“Then you better hope Zephyr finds you before Raze does. I move toward the door, pausing with my hand on the knob. “And Marcus? Don't even think about running. We can track you far faster than you can run.”
The lie rolls off my tongue easily. V could track them if needed, but he's not actively monitoring them. The prospect doesn't need to know that.
Outside, the heat crashes over me, suffocating and relentless. I pull my phone from my pocket and dial V. He barely says hello before I rattle off the limited information Marcus provided me.
“Zephyr? Jesus Christ, who comes up with these nicknames nowadays? There are so many good ones to choose from, and they go with Zephyr.”
“I didn’t call to have a roundtable about the alias they’re using, V.”
“I’ll add that to the mountain of shit you’ve asked me to do. Does this go to the head of the pile?”
“Yeah, it does. We need to know who this Zephyr character is. Sounds like he's the key to whatever's going on here.”
“On it. What about our club-drugging assholes? Still want me to track them down?”
I hesitate, thinking of Charlotte's face when I told her what happened. “Yeah. Keep digging.”
“You got it. And Thor? The reservation is confirmed for eight. Don't be late.”
CHARLOTTE
Thor had been gonefor an hour when Minny finally stirs from the couch, her slumber interrupted by the sharp blare of her alarm. She pokes her head over the top of the sofa, her hair a wild halo of disarray, pointing in every direction.
“Morning,” she mumbles through a wide yawn, her words blending together in a sleepy murmur. She stretches her arms wide, her joints cracking audibly as she groans with the effort. “What time did we get back?”
“I don’t know,” I reply with a shrug.
Minny rubs the remnants of sleep from her eyes, blinking slowly as her focus settles on me. Her expression shifts—concern etching itself into her features as she takes in my demeanor.
“What’s wrong?” she asks.
“How much do you remember about last night?” I inquire. She pauses, her mind diving into the hazy remnants of the previous night, her eyebrows knitting together in thought. Doubt flickers across her face, and she shakes her head slightly.
“I...I can't really remember much,” she admits. “Just fragments. Drinks. The casino. A couple of guys hitting on us. A guy with a man bun. Why?”
I nod, my expression grave. “Something occurred at the club.”
She sits up, now fully alert, her hair cascading around her face. “What do you mean? We...we didn't do anything illegal, did we?”
I shake my head, relieved to be able to offer some reassurance. “We were drugged.”
She blinks. “Drugged? Are you serious?”
I nod solemnly. “Yeah. Thor said it was the guys at the bar.”
“Who the hell is Thor?”
“The guy I woke up next to this morning.”
Minny throws her hand up. “Wait. You’re going to have to say that again. You woke up next to a man this morning named Thor?”
“I know, it sounds ridiculous. Believe me. I think it sounds ridiculous.” My hands fall to my hips as I let out a slow breath. “But it’s true. Thor saw one of the guys dose our drinks and stopped me from drinking it. It turns out they may have spiked our cocktails, because not long after he stepped in, I blacked out. He carried me back here, and then you passed out on the couch.”
“So let me get this straight. We were drugged, and Thor… some random guy you woke up next to saved us from whatever those guys had planned?”
I nod, my heart pounding in my chest. “Yes, it’s insane, I know, but that’s what happened.”
She falls silent for a moment, processing the information. Slowly, she rises from the couch and walks over to the kitchenette counter, leaning against it for support. Her fingers tap against the marble surface as she takes deep breaths.
