Page 71 of Preferential Treatment

“Oh.” Kate couldn’t quite breathe. “So, he’s not the majority shareholder anymore? He gave that up for m—for his employees?”

“I guess.”

“He might actually be a decent human being,” Anna said as she finished dealing. “He’s the one who saved Margaret’s Arms from closing down.”

“Did you know about all this?” Kate asked Naomi.

On the other side of the table, Naomi grimaced. “Yeah, sorry. I didn’t bring it up, because you were so upset after quitting. I didn’t want to rub salt in the wound.” She shot an accusatory glance at Theo.

“No, it’s fine. I… I’m fine.”

“Maybe they’ll hire you back,” Naomi suggested. “They kept calling and calling after you quit.”

“…Maybe,” Kate agreed softly, mind spinning.

The conversation shifted as the game began, and Kate played the worst five rounds of her life. She lost resoundingly each time, earning heckles from Theo and unnervingly contemplative looks from Anna. And for once, she didn’t care.

When she and Naomi got home that night, there was a small package sitting in front of their door. It hadn’t gone through the mail—it was a plain box, with only Kate’s name written on it in blocky letters. She picked it up and carried it inside and then sat on the couch and stared at it.

“Aren’t you going to open it?” Naomi asked.

“I’m afraid to.”

Naomi backed away a step. “Is it dangerous?”

“No. Not like that.” Taking a deep breath, Kate forced herself to rip the tape off.

Inside the plain cardboard box, a square velvet jewelry box was nestled in packing foam. She pulled it out and cradled it in her palm for a minute. If it was an engagement ring, she wasn’t sure what she’d do.

“Open it,” Naomi urged.

Taking another breath, Kate did. There was no ring inside. Instead, he’d sent her the Marian medallion he’d always worn around his neck.

“Oh my god,” she breathed. Her eyes burned and her throat tightened.

“There’s a note,” Naomi said softly, pulling a slip of paper from the cardboard box. She handed it to Kate.

Knyazhna,

I did not know what love was until you took it from me. Please give me your heart back, because you already have mine.

With love always,

Your Mishka.

“Is that the guy who’s been texting you?” Naomi asked excitedly. She gasped. “Is that why you quit Domovoy? He was your coworker!”

“Um. Sort of.”

At the bottom of the note was a date, time, and a set of coordinates.

“What is this, a scavenger hunt?” Naomi asked, wrinkling her nose.

A scavenger hunt didn’t sound very Mikhail-like. Kate picked up her phone to check the coordinates—it brought her to a specific point in Lincoln Park. After a moment, she realized that she knew that particular spot. It was the Chess Pavilion.

He wanted to meet here there. Tomorrow.

Well, that just wasn’t going to work.

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