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“So why the worry about thehouse?”
“I don’t know. It’s just another layer. It’s stressful enough to imagine someone interviewing me and Lex. Add in everybody else and it just seems like at least one of us will fuck itup.”
Declan laughed. “We lie for a living. Plus, Ronan’s ex-military, Julia’s a computer nerd, Lex is a lawyer, and Eliseis— ”
“Elise was sex trafficked.” Nick hurried to continue. “Not that it’s her fault. I don’t even think it would come up. She was never named in any of the public documents about Manifest.” He sighed. “I’m probably being paranoid, but Lex has been through so much. If we do this, I want it to be as easy as possible for her. Plus, things are starting to feel a little tight athome.”
Declan pulled into a parking spot next to the curb near MIS’s offices. “So you’re thinking ofmoving?”
“We haven’t figured it out yet, but everything’s on the table,” Nicksaid.
“Wow.” Declan got out of the car and spoke to Nick over the hood. “That’sbig.”
“Yeah,” Nick said. “I just want Lex to be happy. Whatever it takes to make that happen, I’m all forit.”
A few years earlier, it had just been Declan, Ronan, and Nick in the big house, barely speaking to each other outside of work. Back then the house had seemed absurdly big, Declan and his brothers mostly sticking to their private quarters in lieu of the commonspaces.
But over the past few years, everything had changed. It had started with Julia and Elise, who had moved into the house after Elise’s rescue from Manifest. Then John Thomas had been born and Alexa had moved in with Nick. Declan might have helped ease the tightness of their quarters by moving into the guest house in Marblehead with Kate and Griff, but they were all still at the Murphy house at least once a week, and it was more common than not for the house to be overflowing with people, laughter, takeout, reality TV, and epic games of Cards AgainstHumanity.
If Nick and Alexa moved out, the house would be occupied solely by Ronan and his family. Declan didn’t mind it — the money wasn’t an issue for any of them thanks to Nick’s management of the profits from MIS’ wealthy clientele — but it was hard to imagine none of them livingtogether.
They made their way down the sidewalk, then continued over the brick pavers that lined the walkway in front of the small corporate complex on the water. They’d bought the building after their first job and had occupied the fifth floor ever since. A few of the other units were rented, but they never worked too hard at filling the vacancies. Privacy was a necessity in their business., and according to Nick, the loss on the vacant units was a good tax write-off.
They continued to the front of the building and stepped through the glass doors into the large lobby, but instead of greeting Joan, the greeter and security guard, Declan’s eyes went straight to Clay, pacing thelobby.
His eyes lit up when he spotted Declan and Nick, and he rushed over, his messenger bag smacking against his leg, his slight body practicallyvibrating.
“What’s up?” Declan asked. In the nearly ten years they’d been working with Clay Reddy, Declan couldn’t remember a time when he’d shown up unannounced. Their meetings were scheduled, either by Clay after he’d had a breakthrough on a case or by one of the Murphys when they needed to give him information on a newone.
The excitement in his eyes was new too. Data was Clay’s business, and he was the best of the best. Finding something new wasn’t usually something to write home about. It was just his job. “We got ahit.”
Declan blinked. “On?”
“On Curran. We think he’s inIceland."
