Page 40 of Breakup Games

“Yeah.”

“Okay, stay on the phone. I’m coming over.”

She lets out a breath. “No, it’s okay. I’m…I’m fine.”

“Mira,” I say slowly. “You’re rattled and I’m assuming you’re talking about Enzo.”

“Yeah. I-I…I just realized I didn’t give you any context to what I was talking about.”

“It’s okay,” I tell her, already getting up. I’ve stripped down to just my boxers and I brush popcorn off my shirt and onto the ground before getting up. “Walk me through what happened.”

“I took Violet to the courtyard to go potty before bed. She noticed someone in the bushes along the fence line. It startled me and when they saw me looking, they took off. But the wind shifted and whoever that was had on the same cologne Enzo was wearing this evening. I mean, he’s not the only one in the city who wears that old-man aftershave, but…”

“But it’s pretty coincidental.” I go into my room and grab a pair of athletic pants. Enzo has already shown us that he has a bit of an obsessive personality and a huge sense of entitlement. It’s not out of the question for him to go after Mira. And if he found out where she lives, then he knows she really is Mira, not Mya. “I’m coming over.”

“You really don’t have to.”

“I know,” I say. “I want to.”

“Thank you.” I can hear the relief in her voice and I quickly grab a few things, including my gun and my badge.

“How long were you able to track him for?” she asks, and I know she means Enzo.

“Farther than we’ve been able to before,” I tell her, knowing the vagueness is annoying. But it is what it is. Whoever was driving left the city and headed toward Indiana. We lost footage but were able they went through a toll on I-80/94 in Northwest Indiana. We lost them from there but the Indiana State Police are on the lookout and will call if they find anything.

Traffic wasn’t bad, but would Enzo have time to make it back into Lincoln Park by now? In theory…maybe. He would have to be driving pretty fast and we didn’t get any more hits from tolls for that particular car, though we can't be certain he didn’t get out at some point. All it would have taken was for them to pullover in a place where they know there aren’t any cameras and for Enzo to jump out and get into another car.

“My phone’s about to die,” Mira tells me.

“Go plug it in and stay by it. I’ll be there as soon as I can and I’ll call you when I’m on my way up.”

“I’ll have to buzz you in.”

“Pshhh. I can just tell everyone I’m an FBI agent,” I say.

“Ahh, how could I forget,” she says back and I can tell she’s smiling.

“No, I’ll text you so I don’t draw attention. Double check your doors are locked. Windows, too.”

“They are.” She inhales. “Thanks again, Mason.”

Hearing her say my name sends a jolt through me.

“I’ll be there soon.”

“I feel like I overreacted,”Mira tells me when I step into her apartment. Violet comes running, jumping up at me for attention. “She’s a great guard dog, as you can tell.” Shaking her head, Mira grabs her collar and pulls her back. “Sorry.”

“Nah, it’s all right. I like dogs. I’d have one if I was home more.”

“Okay good. She doesn’t know personal boundaries.”

I look around, taking everything in. The apartment smells good, like lemongrass, and is neat and tidy but looks lived in. She has a wall of books behind her couch—looking just like how it does on her Instagram photos—and the pink and gold theme of her decor just seems to suit her. This place is nice and isn’t cheap. The living room is open to the dining area and kitchen, which has a decent sized island counter and a large windowfacing north. We’re close enough you could probably see the lake in the daylight.

“I had an officer drive by,” I tell her and straighten up after petting Violet. She takes my shoe as soon as I take it off, wagging her tail so hard her whole body wiggles.

“She does that,” Mira explains and takes the shoe from her. “It’s a Golden Retriever thing. Did they see anything?”

“No, but that doesn’t discredit what you saw.”

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