Page 108 of The Eagle's Vault

I let out a low hum, catching Rav’s eye as I shifted the conversation to the subject none of us could ignore—the Fenix Group and those sketches from the folio.

“So…” I popped a pecan into my mouth, the sugar and cinnamon coating dancing over my tastebuds. “We have any ideas where these Fenix folks might be hiding?”

Rav stared out the window. “Brie’s team is already on it.”

“And?”

“She’s tracking a connection with Gideon Tremaine.”

“The tech billionaire?” If I had my billionaires right, he’d made his money in security. Started with virus protection and gradually moved up to government contracts and chip manufacturing.

Rav nodded. “Apparently, he owns a data storage company that Brie suspects is hosting servers for some heavy-duty criminals. Fenix included.”

Emmett leaned forward, the remnants of his cuts and bruises still etched on his face. “If there’s a chance to take them down, I want in.”

The fierceness in his voice was unlike him. He was another friend who’d been changed by the events of the last month. He used to be the easy-going one. Now there was a darkness underlying it.

“And what about the photos of Scarlett at the Albrecht house?” I’d been in the shadows for that event, covered from head to toe, so it wouldn’t matter if someone snapped pictures of me scaling the side of the house. “I can’t imagine Enzo was the only one with copies.”

Rav’s face hardened, his intense protectiveness of Scarlett on full display. “Brie’s team is also working on her cover story, in case they surface.”

Good. The last thing we needed was legal attention. A month ago, Scarlett had suggested we stick to fully above-board work for a while. But Fenix had drawn us into their web.

As we lifted into the sky, my mind churned with questions. A billionaire, a data storage facility, and whispers of eternity. Scarlett said Noah had mentioned resurrection.

Like the literal phoenix.

Who were they? And why did we keep running into them?

Epilogue

Leigh

Isteeredmycarinto the Barton Safes and Locks parking lot Wednesday morning. Glancing over at Declan, his hazel eyes focused on the building’s facade, my insides twisted a bit more. A sense of dread grew in my chest. One part of it was Isaac’s mysterious disappearance, the other was the prospect of introducing Declan to my father. I put the car into park and tugged at a loose thread on my jeans, thoughts looping in my mind.

We’d discussed his team’s break-in, when he found the Codex case specifications. I’d built something to house a stolen manuscript. And the Reynolds team had gotten it back. I was still coming to terms with it, and he hadn’t been able to tell me everything, but some part of me understood.

At least, I understood enough to bring him here. Enough to understand Isaac had copied my specs for the Fenix Group.

How was I going to introduce him? Boyfriend? Was that what Declan was? We agreed he’d stick around Boston for a couple of weeks, but the whole ‘what happens next’ question remained unanswered. The corner of his mouth twitched upward, as if he’d read my mind.

“Think you can handle this?” A hint of concern tinged his question.

I forced a smile, my gaze sliding back to the shop. It was familiar territory, a place I’d grown up around. But the events of the past few days cast a new, harsh light on it.

“I told Dad I’m bringing in a consultant I met in Rome to help streamline things.” The piece of thread pulled out like it hadn’t belonged. “He doesn’t know about us.”

Declan put his fingers under my chin and tilted my face up. “You don’t have to shrink yourself to make others happy, Leigh. That includes me. If you want to keep this professional, I can do that.”

I sucked in a quick breath. “I don’t want it strictly professional.”

His lips twitched into a grin. “Thank god, because I wasn’t sure I could manage that.”

I let out a laugh, more from relief than amusement.

He leaned over, pressing a soft kiss to my cheek.

My heart fluttered. “I don’t want to tell them just yet about us…”

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