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She nods slowly. “Thank you.”

Royal gives her a brief nod and opens the back of the SUV.

I take Cora’s bag from her shoulder before she can protest and load it into the back.

“Come on. Royal’s giving us a ride.”

Cora climbs into the back seat, and I slide in beside her.

The drive to my apartment is quieter than the one to the airport had been. Royal focuses on the road while Cora sits beside me in the back seat.

I want to tell her something comforting. I want to tell her that her father is fine. That Royal will break into the drive and give us every answer we need.

But I don’t lie. Not when I have no idea what the truth is.

By the time Royal pulls into my apartment complex, Cora is sitting with her arms crossed over her chest, her shoulders tight. I grab her bags from the back, and Royal leaves with the encrypted drive, promising to call as soon as he knows anything.

Cora follows me inside without complaint.

But the moment we enter my apartment, she stops in the middle of the living room and looks around. “This is where you live?”

“Yes.”

“It’s nice.”

I glance around. The apartment is nothing extravagant. I make decent money between tattooing and everything else I do with the guys. That’s good, because I’ve never cared much about owning a massive house or filling rooms with shit I don’t need.

The place is a comfortable two-bedroom apartment with an open layout, a kitchen that flows into the living and dining areas, and enough room for me to move around without constantly feeling like the walls are closing in.

“Thanks. Let’s drop your bags in the guest room, then I’ll show you around.”

She smiles. “I’d like that.”

I set her bag on the bed in the spare room. Before we make it back into the hallway, my phone rings.. I pull it from my pocket and see Royal’s name on the screen. “Excuse me. I have to take this call.”

I answer as I head toward my office. “Hey, man.”

Cora’s footsteps follow me into the hallway. Of course they do. I should have known better than to think she’d let me discuss her missing father where she couldn’t hear.

I change direction and head toward the living room instead.

“I took a look at the drive. Dan knew what he was doing.”

“And?” I ask, as Cora stops before me, her gaze intent as she strains her ears.

“The encryption is serious. It’s going to take some time to get into it.”

I pace in the open space. “Work fast. Time might not be on our side.”

“Yeah, I know.”

“Anything else?”

“I debriefed the guys after you left for North Carolina. We decided it was best that River goes to D.C.”

I stop pacing. “When?”

“He left as soon as you got on the jet.”