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Sofia nodded, listening intently to my words. “And now you’re a part of it all,” she said softly. “Do you regret it?”
I thought about it for a moment before answering her question. “No,” I finally said. “I’m not sure what I would have done with my life if I hadn’t joined the Blades. I like being able to help people who can’t fight for themselves. And, well, I like the thrill of it all.”
Sofia smiled at me, her smile softening her features. “I understand that,” she said. “I feel the same way about my job sometimes. I mean, for me, it was always about bringing light to harsh truths. But it was never easy.”
“I read your columns,” I said. “You’re really into the way people announce break-ups.”
She slapped my arm playfully. “I always wanted to do true crime, but I have to admit, covering pop culture is nice. There’s less stalking.”
“That’s good to hear.”
“Marginally,” she replied, winking at me. “Marginally less stalking.”
“You seem to be feeling better,” I said.
“You gave me some perspective,” she replied. “Thank you, Jace.”
Then she leaned up to kiss me on the cheek. As soon as she did, it felt like everything in my world completely shattered.
Chapter Ten: Sofia
Ihadnoideahow I had fainted or why. I wasn’t a Victorian lady, I normally didn’t faint at upsetting news. But the sound of my mother’s name, mixed with everything else…it was the perfect cocktail to make sure I lost my head.
After Victor had insisted I eat a bag of chips because I definitely needed the salt, we all sat around trying to crack the puzzle of Miranda Olivier. Only a few hours had passed since then and Jace’s wall already looked like something from a detective show.
I sat on the edge of Jace’s fancy leather couch, my fingers tapping impatiently against my thigh. Victor paced the room like a caged animal, his fists clenched and frustration etched across his face. Jace, on the other hand, leaned back in his chair, eyes narrowed as he stared at the wall we’d covered with clippings, photos, and notes. Our makeshift investigation board was beginning to resemble a chaotic spiderweb, and I couldn’t help but feel that we were getting closer to something big.
“Alright, let’s go over this again,” Victor said, his voice calm and steady despite the tension in the room. “Our theory is that Miranda is somehow involved with the Sentinel and the lawsuit against Sof, right?”
“Exactly,” I replied, nodding. “And it’s not just a hunch anymore. We have evidence that she’s been communicating with someone from the Sentinel. We just need to find out who it is and what they’re planning.”
“But we do need to figure out what their relation is to this Sara person,” Jace said. “She–they–seem to be instrumental when it comes to dripping information either way.”
“Sara was the one who got them in touch in the first place, right?” Victor asked.
Jace shook his head. “Not exactly,” he said. “Sara told Miranda Olivier to get a FOIA on the Sentinel.”
“What does that mean?” Victor said, cocking his head.
“FOIA stands for Freedom of Information Act,” I clarified. “It’s a way that the public can access government records, which means that Sara told Miranda to get information from the Sentinel by going through legal channels. So essentially, Sara must’ve told Miranda that the Sentinel was suing me and she went digging for motives and connections between the two of us. Doing her own discovery.”
“For her vlog or whatever, right?” Victor asked.
“Right,” Jace and I said at the same time.
“Would someone at the newspaper know she’d request this, though?” Grayson asked from speakerphone. Grayson and Teo had been listening to us theorize for the better part of an hour, and while they had given us valuable information, I didn’t think we were getting any closer to finding any answers.
“I guess it’s possible,” I said. “FOIA requests are usually public records, and the process is transparent, but the real question is whether someone knows about her specific request. You can make them anonymously. The information on specific requests is usually private unless Miranda herself leaked it somehow.”
“And why would she do that?” Jace said. “That part I haven’t managed to wrap my head around.”
“Not sure yet,” I said. “I don’t have anything. But she’s trying to find something through them. What do you guys think?”
“I think you’re onto something, sunshine,” Teo’s voice came through clearly, and I could almost see the reassuring smile he always wore. “We’ve been looking into Miranda’s connections as well. She definitely has some shady ties. Why don’t you use your connections to start digging into her past? Victor and Jace can work on tracking down any other links between her and the Sentinel.”
“Understood,” I replied, my determination matching his. I was grateful for my background in journalism; it gave me the ability to speak with sources, gather information, and analyze data like a seasoned detective. Turns out that being a journalist was a totally transferable skill when it came to being part of the mafia.
“We’ll keep working our end,” Teo said. “Grayson is gathering sources and we are keeping an eye on Miranda’s movements. We’ll report back anything suspicious.”
