CHAPTER 3
THE ROUTE HE CHANGED
Mara had never been told she was predictable before.
She had been called stubborn.
Difficult.
Obsessive.
Once, during an argument with a former boyfriend, she had been called impossible.
Predictable was new.
She disliked it immediately.
Adrian stood beside the apartment window with his phone in one hand, reviewing something on the screen while Mara watched him from the kitchen.
Lena had gone into the bedroom to change.
The apartment felt different with Adrian in it.
Not because he was loud.
He wasn't.
He barely moved unless he had a reason.
That was the problem.
Mara was used to filling silence herself. She talked when she was nervous. She joked when conversations became too serious. She asked questions when she did not like the answer.
Adrian seemed perfectly comfortable allowing silence to sit between them.
It made her wonder what he was thinking.
She hated wondering.
"So," she said.
His eyes lifted.
"So?"
"Are you going to explain what happens now?"
"Yes."
"When?"
"Now."
Mara waited.
Adrian looked at the screen once more.
"Your normal route to the studio is compromised."
She frowned.
"How do you know?"
"Because the same vehicle appears on your building's exterior camera twice during your usual departure window."
Her fingers tightened around her coffee mug.
"You said someone was watching my routine."
"I said someone was learning it."
"Is there a difference?"
"Yes."
He walked toward the kitchen table and placed his phone down.
"If someone is watching your routine, they're observing you. If they're learning it, they're collecting information that can be used later."
Mara stared at him.
"You really know how to make breakfast unpleasant."
"I didn't make breakfast."
"Lena did."
"Then blame Lena."
From the bedroom, Lena shouted, "I heard that."
Mara smiled.
Adrian did not.
But there was something almost amused in his eyes.
Mara noticed.
Again.
She looked away.
"What's the alternative route?"
"We won't use a fixed route."
"We?"
"I'm driving."
"I can drive."
"I know."
"Then why aren't I?"
"Because I don't want you behind the wheel when someone may be tracking your vehicle."
Mara opened her mouth.
Closed it.
He had an answer for everything.
That irritated her almost as much as his competence impressed her.
Lena walked into the kitchen wearing dark jeans and a long coat.
"Are we leaving?"
Mara looked at Adrian.
"Apparently."
Lena grabbed her bag.
Adrian stood.
"Before we go, I need to check the building."
Mara glanced toward the door.
"You already did."
"I checked the apartment."
"You checked everything."
"I checked what I could."
"That's a lot of checking."
He looked at her.
"It's my job."
"Do you ever stop working?"
"Sometimes."
"When?"
"When I'm asleep."
Lena looked at Mara.
"He's funny."
Mara shook her head.
"He wasn't joking."
"That's what makes it funny."
Adrian picked up his coat.
"Stay here."
Mara's eyebrows rose.
"Where am I supposed to go?"
"Nowhere."
"I was being sarcastic."
"I wasn't."
He walked toward the door.
Mara followed.
"You're aware that telling me to stay put is exactly how you make me want to do the opposite."
Adrian opened the door.
"I noticed."
She stopped.
He looked back at her.
For one second, neither spoke.
Then he stepped into the hallway.
Mara followed anyway.
He looked over his shoulder.
"I told you to stay inside."
"And I ignored you."
"I noticed."
"You keep saying that."
"Because you keep doing it."
Lena walked between them.
"I'm beginning to think you two are going to argue for the entire day."
"We're not arguing," Mara said.
Adrian pressed the elevator button.
"We are."
Mara glared at him.
The elevator arrived.
They stepped inside.
Adrian stood nearest the doors.
Mara watched his reflection in the mirrored wall.
He looked completely at ease.
Not relaxed.
Ready.
There was a difference.
When the doors opened in the lobby, Adrian stepped out first.
His gaze moved across the room.
Front entrance.
Security desk.
Glass doors.
Street.
Then the garage corridor.
Mara had never noticed how many directions a person could enter from.
Now she noticed all of them.
The building's security guard greeted Adrian.
Adrian nodded.
"Any unusual activity this morning?"
The guard shook his head.
"No, sir."
"Any visitors for apartment twelve-oh-four?"
"No."
"Deliveries?"
"Two."
"Names?"
The guard checked his screen.
