No answer.

  The air inside was too still.

  “This is bad…” Lola muttered, scanning the wreckage.

  “No,” I replied, forcing a grin I didn’t quite feel. “Actually… this is good. If they knew where he was, they wouldn’t have trashed the place.”

  It sounded smart out loud. Less so inside my own head.

  I crouched and slowly turned over the collapsed sofa, my fingers brushing past the torn fabric, the broken frame. Not that long ago I’d been here, drinking vodka with Lucas, the two of us laughing, talking about girls.

  He was talking about old me, wasn’t he?

  I let out a sigh and looked over at Lola. She was kneeling by the remnants of what used to be a wooden drawer, picking through the scattered photos, lifting them one by one like they were delicate glass.

  “Halt!” The sharp voice froze both of us mid-motion. “Who are—”

  I looked up from the wrecked sofa toward the doorway. A man stood there, tense, hand raised, holding what looked like a taser, or something close enough to make my skin prickle. Security uniform. Well-fitted. Eyes narrowed.

  “Charlie?” he said, blinking hard. “What… what happened here?”

  Oh. Great.

  He knew the old Charlie.

  I bit my lip. “Uh… it was like this when I got here?”

  His stare didn’t soften. “There was a break-in reported on the sixth floor.” He glanced around, scanning for threats, but with no one else in sight, he slowly lowered the weapon back into its holster. “I… don’t understand,” he muttered.

  “Oh.” I felt my cheeks flush as I glanced sideways at Lola. She only shrugged, leaving me fully alone in the crime spotlight. “That was, uh…” I cleared my throat. “Also me.”

  His brow furrowed deeper, confusion thickening.

  “Aren’t you whitelisted? I remember Lucas making sure you had clearance. He even told me himself a few days ago. Why the hell didn’t you just come through the door?”

  Lola snapped her fingers. “The receptionist!”

  My eyes lit up. “Of course!”

  The guard, Tom, according to his nametag, glanced between us, unimpressed. “Care to rope me in on this brilliant deduction? What does Marly have to do with anything?”

  I gave a lazy shrug. “I do not know. But when I asked to go in through the front, she shut me down. Word for word, she said: ‘Even if you know the code, even if I know you, I can’t let you in.’ Sound suspicious, right?”

  I shot a glance at his badge again, then gave him a grin. “So, T, that’s why I went… uh… through the more scenic route.”

  Tom let out a slow sigh, rubbing his forehead like he was already regretting every part of this conversation. “You should’ve come to me. Lucas made it clear, you’re whitelisted.” He pulled out a holo-tablet from the pocket of his vest, flicking through menus with a few irritated swipes. “Hold on. Let me check something.”

  The tablet projected a holo screen in front of us. Lola and I both leaned in on either side of him, watching over his shoulders, not that he seemed to mind.

  Tom scrubbed through the footage, playing back the recording of me at the front desk, standing there with my best awkward smile while Marly shut me down.

  “Hah! Told you, T!” I chirped, jabbing a finger toward the screen.

  Tom grumbled under his breath, tapping to rewind the footage further. “Yeah, yeah. This is bad…”

  He scrolled back through the last few hours, but suddenly the feed jumped, cutting out entirely for a stretch of time. “What about this?” he muttered, frowning. He switched to the hallway feed outside Lucas’s door.

  Same thing.

  Blackout.

  “Camera was wiped,” he hissed, tapping furiously at the controls. “Whole segment gone. Right about six hours ago.” He leaned back, lips pressed tight. “…Damn it, Marly.” Tom gave one last hard look at the wrecked apartment before motioning for us to follow.

  “Sorry, Lola,” I whispered as we trailed him down the stairwell. After the camera wipe? Yeah, he wasn’t trusting the elevators, apparently.

  Lola narrowed her eyes, tilting her head. “Why sorry?”

  “For dragging you into this,” I said, glancing back at her.

  She leaned a little closer as we walked, lowering her voice with a conspiratorial smile. “I like it. Feels like a romance thriller.”

  “Uh…” I turned, blinking at her, not quite sure what to do with that.

