14. Chapter 14

fourteen

Athena

I finished up my shower, still fuming at Blake and his slut-shaming.

I had just stepped out of the tub when my phone lit up with a new notification on the countertop. I rolled my eyes when I saw that it was just a new Tinder message, but paused when I saw who it was from. How the hell was Leo Lombardi messaging me?

I opened up the app, relieved when I confirmed I was still logged into the fake profile. He didn’t somehow figure out my real identity. But the relief faded when I read the message itself.

It’s been almost 24 hrs since I saw you and 4 days since you saw me. Does your new boyfriend know what a crazy bitch you are?

My heart stopped. We all assumed it was Leo who shot at me, but now he all but confirmed it. In about ninety minutes it would be twenty-four hours since someone tried to kill me. But he’d had a lot of time since then if he knew where I was to finish the job. I was safe. If he knew how to find me he wouldn’t just stick to taunts, would he?

I recalled the threat written to my mother just before she was killed: Back off. Maybe the Morellis liked to play with their prey.

But the Morellis already knew my information. They had a way to track me down. Leo Lombardi didn’t even know what my real name was. I had no reason to believe this was a credible threat. He probably just happened to see me on the street and figured he’d take a chance.

My phone vibrated with a new message, again from Leo.

Too bad I missed. There’s always next time.

Not if he couldn’t find me.

Maybe I’ll get the Suit, too. Maybe I’ll take my time. Maybe his people won’t even recognize the body when I’m done.

Did he know that Lucas was in law enforcement? You don’t get to be a high-ranking enforcer if you’re an idiot. Maybe he would be able to find me through Lucas if he knew who Lucas was.

Maybe our date got cut too short. Maybe I’ll take my time with you, too.

Can you say predator? I logged out of the app without replying, then thought again and uninstalled the whole damn thing. I wanted nothing to do with those messages. I just wanted to dry off and keep my mind on something else.

I’d just barely flipped off the light switch in the bathroom when I heard pounding on my back door. Blake, the stupid fucking voyeur, was probably watching for the light to turn off around the edge of the curtains. I debated ignoring him and just going about my morning, but I didn’t want him to think he had reason to let himself inside and see my private investigation.

I looked down at myself, still wrapped up in a towel, dyed hair protected from moisture with a shower cap this time, and wondered how many seconds I had before he decided to try to bust down the door.

Sighing, I started down the stairs, taking off the ridiculous cap and shaking my hair out around my shoulders. It had been two days, and already my hair was starting to get some waves back. By tomorrow the curls would be even more present, so I made a mental note to allow myself enough time in the morning to take out the hair straightener again. I was down the steps and entering the kitchen when he began shouting with his insistent banging.

“Open the damn door, Athena, or I’ll break it down!”

“Christ, Blake, give me a fucking minute!” I called back, approaching the door cautiously. I paused before unlocking it, making sure my towel was secure. I took two fingers and shifted the curtain on the door a couple inches, calling through the glass. “What the hell do you want?”

“I want you to let me inside so we can talk about everything you’ve been lying to me about.”

No way that was going to happen .

“I’ve told you before and I’ll tell you again: I do not give you permission to enter my home. You want inside then come back with a warrant.” Okay, maybe that was a bit aggressive, but what did he expect, accusing me of lying to him again? Did he suddenly decide I was a criminal and want to arrest me? Again?

“I can enter if I want to if I have reasonable belief that a crime is being committed.”

I rolled my eyes. “What crime would that be?”

“Obstruction of a federal investigation.”

“I’m not obstructing shit.”

“You’re not telling me the truth, and that’s convoluting the investigation. You need to let me in right now and talk to me or I’m going to have to arrest you. And it’ll stick this time.”

Damn, that was a real possibility.

“Can I suggest a compromise?”

He grunted, so I took that as a yes.

“I will open my door to talk to you. I will answer any of the questions you ask, completely honestly, for five minutes. And then you will leave my fucking property and not come back again without a warrant. I’m tired of your shit, Special Agent Blake , so you and your protection unit can just fuck right the hell off after this.”

He paused. I peeked through the curtain again. He was glaring, but clearly considering my words. If he agreed to this, I wouldn’t have to worry about ditching him for my second interview tomorrow morning. I wouldn’t have to lie again. Because, yes, I did lie about who I spoke to on the phone, but that didn’t obstruct his investigation at all. It had nothing to do with him, and everything to do with my own mission. But I didn’t like lying to him, even if it was necessary.

I just didn’t want to do it anymore.

“Fine. You answer my questions right now and I’ll leave and not come back.”

My heart thudded.

“Fine.” I dropped the curtain and unlatched the locks, stepping behind the door as I opened it for him.

He stormed inside, making it halfway across the kitchen before he turned around at the sound of the door closing. The way his eyes bugged out was almost comical, but I was still too pissed off at him to find any real amusement.

“You couldn’t bother to get dressed before answering your door?” he hissed, like someone might overhear him in my empty house.

“Well, you started banging on my door and threatened to break down it down, so I didn’t exactly have time to make myself decent.”

He pursed his lips and avoided my gaze but didn’t offer an apology. Again. “Are you going to put on clothes now?”

His earlier words in my yard came to mind, but that only made me more stubborn. “Just to make you more comfortable? No.”

“To make yourself more comfortable?” he tried again.

“I’m plenty comfy,” I lied. I shifted my weight, popping out a hip and crossing my arms over my chest; I really didn’t want to towel to fall. Blake looked so damn uncomfortable that there was no way I was going to move now. This might be my only leverage to get him out of my house if he showed an interest in wandering out of the kitchen. I looked at the display over the stovetop. “It’s 9:26. You have four more minutes in my private residence. You better make good use of them.”

“Why did you lie about being on the phone with your father?”

He obviously figured out that my dad was dead, so there was no point in denying the lie.

“Because my private phone calls are none of your business and you were being very nosy.”

“Who was on the phone?” Wow, not even trying to hide the nosiness.

I rolled my eyes. “A potential employer. I had a job interview recently and it was a follow-up call.”

“An employer in Seattle or here in town? Are you planning on staying local?”

What was that edge in his voice? “Local, if you must know, but nothing is set in stone. I still don’t know how long I’ll be staying here.”

“How do you know Leo Lombardi?”

“This again? I told you before and I told you the truth: I went on a shitty date with him. He tried to put the moves on me, I didn’t like it, and I left.”

“Who set you up?”

“You’re wasting your time, Agent Blake. You keep asking me questions about my personal life when your suspicions about me are clearly about something bigger. You have three more minutes.”

“Your mother worked for the Morelli brothers.”

“That’s not a question. What do you want to know? ”

“What do you know about your mother’s former employers?”

“I know she worked for Hirsch I hadn’t noticed until then how soft they became when he looked at me. I almost felt bad for the lie.

But he was in the way, a distraction. I needed to get proof of the Morellis’ wrongdoing, and I couldn’t do that with a shadow over my shoulder. They still needed to pay for my wonderful, honest, beautiful mother’s death.

I’d never forgive Lucas if I ruined my last lead by getting involved with him. I needed to get him as far away as possible.

“Now get the fuck out of my house.”