Total pages in book: 57
Estimated words: 53862 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 269(@200wpm)___ 215(@250wpm)___ 180(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 53862 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 269(@200wpm)___ 215(@250wpm)___ 180(@300wpm)
“You play in a quartet now?” Zara asked.
“I do. Or I did before I ran away. They’re going to hate me,” Lyra said, feeling sad.
Her Daddy’s arm reached around her to hug her tightly. “It’s possible they’ll understand. They had to be under pressure, too.”
“Yes. Over the last year, Boyd became everyone’s manager. But enough about me. I want to hear everyone’s story. What brought you all here to Danger Bluff?”
“A bank robbery,” Juniper stated simply.
“Human traffickers,” Zara said.
“A scientific discovery,” Celeste threw into the conversation.
“A crappy former boss,” Sadie shared.
“Wow. I’m sure there’s a lot more story to all of those. Will you tell me about them sometime?” Lyra asked.
“Of course. You’re one of us now,” Sadie assured her. “We’re glad you’re here.”
The other Littles nodded, as did the Daddies who were present. Phoenix hugged her a bit tighter to his hard frame before pressing a kiss to her temple.
When Sadie’s phone trumpeted a message, everyone jumped. “Oh, no. I set a warning on my phone if a reservation came in for your old manager, Boyd Zhivers. He’s arriving this afternoon.”
“How did you know his last name? I’ve only called him Boyd?” Lyra asked, stiffly sitting up straight to distance herself from Phoenix.
“Looks like it’s time for the two of us to chat, Little girl,” her Daddy said firmly. “Are you finished eating?”
Lyra looked down at the remains of the delicious burger and fries. She couldn’t eat another bite, especially now that she was on edge. “Yes. I’m done.”
“If you all will excuse us?” Phoenix asked.
“Of course,” Celeste said, sending Lyra a smile. “We’ve loved chatting with you. Everything is going to be okay here, Lyra.”
“Thanks.” Lyra knew that response was snappy, but she was too pissed about being investigated.
“Come with me, Crash,” Phoenix said as he stood. He offered his hand to Lyra.
Putting hers against his palm, Lyra vowed to listen to what he said, but she’d never allow someone to manipulate her again. Lesson learned. Gritting her teeth, Lyra tried to convince her heart to heed the warning her brain was sending as they walked to the elevator.
Chapter Six
Phoenix watched her face as the doors closed. “I know it’s tough to trust anyone after being manipulated by Boyd for years.”
“I don’t want to be stupid again,” she said through gritted teeth.
“I’ll show you the information I received from our boss,” Phoenix promised.
She nodded and looked down at the floor. He suspected she wanted to trust him but needed reassurance when faced with Boyd’s behavior.
Moving a bit closer, he squeezed her hand. “Nothing will change our connection, Little girl.”
“Promise?” she whispered, peeking up.
“I promise.”
The doors opened, and he ushered her into the fifth-floor living space. “I have the flash drive in my pocket that arrived just before you did. Let’s go pull it up on my computer.”
He led her to the breakfast bar. “Sit here. I’ll grab my computer.”
Within a few minutes, he had his computer set up on the counter in front of them. He signed in, and Lyra burst into laughter at his screensaver. A meme of a man targeting a spider with a blowtorch appeared. “I really don’t like spiders, though Harry’s okay.”
“Thanks for making an exception for him.”
“Let’s see what the boss sent.”
Phoenix opened the flash drive, and several files opened. There were pictures of Lyra performing, stolen moments of her in the airport, entering the home of her current coach, and outside her apartment complex. He allowed her to scroll through the data as she wanted. She paused to read a report detailing her entire life history. A second profile caught her eye.
“You’ve gone through all of this?” she asked.
“I did.”
“Whoever did this included information about Boyd. Do you know why?” Lyra asked as she scanned the documents on the screen.
“I don’t. My assumption in looking at these was that my boss, Baldwin Kingsley, knew that Boyd’s life was connected to yours and checked him out as well,” Phoenix explained.
Several red flags had jumped out at him when he’d scanned the files that morning. Knowing what seemed significant to Lyra would help him focus on whatever merited the most attention.
“Whose bank account is that?” she asked, leaning forward to look at the display. “I don’t get deposits with that many zeros.”
Watching her, Phoenix could tell the exact second she found the name on the form. Her body stiffened, and she looked at him with a shocked expression.
“That’s Boyd’s account. Where is that money coming from? He doesn’t have many clients, and I know I’m not paying him that much.”
“That’s probably the reason Baldwin included that information. Does he come from a rich background?” Phoenix asked.
“No. Not really. At least, not that I know of. Now, I’m questioning everything,” Lyra said, shaking her head in disbelief.
“Is Boyd’s name on your bank accounts?” Phoenix asked.
“No. My accountant is a woman. Tracy Lacost. She has always counseled me not to give anyone access to my money. She sends him his fee every month and collects a detailed form of his efforts on my behalf.”