9. Raegan
Chapter nine
Raegan
“You have something?” Hope blooms that I’ve actually done something right and made progress in my mission. I’m leaning against the door to his office in Hype, where we’ve been meeting almost daily to discuss GE.
Elias leans back in his seat and laces his fingers over his crossed legs. “It’s not exactly what you were hoping for, but it is something.” He waves me in. “Sit down, Rae. You aren’t running off the second I tell you anything, so get comfortable.”
I try not to let the disappointment show on my face, but I can tell from his expression that I failed.
It’s so hard to hide anything from this man.
“Well, I’ll still take something,” I admit while moving to one of the chairs in the room. All the while I keep fiddling with one of my knives on my leg. Elias watches it for a moment before dragging his gray gaze back up to my face.
“Do you know how to use that?” he questions while gesturing to the blade .
I flip the knife up and snatch the handle in one smooth motion. “Enough. I’m pretty good at throwing them, at least.”
That was easy to practice on my own. I’m not so good at fighting up close. I’m just as likely to cut myself as my attacker, so I try to keep my distance or go for a surprise attack when I can. It’s hard to practice fighting an opponent with a knife when you have no idea what you’re doing.
Pointy end in the bad guy? Easy.
Using the knife to block and attack without letting them use it against you all while moving? Nope.
He nods and leans his face into his hand. Even as he looks like he’s getting settled in to listen, his posture and the air around him makes me think of a prince on his throne. One that cares about his people and who listens, but is of a higher breed himself all the same. “And why do you have it out now? You didn’t in all of our previous meetings. Should I be worried? Did something happen?”
I huff out a laugh. Because he looks far from worried. Either he trusts me so much already, or he has a secret that gives him the confidence to not be worried sitting across from me when I’ve told him I’m good at throwing knives. His gift is Truth, which doesn’t help in a fight. So, is it trust then?
“My gun is…broken. Can’t be repaired. Which means I’m back to using knives, and I’ve been a bit out of practice. I’m just getting my hands used to them again.” I cock my head to the side as a thought occurs to me. “Would you be able to get me another gun?”
He smiles sympathetically. “I’m afraid that’s something I can’t help you with. ”
“Why not?”
“You would use it against Gifted Enterprise, of course, and if you did wind up killing someone with it, the gun that’s registered to me would come back on me. I can’t have that kind of tie to something.”
“Black market?” Elias blanches as if I told him to kick a puppy, and I sigh. “Sorry, I just figured you had those types of connections.”
He runs a hand down the front of his three-piece suit. “Of course not. I came into some money at a young age and invested it in real estate and a few other things. It took some years of buying and selling to get me where I am today, but I assure you, I have everything I do through completely legal means.”
Ugh, the one person I’ve allied myself with walks the straight and narrow, while I’m trying to kill and take down a shadow organization.
Good choice.
He nods, like he can read my mind. “It’s why I can help you, but I can’t help you.”
“All right, got it. Let’s get back to that guy at the gala, yeah?”
He pulls out a manila folder from his drawer and drops it on the desk between us. I reach over to pick it up and find a man’s profile sheet, some photos, and employment records inside.
“Are you sure this is the right guy? It says he’s a paramedic,” I muse while flipping through the pages.
“You’re correct. I had my doubts at first. This doesn’t seem like any higher tier member of the organization. I almost couldn’t find any connections between him and GE. And then I was able to pull the GPS history on the ambulance he works in. ”
“You were able to do what? How?”
“Not me. I know someone who could.” Right. Connections. “Once we had that and the 911 dispatch call history for the days he worked, we found more than half of his stops weren’t from emergency calls.”
“So, the guy kept taking a break in random locations?”
“That’s most likely what his employers believe, if they do track their ambulances. But once we add the times and locations to a map, it looks like he’s going to very specific places. There’s hardly a break between an actual call and going to these locations. And he doesn’t stay there for long at all. Almost as if—”
“He’s picking something up and dropping it off between calls,” I finish. Or some one . “He’s the one that grabs the kids from the recruiters to take them to the testing site.” The reason that questioning recruiters means nothing is because they just take the kids to a random drop site and call it in and then the children disappear.
