Page 94 of Protect Thy Enemy

Arden doesn’t answer, her attention locked on the interaction. My eyes scan the room for Tate, but he’s nowhere to be found.

The pieces don’t fit, but I can feel them shifting, aligning into a picture I’m not ready to see. The dance ends, but the tension doesn’t.

I keep my eyes on the dance floor, watching the way the redhead’s hand grazes Park’s arm. To anyone else, the interaction is brief, but it leaves a bitter taste in my mouth.Arden is still at my side, tense but steady, her eyes darting between Park and the woman. I can feel the storm brewing inside her just as strongly as I feel it in myself.

My instincts are screaming, the low hum of unease growing louder by the second.

Then, out of the corner of my eye, I catch Tate slipping back into the room. He’s on the far side of the ballroom, but he doesn’t blend into the crowd like the others. His gaze locks on mine almost instantly, and he gives a subtle nod toward the back exit.

I don’t hesitate.

“Stay close to Fallon,” I murmur to Arden, my voice barely above a whisper. Her brows knit together in confusion, but she doesn’t question me this time.

I weave my way through the room, ignoring the press of bodies and the occasional attempts at small talk. The back alley is dimly lit, and the cool night air is a sharp contrast to the stifling warmth of the ballroom. Tate is leaning against the wall, arms crossed, a faint smirk playing on his lips.

“Where have you been?” I ask, not bothering with pleasantries.

“I went out for a smoke. My bad, commander. I didn’t know I needed your permission.” Tate’s tone is light, but his eyes sharpen as if he could read the trouble written on my face. “Trouble in paradise?”

“Do you recognize the redhead?” I ask, ignoring his attempt at humor.

His eyes scan the crowd, an eyebrow rises as his gaze finds the woman. “Should I?”

I glare at him, my patience wearing thin. “The woman who was missing from Arden’s FLETC class. What do you know about her?”

Tate’s smirk fades, replaced by something closer to curiosity. “Not much. Just that she disappeared. No one could get in touch with her, and it wasn’t exactly treated like a high-priority case. Why?”

“Possibly a problem,” I say curtly. “Keep an eye on Park.”

Tate nods, his expression tightening as he pushes off the wall. “I won’t let him out of my sight.”

I let him go, my mind already racing as I pull out my phone and step farther into the shadows. I scroll through my contacts until I find the name I need and hit call.

Alyssa picks up on the second ring, her voice sharp and irritated, the sound of some loud movie in the background. “It’s ten o’clock on a Friday, Holden,” she says, her tone biting. “This better be life and death.”

“I need a favor,” I say, brushing off her teasing. “I need everything you can find on a woman who went missing from FLETC around this time last year. She was in Arden’s class. Russian. Red hair.”

She sighs heavily, but I could hear faint sounds of keys clacking in the background. “You know, your timing is impeccable,” she adds. “Most people are out enjoying their lives right now.”

“I’m not most people, Alyssa.”

“No kidding,” she says dryly, and the typing grows louder. “Give me a sec.”

I pace the length of the hallway, the cool air doing little to calm the tension knotted in my chest.

“Now,thisis interesting,” Alyssa says finally, her tone laced with intrigue. “Her name’s Natasha Petrov. Her file is… well, let’s just say it’s incomplete. A lot of redactions. Missing sections. Feels like someone went through it with a fine-tooth comb and left phrases only a crazy person could piece together.”

“What else?” I press, tension coiling tighter. There has to be more.

“A lot of code names, but there’s one you might know,Nightwalker,” she says. “Ring any bells?”

The word hits me like a cold slap, and I stop pacing, the name settling over me like a dark shadow. My thoughts flicker to the confidential file sitting at the bottom of my duffel bag. The one Alyssa handed me nearly a month ago.

I hadn’t opened it. Hadn’t even touched it, if I was being honest. I didn’t want to know whatever truth it held. Now, I wish I had.

“That’s not even the weirdest part,” Alyssa continues, her tone dropping slightly.

“What is?”

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