Page 12 of Fate Awakened

I crack my eye open, scan for my phone, and catch sight of it underneath the pillow on the other side of the bed. Last night is a blur of drinking and hot distractionary sex. The blonde sprawled on top of me is Mila, one of my regular hookups who I reached out to in an effort to avoid another empty night alone in my big house. She knows my rules, and we frequently satisfy each other's needs without unnecessary emotional hang-ups.

I stretch out my hand and bring the phone up, using facial recognition to open the device. The notification is from the app that controls my security system; from the looks of it, it has been going off for the last few hours.

Well, shit.

Sliding out from underneath Mila, I head into her bathroom to use the facilities and look at the issue with my system. The surveillance app consists of mostly open-source code that I customized to suit my particular enhanced security needs.

I installed the cameras, scanners, heat, and trip sensors entirely off the grid and housed them on my servers both in the home and an offsite silo. I’d gone so far as to purchase the entire customized kit through black market dealers to disguise the locations of the devices and eliminate the possibility that anyone could find their frequencies within the house. In terms of surveillance, my system rivals the Pentagon, and my software upgrades blow them away.

The app shows fourteen new alerts, and I open them one by one, my jaw clenching and my mood sinking more with each minute of footage I watch.

That fucking bastard!

Elle’s criminal, fake student-boyfriend broke into my house. Not only did he break in, but he also brought friends, and one of them took my drives. My blood pressure begins to build as overwhelming anger fills me. Part of it stems from the invasion of my personal space, but the other part lies in the fact that one could circumvent my coded doors and disarm all the alarms without ever entering a password.

The shock hits me that if I had been home when they arrived instead of tangled up with Mila, I’d be dead.

I watch as they scan the rooms like professional SWAT team members, ensuring the space is clear of any assailants and allowing coverage as they move with a fluidity that only comes from repeated practice.

Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.

I set my phone on the counter and grab its edge with both hands gripping tightly while exhaling the tension in order to clear my head.

Focus on the facts. Focus on what you can control.

Ok. Cain must know I still have the code.

Where the fuck has K been?

As I think about it, I haven’t heard from him in weeks. He stopped responding to my messages before the offsite raid. Of course, the money keeps getting deposited into my account, and the email requests haven’t stopped for the continuous code commits, but nothing about K’s side project, and now this fucking guy is at my house, hanging around my best friend, not to mention the fact that he came to take everything K had given me.

Well, not everything.

This is becoming far more of a shitstorm than I ever imagined. If I hadn’t already gotten a good look at the code, I’d be wondering if any of it was worth the hassle. But that code is exquisite, and even if I wasn’t clear on all of the inner workings, I can tell whoever wrote it knows what they’re doing. It pushes the envelope on all current AI and systemic machine learning. That code has the ability to be the foundation of a new future technology, and I wanted to dive into every line of it.

What the fuck do I have that’s worth sending the team to my home?

It took everything in me to leave it on ice the last few weeks while trying to let the whole project blow over until I could bring it up again. But, unfortunately, based on the criminal team that just broke into my home, this isn’t blowing over, and I need to find some leverage to get myself out of this, and I need it soon.

One of the biggest hurdles in this situation is that Elle is now involved. Him working with her can’t just be a coincidence. I’ve put myself into many not-so-ethical or above-board situations, but I’d never risk Elle. I’m meticulous about security precautions, so the fact that they can trace who I am, and find Elle through me, sends me into a panic. I can’t lose her, but more than that, she’s been through too much to be part of this. She’s too good to be dragged down by my carelessness.

I have to find a way to get him away from her.

My eyes lift to the mirror. A silent determination asserts itself within me as I promise myself that no matter what else happens from all this, Elle will be safe. I’ll protect her, or I’ll die trying.

After washing up, I return to the bedroom with a newfound calm, gather my clothes, and get dressed. Mila crawls her way over to me as I pull on my socks, and she kisses a line down the side of my neck. Her hands slide themselves around my chest.

“Leaving without saying goodbye, baby?” she purrs into my ear with a nibble. Relaxing to indulge for a moment, I turn, grab her, and lift her easily onto my lap as she squeals. Her thighs straddle mine, and the thin material covering her core does little to hide how ready she is for another round.

“Darling, I assumed you were worn out from last night. I didn’t want to disturb that rest you were getting.” I kiss her, pulling at her swollen bottom lip with my teeth until she moans into my mouth and grinds her center against my now fully awake length. My hands glide over her exposed ass before playing with the hem of the thong lying across her hip.

“Stay. You can have me for breakfast,” she requests, eyes looking up at me from beneath her lashes as she continues to tease me over my pants. I allow her to continue riding me momentarily before I dig my thumbs into her hips, squeezing her firmly and holding her steady to stop the rhythm she’s creating.

“As much as I wish I could spend this morning rehashing the highlights of last night, I have something that’s come up that needs my attention immediately,” I state, using the grip on her hips to lift her off me. A whimper leaves her mouth as I set her back on the bed and continue sliding on my shoes.

“Can I see you tonight or tomorrow?” her question rolls off her tongue with longing behind it that sends warning signals to my brain. My spine straightens as I steel myself.

Shit. Another one.

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