Stoking the Fire (Salus Security #1) - Teodora Kostova Page 0,54

getting your heart broken again.”

“Me neither.”

Adri sighs, the sound crackling through the loudspeaker. “You have to talk to him.”

I acknowledge his words with a grunt. His sigh is even more exasperated this time.

“What about these men? Do you know who they are? Are you sure they’re the ones who spiked your drink?”

“Alec thinks they are, and I trust his gut feeling. But we have no proof. I have no idea who they are, but Alec is convinced one of them was at the club when we went out with Jamie and Kayden the other night.” I chew on a bite of bagel thoughtfully, thinking about the men and if something about them seems off. “They looked like they belonged, you know? Could have easily been any of Stan’s entrepreneur friends, or the artists who constantly hang around these kinds of parties.”

“Can you describe them for me?”

I do as he asks, trying to remember as much detail about the two men as I can. The blond guy is easier to remember since I saw him up close in the bathroom, but the other one? I only saw him through a haze of lust in a dark stairwell.

Adri hums. “I’ll look into it,” he says, more to himself than me. “Listen, Zach, I have to leave town for a few days.”

“But you just got here! I thought you’d stay for a bit.”

“I know, me too. But something came up.”

“Something you can’t talk about?” The silence on the other end of the line is answer enough. “I’m worried about you.”

“Don’t be. I know how to take care of myself.”

“I know you do. But sometimes I think your job is more James Bond, less freelance journalist.”

Adri chuckles. “I have a feeling you’re imaging my job to be way more glamorous than it actually is.”

“Probably.”

We chat for a few more minutes before Adri reaches his building and has to end the call. I make him promise he’ll be safe and come back soon before we hang up.

I finish my breakfast, make more coffee, and text Evie in case she’s on her way back. I’m pouring more orange juice in my empty glass when the kitchen door opens and Alec strides in.

“There you are,” he says, taking a seat on one of the stools at the island.

“You sound surprised,” I say, turning to face him and leaning against the counter. “I’m pretty sure you’ve implanted a GPS device in me somewhere.”

“No. I’m just following your location through your phone.”

I gape at him, about to launch a rant about privacy, but then he lifts a corner of his mouth in a smug smile.

“Asshole,” I murmur. I still take my phone from the counter and pretend to check the security settings. I have no idea what I’m even looking for.

“I have news,” Alec says, clasping his hands on the counter.

“I already don’t like it.”

“We were able to establish the identity of one of the men from last night. Roy Higgins.” He types on his phone, then turns the screen for me to see. The smiling face of the blond guy from last night is staring at me. “We couldn’t find anything suspicious about him,” he continues, the disappointment evident in his voice. “He’s a student at St Peter’s, doing a Masters in Renewable Energy. Judging by his social media feeds, he parties a lot, and some of his friends have criminal record for DUIs and drug possession, but he’s clean.” He raises an eyebrow at me. “Too clean, if you ask me.”

“So, what now?” I fold my arms. “What did Dad say?”

Alec shifts uncomfortably, looking away. He seems to be choosing his next words carefully.

“That’s another problem.” He gets up and comes to stand in front of me, lowering his voice. “I don’t think he’s giving us all the information. I’m pretty sure he’s hiding something, and it’s making me uneasy.”

I frown. “You don’t think he’s involved in any of this, do you?” My voice rises, before Alec shushes me.

“I can’t say. But he’s definitely hiding something important.”

“Of course he is! My father has more secrets than the walls of the White House! He’ll never tell you everything you want to know, only what you need to know to get what he wants from you. It’s a personality trait.”

My tone must have acquired the bitter note it always does when the topic comes up, whether I’m talking to Evie, my mother, or, it seems, Alec.

“Sometimes his judgment on what I need to know in order to protect his