Page 49 of Rogue's Path

“Uneventful is a good thing in my line of work.”

“But I bet it’s boring.” I’d be bored staring at the same man for hours. Unless it was Rogue.

“Only a little bit. This is one of the few countries I hadn’t visited before. Normally, I’d be excited that we’re staying for a while. But I want to see you.”

Why comes to mind. “You’re not missing much.” Liar. “Though I’ve already left Urbium.”

“Where are you now?”

“You don’t have a super spy machine that tells you exactly where I am?” Do those really exist? What if my stalker has one?

He chuckles. “Do I need to get it out?”

So there is one. “No. I’m in Silent Valley, staying with a friend.”

“That sounds like fun.”

“Not as much as traveling the world.” This summer, I should make time to go overseas. I could tour the world looking for unsolved mysteries. Not to solve them, but to add them to my collection. Or I could learn to toss throwing stars in Japan. Martial arts all over Asia. “Tell me about it.”

Two hours later, I’ve finished all my food and laughed hard enough to pull every eye in the place my way.

“I’ve got to go.” Taylor’s voice gets garbled. “Talk to you later.”

And the phone clicks off.

That conversation was comfortable. Fun even.

But that’s it. There wasn’t a single spark.

It’s possible that I’m friend-zoning him because he’s not ready for anything else.

Rogue makes me feel a spark every time I even think about him.

He didn’t show up.

Maybe he’s running late. I’ll work for a little while more…

Stalker

Rogue

“Why do we have to replace the whole carpet?” Torque slides on the shoulders of the disposable suit. “Can’t we just cut out the spot and replace it?”

Wouldn’t that have been so much easier? Berzerker and his old lady had to have carpets that were discontinued five years ago. After contacting fifty carpet remnant stores up and down the coast, I’ve finally given up and found a new carpet one shade off that they agreed would be fine. “It’ll be good practice for all of you to do a full forensic clean.”

“Every single thing?”

“Normally, yes. But we don’t want the smell to change in this room, so the only thing we will be cleaning is the cement under the carpet. Everything will be moved out and returned to the exact location as if it had never been touched.”

“This kid has a ton of junk. It’s going to take all week.” Vandal jumps up and down trying to get into his.

It’s a good thing he put his hair net on first, or he’d be spreading DNA everywhere.

“The good news is we have four hours before his parents return.” Which is hours more than we’d have if we were cleaning up bodies and trying to avoid the police. This is a skill they need to learn. “Once everyone is dressed, you’re going to go inside one by one and take pictures of everything, every drawer, every item of clothing. But you aren’t to move anything. Got it?”

The men nod.

“What if something falls when we’re taking pictures?” Ryot is a bit of a klutz.