Page 19 of Exposé

"You'll grow gray hair by the time they complete that request."

"That's a risk I'm willing to take." My lips curled into a smile and she laughed.

"I swear you're more married to this work than I am."

I licked my parted lips and twisted my chair. "You're not wrong." My pen hit the corner of my mouth, and I bit down as my silent phone’s shattered screen lit up.

“Are you going to get that?”

“No.” I bit the pen harder. “Someone put my number on some hookup site, and it hasn’t stopped ringing for the better part of three hours.”

“Wow. Did they tell you what site?”

I nodded. “I’m waiting for the company to respond to my email.”

Aria shook her head and sighed as I refreshed my email again. "If you're going to hemorrhage so much money in rent, you should at least make the most of the place. I can't stand staying here."

I let out a dry laugh. "That's because you have Henry."And a three-story home with a reading nook.

The smile slipped from her face. "It's not all rainbows and sunshine, you know."

I dropped my pen on the desk. "Is everything okay? Do you want to talk about it?"

She swallowed and plastered a fake smile on her face as she shook her head—my phone lighting up again. "It's nothing. Just…just don't let your work consume everything you have." Aria turned as I flipped my screen over. "I'll see you later, okay?"

"Yep." I stared at her back as she made her way towards the exit. When the door shut behind, I turned back to my computer and hit the refresh icon, then groaned.

Why is it always hurry up and wait with the government?

Light spilled out of Whitney's office, and a few stragglers hung around their desks, their keyboards clacking and mice clicking.

Are they looking into police reports and arrest records like me?

Sucking in a deep breath, I powered down my computer and gathered my things before forcing myself out of the office and toward home.

I stepped into the shadowed maw of my apartment building, the chill of the hallway wrapping around me as I drifted past the closed doors of other units where snippets of life leaked out.

Children's laughter, high-pitched and infectious, danced on the walls.

Beneath that, the low murmur of adult voices and televisions blaring the news or sitcoms.

The noise told a simple story of life.

A life I didn't have…

5

Ava

Ijolted awake with a faint gasp, my distinct car alarm hitting my ears with a shrill scream. Coldness seeped into my skin as my eyes blinked through the darkness, my heart racing at full speed.

What's going on?

Throwing my blankets to the side, I slipped out of bed, padding to the bedroom window.

The parking lot sat illuminated in the four a.m. darkness. Shadows stretched across the space before me as though they sought shelter from the eerie lamps hanging overhead.

My gaze dropped to my assigned parking space, my lights flashing in time with the horn.

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