Page 65 of Hard Limits

How his life had changed in just a few short months. Things that had once seemed so important, suddenly they weren’t so vital anymore. Two years had passed since he visited France, longer still since he took a trip with no agenda, no people to see or places to be. When had he last done something impulsive? Something totally unplanned? Probably…nine years ago, not long before Ruby’s murder. He’d gone to pick up a burrito with Jerry, found the restaurant had been closed due to a health violation, and ended up on the summit of a volcano in Uruapan. Her idea, not his, but he’d gone along with it. He’d also twisted an ankle on the descent, and they never did get the damn burritos.

Upon reflection, those days in Blackstone House had been the best of his life. True, he’d never had any money, but he did have a hell of a lot of friends. And fun, even with Jerry. She’d kept herself to herself most of the time, and she’d had an unfortunate tendency to act like a cold-hearted bitch, but beneath the icy surface lurked a wild streak.

Whatever happened with Meera, he vowed not to spend quite so much time working in the future. When he was old and grey, he wanted to remember the adventures, not the inside of his office.

A knock at the door woke him, soft but insistent. Was it time yet? Had Carissa arrived? A glance at his watch told him that was impossible—at eight a.m., she’d still be in the skies above flyover country.

“Mr. Vale?” Meera opened the door a crack. “Are you awake?”

“Why are you here so early?”

“I…I’m worried about you. Did you stay here all night?”

“Yes, but at least I slept.”

“Do you want coffee yet? Something to eat?” She eyed the empty Scotch bottle on his desk. “Tylenol?”

“Just coffee.”

“There’s somebody waiting in reception to see you. I told her that you were unavailable, but she’s not taking ‘no’ for an answer.”

“Who is it? I blocked out my schedule today.”

“She introduced herself as Alexa, but she wouldn’t give a surname.”

Now Brax sat up. Alexa? No, Alexa didn’t do face-to-face meetings. Alexa hid herself away in dark corners, both on the internet and in the real world.

“What does she look like?”

“Petite, blonde, young. Very young. There are two men with her, but she wouldn’t tell me who they were either.”

Fuck, it really was Alexa?

“She’s actually the same age as you.”

“Are you sure? No, I don’t think so. She looks about sixteen.”

And when she’d claimed to be sixteen, she’d looked twelve.

“Send her through.”

“And the men?”

“Them too.”

“Should I make coffee for everyone?”

“Why not? Cream and one sugar for Alexa. I don’t know about the others.”

Why would Alexa come to the office? There could only be one reason—she’d been meddling again. Alexa was fond of breaking rules and societal norms. Call it a hobby. Sometimes she interfered for the better, and sometimes she interfered for the worse. Such as the time she hacked a pizza delivery app soon after she moved into Blackstone House and sent food all over the neighbourhood. If she liked you, you got a supreme with extra cheese. If she didn’t like you, you got a margherita with triple jalapeños. What was the reason for this carb overload? The owner of the pizza place had hit a dog with his car outside Blackstone House. Deliberately, according to Ruby, who’d witnessed the incident. Alexa was terrified of dogs, but she liked assholes even less.

“Uh, Mr. Vale? Do you think I could take a slightly longer lunch break today? I can make up the time this evening. I just have a personal errand to run, and—”

“Take the rest of the day off.”

“That really isn’t necessary.”

“Take the day off, and don’t be late tomorrow morning.”

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