Page 137 of False Flag

That had been the first time Beau had ever shown a hint of violence toward her. She’d broken his hold and fled his apartment. The first call she’d made when she got home was to the locksmith.

A smart move considering that hours later, Beau said he’d seen the locksmith at her place.

What would he have done if he could have entered her apartment that night or later?

There was no more mention of her beyond EarlGrey telling Bmil to stay away from her.

The next time she was mentioned was when EarlGrey said her assault was a false flag planted by Big Archaeology.

She considered what she’d learned so far: Gerard was EarlGrey, the shot caller of AT, and the one pulling everyone’s strings. Beau had been a Truther, but he might not have known about Staci’s attack—it wasn’t mentioned at all in this chat until after the fact.

When EarlGrey/Gerard said the attack was a false flag, Bmil/Beau believed him.

What would Beau do if he was presented with indisputable proof of Gerard’s lies?

Staci bolted awake, heart pounding and disoriented. She glanced at the bedside clock. Four forty-five.

Just an hour ago, she’d finally put the laptop away and turned off the light. She’d quickly fallen asleep. So what had woken her? And why was her heart racing?

Then she heard it. The doorknob rattled. Someone had inserted a key and hit the barrier she’d placed in the lock. They were trying to force it, but metal scraped metal, just loud enough to prick her sleeping brain. The sound she’d told it to watch out for.

The slip of metal was easily removed with a high-powered magnet, which was why she only used it when she was inside the room. It wasn’t meant to keep people out so much as serve as a low-tech alert system.

She pulled the pistol she’d placed under the pillow on Jake’s side of the bed and tiptoed to the door. Holding the weapon pointed at the floor, she waited.

After a long pause, the sound of metal on metal told her whoever was in the hallway hadn’t given up. How long before they figured it out and came back with a magnet?

The sun would rise in about forty minutes. Everyone in the house should be sleeping.

Was it Beau? Possible, but he was usually more direct. This was sneaky.

Riley? Phillip? Kyle? But why would they be trying to break in?

She lifted the gun and held it close to the door panel, above the knob. Ear height, if the person on the other side was slightly crouched as they worked the key. She racked the slide, chambering a bullet, making a lovely, distinctive noise. “Open this door and you’ll get a bullet in the balls.”

The clicking in the lock stopped. After a brief moment, she heard the scrape of the key being extracted, then footsteps padding down the hall.

She stood by the door, holding the gun for several minutes, waiting for her heart to slow.

Several deep breaths later, she’d calmed only slightly. She needed to sleep. Just another hour or two. Enough to get through the day with her guard up.

Sleeping with her back to the door and gun in her hand wouldn’t exactly be restful. The room offered limited choices. The tall bureau would be heavy, but it was her best bet.

She dragged it across the floor, planting it in front of the door.

Even in the deepest of sleep, she’d hear the ruckus it would make if anyone tried to get past that barrier. Satisfied that she could let her guard down enough to sleep, she crawled back into bed and slid the still-cocked gun under a pillow.

Chapter Forty-Nine

“You said the words and signed the release before recording. You can’t sue me for releasing the interview in its entirety.”

Staci paused on the front walkway to Heron House. She’d managed to sleep past eight and now would be late for her nine a.m. meeting with Gerard because she wanted to talk to Dahlia first. Thankfully, it appeared, from the words that broadcast loudly from his open office window, that Gerard was busy.

“No, that’s not what the contract says. It says I can’t cut your interview without giving you a chance to approve the edits. I can publish the unedited file any time I want. They’re your words, Casper, and Staci gave you a chance to dial back on the Nazi shit, but you doubled down.”

Wait, was Gerard saying he ordered Dahlia to publish the uncut interview, or was he covering for her with Osborne?

“You can’t unring a bell. There’s no point in taking the video down. You want to set the record straight, we’ll do another interview. Try not to say the N word this time.”