Bind (Manhattan Lux Book 1): Manhattan Lux (12 page)

“
S
he’s not dead
,” Wyatt said. “I’m sorry. I should’ve realized you’d take that message to heart.” He snaked an arm around Jinx’s waist and kissed her on the cheek.

“What kind of a person writes something like that?” asked Jinx.

“Daisy,” said Wyatt. “Trust me, that’s pretty classic. Her way of telling me to fuck off.”

“Holy shit.” Aiko gaped at him. “That’s messed up.

“Yeah, that’s Daisy for you,” said Wyatt.

“So what are we going to do?” asked Jinx.

“Nothing.” He threw his hands up and shrugged.

Jinx and Aiko stared at Wyatt like he’d either gone insane or was the most heartless bastard they’d ever met.

“Seriously.” He held up the phone again and shook it for emphasis. “No killer would write “Daisy’s dead”, that’s just dumb. I promise you, I
know
Daisy, and that was her sending a very pointed message to me. One she fully expects me to pass on to poor Bryce. Which is something I’m not relishing.” He tossed his phone on the counter and ran a hand through his hair. “We’ll deal with her in the morning. Right now we’ve got to call Jack.”

“Ugh” said Aiko. Can’t that wait till morning too?”

“Nope,” Wyatt shook his head. “Can’t sleep till we fill in the boss. Besides, he really needs to know.”

“What is it? What else did you find out?” Jinx looked at her sister with concern.

“We got hold of the records for Daisy’s phone,” Aiko explained. “Another little something Wyatt’s NSA buddy helped us with.”

“I cannot confirm or deny—”

“Yeah, yeah.” Aiko rolled her eyes. “Anyway, we were able to track some of her movements, and she’s spent a lot of time in this building.” Aiko picked up the folder and held it open for Jinx, dragging a finger down the page till she found what she was looking for.

“That’s Calvert Place,” Jinx said, glancing up at her. “Jack lives there.”

“Yeah he does,” said Aiko. “Keeps the whole top floor to himself. I saw it once. Didn’t get the full tour, but damn it’s pretty.”

“Oh did you see the koi pond?” Wyatt asked. “In that nook behind the lounge? With the little waterfall and the fairy-lights?”

Aiko whistled. “I did, snuck a peek when Jack was busy. Fucking amazeballs.”

“Can we focus please?” Jinx said, folding her arms in irritation. “What was Daisy doing at Calvert Place?”

“No idea,” Aiko shrugged. “So, we checked the cameras in the building to see what she was up to, and found footage of her entering an apartment on the 10th floor.” Aiko pointed to the folder. “Next page,” she said. “The apartment is owned by a photojournalist who is currently out of the country. Not supposed to sublet in that building, so we figured Daisy was squatting. Malcolm got a key from maintenance and took a peek inside. He said the place is trashed, so our guess was right. The real tenant probably has no idea Daisy was even there.”

“Still, somebody should’ve known.” Jinx clucked her tongue. “Security should’ve noticed. Jack will be pissed.”

“All the more reason not to bug him about it tonight,” said Aiko. “I’m guessing she was there in some misguided attempt to spy on him, cause more mischief. Doesn’t matter, she’s gone, and he’s not in any danger. Security knows who she is now. They’ve been told to detain her if she shows up again,” said Aiko.

“Aiko.” Wyatt’s tone was stern, big brotherly.

“Fine. But I’m not doing it,” said Aiko. “You call him, I’ll just sit here in case he has questions. But only if you make me one of those glasses of chocolate milk.”

“Alright.” Wyatt grabbed his cell phone. “Chocolate milk, coming right up.”

“Put it on speaker,” said Jinx. “So I can talk to him too. I’m done being left out of everything.”

Wyatt tapped the speaker button, then set the phone on the counter. As it rang he grabbed a clean glass from the cupboard, poured milk, added chocolate powder and stirred. The ringing continued. No answer. Wyatt handed the glass of milk to Aiko and was just about to hang up the phone when someone answered.

“Hello?” Jack’s voice was husky, but alert. Wyatt glanced at Jinx, and saw her expression mirror what he was thinking. Surprisingly, they hadn’t woken him. It was 4 a.m. and Jack Calvert was wide awake.

“Hey Jack!” Wyatt. “Sorry to call so late, or early, or whatever but um—” Wyatt broke off when a peel of girlish laughter sounded from the speakers.

Wyatt grimaced at Jinx and mouthed
“He’s not alone. Fuck.”

“Oh hey, sorry.” Wyatt, tried to sound casual, but it didn’t work, his tone overloud and awkward and totally obvious. “Didn’t realize you had company.”

“Never mind that, Wyatt,” Jack snapped. “Just tell me why you called.”

“Well uh—”

There was more giggling and soft cooing sounds, and then Jack must’ve dropped the phone because there was a thump, some rustling noises, heavy breathing, another thump, and then they heard Jack hiss “Kristie, stop! Jesus, gimme a minute.”

“Mother fucker,”
Jinx mouthed the words to Wyatt.
“What the fuck is he doing with her? She works for me!”

Wyatt winced and shook his head. “I dunno,” he whispered. “I’m sorry. He’s a total slut. Always has been.”

“Wyatt?” said Jack. “Are you talking to someone? Am I on speaker?”

“Um, yeah, sorry, yeah. Just here with Aiko and Jinx, we’ve been—”

“Up late working on the security issues at the club,” Aiko said.

“Yeah,
your
club,” Jinx added, her tone dripping with enough snark that Wyatt didn’t know whether to flinch or high-five her. “The one with all the loyal employees and the strict no fraternization policy.”

“Ooooo.”
Wyatt mouthed.
“Burn.”
He offered his fist. Jinx bumped it and winked.