Elias nods. I whip out the map to look at the noted locations he and his “friend” worked on. “That’s what we suspect as well. The downside is that every location is different. He never dropped off at the same place. So even if you go to one of the sites, they’ll be long gone and using another one.”
Damn!
I close the folder. “So, what you’re saying is, I need to ask this guy for the next drop location or find out how he gets that information in real-time.”
“That, or wait to see if I can dig up anything else.”
I’m not great at waiting around. But I’ve also learned not to jump right into chasing someone down without doing my homework first. I need to follow his routine to find when he’s alone, then come up with my plan to question him.
I stand, and Elias immediately follows. “Thank you again, Elias. Let me know if you find anything else on this guy or someone else from the gala.”
“Of course, Rae. I promised to assist you in any way I could.” He buttons his jacket and slides his hands into his trouser pockets. “Before you leave, I should warn you that there’s a chance I’m being followed. I’ll be keeping a low profile here for the next few days while it gets vetted out, but keep an eye on your back as well in case someone is onto us.”
My heart sinks. They couldn’t have found me so soon. And Elias wasn’t supposed to be in danger by helping me behind the scenes. Could it have been the gala?
This is why I should work alone. I knew people getting close to me put them in danger, and now that I’m starting to care about Elias, I can’t let anything happen to him.
He gave me another lead, and I’ll have to make the best of him and do the rest on my own.
“Stay safe, Elias,” I offer with a small smile before walking out. He tries to say something to stop me, but I’m already walking to my apartment before he can try to change my mind.
A week passes of following the paramedic and learning his routine. Elias keeps trying to check in on me and get me to stop by to see him, but I ignore his texts and calls. He’s smart enough that I know he’s figured out what I’m doing. I can only hope he’ll get tired of that soon and go back to finding other people to help.
He doesn’t.
He shows up at my door.
I’m tying my hair up in a ponytail when the distinct beeping sound of the buttons to enter my apartment goes off. I know better than to assume it’s Elias because knowing Aiden, he’d somehow be able to find out my apartment and code to threaten me again, so I withdraw my longest blade from my thigh holster and cover myself behind the wall of the bedroom where I can still see the door.
I mentally curse him for the millionth time for ruining my gun because I’m now back to close combat fighting as my only real option. Asshole.
The door opens, and Elias calls out, “It’s just me. I know you’re here, so stop ghosting me.”
I sigh and lean on the bedroom doorframe so he can see me. “If you know I’m doing it, then you obviously aren’t getting the point.”
He pauses when he sees my outfit and frowns. I’m in black cargo pants, boots, and a tight long-sleeve Henley with a gaiter wrapped around my neck. The gaiter can either cover the lower half of my face or come up to cover my entire head except for my eyes. Then his gaze falls on the dagger in my hands. “Am I interrupting something?”
“Yup. I was just heading out. What can I do you for, Elias?”
“Out? Do I want to know what for, dressed like that? Never mind, I don’t. I can already guess.” He strides to the couch and sits, leaning against the back cushions with his arms outstretched on either side and one leg propped up over the other. “Is there anything I can do to help?”
I sheath my knife. “I’m better off doing this particular job alone.” I join him in the living area and choose one of the chairs to sit in to the right of the coffee table between us.
He nods like that was the answer he expected. “I’m heading out of the country for a few weeks. The person who was following me wasn’t from Gifted Enterprise, but from a contact I have in Europe trying to reach me discreetly. There’s someone he needs help with and asked if I could come out to get it all sorted.”
I nod along with a straight face. I respect him even more for how he literally flies all over the world to help others out, and then I feel guilty that he’s been helping me when he could save others. I’ve been fine on my own so far. I’ve escaped all of my nasty situations alive one hundred percent of the time, so I’d say that’s a good record.
“I don’t want to leave you while you’re in the middle of—well, everything with Gifted Enterprise. If you need me to stay, I will. I have friends who can go out there for me to help until I can get there.”
