Page 21 of Peak Cruelty

11

Vance

Seven days.That’s what the house owed me.Nothing more.

But nothing ever breaks the way it’s meant to.

Especially not her.

She didn’t talk last night.Didn’t beg.Didn’t try to bargain.She just looked at me like she knew something I didn’t.

I haven’t stopped thinking about that.

It should’ve been fear.Not calculus.

The sun’s barely up when I hear it—gravel shift outside.Not the wind.Not a fox nosing through trash.Weight.Not curious—committed.Shoes.

I move to the security feed, swipe the screen.There’s a van parked at the bottom of the drive.Unmarked.White.

Then—movement.A man.Mid-forties.Hat.Tool belt.

He’s not lost.Not casing.Too confident for that.He’s here for a reason.A task.Something preloaded in his schedule.

No one should be here.I was promised privacy.It is my honeymoon, after all.

And that’s the problem.

I reach in my bag.Not for a weapon—yet.Just a wrench.Heavy enough to end a conversation, if it comes to that.

Her eyes track me.Every move.Every muscle.As though she’s memorizing my posture, not just my face.Not concerned—focused.

“I wouldn’t get your hopes up if I were you.”

I nod toward the door.“You won’t like the results.”

She doesn’t answer, but I catch it—a flicker at the edge of her expression.Like a new equation just landed in her lap.

I open the door before he can knock.

He startles, turns fast—then laughs like this is normal.As though I’m not one second from driving him through the railing.

“Morning,” he says, easy.“Didn’t mean to catch you off guard.”

I don’t answer.Because I know how I sound when I’m angry.And it’s not useful yet.

“Got a work order,” he goes on.“Shower drain or something.Just a quick look.”

I nod once.Step outside.Let the door close behind me.

“That’s odd.I was promised privacy.It’s my honeymoon.We only need one shower.And it’s working fine.”

He pulls out his phone, scrolls like it means something.I glance once—just enough to see he’s got a real service app open.Could be real.Could be good planning.

I don’t look down again.I’m watching his eyes.

They don’t twitch.Don’t scan the house.No backup.No badge.

Maybe he's legit.Maybe not.

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