  Lola flushed, tucking a stray curl behind her ear. “What? I’ve never done anything close to this before! Breaking in? Danger?” She bit her lip, mumbling now. “It’s… exciting.”

  I didn’t know whether to laugh or panic.

  Before I could decide, we reached the lobby.

  Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.

  “Marly!” Tom’s voice boomed across the room as we stepped out onto the polished floor. The receptionist looked up from her station, blinking in confusion, right until her eyes landed on me.

  Her face drained of color.

  Then she bolted.

  “Oh, you don’t!” Tom growled, charging after her. He caught up before she even hit the door, grabbing her firmly by the arm.

  “Tommy!” she gasped, voice already breaking into sobs. “They forced me, I swear! They came here, armed, they said if I didn’t play it cool, if I didn’t finish my shift like nothing happened, they’d kill me! They told me… no one looking for Lucas was allowed through. Or else.”

  Tears welled fast, spilling down her cheeks as she trembled in his grip.

  Tom’s expression softened, but there was something complicated there, anger, pity, frustration all knotted up in his brow. “You should’ve come to me,” he said quietly, voice lower now. “I could’ve helped you. Reported it. We could’ve kept you safe.”

  He pulled her in gently, wrapping her into a tight hug despite her shaking. “You didn’t have to carry this alone, you silly girl.”

  Marly sobbed into his chest, clinging to his vest like the fear was only now allowed to fall out of her.

  I glanced at Lola, and yeah; she looked just as uncomfortable as I felt. I cleared my throat, awkwardly shifting my weight.

  Tom turned, blinking like he’d just remembered we were still there. “Marly… they trashed Lucas’ place,” he said quietly, his hand still resting on her shoulder. “He might be in real danger.”

  She choked on another sob, nodding weakly.

  Tom let her go, then looked back at me, his expression hardening. “I don’t know how deep this goes, but… let my security firm handle the investigation. Give us the lead on this. I…” His eyes flicked briefly back to Marly, softening again. “I’d owe you one.”

  I stood there, glancing between the sobbing receptionist and the man awkwardly standing over her, trying to play calm but visibly rattled. Of course, it couldn’t be straightforward. In the movies, these moments always look clean. Cool. The hero delivers a line, the plot moves on.

  But real life? Real life was messy. Complicated. And standing here, watching Marly fall apart even though she’d been part of shutting me out, it made me hesitate.

  I knew I was out of my depth here. I’d let this go on too long without the kind of help I knew I could get. Without calling Riker.

  And if I brought him in… and he helped… that would push him closer to me. Make him look like an ally. Not like one of the other shadowy names swirling around this mess.

  A test for his allegiance, then.

  “What’s the name of your company?” I asked, eyes still on Tom.

  “Tallor Vanguard,” he replied, but his focus stayed on Marly, his hand now resting gently on her back as he tried to calm her down.

  I leaned toward Lola, lowering my voice. “I’m going to call Riker. This is his wheelhouse. Ideas?”

  Lola gave me a small smile, soft, genuine, the kind that made my chest ache just a little. “Do it,” she said simply. The way she said it, like she was already with me, no questions asked, made my heart squeeze.

  I had to bite my lip to keep from grinning like an idiot.

  People like her…

  Yeah. I’d go to hell for them, too.

  They let me sit in the back behind the reception, and before long, Riker’s infuriatingly cheerful face flickered to life on the holo-display.

  “Ah! My favorite tempestuous queen!” His voice boomed like a ringmaster calling the main act to the stage. “Carving through the rabble with grace and ferocity, spearing your foes as though the battlefield itself were your private ballroom!”

  My eye twitched.

  He knew exactly how to get under my skin.

  “Riker,” I said flatly, pinching the bridge of my nose. “What the hell.”

  He gave a dramatic spin, arms wide as though he were addressing an adoring crowd. “I’ve just been watching the first cut of your little cinematic debut!” His grin practically glowed through the screen. “Magnificent! Truly, each strike, each step, as if you hovered above the fray itself, disgusted by the mere existence of such pitiful pests beneath your feet!”

  “I need help.”

  The grin dropped.

