Page 55 of Come to Me

Your plan has been exposed. Your operative cracked like a walnut and it really didn't take much. I have her under my control now. It was smart recruiting someone from my side, turning her into a double agent, but perhaps I can turn her into a double-double agent (whatever the hell it's called). I'll keep her in your good graces. You'll think she's working for you pretending to work for me, but really she's working for me pretending to work for you working for me. Don't worry if that sounds confusing. I don't read Tom Clancy.

I'm staying late at work when I receive Alyssa's paragraph of a text.

So Laurie "cracked like a walnut?" I'd prefer if she had used a light touch to make sure Alyssa is okay, but anything that gets Alyssa to open up is fine by me.

I read the text again and I can't help but smile. Only Alyssa would throw parenthetical asides into her tipsy text messages.

I call immediately.

She picks up with a breathy, "Hello." She's tipsy, definitely, but not drunk. "I'm sorry, I can't talk." That's the understatement of the century.

"Why not?"

"The show is about to start. Cell phones off. I'll call you when I get home." There's a long pause, like she's thinking. Or maybe like she's going to say more. "I love you. I'll talk to you later."

And then she hangs up.

Well, that was unsatisfying.

I manage to shift my focus back to my work for hours, until I have nothing left to do. It's past late, almost midnight, and I've yet to eat dinner.

Maybe Alyssa was honest about skipping meals. She forgot.

Fuck, I hope so.

I'm about to head home when my phone rings.

I'm more than a little disappointed when I see it's just Laurie.

"Hello," I answer, my voice short.

"Don't take a tone with me," she warns. "I did what you asked."

"Yeah, and I've already heard you weren't all that delicate about it," I return. "How is she?"

"There's a lot going on, but she's holding it together."

I don't like the sound of that. "And she's eating okay?"

"Her eating is the least of your concerns. You two seriously need to communicate. And not, you know, go between your mutual friend."

"Does that mean I've been promoted from annoyance to friend?"

"I guess," Laurie mutters. "I'm going to go. I'm tired. But I figured you were worried after those weird texts."

"You saw them?"

"I may have snooped after she fell asleep." She sighs. "Listen, Luke. You need to get over here as soon as you can. She misses you like crazy."

Laurie is right. I wanted to surprise Alyssa last week, but one of my client's court dates changed, and I couldn't get away.

There's no way Alyssa will ask me to visit. She won't want to interfere with my life.

Hell, I can make it happen now. "I can get there next weekend. But don't say anything. I want it to be a surprise."

"Can or will?"

It's a fair question.