Mara stood several feet away.
She suddenly felt like she was watching a different version of her own building.
Adrian turned.
"Ready?"
She nodded.
They stepped outside.
Cold air caught her immediately.
Mara pulled her coat tighter.
Chicago smelled like wet pavement and coffee.
The rain had stopped, but the streets still held yesterday's water. Cars moved through the intersection in steady streams. A delivery truck blocked part of the curb. People hurried toward office buildings with their collars turned up against the wind.
Mara took a breath.
This was her city.
She knew this city.
She had walked these streets alone for years.
She did not want to start seeing every stranger as a threat.
Adrian opened the passenger door of a dark sedan.
Mara stopped.
"That's yours?"
"Yes."
"It's very serious."
"It's a car."
"It looks like it would interrogate me."
He looked at her.
"Get in."
She laughed.
"See? That's what I mean."
"What?"
"You make everything sound like an order."
He leaned one hand against the roof.
"Get in, Mara."
Her smile faded.
Not because of the command.
Because of the way he said her name.
Low.
Certain.
Familiar already, though they had known each other less than a day.
She got in.
Adrian closed the door.
A moment later, he was behind the wheel.
Lena sat in the back.
Mara buckled her seat belt.
Adrian started the engine.
The car pulled away from the curb.
She looked out the window.
They did not take her usual route.
Instead of heading directly toward the Loop, Adrian turned east.
Mara frowned.
"That's not the way."
"I know."
"Where are we going?"
"East."
"That's not an answer."
"It is geographically."
Lena laughed from the back seat.
Mara turned around.
"Whose side are you on?"
"The side with the entertainment."
Adrian's eyes remained on the road.
Mara looked at him.
"You enjoy this."
"No."
"You do."
"I don't."
"You have the smallest smile."
"I don't smile much."
"I noticed."
He glanced at her.
Their eyes met.
For a second, something softened.
Then he looked back at the road.
Mara faced the window.
She was smiling.
She did not know why.
Maybe because for the first time since the strange messages began, she was not alone with them.
Maybe because Adrian's presence made the uncertainty feel manageable.
Maybe because she liked getting a reaction from him.
She decided not to examine that too closely.
The car crossed another intersection.
The elevated train thundered overhead.
Mara watched the metal structure pass above them.
"You're avoiding the main route," she said.
"Yes."
"Why?"
"Because someone knows it."
"So where are we going?"
"I'll tell you when we arrive."
She turned toward him.
"You really enjoy being mysterious."
"No."
"Then you're naturally irritating."
"Apparently."
She laughed.
This time Adrian did too.
It was quiet.
Almost reluctant.
But real.
Mara stared at him.
He caught her looking.
"What?"
"Nothing."
"You were staring."
"I wasn't."
"You were."
She looked away.
"Maybe I was trying to figure out whether you actually have a sense of humor."
"And?"
"I'm undecided."
His mouth lifted again.
There it was.
The smile.
Brief.
Unplanned.
Human.
Mara's chest tightened in a way that had nothing to do with fear.
She looked out the window.
That was inconvenient.
Very inconvenient.
They drove for another ten minutes.
The city changed around them.
Older buildings.
Narrower streets.
Coffee shops opening their doors.
People waiting at bus stops.
A woman walking a dog along the sidewalk.
Everything looked normal.
But Mara noticed Adrian checking mirrors.
Not constantly.
Just enough.
He changed lanes without explanation.
He took another turn.
Then another.
Finally, he stopped outside a small coffee shop.
Mara stared.
"This isn't my coffee shop."
"I know."
She looked at him.
"Then why are we here?"
"Because your usual location is predictable."
She looked through the windshield.
The shop windows were fogged from warmth inside.
People sat near the glass with laptops and paper cups.
A barista moved behind the counter.
It looked ordinary.
That was probably the point.
Adrian turned off the engine.
"We're changing the routine."
Mara unbuckled her seat belt.
"You're really serious about this."
"Yes."
She paused.
"Do you think I'm in actual danger?"
He did not answer immediately.
That was becoming his way.
When he did not want to lie, he waited.
"Yes."
Mara swallowed.
"How much?"
"I don't know yet."
She nodded slowly.
That answer was harder than reassurance.
