15. Vice Blackwell #2
Her face changed, and I watched the last bit of doubt leave her. She didn’t ask whether staying with me was necessary again.
Mace looked at the bags. “She going with you?”
“Yeah.”
His eyes moved to Milan before returning to me. “Good.”
Mace promised to call the second he had anything, then went back to dealing with the police and security. I carried Milan’s bags to my truck, loaded them into the back and opened the passenger door for her.
The ride to my place was quiet for the first few minutes. Milan stared out the window while I kept checking the mirrors, looking for any car that stayed with us too long.
“Do you think somebody followed us tonight?” she asked.
“I don’t know.”
“You’re checking.”
“Yeah.”
She watched me for a second before looking back outside. “I hate this… Every time I start feeling normal again, something happens.”
“They want you scared.”
“Well, it’s working.”
I reached across the console and rested my hand over hers. The move surprised both of us, but Milan didn’t pull away. She turned her hand beneath mine and loosely curled her fingers around it.
“You ain’t dealing with this alone,” I told her.
She looked at me. “You keep saying that.”
“Because you keep forgetting.”
“I’m trying not to.”
I kept my hand over hers for the rest of the drive.
My building sat near downtown, high enough that the city stretched out below it at night. I pulled into the private garage and parked near the elevator reserved for my floor.
Milan looked around as she got out. “You weren’t lying about security.”
“I don’t lie.”
I grabbed her luggage and led her toward the elevator. She watched as I entered the code and used my key card before the doors opened.
“This goes straight to your place?” she asked once we stepped inside.
“Yeah.”
“No hallway?”
“Nah.”
She looked at me like she was still trying to picture it.
The elevator rose quietly, and when the doors opened, Milan stepped forward before stopping.
My condo spread out in front of us, the city visible through the floor-to-ceiling windows across the living room. The space was open, modern and quiet, with dark furniture and more room than I used. I’d bought the place because I liked privacy, not because I needed all of it.
Milan slowly looked around. “The elevator really opens inside your house.”
“Told you.”
She stepped off and glanced behind her as the doors closed. “That is both nice and a little crazy.”
“How?”
“Somebody gets the code, they’re standing in your living room.”
“They still need the key card.”
“What if they steal it?”
“They gotta get it from me first.”
Milan looked me over and chuckled. “Okay. Fair point.”
I carried her things toward the guest room while she followed. “You got your own bathroom in here. Towels in the cabinet. Anything else you need, let me know.”
She walked inside and looked around. “This is bigger than my bedroom.”
I set the suitcase near the closet. “I doubt it…” I knew it was, but I just said that to sound humble. “You hungry?”
“No. I’m just tired.”
“Okay… The sheets and everything is clean. You can lay down and go to sleep.”
“I probably won’t.”
I understood that. After somebody broke into her first apartment, she barely slept for days. Tonight would probably be worse because she knew they had followed her to the new one.
“I’ll be out there,” I told her. “Door locks if you want it locked.”
Milan looked at me. “You think I need to lock it?”
“Nah. I’m telling you so you know.”
Her expression softened. “Okay.”
I stepped toward the door.
“Vice.”
I looked back.
“Thank you.”
“You don’t have to keep thanking me.”
“I know.” She glanced around the room. “I’m still going to.”
I nodded and left her to settle in.
For the next hour, I handled calls from Mace, building security and the detective.
The picture didn’t have any usable prints besides Milan’s.
The cameras at the restaurant were old enough that the footage wasn’t as clear as I wanted, but one angle showed a man standing near the window with his phone raised.
His face wasn’t visible and the car he left in had stolen plates. Every lead ended exactly where these people wanted it to.
By the time I put my phone down, it was after midnight. I poured myself a drink and stood near the windows, looking out over the city while trying to make sense of everything.
Sam had been digging into my mother’s past and someone killed him before he could tell me what he found.
Milan heard enough of the conversation to make her a problem, and now they were watching her even after she moved.
That meant they were scared she remembered something… Or they wanted to use her to get to me.
Neither option sat right.
The sound of footsteps behind me pulled my attention away from the window.
Milan walked into the living room wearing a long T-shirt and shorts, her hair wrapped up for the night. She looked different from the woman I’d watched get dressed up for our date. Softer. More comfortable.
More at home in my space than she probably realized.
“Can’t sleep?” I asked.
She shook her head and walked closer. “Every time I close my eyes, I see that picture.”
I set my glass down. “Come sit.”
She joined me on the couch, folding one leg beneath herself while I sat at the other end.
“What did Mace find?” she asked.
“Nothing useful yet.”
“So they got away again.”
“For now…”
Milan looked down at her hands. “I keep trying to remember if I saw anybody outside the restaurant that day.”
“You didn’t know to look.”
“I should’ve…”
“You shouldn’t have to.”
She lifted her eyes to mine. “But I do now.”
I didn’t have a response that would make that better.
Milan leaned back against the couch and let out a tired breath. “I feel stupid.”
“For what?”
“For thinking that apartment was safe. I argued with you about it like I knew everything.”
“You wanted your life back.”
“I still do.”
“You’ll get it.”
“You don’t know that.”
“I do.”
She studied me for a moment. “How?”
“Because I ain’t stopping until I find them.”
There was no doubt in my voice because there wasn’t any in me. Whoever was behind this had taken enough already. Sam. Milan’s peace. My aunt’s son. Mace’s man.