Page 23 of Savage Ruin
After sliding on a large t-shirt that uses a formula to say “I ate some PI… and it was delicious”, which obviously belongs to Mateo, I slip my feet into my worn out running shoes.
When I get to the hallway, I ignore the door to my right and head to the foyer. Once there, I contemplate a walk on the beach, but I need to get away from everything Santos for at least a few minutes and breathe. Reset. Punching in the code on my phone, I turn off the security alarm and head out.
The sky is sort of grey with a hint of the sun popping up to the east. I swear I would flip off the sun if I didn’t think it would make me look crazy.
With a quick pivot to the right, I hit the street. The urge to run is a drum beating inside of me, but I ignore it and stick with a steady, slow walking pace. I can’t afford a setback now. I need to get better, figure out my next steps, and find a life. Less virtual, more real world. With people who want me.
Mateo’s grin appears, and I slow my walk. I like Mateo and I know he likes me, too. He definitely wants to be with me. But can I be with him and ignore the others? Why couldn’t I just be attracted to him? Someone cool, fun to hang out with, smart, caring, good-looking—essentially Mateo.
Maybe I should stop thinking for a while. Enjoy my time with Mateo. Keep things polite, but distant, with Grayson and Thiago.
There are immediate things to do, like getting the software into the hands of doctors and defeating our enemies. Longer term, I need to figure out whether I want to run my company from Miami or work with SEI remotely. We’re tied together whether we like it or not—the shares Marcos left me cemented it, but it doesn’t mean we need to physically be near each other. The work can continue anywhere. It would be for the best. After the threat is eliminated, of course.
Resolved, I turn around and make my way back to the house. Beads of sweat roll down my face. With all the thoughts swirling in my brain, my walk was longer than I originally planned, but it felt so good to be moving again.
As I near the gate to the house, Thiago’s standing there in a black tank and shorts, hair matted with sweat, and a ferocious scowl on his face. I falter for a second, then force my shoulders back and meet his eyes.
“Where the hell have you been? It’s not safe for you to leave the house by yourself. You didn’t tell anyone or leave a note. What if something happened? How would we find you?” His hands are moving rapidly while he fires question after question at me.
“Thiago, the whole neighborhood is going to hear you. I went for a walk. You can easily track me with my phone. If you’ll excuse me, I’m going inside to get a shower.” I walk slowly through the gate and up to the house, ignoring the man beside me every step of the way.
He takes a deep breath. “Henley,” he says gruffly. “If you want to take a walk, let me know. I’ll go with you, okay?”
“No,” I refuse to comply with his request. “If I want to take a walk, I will. We’re in a gated community, and honestly, I’m a bit tired of hiding. Please excuse me.” I enter my room and close the door behind me.
A thud hits the door. “We’re not done with this conversation,” he informs me. “We’ll pick it up later.”
Ignoring him, I head toward the shower. A grin breaks out. My grumpy mood is gone. Maybe this early bird thing isn’t so bad after all. I scoff at the thought. Let’s not get carried away…
* * *
Mateo’s waitingfor me when I get out. “I hear you dressed yourself and went out for a walk this morning?” He smiles broadly. “Good for you. Do you want help or have you got it?”
The leggings were hard to pull on, but dressing didn’t kill me, and it felt good to do it myself. “I’ve got it. Are we having a meeting today with the app development team?”
He lifts his arm and checks his watch. “In two hours. Nine a.m. Are you going to come down for breakfast?” He tilts his head, assessing me closely.
“I’ll be down in an hour. I want to check my email and take care of a few things,” I assure him.
“I miss helping you dress already,” he states with mock sadness. “But on the bright side, if you’re getting better… maybe I’ll be lucky enough to undress you someday soon.” With a whistle, he strolls out of the room.
He makes it so easy to like him.
Instead of leggings, I find a loose pair of joggers in the stash I ordered before I left for Dallas. I run my fingers across the clothing Grayson bought me. I should really get Peyton over here to help me put some outfits together. I haven’t a clue what’s appropriate or not, and while the invites are scarce right now, I’m hoping I’ll have more events to attend in my new “life.” Maybe a date or… another ball. I smile when I see the fabulous peacock dress hanging in the back of the closet. It would have been a shame to lock this up as evidence in the police department’s basement.
The club chair in the room is perfect for getting some work done this morning. With a pillow added to the back, I prop myself up and get comfortable.
Opening my email, I see a request from Sterling for a new ID and passport. The picture inside is a beautiful young woman with dark brown hair and eyes. Twenty-two years old. With her dark complexion, I can easily choose from a variety of backgrounds.
Accessing my files, I flip through the options and decide to use Isabella Rossi. Once I’ve chosen her identity, I quickly set up her background and pay a hacker friend to print the necessary materials and overnight them to Sterling.
Getagoodlife:You’ve been gone longer than usual this time. Glad to have you back and spending all that beautiful BTC with me.
Nyx:Ha! You only care about my bitcoin. ;-) Let me know if you run into any issues or delays. Thanks for rushing this one.
Although I paid for the rush, it’s considerably less than what he charges others. Getagoodlife appreciates frequent customers, and since he’s one of the best forgers in the business, he’s my number one resource for passports and IDs. It’s still expensive. Thankfully, I can set up the backgrounds myself.
I shoot off a text to Sterling to let him know the background’s done and details have been uploaded to the designated spot. The physical IDs will be in his hands tomorrow morning. He returns withta, simply smashing, darling.
