Page 34 of Fool Me Twice
Cane shot him a look. “I’m saying we’re a step behind whatever is happening, and we need to find a way to catch it in action.”
“How do you suggest we do that?” Fix asked, holding his hands up when Cane puffed up his chest to argue. “I’m not saying you’re wrong. Just trying to work out the logistics of it.”
“Hart can come live with me,” Cane said, like it was that simple. “I’m always in the middle of everything, and he can shadow me day and night until we catch shit going down. It’s not just at the fight ring this shit is happening. It’s anything of mine. He can intervene in real time that way.”
Ash widened his eyes at him, mouth agape.
Fix tried to stay neutral as always, but Hart could see he had a lot to say about the suggestion.
“That’s not happening.” Ash broke the silence first. “Hart has nothing to do in your filthy apartment and definitely nothing to do in that den of depravity you call a business.”
“You’re happily there all the time, Cursebreaker,” Cane said.
Ash leaned across the table toward Cane. “I’m there because I want to be. Not because someone told me I had to be.”
“I agree with Ash,” Fix said. “That place is not appropriate for Hart. And staying at a client’s home is also only done in emergency cases.”
“Hart is a grown-up who can make his own decisions,” Cane said.
“Hart is a part of the team, and we make decisions like these, as a team,” Fix said calmly.
Hart listened to the mayhem, head spinning.
He didn’t want to go. Ash was right. Fix was right too.
But at the end of the day…
“Cane is right,” he said finally, and it was like dropping a bomb into the room.
“Hart!” Ash shouted, playing the part of the explosion.
“Every good piece of work needs the right person in the right place at the right time,” Hart said, striving for more calm than he felt.
“But…”
“We’ve been trailing behind whatever this thing is. Curse, sabotage, doesn’t matter. We need to find a way to get ahead. The best way to do that is to be there when it happens. Catch it in action.”
“Why does it have to be you?” Ash asked.
“Because we already ruled everyone else out,” Hart said. “Nobody is tied to anything, there is no cursed object tied to each of these cases, and I’d say being down a few hundred thousand slates rules out this being a simple nuisance curse.”
“Are you sure about this?” Fix asked, a deep frown between his brows, his voice shaking with worry.
Hart ignored Cane’s eyes drilling holes into the side of his head. “I don’t like it any more than you do—”
“You’re hurting my feelings, sweetheart.”
Hart glared at Cane to shut up before continuing, “But this is the best course of action for now. I’ll be careful and do my best to keep you informed at all times.”
“Check in every few hours,” Fix said.
“And call us if you need us there,” Ash said. “I know my way around the warehouse, at least.”
“No, you don’t,” Cane said.
Ash chuckled. “Shows what you know.”
“I’ll pack some things and be there this evening,” Hart said to Cane, ignoring the bickering around him.