But she trusted it more.
They got out.
Adrian walked beside her toward the coffee shop.
Mara noticed the people around them.
Not because she was suddenly paranoid.
Because Adrian had taught her to look.
He opened the door.
Warm air rolled over her.
Coffee.
Cinnamon.
Toasted bread.
The smell made her stomach growl.
Adrian glanced at her.
"Breakfast."
"I ate."
"You had half a piece of toast."
"You saw that?"
"Yes."
"You really do notice everything."
"Usually."
She stepped inside.
"That's creepy."
"It's useful."
They ordered.
Mara reached for her wallet.
Adrian stopped her.
"I've got it."
"I can pay for coffee."
"I know."
"Then why are you paying?"
"Because you're my client."
She narrowed her eyes.
"Client."
"Yes."
The word should have made things simpler.
Instead, it did the opposite.
Client.
Not woman.
Not Mara.
Client.
She did not know why the distinction disappointed her.
They found a table near the back.
Adrian sat facing the entrance.
Of course.
Mara sat opposite him.
Lena sat beside her.
For several minutes, they talked about the investigation.
Adrian asked what Mara knew.
She explained the corporate connections.
He asked about Naomi.
Mara answered.
He asked about Voss.
She answered that too.
Then he asked something she had not expected.
"Why do you do this?"
She frowned.
"Investigations?"
"Yes."
"Because somebody should."
"That's not an answer."
"It is."
"No."
She studied him.
"What do you want?"
"The real answer."
Mara looked down at her coffee.
Steam curled above the cup.
"I don't like people getting away with things because everyone else is afraid to ask questions."
Adrian said nothing.
She looked up.
"Why do you do what you do?"
He leaned back.
"Because someone has to notice the danger before everyone else does."
Their eyes met.
Mara understood then that his answer was not about his career.
Not entirely.
Before she could ask, Adrian's phone vibrated.
He looked at the screen.
The softness disappeared from his face.
Mara knew immediately.
"What?"
He stood.
"Stay here."
She started to protest.
He held up a hand.
"Please."
The word stopped her.
Not an order.
A request.
He walked toward the window.
Mara watched him make a call.
His shoulders changed.
His posture sharpened.
His attention moved outside.
Across the street.
Down the sidewalk.
Toward the corner.
Mara followed his gaze.
A dark SUV sat beside the curb.
Nothing unusual.
Chicago had thousands of dark SUVs.
But Adrian was watching it.
The vehicle pulled away.
Adrian ended the call.
He returned to the table.
"We're leaving."
Mara stood.
"What happened?"
"Nothing confirmed."
"Then why are we leaving?"
"Because I don't like the way that vehicle was positioned."
She grabbed her bag.
Lena followed.
They walked outside.
Adrian looked down the street before opening the car.
Mara got in.
He closed her door.
Then he walked around to the driver's side.
The engine started.
They pulled away.
Mara watched the coffee shop disappear behind them.
Her hands rested quietly in her lap.
She realized something she did not want to admit.
She believed him.
Not because he had promised everything would be okay.
He had promised nothing.
She believed him because he never pretended certainty when he did not have it.
The car turned toward the Loop.
This time, Adrian chose a different route.
Mara looked at him.
"Do you always work like this?"
"Like what?"
"Watching everything."
"Yes."
"Even when nothing is happening?"
"Especially then."
She looked through the windshield.
Chicago stretched ahead of them, glass towers catching the pale morning light.
For the first time, Mara understood that danger did not always arrive with noise.
Sometimes it sat across the street.
Sometimes it followed a car.
Sometimes it opened a file on your laptop.
Sometimes it knew your address.
And sometimes it looked like a man sitting beside you in traffic, quietly changing your route before you even knew you needed one.
Adrian turned toward the Loop.
Mara's phone vibrated.
She looked down.
Unknown number.
One message.
We know where you're going.
Her fingers went cold.
She showed Adrian.
He read it once.
Then he looked at her.
"Don't answer."
Mara nodded.
Outside, the elevated train screamed over the street.
Adrian accelerated through the intersection.
Mara looked ahead.
For the first time, she understood that changing her route had not made the danger disappear.
It had only shown her that someone was watching closely enough to follow.