Page 39 of Undercover Savior

“Good morning,” said Sullivan, looking over at me.

All I could think to ask was what was going on here, so I remained quiet, looking instead for tea. When I saw it and a modest breakfast set out on the sideboard behind me, I turned my back to both.

“Gus informed me Periscope is ready to talk but only to me.”

“What will you do?” Tag asked.

“I’ve not much choice, do I?”

Without facing him, I knew he’d bristled. Maybe not visibly to Sullivan.

“Have you heard from Con this morning?” I asked before remembering Gus had said he was at Ashcroft.

“I anticipate he’ll be here within the hour. I was just telling Sullivan I was anxious to hear about his meeting with Fallon Wallace.”

When I turned around, my gaze met Sullivan’s. Had she realized I’d kept the meeting from her?

“Prior to that briefing, I’ll be meeting with him privately.”

Tag nodded and retook his seat. Unlike what I would’ve expected from the usually inquisitive Sullivan, she didn’t ask why.

When I sat at the table and noticed she had her laptop with her, I wished I would’ve thought to bring mine. Not that it would distract me enough to pull me out of my dark mood.

There was a reason I was a loner. I preferred silence over a conversation more often than not. Yes, kissing Sullivan had been a dream come true, but that was all it had been. A silly kid’s fantasy come to life. After not seeing each other for over twenty years, we weren’t friends. I wasn’t certain if we had been even then.

“Are you all right?” Sullivan leaned in and whispered.

“Perfectly fine,” I said right before taking a bite of the croissant I’d taken from the sideboard’s breakfast offerings.

Before I finished eating, Gus and Con arrived. I was about to propose the private meeting I’d wanted with the latter, but thought better of it. As I reminded myself, my plan was for Sullivan to brief the crew, as Typhon called us, and study his reaction.

After suggesting we remain in the dining room, I excused myself to get my computer. I took the stairs two at a time, and when I came out of the suite after retrieving it, Sullivan was waiting for me.

“You seem angry.”

“Professional. Not angry.”

She folded her arms, and her head snapped back as if I’d struck her. Or threatened to. She spun on her heel and went downstairs.

“Sullivan—” When she didn’t stop or respond, I returned to the suite and sat on the bed. A few minutes later, I heard a rap at the door.

My first reaction was to tell whoever it was to go away. On the off chance it was her returning, I got up and went to the door.

“Gus,” I said, turning around.

“Ash. We’re waiting on you.”

“One would think you’d be able to conduct a meeting without my input.”

“The meeting you called?”

“I didn’t…I suppose I did.”

He stepped inside and shut the door behind him. “Is this about Periscope?”

“In part. The other thing is I’m in unfamiliar territory with Sullivan. I handled things poorly yesterday. As a result, she’s expecting her boyfriend to show up rather than a Unit-23 assassin who, at the end of the day, shouldn’t be involved in her investigation. More, Typhon never should’ve assigned me detail work.”

“Easy enough solution, then.”

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