Total pages in book: 66
Estimated words: 60768 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 304(@200wpm)___ 243(@250wpm)___ 203(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 60768 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 304(@200wpm)___ 243(@250wpm)___ 203(@300wpm)
I pinch the bridge of my nose. “We need to get you on that computer. Not playing house.”
Before he can answer, Tammy’s voice carries in from the living room. “So we were thinking… double date night! There’s this cute little Italian place in town. Great wine, better tiramisu. You two should come with us. It’ll be so much fun!”
Poe glances at me, eyebrows raised in silent question. I want to say no. I want to tell them we are busy, contagious, moving out of state tomorrow. But Serafina’s orders from yesterday still ring in my head. Play the part. Blend in.
I paste on another smile and step back into the living room with Poe right behind me. “That sounds… nice. We’ll have to check our schedules and let you know.”
Mark claps his hands together. “Perfect! Just text us. Tammy has your number from the neighborhood app.”
They finish their coffees in record time, thank God, and finally head for the door with more hugs and promises to “do this again soon.” The second it clicks shut behind them I let out a long breath and round on Poe.
Before I can say anything, my encrypted phone buzzes on the counter. Serafina.
I answer on the second ring, keeping my voice neutral. “Yes?”
“Everything’s in place,” she says without greeting. Her tone is crisp, all business. “The system is isolated and ready. Poe can start the hack this morning. I want progress reports every four hours. Don’t let him stall. Don’t let him distract you. Get it done.”
“Understood,” I reply.
The line goes dead.
I set the phone down and look at Poe. He’s watching me, arms crossed over that bare chest, expression unreadable now that the neighbors are gone. The heat from last night still simmers between us, but the real world is crashing back in fast.
“Looks like playtime is over,” I say quietly. “You have work to do.”
He studies me for a long moment, eyes dark. Then he nods once, the flirtatious spark dimming into something more focused. “Yeah. I guess I do.”
I watch him head toward the office, sweatpants riding low enough to remind me exactly why I didn’t sleep last night. My pulse is still too fast. My skin still remembers the dream version of his hands.
I need to keep my wits about me.
But as I follow him down the hall, I can’t shake the feeling that the real danger in this house is not the hack, not Serafina’s deadline, not even the nosy neighbors.
It’s the man walking in front of me.
And the way I can’t stop imagining what would happen if I finally stopped saying no.
ELEVEN
POE
The office chair creaks under me as I sit down in front of the triple monitors. The setup is slick, high-end, the kind of gear that could crack almost anything if pointed in the right direction. But right now all I can think about is the promise Orchid made yesterday.
I swivel the chair to face her where she stands in the doorway, arms crossed, already in full handler mode. “Before I touch a single key, I want to talk to Enley. That’s non-negotiable.”
She studies me for a long beat, dark eyes narrowing like she’s weighing how much trouble I’ll cause if she says no. Finally she pulls out the encrypted phone and dials.
“John,” she says when it connects. “He wants to speak to the girl. Put her on.”
There’s a pause, some muffled voices on the other end, then the line shifts.
“Poe?” Enley’s voice comes through, small and shaky but alive. Relief crashes through me so hard my eyes sting.
“Hey, En,” I say, keeping my tone steady even though my throat feels tight. “You okay?”
“I’m… I’m scared. But they haven’t hurt me again. Not really. They just keep saying if you do what they want I get to go home.” Her voice cracks on the last word. “Are you okay? They won’t tell me anything.”
“I’m fine. Hanging in there. Just keep doing exactly what they say, okay? Stay quiet, stay smart. I’m working on getting you out. I promise.”
She makes a soft sound, half sob, half laugh. “You always say that. Like you can fix everything.”
“Because I can. I will. Just hold on for me.”
We talk for another minute, nothing important, just enough to hear each other breathe. Then John cuts back in and the line goes dead.
I set the phone down and stare at the blank screens for a second, letting the sound of her voice settle in my chest. She’s still alive. Still fighting. That’s enough to keep me moving.
I crack my knuckles and turn back to the keyboard. “All right. Let’s do this.”
Orchid watches silently as I log in, navigate the isolated network, and start probing the target system Serafina’s people prepped for me. The code flows easy at first, muscle memory taking over. I slip past the outer firewalls, find the backdoor they left cracked open for me, and start mapping the internal architecture.