Page 25 of Duty Unbound

“Wait,” Logan interrupted. “If the security is that bad, and the threats are that serious, how has nothing happened yet?”

“Dumb luck,” I replied. “And it ran out five days ago when someone got into the house.”

We discussed the break-in, which was already in the file, then added what Ty and I discovered at the house, includingeverything—Nova’s dismissive attitude and Mel’s efforts to manage it all.

“We’ll need to secure the estate first, then develop protocols for the tour. I want all of you here in three days to implement.”

“What changed your mind?” Jace asked, his expression curious. “Yesterday, you were convinced these people weren’t worth our time.”

Unbidden, the image of Mel’s arm came to mind—the purple bruise stark against her pale skin. The way she’d tried to hide it, like she wasn’t used to anyone noticing her pain.

“I’ve been assured Nova will be on board with whatever we decide to implement. So we’ll do it.”

“Plus, I personally asked if any of her friends or colleagues had any grenades and was assured that wasn’t part of the upcoming tour,” Ty tossed in, rubbing near the bullet graze on his arm. “So, double win.”

I reached for the flash drive Mel had provided. “Jace, I’m going to send you this drive. It contains screenshots of threatening messages Nova’s been receiving. I want you to analyze them, see if you can find patterns, identify potential suspects.”

“On it.”

“One more thing.” I hesitated, knowing this was outside our normal scope. “I need you to develop an app or software that can filter text messages.”

All three men looked surprised.

“Come again?” Jace asked.

“Nova constantly texts Mel—dozens, sometimes hundreds of messages a day. Anxiety spirals, mostly. It keeps Mel glued to her phone, which is a security risk on its own. I need something that can filter those messages, send the important ones to Mel, route the rest to an assistant.”

“That’s…not exactly standard Citadel services,” Logan said slowly.

“I know. Consider it a special project.” I met Jace’s eyes through the screen. “Can you do it?”

He thought for a moment. “Yeah, shouldn’t be too hard. Basic AI filter with customizable parameters. I can have something ready in a few days.”

“Good.” I ignored the look Ty was giving me from across the room. “Any questions?”

We spent the next twenty minutes going through logistics—team assignments, equipment needs, timeline. When we finished, I ended the call and closed my laptop.

“So,” Ty said, his voice deliberately casual. “That text filtering thing. That’s new.”

I shrugged. “It’s a security issue.”

“Uh-huh.” He didn’t look convinced. “And it has nothing to do with the fact that you clearly have a thing for Mel Rivers.”

“I don’t have a ‘thing’ for anyone. She’s a client now. That’s it.”

“Right. Just like you didn’t stare at her like she was the last bottle of water in the desert.”

I shot him a warning look. “Thin ice, Hughes.”

He held up his hands in surrender, but the knowing smile didn’t leave his face. “I shall now take off my ice skates and return to the safety of the shoreline.”

After Ty left to grab us some food, I sat down at the conference table and opened the folder again. Some of the threats were standard celebrity stalker material—declarations of undying love, anger at beingignored, bizarre requests. But others were more sinister, with detailed descriptions of what the sender wanted to do to Nova.

One letter in particular stood out. Unlike the others, which were focused on Nova’s appearance or demands for attention, this one mentioned the reasons why canceling her tour was a good idea. It had a different tone from the rest—less overtly sexual, more…paternalistic.

I made a note to have Jace pay special attention to that one.

My mind drifted to Mel again. The bruise on her arm. The exhaustion in her eyes that she tried so hard to hide. The way she carried everything on her shoulders without complaint.

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