said, it’s just a hunch. I didn’t know the old Leo, so it’s possible he had an underlying condition or something.” He shrugs, but I file the information away for later. I’m all too aware of what a prick Zodiac can be.
“Well, regardless, Leo is new to the game like me. As neither of us has tight alliances with the other divisions, I thought it would be smart to reach out to him. We have a tentative truce going on, so I’d like to cash in on it while I can.”
“What kind of truce?” Danny frowns.
“The kind made over dead bodies,” I deadpan and watch as he shakes his head with a grin. Yeah, I think we are going to all get along just fine.
Pulling up outside Leo’s apartment, I wait for Baker to park before climbing out.
I stand and take in the building, noticing its similarities to mine as Baker and Danny flank me.
“Cozy,” Baker drawls, making me snort.
“They all look like this. Trust me, it’s not any cozier inside, but it’s better than the streets.”
“Can’t argue with that. Come on.” He indicates for me to follow, so I do, with Danny bringing up the rear.
The lobby is empty as I figured it would be, so we walk over to the bank of elevators without anyone stopping us.
I hit the button for the top floor and stand in the back, making room for the guys’ large frames.
Nobody speaks, all of us on guard, especially when the doors slide open, revealing two armed men.
“This way,” the thinner of the two says, indicating for us to follow him to the end of the hallway.
“You two, wait out here with us,” he tells Danny and Baker, who begin to protest. I place my arm on Danny’s and shake my head.
“It’s fine. I’ll scream like a girl if I need you,” I tease.
“No guns,” the larger of the two guys grunts, holding out his hand for me. I slip my gun from the back of my jeans, check that the safety is still on, even though I know it is, and hand it over to him.
“Viddy, I’m not happy about you going in there unarmed without us,” Baker complains.
“I’ll be fine, I promise. Leo isn’t going to hurt me. We are just going to chat.”
He scowls but seeing I’m not going to relent, he sighs, his shoulders dropping as I move to knock.
A moment later, the door swings open, showing a smiling Leo wearing dark blue jeans and a faded ACDC concert T-shirt. I never really paid much attention to him physically when we were at the planetarium before, far too focused on the carnage and hyperaware of what Zodiac’s next move might be. Now seeing the messy blood-free hair, silvery-blue eyes, and slightly wonky smile, I can appreciate that this guy is seriously good looking.
“Gemini, come in.” He looks at my guys behind me with a small but sincere smile.
“No harm will come to her while she’s inside, I swear.”
He closes the door behind us before they can say anything and places his hand on the small of my back as he leads me to the kitchen.
“I was just making some coffee; you want a mug?”
“Please.” I nod, sitting on one of the barstools next to the counter.
I look around the apartment and again, everything is eerily similar to mine and Reid’s except that there is no dining area, which I guess is why there are stools at the counter.
“So what brings you out to my neck of the woods?” Leo asks, pouring coffee into a white mug and handing it to me with the creamer from the fridge.
“Sugar?” I think for a minute that’s what he’s calling me, but then I realize he’s pointing at the sugar bowl and I nod.
I reach over to grab it as I begin. “I want to—” I stop talking when I knock the spoon off the counter with my elbow, making it clatter to the floor.
“Sorry.” I hop off the stool and bend down to pick it up, spotting something else on the black tiles, mostly hidden behind the stool leg next to mine.
I pick it up with a frown but shove it in my pocket quickly when I realize what it is and why it might be here. I’m about to say something when something else catches my eyes.
From down here, I can see underneath the kitchen cupboards, and the one on the far right seems to have a blinking red light underneath it.