Page 48 of Cold Heir

“Hey, everything okay?” I answered.

“Cori,” Liv replied, nearly panting. “Something’s wrong.”

Right away, hearing the panic in her tone, I pushed the covers aside and my feet touched the carpet. “What is it? Is everyone okay?”

“Yes, I mean no,” she stammered. “Jonesy and Dev were taking a vanload of transports to the docks for extraction, but Spencer never showed!” I could feel her nervous energy bleeding through the phone. It made myownheart race. “He’s never even been late, Cori. So, I know without a doubt he’d never stand us up.”

She was completely right about that. Spencer had been aiding our cause for years—for a sizable fee, of course. Decades, considering the connection with him was established by my parents, before I was even in the picture. Yes, what drove him initially was the hefty sum we paid him, but he was a loyal resource nonetheless.

One our operation couldn’t rightly function without, not now.

“Breathe,” I instructed. “Where are Jonesy and Dev now? Have they made it back safely? Are they certain they weren’t tailed?”

“Yes, and yes, but they waited for him all night,” she rambled again. “And he just … didn’t show.”

“Liv, what’s important is that the guys and transports made it back safely. Let’s focus on that a moment, and leave the Spencer dilemma to me. I’ll see what I can find out on my end, and I’ll get back to you as soon as I know something.”

“I’ll be waiting,” she assured me after a few calming breaths, sounding more like herself. There wasn’t a doubt in my mind she would be.

The call ended, and I racked my brain to figure out how on Earth I was going to find outanythingabout the outside from in here. Yet, this was too big a deal not to trysomething.If our connection to the island had been severed, our operation would have to temporarily shut down, until the issue was solved.

What a morning.

The floor creaked when I stood, and Elle must have heard it, because the second I was officially on my feet, she came bounding back into the suite.

“How are your friends?” she piped, completely missing the look of distress I was certain I had plastered across my face.

“They’re fine,” I answered, leaving out the details Liv had shared.

“Glad to hear it.” Elle paused to toss me an apple, and I caught it at the last second. “You should eat. Prince Julian suggested that I take you for a walk this morning. Oh! And he asked me to give you this.”

I didn’t miss her cheeky grin when she finished speaking,orthe suggestive way she bounced her brow at me.

It was another envelope, but this one didn’t carry with it the same heavy sense of doom and gloom as the one from the Magistrates. No, the one I held now was crafted of expensive paper and had my name written in beautiful script on it. Pulling the card free from inside, I realized it was an invitation.

“He wants to court you,” Elle revealed with a giggle, before I even had the chance to read, but she was right.

“He’d like to know if I’ll accompany him to dinner this evening,” I shared, as if she hadn’t already peeked at it.

“Yes, and he wants to give you a close-up view of the city,” she added, nearly bouncing out of her skin with excitement. If I didn’t know any better, I’d thinkshewas invited, too. “Will you accept?”

I stared at the invitation, feeling so many emotions. Anxious about the Magistrates. Concerned for my team, for Spencer. Hopeful anticipation at the idea of spending the evening with Julian.

“I accept,” I nodded.

“Ah! Perfect!” She squealed. “I have theperfectdress! And theperfectstyle we can do to your hair.”

Pretending to be as excited about playing dress up as she was, I mocked her a bit. “Perfect!”

“I know, right? Get dressed and meet me downstairs for our walk. Then we’ll head back and get everything laid out.”

She left like a whirlwind, riding high on the prospect of dolling me up for the night. I managed to smile a little at her antics despite all the other thoughts that swam around in my head. Without giving my actions much thought, I pulled on a pair of shorts and a tank top for our morning exercise, managing to get the apple down in a few bites. As I exited my room, I was almost certain this day wasn’t done with me.

What other surprises are in store?

Lost in thought, I nearly smacked right into Silas. Had it not been for his quick reflexes, we would have collided for sure.

“Oh, shoot! Sorry,” I chuckled, still feeling a bit rattled from the conversation with Liv.

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