I blanch and shake my head in earnest. “What? No! Go. I’m fine here. Really. ”
Elias smiles. “I knew you would say that, especially since you’ve been avoiding me. Still, my offer stands if you change your mind. I don’t abandon those I’m helping. Our arrangement will remain for as long as you need it. I do have friends in the city if you ever need help. I’ll be out of touch, so you’ll need to go directly to them if something happens. I can leave you with an address of where to go. Someone is always there, just tell them I sent you and they’ll get you what you need.”
The offer is tempting, but I won’t take it. GE may not be following him like we thought, but it was a harsh reminder that I shouldn’t have involved anyone else in my personal vendetta. Elias is too good of a person to get mixed up with me.
The people closest usually wind up dead.
I smile at him anyway, and his brows draw in as he pins me with a look .
“Don’t give me that fake smile. Promise me you will use the help if you need it.”
He reads people way too well. I sigh and roll my eyes. “Fine. I will.” If I’m dying and I have no other choice.
Elias holds my stare for another minute and then pinches the bridge of his nose. “I’ve never had someone so difficult to help before. In any case”—he drops his hand—“I’m also here to ask a favor of you.”
I cock my head to the side, and my hair sways with it behind me. “A favor?” What could he need that he can’t get himself?
“There’s…someone…I’d appreciate you keeping a lookout for while you’re around. ”
That piques my attention. “Who?”
He rubs the back of his neck, and it’s the first time I’ve ever seen him look uncomfortable. Or not in complete control of himself. “She works at Hype downstairs. I’m hoping you can just check in every now and then to make sure she’s there and okay. She works every night shift, so it doesn’t matter when.”
I raise my eyebrows, and a smirk tugs at the corner of my lips. “A girlfriend? Or crush?”
Elias clears his throat. “Neither. Just…a friend. I’m looking out for her, and she tends to draw unwanted attention frequently. The security in the club already watches over her there, but she won’t let them escort her home.”
Definitely a crush. My smirk stretches to a full Cheshire grin. “I see. Sure, I can check in on your girl. What does she look like?”
Are his cheeks pink? Ugh, this is too adorable, and my black heart can’t take it.
“Brown hair. Short, around five foot two. Green eyes. You can’t miss her. She always has a smile on her face and lights up whatever room she’s in. Even at the nightclub.”
“Wait. Glitter girl?” I break into a fit of laughter and slap my knee. “The girl who dresses like a rainbow and smiles at everyone like they’re the nicest person?”
His mouth is turned down in a frown, and if I didn’t know better, I might think he’s glaring at me. “Her name is Portia.”
“Right. Portia. Okay, yeah. She’ll be easy to spot and check in on.”
“Thank you. I wouldn’t have asked otherwise, but she knows my friends, and she would notice if they kept showing up at the club while I’m not there.”
I nod, the grin still splitting my face. “Understood. It’s a secret crush.” He’s about to say something, but I cut him off with a more serious tone. “If I can’t contact you, what do I do if I need to report something about her?”
Elias looks torn between defending against my claim and answering me, but finally, he pulls an envelope out of his inner jacket pocket. “Go to this address, and the person there will be able to find me and get in touch.”
I take the plain envelope from his hand and check inside for the slip of paper. There’s an address, apartment number, and the word “Kit” written on it.
“Got it. Anything else?”
“One more time. Are you sure you don’t need me around here for a bit longer? It looks like you’re about to go out to fight GE. Are you questioning that paramedic now? I can stick around in case something happens.”
“I’m positive. I’ve been doing this for years. Don’t worry about me. Now, I at least have access to quick cash and a place to sleep every night. I’m better off now than I’ve ever been,” I promise.
It’s sad that it’s actually the truth.
We walk to the door, and he pauses in the hallway. “Be safe, Rae.”
I nod and smile reassuringly at him, then close the door.
The worst thing that can happen is that I die in the process of fighting for something I believe in.
That’s far better than where I could have ended up.