  Like a curtain pulled closed on the act.

  When he spoke again, his voice had smoothed, dropped an octave, the stage performer retreating behind the calculating man beneath. “I’m listening.”

  “You talked with Lola, right? About the Gaia people?” His holo-head gave a slow nod.

  “Well,” I exhaled, “I tried to contact Lucas. His place was trashed about six hours ago.” My hands curled into fists. “Coincidence that the same people who sent Damon to ban me are now going after my friend, isn’t it?”

  Riker tilted his head, one brow raised. A hint of that damn smirk crept back, just enough to be annoying. “Ah. Not quite.”

  My eyes narrowed. “What?”

  He gave a slow, almost apologetic sigh, one hand waving in a lazy circle as if explaining basic arithmetic to a child. “Allow me to rephrase for clarity, my dear.” His smile edged back, sly, self-satisfied. “Yes, they are from the same charming family of vultures, but their arrangement is… let’s say, loosely affiliated. Some might even call it rivalrous.”

  He leaned closer, holo-eyes gleaming. “It seems not all siblings in crime play nicely together.”

  “Sure,” I muttered, crossing my arms. “But they’re after Lucas anyway.”

  “I need help. I’m at his apartment now. Tallor Vanguard’s offering to run the investigation.” I gestured vaguely behind me toward the lobby. “There’s a receptionist. And a guard. Pretty sure he’s half in love with her. Or… something? Honestly, I don’t know what the hell is going on there.”

  Riker burst into laughter, loud, delighted, clapping once like I’d just delivered the best punchline of the night.

  “Oh, Charlie! Romance blooming at the scene of a crime, how delicious!” He gave another dramatic spin, arms outstretched. “You truly have a talent for stumbling into the most curious situations.”

  He paused there, then softened, just enough to feel the weight beneath the show.

  “But worry not, my radiant Ice Princess.” His grin faded into something closer to real. “I’ll handle it. Consider it done.” His head tilted, gaze steady. “Our little arrangement still holds, of course. You handle your side of the world, keep ascending, dazzling as ever, and I’ll make sure the home fires don’t burn your house down.”

  His smile edged back toward playful.

  “Agreed?”

  “I’m not backing out of our deal,” I said, holding his gaze steady. “But I need to know, Riker. Are you really on my side?”

  I leaned forward, elbows on my knees.

  “If I go in with these Gaia people… you know what that means, right?”

  His grin softened, slipping into something that almost resembled respect. “Ah, yes…” he murmured. “A temporary death.” He gave a lazy flick of his hand, like he was brushing lint off a suit jacket. “Nothing too serious.”

  “Nothing, sure,” I echoed, my jaw tightening. “But if I’m going to take that step, I need to know you’ve got my back.”

  I narrowed my eyes, voice low. “So tell me, Riker. Is there anything else? You once asked me for a revolution. Other shady deals, dangerous favors, you laying traps I don’t see yet? If there’s something, say it now. I’m not walking blind into this.”

  For once, Riker didn’t answer right away.

  Silence.

  His eyes narrowed just slightly, studying me, weighing something unseen. When he spoke again, his voice had lowered, the amusement still there, but tempered, edged with something colder beneath the velvet. “It is true,” he said softly, “you are a rather significant piece upon my little board.” He tapped a finger against his chin, thoughtful. “And yes, Miss Charlie… thus far, I consider you firmly in my camp.”

  His smile returned, but it was smaller now. “Stay true to our agreement, and I see no reason why we should not enjoy a fruitful partnership for a long while yet.”

  Then, with a soft sigh, he leaned back, the holo-image tilting his head toward the ceiling as if addressing the stars themselves. “Revolution? Oh, dearest Charlie… that is a tale for another act, years from now, if the curtain ever rises on that particular stage.”

  His gaze slid back to me.

  “And should it come to pass that your sacrifice would be required…” He paused, tapping his chest with mock solemnity. “I will, with every ounce of my considerable talents, do my utmost to ensure it never comes to that.”

  A pause. His eyes glinted.

  “After all… where’s the fun in losing a queen so early in the game?”