Page 42 of Property of Spike

I take another bite, then another. It’s slow, but he doesn’t rush me. Just sits there, steady, patient, feeding me like it’s the only thing in the world that matters.

And maybe to him, it is.

Tears well up again, blurring my vision. “I don’t know how to get him back,” I whisper, my voice barely there.

Spike goes still, his jaw tightening. His hand clenches into a fist on his thigh, but when he speaks, his voice is deadly calm.

“I do.”

Something in his tone sends a shiver down my spine. A promise. A threat.

He’s not just saying it to make me feel better.

He means it.

***Spike***

After making sure Riley is settled and asleep in my office, I head straight to the war room.

“Who do you want in on this?” Tank asks as I step inside.

“Just the officers, Maverick, and Mike,” I say, scanning the room.

Tank raises a brow. “You trust him?”

I hesitate for half a second before nodding. “Yeah.”

Ten minutes later, Mike’s sitting in one of the chairs, his hands clasped together, tension rolling off him in waves.

“Was Maverick able to get your sister transferred?” I ask.

Mike exhales, shaking his head in disbelief. “I don’t know how, but she’s being released. She’ll be under house arrest for a year, but at least she’ll be home.”

“That wasn’t me,” Maverick says. “It was the Obsidian.”

“I’ve got news on that front, too,” Skip chimes in, flipping through a folder. “Knox found someone to fill the tech gap we’ve got. Guy’s name is Zane Foster. Thirty-seven. No family. And according to Knox, smart as fuck.” He smirks. “Was arrested last year for hacking into the Secret Service database. They had himdead to rights, but all proof of his involvement disappeared, so they had to let him go.”

Knuckles lets out a low whistle. “Why the hell did he do that?”

Skip shrugs. “According to Knox, just to see if he could.”

The room falls silent for a beat.

I lean back against the table, crossing my arms. “And he’s looking for a job?”

“Yep,” Skip nods. “He was a firefighter but they refused to hire him back after he got released. Knox says he was bored.”

A guy like that being bored? Dangerous. But useful.

“Set up a meeting,” I say. “Let’s see what he can do. Mike, I know things didn’t go as planned, but did you meet up with Chuck?”

“Yeah,” he nods. “But he was flighty. Felt like he was in a rush to leave.”

“Did he say anything?”

“Not really,” Mike says. “He just wanted an update on any incoming shipments.”

“He gets his hands on a single transport, and we’re fucked,” Tank says. “Maybe we should back off for a little while.”

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