Page 57 of The Vigilant

“You’re still up.” It wasn’t a question, just my brain working to tether itself to the current moment so the heavy memories of what happened at the townhouse didn’t drag me asunder.

“Don’t sleep much,” was all Creed offered.

“I have new info.” I set Sutton’s phone on the table, wincing as I was hit with the memory of what she’d been doing when I walked in—what she’d been willing to do to try and find Mara. I pushed the device toward him. “Turns out Kang was approached by someone at the club and told to have Mara register on a cam site not long before she disappeared. I think she might’ve been conversing with a user on there who wanted to meet her.”

“That someone associated with the Wah Ching?”

“Not sure. But it’s a lead.”

Creed made a low noise but remained surprisingly stoic as he looked at the screen. “Who was the user?”

I scowled and reached for the phone. “It’s right…” My voice trailed off, staring at the blankUser923Xnot foundscreen. “Dammit.”

“Here.” He held out his palm, and I gave him back the phone. He then reached in his backpack and pulled out a small device that he plugged into the phone. It lit orange and then green. “This’ll send all the data back to Callum, so he can access it remotely. He’ll be able to hack the app, and if there’s any information trail, he’ll find it.”

He set the phone on the table, letting the wireless transmitter do its thing as he turned back to me.

I let out a breath. “I’m going to look into the site itself. I don’t have a good feeling.”

His head tipped. “You think the whole thing is suspect?”

Something dark and heavy settled on my chest.

“Afraid the whole fucking thing is a front,” I said and went behind my desk to wake up my computer. Knowing Kang left with Carson…knowing my suspicion that Carson had been providing women to Uzair for years…I had a bad fucking feeling that I’d just found how he’d been doing it.

Creed made another low grunt and looked back to his iPad. “I’m going to head back into the city in the morning. GrowTech is having some kind of town hall meeting with Carson to give the company some good publicity.”

“You going to follow him?”

I watched his head tip from the back.

“I think I’ll just ask him what he was doing at the White Pearl that night and see what he says.”

My brows rose. “You sure that’s a good idea?”

“Can’t spook him. He’s in the public eye now. Figured this is the best shot to either get some answers or watch him lead me to the person who’s got them.”

Bold…but solid.

“Of course, if Callum comes back with any information from the app or on this User923X, I can adjust course.”

I made a sound of agreement, and then we both settled into the silence, neither of us bothered by not speaking. Not when there was work to do.

I jolted as the alarm started going off.

“What the…” A deep groan broke from its moorings in my chest, my body protesting every kind of movement as I tried to sit up.

My vision swam into focus. Computer. Desk. Empty table. I’d fallen asleep at my desk.

“Shit.” Even though I didn’t remember my dreams, it didn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out the subject of them when I stood, my hard cock wedged tight to my sweatpants.

I adjusted myself and then grabbed Sutton’s phone off the table; it was her alarm that was going off, not any of mine.

8:15. I swiped and quickly turned off the blaring sound.

“Fuck,” I let out a long breath. The time wasn’t the problem. Not really. Just its implication.

I had to go back to the townhouse. I told Sutton we would talk this morning, and even though the things I’d done to her, including the way I’d had to walk away, were borderline brutish and entirely unacceptable, I was a man of my word.

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