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“Good afternoon to you too,” he says. “Where have you been? I thought something bad happened. I had to call Halle to check in when you missed the interview.”

I try for a smile, but it feels off. “Again, I’m really sorry about that,” I say. “It won’t happen again.”

“It’s cool,” Kane assures me. “But if everything going on with Halle’s case is taking a toll on you, maybe you should take a break and focus on that—”

“No!” I say too loudly.

A few people stare at us, and I clear my throat, smiling. “No, I’m fine. Promise.”

He doesn’t look like believes me. “Why don’t you come over for dinner tonight? Tanya is making lasagne, and the girlshaven’t seen you in a while. We can have a few beers and just talk, okay?”

Maybe I need a night off from Haze and thoughts about Rowan Vasilyev. “Yeah, that sounds great,” I say. “Count me in.”

He looks me over for another long moment before nodding. “In the meantime, let’s try to make headway on this new case, yeah? I made some notes after the interview with the manager. Sleezy guy, by the way. His assistant looks like he knows something, so I want to go back and talk to him.”

I nod, listening to Kane give me the rundown on his morning. It’s nice not being tied to a case. I can listen and sift through the facts without my emotions getting mixed up. An hour later, my mind is so stuck in with the new information that I almost forget Rowan running his knife down my chest last night, his eyes full of hate.

Almost.

But as I make my way out of the OCU building with Kane at sunset, I get that sinking feeling that I’m being watched again and I’m not sure what would be worse, the person behind the emails or Rowan.

I don’t have to think hard because the answer is there.

It’s always Rowan.

***

Tanya is an excellent cook. Both Kane and I have two servings of her lasagne, and she insists I take some home with me.

By the time dinner is over, I’m happily stuffed and Elsie, their eldest daughter, is filling me in on all the drama from her sixth-grade class.

Her brown eyes widen, and her hands fly all over the pace as she goes through every detail, and I can’t help but think she’ll make a great storyteller one day, maybe an actress.

“C’mon, Els, you’re going to talk your uncle’s ear off,” Tanya says, appearing in the living room with a bright smile. “It’s time to get ready for bed. Both you and Anna.”

Anna yells from across the living room, her eyes glued to some kid’s TV show with exaggerated acting.

“Let’s go, girls,” Tanya says, ignoring their protests and adorable pouts. Elsie looks at me pleadingly.

“Sorry, Els,” I say, resisting the doe eyes she’s giving me. “You can give me an update next time I’m here.”

“Say goodbye to your uncle Alex,” Tanya instructs.

“Bye, Uncle Alex,” the girls chorus sweetly.

I give them both a hug before letting Tanya usher them both down a hallway and to their rooms. Kane walks into the living room, settling next to me and handing me an open beer.

“So, do you want to fill me in on what’s been going on?” he asks.

I let out a quiet breath and take a long sip of my beer. “I think the person behind Haze is someone in The Snake.”

Kane’s brow lifts. “Wow, that’s…” he trails. “How do you know?”

My stomach lurches, the beer sitting funny. I want to tell him everything, but I’m not sure where to start. The part where I fell in love with Rowan during my assignment, or the part where he almost slit my throat last night?

Both are ridiculous but I think Kane would know what to do.

“Alex?”