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“No,” I answer honestly. “I stopped listening about ten minutes ago.”
“What’s wrong? What did your dumbass brother do this time?” Ainsley props her hands on her hips like an angry teacher, ready to hand out some detention slips. And then I remember why she’s been my friend for so long. She is the only person who always looks out for me, who always sees my struggles when no one else does. And she is the only one who doesn’t judge me for still sticking with him even after all the shit he put me through. She understands why I do the things I do, and I do the same for her. I guess you could say we’re fucked up together.
“He borrowed some money from the wrong people. A lot of money, and he could not pay it back.”
“Shocker. He’s such an idiot. And how exactly did he get you roped into it?”
I don’t want to tell her the whole thing, so I give her the washed-down version of what happened yesterday.
“Wow. What a shit show. At least you made it out of there all right. If I were you, I would forget about it and be glad the cop let you go without interrogating you for hours. God, Teagan, he could have thought you were involved.”
“Yeah, I know. I got lucky.” Either that, or there is way more going on than I imagine.
“So what now?” Ainsley asks, flopping down on the mattress next to me.
“I was about to search the address and try to find out more about that hotel.”
“Well, get typing! Now I want to know more as well.” Excitement fills Ainsley’s voice. Her lighthearted joy about this new task is infectious. For a moment, I forget all about my worries and enjoy playing a seasoned detective.
Grabbing my laptop, I put my fingers to the keyboard, type in the address, and wait for the search results to show.
“Well, that’s weird. Nothing is coming up,” I state the obvious. At least not on the first page; I scroll down, skimming through all the results not connected to anything remotely like a hotel. Out of desperation, I let the second page load.
“That could be it!” Ainsley points at one of the listings.
The Hotel; luxurious stay for members only.
I can’t click on it fast enough. That has to be the place. After an excruciating twenty seconds of loading, the website finally pulls up.
“That’s it!” There is a picture of the inside of the lobby. I recognize it right away.
“Wow, you weren’t joking. It’s fancy as fuck.” Ainsley puts her face so close to the screen I have to push her head out of the way to see for myself.
“There isn’t much,” I point out. The website looks professional, but there isn’t a lot of information. No sub-pages. No member login or room reservation option. No contact phone number or email.
“What kind of hotel is this?” Ainsley asks, confused.
“I have no freaking idea.” I really have no clue what I’ve got myself into, but something tells me this isn’t the last of it.
MASON
I lookthrough the floor-to-ceiling window in my living room, watching the people below on the street. From up here, they look like tiny ants. I like to think of them as outsiders. They are people who live their lives in ignorance, in a dream world. Oblivious to the reality around them. Society has this idea of good and bad, black and white, but there’s no such thing.
Everything eventually turns gray. Life is a ledger. Sometimes in order to do good, a huge amount of bad must be done. There’s a ton of red in my ledger, all in the name of keeping others green.
Being a SEAL was everything to me. One decision took that away from me forever.
Abingsound coming from the elevator pulls me from my inner turmoil.
Nat’s heels striking the ground is oddly comforting. Other than the brothers I served with, she is the only person who stuck by me during my discharge. Loyalty means everything to me.
“We need to talk, Mason,” she states abruptly.
“I’m good, Nat. How are you? How has your day been?” Sarcasm drips from my voice. I give her a hard time about her nothing-but-business attitude. But honestly, it makes her one of my most important assets. I can count on her to have her head in the game when it matters.
“Fuck off, Mason,” she quips, annoyed. She’s certainly in a mood.
“What’s up, Nat?”
