Page 44 of Reclaiming Adelaide

“Why do you care?”

“Call it a vested interest.”

“Well, don’t worry about me. I’ll get out of your hair.” I took a bite of the folded cheesy bread when he grabbed my arm and stepped in really close, his breath moving my hair.

“If you think about taking off again, I’ll lock you back in that room.” He pulled me away from my food dinging in the microwave and forced me to sit back on my stool. “Now tell me about who’s after you.”

I shoved the next bite into my mouth, then another and another, until I’d devoured the whole thing, then pulled the sandwich toward me he’d pulled out of the microwave. “Do you have any juice?”

He dipped into the fridge and poured me a glass of orange juice. “Who’s Black Dog?”

I stopped chewing, my stomach sinking like a heavy rock to the bottom of the lake.

“Where did you hear that name?”

“Your little chat group.” He placed his hands on the edge of the counter and leaned like he did that night at the bar when we’d first met.

I sucked in a deep breath. “You may know them as Sev Shun.” I gulped the juice he handed to me, then bit into the next sandwich.

“Sev Shun… I know that name.” He popped the juice back into the fridge after pouring himself a glass.

“Who’s house is this?”

“My friend, but you should know that already seeing as you stalked them.”

I rolled my eyes and took another bite. “I never followed them,” I said, talking around my food. “You assumed I did.”

“And with good reason, Adelaide.”

I slowed my chewing and put my food down, lowering my gaze to the countertops. I rubbed my hands together, removing the bits of bread stuck to my fingertips.

“You know, had I known any of this when I’d started, I would’ve gone to the ends of the world to make sure you knew.”

“Knew what?”

“That they targeted your company.”

My stomach knotted, and I rubbed my hand over my mouth, the rest of my food no longer interesting me.

“You mean whenyoutargeted my company? Don’t distance yourself from them. You’re just as guilty as they are.”

“Which is exactly why, when I found out, I quit. Holeo ghosted me. He blocked me from the groups and him. In fact, once I found out, he placed ransomware on the server—”

“I’m not interested,” he snapped.

I’d wanted to tell him everything, like I needed air to survive, but fear had held me back. And now that he knew and hated me, I had nothing to lose.

“Just listen to me, Jake.”

“I don’t want to hear it. No matter what you say, I’ll never trust you again.”

“So why? Why are you helping me then? I don’t get it.”

“I told you. I have a vested interest.”

I picked up the remains of my food, no longer interested in eating, and tossed it into the trash. “Mind sharing what this ‘agenda’ of yours is?”

“Tell me about Sev Shun.”

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