Page 66 of The Devil's Embrace

“More of a reason to keep your guard up.”

“He’s right,” Cal said. “Both of you need to be careful until she’s caught. The local police will be taking over from here.Ideally, she’ll have hopped on a ship and jumped planet by now, but if not, she could still be a threat to you.”

“I don’t see why she’d want to harm either of us,” Titus disagreed. “All of her victims were people who’d harmed others.”

Aodhan snorted, but when Cal turned to him, he merely shrugged. “It’s just cute that you’re worried, that’s all. But he’s right. Amory couldn’t hurt us even if she wanted to. We don’t fit the serial killer's MO.”

“Killers break pattern all the time,” Troya warned, standing. “I’m going to go give my condolences to Bruce’s wife, I didn’t get to earlier when you were speaking with her, Cal.”

The funeral home had opened up an entire hall for Bruce and his family, with hundreds of people in attendance throughout the day. There’d been a lot at the actual service as well, proof that Bruce had touched many lives and done a lot of good in his decades on Emergence. The planet had lost a great cop.

They wouldn’t be missing out on much once Calix left.

“Don’t go,” Aodhan said suddenly, surprising him. “Stay.”

Cal shook his head. It was tempting, but…His gaze wandered over to Titus, who was watching him with that eerie, unblinking expression.

“Why not?” the doctor asked. “You’re a local hero. You caught the killer, made a daring rescue at the hospital, and your name has been cleared by that Quentin guy. With you no longer a part of the I.P.F., there’s no reason for you not to stick around.”

There was one. One single reason.

But it was a good one.

“I can’t,” he said apologetically.

“Where do you plan to go?” Titus questioned, seemingly only somewhat interested despite the way he was so closely watching him.

“Alter, ever heard of it?”

His brow winged up, a rare show of surprise. “The world ship?”

“The red light district world ship, yeah.”

“Why there?”

Cal shrugged. “The I.P.F. doesn’t have jurisdiction there. It’s a good a place as any to lay low and figure out my next move.”

“Which would be?” Aodhan asked.

“I’m not sure,” he replied. “That’s why I said I have to figure it out.”

“I’m not seeing why you can’t stay then.” Aodhan dropped his hand to Calix’s thigh beneath the table.

“I just…” Cal glanced away from Titus, “can’t.”

“Leave him alone, Aodhan,” the director said. “He’s allowed to want to go.”

It was weird, but the doctor listened, removing his hand from Calix’s thigh, putting distance between them.

And if Cal didn’t like that, so what?

It didn’t change anything.

It couldn’t.

* * *

It only took another two days for everything to be filed and completely wrapped up. Cal’s retirement was approved, and he’d packed his meager things in his hotel room. The lone suitcase was in the rental car he was planning on taking to the airport, but he was making one final stop first, as per the doctor’s request.

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