Page 34 of Safe Haven
God, she looks more like she’s ready to take roll call than about to buy people.
“Yes, this was our last drop. Before it went to shit.” I sigh and sit back, crossing my arms.
“It’s time you tell me what went wrong so I don’t repeat the same mistake.” Apex sits on the edge of the couch, waiting for the same story.
“I honestly don’t know. Everything was moving smoothly. The area wasn’t compromised. The trucks arrived on time. The paperwork was sound. We’d worked with these guys before. It wasn’t like the cops showed up or anything.” Loki closes her eyesand sighs as if she’s having a hard time remembering the events of that night.
“One guy seemed a little jumpy. Mercy told Nightshade to keep a close eye on him, but he never left his truck. The sellers acted normally as we went through to check up until Mercy flipped the latch on the first container.” Loki opens her eyes and frowns.
“The door opened, and it was empty. The sellers looked shocked, and guns were drawn immediately. I couldn’t hear everything over the yelling, but someone pulled a trigger, and it snowballed from there. We scattered.” She looks at Nightshade, who sighs.
“The only thing I noticed that was strange was the way the driver kept checking his phone. Like he needed to be somewhere else or was waiting for someone to show up, his truck was the first gone after the bullets started flying.” I sigh and rub my forehead.
“Who shot first?” They both shook their heads.
“No way of knowing.”
“Ok, so if I were Mercy, would I be pissed more about the gun fight or the missing cargo?” Loki bites her lip in thought, but it’s Apex that answers.
“The cargo is missing. She was all about business. The shooting would have been a mild annoyance for her unless one of her own was hurt.” I nod.
“And since we’re working under the assumption they don’t know she’s dead, then I’ll stick to that. Should I know these guys’ names?” Loki passes me another photo.
“This is the only guy you ever speak to. His name is,” I cut her off, recognizing him immediately.
“Harrison Orwell.” I look up at her stunned face.
“How do you know him?”
I tap the man in the photo.
“He’s a guest professor at Notre Dame of Maryland. My professor of Pathology, to be exact. Which means he knows my face. How long have you been working with him?” The pieces of this puzzle are starting to fit together, and I’m not liking the picture they’re forming.
“This was our second drop with him. So, six months, maybe.” I try to stand and wobble.
Apex grabs my arms and steadies me.
“He started working at the university this semester. We didn’t have any interactions until about a month ago, when I had to ask him for an extension because of a case I was working on with the local police. If he thought Mercy was me under cover,” Loki seems to be the one who puts it together quickly.
“He wanted to get rid of her, and then he realized there were two of you.” I nod.
“I saw him in class that morning.”
“So a disguise is useless,” Nightshade says.
“Yup. I can play whoever the fuck I want, and he won’t know the difference. Let’s use that to our advantage.” Apex clears his throat, and I glance at him.
“What do you have cooking in that head of yours?”
I smile at him.
“He ain’t the only one with a secret identity, and I’m sure he’ll want it kept hush-hush, cause if I’m right, I know how he’s getting those girls.”
Corvin is the one who gasps.
“He’s stealing them off campuses.” It’s the perfect fucking cover since he’s only ever in the same area for a few months at a time.
“Or the surrounding areas. My niece’s daycare is on the campus where my sister worked.” Loki growls as the connections come to light.
