Talia reached for me.
I moved first, not because I thought I could beat her. I had enough self-awareness for that.
I turned sideways and locked the phone against my chest. Her hand caught my wrist anyway.
"Unlock it."
"No."
She twisted, and pain shot almost to my elbow.
"Evan."
I clenched my jaw. "No."
Her other hand caught my shirt and drove me into the shelving.
"You were hiding outside a private meeting. Recording people in my building."
"Not your building."
Wrong answer.
Her grip tightened.
"Unlock it."
Panic mixed with the pain.
She couldn’t have the phone. Not for ten seconds.
One wrong tap and she’d see Camila. Alignment. Hidden Roles. Every Quest I’d sent.
Everything.
"Fuck off."
Talia tried to wrench it free.
I shoved her arm away.
Her fist buried itself beneath my ribs.
Air vanished.
She caught my shirt before I folded and slammed me back into the shelving. My cheek clipped the metal edge hard enough that I tasted blood.
"Phone."
Something hot moved through me.
Grant pouring his drink over me. Isabella laughing. People deciding what I was worth before I opened my mouth.
Talia putting me against another wall because she could.
My brain supplied the answer it always did.
Shut up. Get through it.
For once, I ignored it.
"Are you fucking stupid?"
Her face went still.
"What did you say?"
"You heard me."
Her eyes hardened.
"Careful."
"No."
That surprised both of us.
I tasted blood again.
"You have no idea what happens in this building."
I stared at her.
"Are you honestly that dense?"
Something shifted in her expression.
"Anyone who’s worked here for a week and actually pays attention knows this place sells more than overpriced liquor. I’ve seen drugs move through here. I’ve seen women go upstairs with men who weren’t booking rooms for the mattresses. Certain guests disappear through doors nobody else gets near."
"You don’t know what you’re talking about."
"I know enough."
Her grip stayed tight.
"You’ve been here a few months and now you’re an expert?"
"No. I’m observant. There’s a difference."
I raised the phone slightly.
"I don’t know Calder’s operation. I don’t need to. I know Vale is secretly meeting a dirty cop, feeding him names, paying for warnings and asking to know before anyone moves on Calder."
Talia didn’t answer.
I held her gaze.
"That’s betrayal."
She scoffed. "You hear one conversation and build a conspiracy."
"Then let me prove it."
Her hand opened.
"Give me the phone."
"No."
Her expression flattened.
"Evan."
"Let go and I’ll play the recording."
For a moment, neither of us moved.
"You don’t set conditions."
"Then stay ignorant."
That stopped her.
Barely.
I kept my eyes on hers.
"You want to know whether I’m full of shit? Let go."
Several seconds passed before her grip finally loosened.
"Play it."
"All the way."
Her eyes narrowed, but she released me.
I stayed against the shelving, mostly because my ribs weren’t interested in moving, and opened the recorder.
Vale’s voice filled the stockroom.
Two hours of warning.
Six names.
Three useful.
Then:
"And you keep me one step ahead of Vice."
Talia’s expression tightened.
The recording continued until Vale asked the question that mattered.
"If they move on him?"
"You’ll hear from me."
Then:
"Before Calder?"
A pause.
"Yes."
Vale asked about his own name. The cop told him it was still clean.
Finally:
"You wanted to be standing when this is over, Graham."
The recording ended.
Talia stared at the phone.
"Again."
Her voice sounded different now.
I replayed the important section. This time she listened without looking at me.
Really listened.
When it ended, she held out her hand.
"Give me the phone."
I laughed. "Have we learned nothing?"
Her jaw tightened.
"Evan."
"You need the recording. Not my phone."
She considered that.
"Send it to me."
Better.
"Number?"
She gave it to me, and I sent the file while she watched.
Her phone vibrated.
"Delete yours."
I did.
Her attention stayed on my screen.
"Recently deleted."
I looked at her.
"Seriously?"
She didn’t blink.
Fine.
I cleared that too.
Quest Master remained untouched.
Only then did my pulse begin to slow.
Talia looked down at the recording on her own phone.
"I’m showing Calder."
"Good."
Her eyes lifted.
"Good?"
"He should know."
I pushed myself away from the shelf.
"Vale shouldn’t know that he knows."
Talia frowned. "Why?"
"Because if Vale thinks he’s safe, he keeps meeting the cop. Keeps feeding him information. Keeps showing Calder how deep it goes."
"And if Calder wants him dealt with tonight?"
"Then Calder decides."
I picked up the Yamazaki.
"His business. His rat."
Talia studied me.
"You really don’t care what happens to Vale."
"He made his decision."
For the first time since she’d dragged me into the room, she looked away first.
Her eyes dropped to the phone, and I recognized the calculation in her face.
Not fear.
Opportunity.
"Your boss has a problem," I said. "And you’re about to walk into his office holding proof."
Her eyes sharpened.
"You want more responsibility here?"
"Careful."
I almost smiled.
"You don’t need to answer."
She stared at me for a moment, then slipped the phone into her pocket.
"If you see that cop again, you come to me."
I almost laughed. "So now I’m useful?"
Talia’s expression didn’t change.
"You were useful when you hit record."
Fair.
She unlocked the door.
Before leaving, she glanced at the blood on my lip.
"You should put ice on that."
That was her apology?
Apparently.
Then she disappeared with the recording.
I stayed in the stockroom. My wrist hurt, my ribs hurt worse, and every time I ran my tongue across my lip, I tasted blood.
She’d walked away with exactly what she needed, and somehow I’d helped her get it.
Still, the anger remained. Not because it hurt, but because for those few minutes, there had been almost nothing I could do to stop her.
Again.
I stared at the closed door, my grip tightening around the bottle. You stupid fucking bitch.
That was the last time you got to make me feel powerless.