“Yes.” I knew the lie was a bad idea even as I said it, but no matter what he thought or wanted, Cavazos didn’t rule my life, and he had no right to monitor every second of it.

Then the pain hit, right behind my eyes, and the room wobbled around me. And that’s when I understood. We’d found and disposed of Shen’s killer. My job for Anne was technically finished, and since she hadn’t paid a new retainer, I was no longer officially working for her.

I hadn’t just lied, I’d lied about my state of employment, a minor breach of my contract with Cavazos.

Shit, shit, shit!

“If you’re getting paid for whatever you’re doing with Caballero, you’ve expanded your services since our agreement,” he said, and my heart dropped into my stomach with an almost-audible plop.

He knew I was with Cam. Had one of his men seen us together?

I took a moment to weigh my options: feign ignorance, or unleash honest anger? I went with the best of both worlds: feigned angry ignorance.

“What the hell, Ruben?”

“Get dressed. There’s a car waiting for you downstairs. If you’re not in it in five minutes, I’m sending them in after you.”

Fuck. Fuck! He knew where we were. “You had me followed?”

“No, I had you tracked.”

Motherfucker! I stood and headed into the living room, in search of my clothes.

“What are you…?” Cam asked, standing naked in the doorway, but I silenced him with a look as I stepped into my underwear, the phone pinned against my shoulder, wincing at the fresh pain spawned in my arm by the movement.

“Is that him?” Cavazos said into my ear, sounding almost…eager. Hungry. He wanted a fight.

“Leave him out of this,” I said, pulling up my borrowed skirt.

“Leave me…?” Cam sputtered, and I scowled at him again, shoving my good arm into Vanessa’s T-shirt.

“Leave him out of this?” Cavazos said. I had to take the phone away from my ear to pull the shirt over my head, and I could still hear him yelling. “If your ass isn’t in that car in—” he paused, and I pictured him looking at his watch “—three and a half minutes, I’m going to pull him so far into this he’ll wish he’d never even met you. No piece of ass is worth the pain you’re bringing to his doorstep. Are you hearing me, Olivia?”

I sat on the couch next to Cam and pulled on my left sock, then shoved my foot into my boot.

“I said, are you hearing me?”

“Yes!” I shouted into the phone. “I fucking hear you! Three minutes.” Then I pressed the end-call button and dropped the phone on the coffee table. “Damn it!” Pissed beyond all control, I kicked the table with my booted foot and it skidded across the room, launching my phone into the wall. It hit the floor undamaged, unfortunately.

“Cavazos?” Cam righted the table as I pulled my second sock on, and I could see the flare of temper in his eyes.

“Yeah.”

“He called you in?”

“Yeah.” I shoved my foot into the last boot and laced it up like my fingers were on fire.

“Don’t go. You don’t have to go.”

I stood and met his gaze. “Anne’s no longer paying me. I have to go.”

“But you already reported to him this week.”

“Doesn’t matter.” I headed back into the bedroom to unplug my phone charger, and Cam followed, arms crossed over his chest. “He can request additional reports, at his convenience.” Or he could offer me side jobs, which I had to take unless they conflicted with existing work.

“That didn’t sound like a request to me. Did he say there’s a car outside?”

“Yup.” In the front room again, I picked up my satchel and shoved my phone charger inside, then bent for my phone, glancing around to make sure I wasn’t forgetting anything. I’d have to leave everything related to Shen’s murder—I couldn’t take anything I wouldn’t want found in a search. Which meant my gun would have to stay, too.

“How the hell does he know you’re here?”

“Sometimes he has me watched. This time he had me tracked.”

“You’re serious?” Cam said, and I glanced at him with both brows raised in answer. “He wants more from you than a tracking job, Liv.”

“I’m aware. He just wants what he knows he can’t have—a pretty standard obsession for the rich and spoiled. But that doesn’t invalidate the importance of the work I’m actually doing for him.”

Cam stepped between me and the front door. “The Liv I knew would never jump just because some abusive asshole told her to.”

I exhaled slowly. “The Liv you knew didn’t have to jump. This one does.” He started to argue, but I put my whole hand over his mouth. “Stay here, Cam. I’ll be back as soon as I can. Just…stay in the apartment. Please.” He shoved my hand away, but I spoke over whatever he’d been about to say. “Swear.”

“Hell no. If you’re going, I’m going with you.”

“You can’t.” I tried to pull him away from the door, but he wouldn’t move. “Cam, you have three marks from Tower on your arm. If you come anywhere near Cavazos’s house, they’ll kill you….”

“They’ll try.”

“They’ll succeed. You can’t fight his entire security detail by yourself,” I insisted, and Cam tried to interrupt, but I spoke over him again. “And after you’ve tried and failed, Ruben’s going to take it out on me, for bringing you.”