Page 102 of Secret Weapon

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EMMY

“How many people did you think we were feeding?”

“I didn’t know what everyone wanted.”Black shrugged.“So I just called the restaurant and ordered seven of everything.”

“The delivery guy probably got a hernia.”

“I tipped him thirty percent.”

There was a mountain of food.A literal mountain.At times like this, I really missed Bradley.He’d have emailed a menu and hounded everyone until they provided their choices.

“You didn’t even know whatyouwanted to eat?”

Black considered that for a moment.“Maybe we can reheat the leftovers for lunch tomorrow?”

“Yeah, and then we can invite every homeless person in Los Angeles County in for a filling meal, and we’ll still have enough left for dinner.”

The delivery guy was probably off to the Maldives to celebrate his windfall, and tomorrow morning, we’d read about a state-wide shortage of olives and passata.

Hallie appeared in the doorway and gaped.“How many people are we expecting?”

“Just the six of us plus Vance.”Vance’s work on the Pinchy-slash-Mike case had been solid, and he was one of the best investigators in Blackwood’s LA office, so we’d recruited him onto the team.Black had given him a basic briefing earlier.“I hope you’re hungry.”

“I’m hungry, but I’m not planning to take up competitive eating anytime soon.Should I go find Ana?”

“If you wouldn’t mind.”The intercom by the door buzzed.“Could you let Vance in too?”

“Sure.”

From the corner of my eye, I saw Alex and Darya exit the guest house, hand in hand.Black didn’t miss that little factoid either, I could tell by his expression.

“Told you they had some weird connection.”

“You think it’ll go anywhere?”he asked.

“Yeah, I do.”

“Does that worry you?”

“A little.”I’d be lying if I said it didn’t.Darya was still something of an unknown quantity, and she lived on the other side of the country.“Will Alex want to move to Oregon?It’s a possibility, and one I don’t much like, but he enjoys his job.Darya might say she’s settled in Baldwin’s Shore, and true, she has a business there, but I’m sensing she’s got itchy feet.”

“And you decided to tickle them by bringing her here?”

“If she’s as good as Ana says, and I think she is, then she’d be a useful addition to the team.”

Yesterday, she’d come damn close to doing me a serious injury.Too close for comfort, if I was honest, which made her a great candidate for the Special Projects division.

“You think she’d work for Blackwood?”

“Honestly?No.But she’s not rolling in money, and I think she might freelance if the conditions were right.”

“One of those conditions being Alex?”

“Exactly.If I’d asked her to come here, she’d have told me to go to hell, but he persuaded her to join us.”

“Shame you got off on the wrong foot.”

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