Page 4 of Buying Time

My clients hired me because they wanted to live, typically, and they did as I said because they valued their lives. Did she not care about hers?

No, that wasn’t it. That was my frustration speaking. I knew she valued her life, but she valued ours more. Maybe she understood love better than I did, then?

“So what now?” Vance asked. “We know who she is, have a better understanding of why Lorien is after her, but what does it change?”

“Not much,” I admitted. “It doesn’t give us any real leverage. If we expose what we know about her, it’d only put her in more danger. Instead of one psycho after her, she’d have countless ones.”

“Kyler Williams’ fucking daughter,” Char muttered to himself, as if he’d yet to fully come to terms with that revelation.

“She’s not much like him, is she?”I said.

“You knew him?” Vance asked.

“Not much. I’d met him before, on a few jobs. I’ve done security work on the West Coast, and some of my clients weren’t the best people. I ran into him from time to time. He was a serious man with cold, calculating eyes. I’ve heard plenty about him, though, and none of it’s been good.”

“Yeah, well, he’s nothing compared to Nem, who took over,” Char said. “Maybe the apple didn’t fall far from that crazy tree. I wasn’t kidding when I called her a psycho. Her territory is peaceful, but that peace comes at a steep price. Anyone who causes trouble is dealt with in a very bloody way. I heard about someone who got into trafficking young girls, and my understanding is that they’restillfinding pieces of him all over that city.”

I tried to picture Kenz surviving among people like that. I thought about her sweet smile, about the way she seemed entirely defenseless, and that didn’t fit at all with the people I knew about. How could she keep being the person she was after living with and being raised by monsters like that?

How had she not turned into the same?

“Nothing changes,” I finally said. “Her history helps us understand why Lorien wants her, or at least why he’s targeted her. We’ve got to buy time and make sure Kenz doesn’t do anything as stupid as this stunt again.”

“Then what?” Vance asked. “Delaying only pushes the risk down the line. We still have no way to draw him out since he wants to make the exchange at a hotel. He’s too smart to fall for the bug or tracker trick, either, so it’s not like we can use her as bait and just follow her.”

We are not using her as bait.The words scrolled across my screen from Tor after my phone chimed.

“I’m not planning to use her as bait. I don’t think any of us are okay with that idea anymore.”

Except Kenz.No doubt that girl would have done it in a heartbeat if we asked her to, which was the exact reason we had to keep her away from this.

“So what else?”

Give him what he wants.

The words on the screen had me turning my gaze on Tor. “Excuse me? I thought you just said we wouldn’t use her like that.”

He shook his head, his fingers moving quickly across his screen.He thinks they’re soulmates, right? People say that when they want to believe in love and romance. Give him the chance at that.

The point remained lost on me.

Vance chuckled softly. “That’s not bad, Tor. Never would have figured you for one to play that sort of sneaky game.” He turned his gaze on me, his lips pulled into a smirk. “Lorien wants to believe they’re going to fall in love. He seems to care what happens to her and what she thinks of him, right? What if we tell him that she wants to talk to him? That she’s afraid of him right now, but if they talk, she might change her mind.”

The pieces came together. It wasn’t the worst idea I’d ever heard…

“So you think he’ll agree to that, and he might let something slip?”

“He’s arrogant and in love—at least, he thinks he is. That’s a recipe for loose lips. Give Kenz the chance to talk to him and we might just find something to use against him.”

“What if he gets his claws into her? She’s already willing to sacrifice herself for us—clearly she doesn’t make great choices when it comes to men. What if he tricks her and she decides life with him might not be so bad? What if she betrays us?” Even as I said that, I didn’t quite believe it possible. Kenz was sweet and trusting, but I didn’t think betrayal was in her nature.

However, that trusting nature could lure her into confusion, into making a choice because she thought it the right one.

She’s smarter than that,Tor texted.She can do this.

When I couldn’t come up with a better plan, I nodded. I didn’t love putting Kenz in the line of fire, but I had to trust we could keep her safe.

All our lives were on the line, after all.

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