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‘Dakota told us about it, gave us the description in case we ran into her,’ Ashe informed me.

‘Dakota is…’ I prompted.

‘My brother’s wife,’ Chance replied, though something in his tone said he hated that fact. I wondered what the story was there, but decided to let it go since it was none of my business.

‘Right. Little red-headed lady. She seems nice. Tell her thanks for passing on the message.’

‘Sure thing, but about that chat?’ Ashe pushed.

I sighed, impatience urging me to end this interaction so I could see for myself if Kali was back or not. ‘I have something I need to do first, but I’ll be back soon. I don’t know what your plans are today, but you can find me in my office later.’

‘We’ll be there,’ Chance said, ending the conversation by stepping back to let me drive off.

Both groups were odd in their own ways, and normally, I would have been eager for the change of pace. After Kali showed up, however, my mind was more focused on her. She was taking up residence inside my head, even though our meeting was so brief and cut short. I couldn’t explain it, but I realised I didn’t want to.

I didn’t have much time left on this earth, and going with the flow was my only real option now. That said, I was definitely willing to allow Kali to hoard my attention.

Lady Luck must have been on my side, because I caught a flash of white darting through the trees as I pulled up my driveway. I immediately turned Bessie off and jumped out, heading straight for the section of trees where I’d just seen her.

But when I got there, there was no sign of her.

‘Kali!’ I shouted, but got no response. ‘Kali, wait!’

I picked my way through the underbrush, holding onto the trunks where I could. I didn’t spend much time this way since these trees marked the border between my property and the next, and I suddenly wondered if perhaps she was a new owner. I’d never met the guy who lived there, but perhaps Kali was his daughter? Niece? Fuck, please, anything but his wife.

Then…

There.

‘Kali, hold on a second,’ I called out, rushing as fast as I could to reach her without tripping on a root and falling on my face. I preferred to exude suaveness.

Much to my delight, she stayed put, eyeing me critically as I approached. She was still cast in shadows from the trees, and I wondered if that was purposeful or merely coincidental. The mystery of her only grew.

‘Hey,’ I said, panting slightly as I stopped a few feet from where she stood. Something told me if I got any closer, she might spook and run off again, and that was the last thing I wanted.

‘Hi,’ she said back, almost timidly. I said ‘almost’ because her chin was raised and there was a challenge in her gaze. For me, or for herself? I was eager to find out.

‘You ran off pretty quick yesterday. I was worried.’

‘I had to go.’

I hummed, not knowing how to respond to that without prying. ‘You never answered my question,’ I said instead, and almost wanted to face-palm when she cocked her head at me in confusion.

‘What question?’

‘Are you okay?’

She let out a humourless laugh that told me she was anything but, but a quick scan of her showed no physical signs of injury or abuse. That meant her struggles were internal. I knew a lot about those.

‘Defineokay,’ she finally responded.

‘Do you need help?’

She smiled, but it was small, brimming with sadness. Yet at the same time, her eyes flashed with a fire that I felt might have scorched me if it were aimed my way. ‘Yes, but I doubt you can help me.’

‘Well, I can’t try if you don’t give me the chance,’ I prompted, but she merely shook her head, her shoulders slumping in defeat while simultaneously looking ready to burn down the world. She was quite the enigma, wasn’t she?

‘I would love your help, Rhodes, but I fear it’s too dangerous. I’m not selfish enough to drag you into it. You’re young and have your whole life ahead of you.’