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Knot closes the door and leans against it. “Your job is secure, Birdie. It’s your mental well-being I’m worried about.”
“Sir, I’m—”
“Hold it.” Knot throws up his hand, and I snap my mouth shut. “The boss is talking now. I’m sending you home and don’t want to see you until Monday. Understand?”
He doesn’t wait for a response but barrels forward in his speech. “I want you out of here so you can get some rest. I’m assigning round-the-clock security at your house to make sure you’re not vulnerable at any time.”
I suppress the desire to roll my eyes. Barely. “With all due respect, sir, that’s ridiculous. I’m fully secure here without anyone else being assigned more work.”
“I’m not changing my mind, Birdie. You’re no good to us in a hospital or a straight jacket, and being young doesn’t make you immune to burnout.”
You have been knocking back Advil like M&Ms this week, I remind myself. “Okay, so I back off the working hours. I was only doing it because I had nothing else to occupy my time.”
“Exactly why you need to get away from here. And before you argue further—by the way, I’ve been way too lax if you’re arguing at all—I need you to be at full capacity at a moment’s notice. You never know when something might come up that needs you to be at peak performance. The life of someone on our team might depend on it.”
“That’s a low blow,” I grumble.
“Whatever gets the job done,” he answers with a smile.
My caring and somewhat overbearing, father-figure boss pushes off the door. “Pack your stuff. I want you out of here within the hour. And Birdie, you’ll be in serious trouble if I find out you haven’t had a nap and a glass of wine by five p.m.”
“You know, Dad, you’ll make your other employees jealous if you keep treating me like one of your kids.”
“And I don’t give a shit,” he says with a wink.
Knot turns to leave, and it’s then that I realize we only have one team not currently deployed. Chelsea and Bastien’s team. “Ah, sir, what is the rotation you’ve scheduled? Just so… you know…” Come up with something fast, Birdie. “…I won’t be caught off-guard in case I have to go somewhere.”
“I’m leaving that up to Chelsea and Bastien.”
My boss eyes me with burning curiosity, so I figure I better stop while I’m ahead. Knot watches me a moment longer before finally walking out of my office. That went well. Not! I let go of my held breath and start packing up my stuff as ordered. Next, I visit the dorm to get my clothes and toiletries.
Now, it’s time to find out who gets the first watch. I walk down to the motor pool, where my car is waiting. The crossover SUV is parked at the curb with one of Knot Corp’s black Tahoes parked behind it.
Kai leans against the hood, waiting. “So, you’re my babysitter for the afternoon?” I ask.
With a nod, he answers, “Until eight. Then Chelsea takes my place.”
I don’t ask him where Bastien falls on the schedule. The last thing I need is for Kai or any of the others to start spreading rumors. Although… it would force Bastien to acknowledge them.
“…coming inside, so don’t worry. Yoo hoo. Birdie.”
“Huh?”
“Wow, you really do need a nap. Since I lost your rapt attention, I’ll repeat. You don’t have to worry about playing hostess. Neither I nor the others will be coming inside your place. Our orders are to watch from a distance. Bastien briefed us on your security system so we’ll know if there has been a breach. Your job is to pretend we’re not there and not to leave until you’ve checked in with whoever is on duty.”
“Sounds simple enough, but…”
“But what?”
I’m embarrassed to say that after all these years of being part of this industry, I’ve never thought of this before now. “Um. If you’re stuck in a car that long, what do you do when you have to, you know?”
Kai only laughs and pushes off the hood. “I’ll follow you. Don’t drive too fast.”
I file the question away to ask Sadie later and get into my car. Kai follows closely until we reach my neighborhood. Then I notice him hanging back and ultimately driving past my house when I turn into my drive.
He doesn’t go far. The unmarked Knot Corp SUV turns at the corner and disappears. Only a few seconds later, it returns and parks alongside the trees lining the road on the right side of my home. Kai will have a decent line of sight to anyone coming or going down either street and be able to see the front and back of my house.
I climb the two steps of my front porch, feeling weird about going inside alone. Being here, even with a capable security presence, is risky. I’m bait. Knot must want this guy to make a move and for our people to catch him. Otherwise, why would the operatives remain hidden?
