Page 113 of Tattletale

The article proceeds to outline how his entire fortune was left to various charities—rehabilitation programs, orphanages and child services, battered women’s shelters, and mass fortunes donated to foreign leaders to help with political reform in war-torn countries. BandAids for bullet wounds. But at least he tried.

Vienne asked for our discretion in the matter. But an NDA wasn’t necessary. We’re assassins…who are we going to talk to? Iasked her if she was okay, and her answer was cryptically simple:“Now I have something to look forward to.”

She never elaborated, but I assume it means death. When she can be with Gabriel again. Maybe in the next life they’ll be unburdened with duty, politics, and the destructive chaos of the world. Maybe in an alternate reality, it’s simple, and they can just be lovers. In a twisted way, I want that for them. A fresh start. New identities. Their love was wretched—full of lies, broken promises, and pain. But it was as real as it gets.

Knock, knock.

“Come in,” I say.

The door handle twists, and Vesper walks into my office, wearing dark denim jeans and a maroon T-shirt. I motion to the chair opposite of me, but Vesper opts to stay standing. “I only have a minute. How are you doing?”

“Fine.” I swivel my monitor around so Vesper can glimpse the article I’m looking at. “Did you see this?”

She nods.

“Have you talked to Vienne?”

Vesper nods again.

“Can I get a verbal response? If I wanted silence and brooding, I’d go hover around Linc.”

Vesper smiles. “She’s going to be okay in time, and the President is none the wiser. They are simply mourning a friend.”

I push back against my desk, running my hands over my dark gray slacks. “Know what I keep wondering?”

“What’s that?”

“If it came down to it, would she have killed him herself? Or would she have let the monster run loose?”

“I don’t know.” Vesper folds her arms across her chest. “Love is blind, but Vienne should know better. Like me, she doesn’t have the luxury of love. It’s not the life we agreed to.”

I trill my fingers against the desk, wondering which of my many unanswered questions I should ask. The way Vesper’s body is angled toward the door, I know she’s itching to get to whatever is next on her agenda today. I probably have time for one answer.

“What happens to Aeon now?”

“What do you mean?” Vesper’s brows knit together in confusion. “Aeon remains.”

“We’re just going to let a U.S. government–approved criminal organization continue to run rampant?”

Vesper angles her chin, and her lips curl down into a pensive frown. “Isn’t PALADIN the same thing?”

“What do you mean?”

“We do evil to stop evil. We’re not lawless, but we’re not white knights. Aeon serves a similar purpose. And now that we know they are not actually our enemy, we have other monsters to chase.”

I shrug. “I guess it’s odd to know we have a sister organization.”

Vesper’s eyes drop to the ground. “We have far more than one. PALADIN and Aeon are two of many, Lance. You’d need a lifetime to uncover all the secrets the government is trying to keep hidden.”

“Such as?” I lean forward in my seat, my face furrowing in concern.

She winks. “Stories for another day, hm?”

My phone chimes, and the notification across the top of the screen catches my attention.

C

Meet me in the break room.

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