casual clothes and leaned on the counter, talking to one of the female staff. I rubbed my chin. Yesterday was Mack’s day off, which explained why he hadn’t said anything about seeing Alex again.

Alex said something to the staff member, and she disappeared into the office. In seconds, he had rounded the counter and went directly to the membership file on Mack’s desk and added the form I was currently looking at, putting it on the bottom of the pile. Then he returned to his position at the counter, looking up and winking at the camera.

He knew I would be watching this. He wanted me to see it.

I glanced down at the number on the form. It was different from the one on the card Ivan had given me. I finished what I had to do and headed to Elite.

I pulled a burner cell from my desk and dialed the number.

“Mr. Vulpe. You got my message.”

“You think you’re clever, Ivan. Sending Alex in. Dropping me a message. A little boring, actually.”