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Tonight was the beginning of the end of my tether.

Now I know what it feels like to hold her, I don’t know how I can possibly go back to watching her from afar.

I move to the chair in the corner, putting some much-needed space between us so I don’t do something stupid, like climb into bed beside her, and pick up the file from the bedside table.

It’s full of perceived information about the Hunter, but so much of it is fabricated. Lies Killian and I have fed anyone who has tried to find my alter ego over the years. There are a few things that hold some merit, but certainly not enough for me to worry.

And if I’m honest, maybe I want Ember to find me.

If she figures out who I am on her own, maybe it won’t come as such a shock, and she won’t try to run from me when I make her mine.

Ember shifts in her sleep, and I watch as she drags the covers up under her chin and snuggles in.

A smile tips up my lips at how sweet she looks.

It won’t be long before I can watch her sleep every night from the comfort of my home.

Just a few more pieces to lock into place, and then she’ll be mine.

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

EMBER

I’m officially losing the plot.

It doesn’t come as a complete surprise, especially as I pop my antidepressant to swallow it down with my black cup of coffee, but at least I know when my mind is fucking with me.

Personal growth or whatever.

I take another look around and frown.

There’s nothing out of place. Everything is exactly as I left it last night, including the razor blade on my basin and the messy file on my bedside table from where I threw it so I could fall into bed.

But I know someone has been here.

While I slept.

A shiver moves through my body, and I sigh, taking another healthy drink from my mug. Maybe it was just a dream. That would make sense. I’ve always had vivid dreams that I’ve struggled to distinguish from reality, so maybe that’s what this is.

But even as I think it, I shake off the thought.

Someone was here.

I fucking know it.

I eye the file in front of me, and my stomach clenches. What if it was him? What if he knows I’m looking into him? What if I’m next on his hit list?

But that doesn’t make much sense. If he were here in the middle of the night, surely he would just kill me and get it over with. Or at the very least, leave some indication that he was here at all to scare me into dropping my investigation. But there’s nothing. Not a single trace that anyone but me has been in this apartment in months.

My phone vibrates across the table, and I drop my head into my hands. The last person I feel like dealing with right now is Lucas. He’s a fucking asshole at the best of times, but when he finds out I ended things with Orion last night, he’s going to lose his ever-loving mind.

That was a nice injection of cash for both of us, but it wasn’t worth the risk. Not when I was coming to look forward to our time together.

I can’t afford to allow anyone close to me.

Because everyone who ever gets close either hurts me or leaves, and I’ve officially reached my quota for this lifetime, and maybe the next.

I let the call ring out and take another drink from my mug. The brand I use is rubbish, but it’s cheap and gives me the illusion of energy, meaning it’s good enough for me.