Camila stayed, and every time I looked toward the end of the bar, that became harder to ignore.
She still had her phone in one hand and a glass of water in front of her, occasionally glancing up like she was checking I hadn’t disappeared.
She’d kissed me for a Quest. Probably.
Waiting another hour afterward was harder to explain.
Then Graham Vale crossed the room toward the hotel side.
The man in the dark jacket was already waiting for him. Same gray at the temples, same controlled posture as the visitor I’d seen yesterday.
Definitely him.
They disappeared through the service passage together while I kept polishing the same glass.
Why am I even considering this?
I could finish my shift. Camila was waiting. In less than an hour, we’d share a cab, and whatever Vale was doing could remain somebody else’s problem.
That was the intelligent option.
I checked my phone beneath the bar.
MASTER QUEST — STEP BEHIND THE CURTAIN
Observe what Vesper keeps from public view.
Identify the hidden relationship.
Become meaningfully involved.
REWARD
+40 Master XP+6 Authority
Right. Apparently Camila wasn’t the only one who could be bribed by a sufficiently good Quest.
I checked the shelves.
The Yamazaki was almost gone.
Good enough.
I nudged Chris.
"You good for two minutes?"
He glanced toward the shelf. "Storage?"
I lifted the nearly empty bottle.
"Need another one."
Chris nodded toward the staff door.
"Go."
Perfect.
I headed through the staff door.
The music dulled behind me until only the bass remained, vibrating faintly through the walls.
I got the bottle first. Important detail.
Then I took the longer route back.
Still working, technically.
Vale’s voice reached me before I saw either of them.
"You said I’d know before anything moved."
"And you did."
The answer came without irritation, which somehow made Vale sound even more annoyed.
"Two hours isn’t notice."
The man barely shifted.
"It’s what I had."
I slowed.
That wasn’t the kind of conversation people had about hotel reservations.
Two service carts sat near the corner ahead. I moved behind them and looked through the gap.
Vale stood beside a closed office door, one hand shoved into his pocket. The other man’s jacket hung open, and something metallic caught the light at his belt.
A badge.
I stopped.
Not security. Not one of Calder’s people.
A cop.
An actual cop quietly meeting Vesper’s general manager in a service corridor.
Vale lowered his voice.
"And Calder?"
"Quiet."
Vale didn’t look reassured.
"For now?"
The cop’s expression barely changed.
"If that changes, you’ll know."
Vale studied him for a second.
"Before he does?"
The cop let the silence sit between them.
"That depends on you."
Well. That was interesting.
I should’ve left.
Instead, I slipped my phone from my pocket, opened the recorder and kept the screen angled toward my body.
Audio only.
If I was going to do something stupid, I could at least avoid doing it visibly.
Vale spoke again.
"I gave you six names."
"Three were useful."
His jaw tightened.
"That wasn’t the agreement."
The cop folded his arms.
"The agreement is you stay useful."
Vale swore quietly and glanced down the corridor.
"And you keep me one step ahead of Vice."
"So far, haven’t I?"
Neither man sounded like this was their first conversation.
After a moment, the cop checked his watch.
"Monday still good?"
"Yes."
He gave a small nod, as though that settled it.
"Then we’re fine."
Vale’s mouth tightened.
"I’m not fine."
"No. You’re nervous."
For a moment, Vale said nothing. Then he checked the corridor again.
"He can never know I’m talking to you."
"Then stop looking guilty every time he walks into a room."
Vale’s expression hardened.
"I mean it."
The cop didn’t move.
"I know."
Vale hesitated before asking the question that changed the entire conversation.
"If they move on him?"
"You’ll hear from me."
Vale held his gaze.
"Before Calder?"
Another pause.
"Yes."
Fuck.
Vale looked away.
"And my name?"
"Still clean."
The answer didn’t seem to reassure him.
"For now?"
The cop gave him a long look.
"You wanted to be standing when this is over, Graham."
Vale didn’t answer.
"That costs something."
The pieces settled into place faster than I liked.
This wasn’t Vale buying a little protection.
He was feeding a cop information about Calder’s operation while keeping his own name outside whatever Vice was building.
And if Calder went down, Vale intended to still be standing afterward.
Possibly higher than before.
The cop spoke again.
"Keep your end useful and I’ll keep mine useful."
Vale’s jaw tightened.
"And next time?"
"Not here."
Vale glanced toward the corridor one more time.
"Agreed."
I already had more than enough.
The reasonable thing was to leave, but forty Master XP had apparently lowered my standards for reasonable behavior.
I kept recording.
Vale dropped his voice another level.
"There are two more names I can give you."
"Depends who they are."
He glanced toward the closed door before answering.
"One of them works directly under—"
A hand closed around the back of my shirt.
I was ripped backward before I could make a sound.
The Yamazaki slammed against my thigh, and my phone nearly left my hand.
Talia.
She didn’t say anything.
That was worse.
One hand stayed locked in my shirt as she dragged me behind the carts.
I twisted enough to look at her.
"Talia—"
Her palm covered my mouth.
Her eyes cut toward the corridor.
Right.
She didn’t want them hearing us.
Talia pushed open the nearest stockroom door and hauled me inside. The door shut behind us, followed by the click of the lock.
Only then did she let go.
My shoulder hit the shelving hard enough to rattle something above me.
"What the fuck are you doing?"
I lifted the Yamazaki slightly.
"Getting whisky."
Her eyes dropped to the phone in my hand.
Then back to me.
"You’ve been filming my floor all night."
Oh.
She thought this was PULSE.
"I’m not filming."
Talia held out her hand.
"Phone."
My grip tightened.
"No."
Her expression hardened.
"Evan."
"No."
She stepped closer and reached for it.
Suddenly Vale stopped mattering.
So did the recording.
My stomach dropped.
Quest Master.
Camila. Every Quest. Every hidden number.
Everything.
Absolutely fucking not.
I pulled the phone against my chest and backed into the shelving.
Something in Talia’s expression changed.
"What is on that phone?"
I stared at her.
"Nothing you’re getting."
Her face went cold.
Then she reached for me.