“We have no such policy,” Jack said coldly. “Because if we did, I’d be turning over my entire staff every month. And I’d have to fire both you and Wyatt right now. So save the sass Jinx.”

“Whatever you say…boss,” she sneered.

“And Wyatt?”

“Yes boss?”

“Take me the fuck off speaker right now and tell me whatever you need to tell me. I’m busy.”

“Right. Gotcha.” Wyatt grabbed the phone, tapped a button and walked away from the women, running through the gist of the night’s developments as fast and succinctly as possible.

“..So then Aiko tracked Daisy’s cell phone to your building. She’s been lurking in an apartment that belongs to someone else.”

“That’s just bizarre,” said Jack.

“Yeah. I was hoping you’d say that. Because that’s what I think too.”

“It doesn’t make sense. What could she hope to gain by doing such a thing? It’s not like she could surveil me by living in the same building. The penthouse has its own elevator, straight to the garage. And round the clock security.”

“Right,” said Wyatt. “I know.”

“So what’s the goal?” said Jack. “Why all the effort for such a fruitless endeavor?”

“Exactly,” said Wyatt. “Why indeed?”

“You have ideas,” said Jack, more statement than question.

“I do. At this point, with this new information, I’m a little more concerned. Because someone’s going through a lot of trouble to use Daisy to keep us busy.”

“Keep us distracted, you mean,” said Jack.

“Yes. And that means we’re missing something.”

“What?”

“That’s what troubles me.” Wyatt glanced back over at the women, caught Jinx’s curious expression and smiled at her, waving his hand to suggest everything was okay, that he’d be wrapping this conversation up in just a minute. “I’ll be over there first thing in the morning,” he continued. “Just need to get some sleep first. In the meantime, we’ve got Malcolm watching the place. She won’t come back, but still. Better safe-”

“Agreed,” said Jack.

“Great. I’ll fill you in tomorrow. I have a few ideas I want to explore. I’ll let you know what, if anything, pans out.”

“Good.”

“Hey Jack?” said Wyatt.

“Yes?”

“Have fun with Kristie. Didn’t think you went for the giggly type, but what the fuck do I know?”

“Fuck off buddy,” Jack growled, but Wyatt could hear the undercurrent of laughter in his voice. “Fuck right off.”

“Will do boss.” Wyatt grinned, hung up and crossed back to the women, took Aiko’s glass of milk from her, and drained the contents.

“Hey!”

“So what now?” asked Jinx, ignoring her sister’s grumbles about chocolate milk.

“Bed.” Wyatt wiped his mouth with the back of his hand and set the empty glass in the kitchen sink. “Nothing more to do now, and we need sleep. Tomorrow we’ll pay a visit to Daisy’s little crash pad and see what we can find out. She’s probably cleared out. Obviously she knows we’re on to her. But she’s also a mess, and it sounds like she left one in that apartment. So we might catch a break sifting through her crap.”

“Not if her mysterious benefactor has cleaned up after her,” said Aiko.

Wyatt shrugged. “Might’ve. We’ll find out tomorrow.”

“Great,” Aiko said, gathering her coat and purse. “Then I’m off to bed. Try to keep the sexcapades to a dull roar, you two. I’m tired.”

“I thought we were getting the place to ourselves tonight!” Wyatt called after her.

“Sorry,” Aiko called back. “Corporate espionage can be a real roller coaster. You’re gonna have to roll with the punches.”

“Shhh,” Jinx whispered putting a finger to her lips. “Not so loud. You’ll wake the pups, and we’ll never get back to sleep.”

Aiko’s bedroom door closed and Wyatt turned to Jinx, pulling her in close for a long deep kiss.

“We need sleep,” he said. “But first, sexcapades.” Tucking one arm behind her back, he slipped the other behind her knees and began to lift her.

“Put me down!” she screeched. “Your knee you idiot!”

Wyatt kept lifting. “Shhhh,” he said. “You’ll wake the dogs. And forget about my dumb knee. My knee’s fine.” He’d lifted her halfway up his chest when pain splintered through his shoulder, causing him to buckle forward.

Jinx wriggled from his arms and pushed him back against a kitchen barstool.

“Your knee might be fine for right now, but that’s because you’re overcompensating again.” She rubbed her palms together vigorously, then applied them to his shoulder, kneading the muscle with her fingers. “You’re definitely seeing my chiropractor tomorrow.”

“I gotta go do the Daisy thing.”

“We,” Jinx corrected him. “I’m going with you, after we get you in to see Dr. Shelley. Don’t even think about arguing.”

“Whatever. You’re not the boss of me.”

“Wyatt…”

“Alright, alright, we’ll see.”

* * *

T
hey skipped the sexcapades
, on account of the shoulder, and went straight to spooning, their bodies nesting together so easily that Wyatt sighed with contentment, his breath warming the back of Jinx’s neck and sending a tendril of hair floating over her cheek.

“This is nice,” he said. “I could lay just like this forever I think. Perfectly happy.”

A high-pitched whine sounded from the other side of Jinx’s bedroom door.

“Shit.” Jinx tensed in his arms, and Wyatt held her tighter. “We woke the dogs.”

“Don’t make a sound,” he whispered in her ear. “Maybe they’ll go back to bed.”

Four puppy voices collaborated in a desperate refrain so plaintive and pathetic, and so obviously designed to elicit sympathy that Wyatt had to hold his breath to keep from busting out loud with laughter.

“Don’t you dare,” Jinx warned. “If they hear you, that’s it. They’ll be sleeping with us tonight.”

Wyatt tucked his face into the crook of her neck, choking on laughter as the dogs began to scratch at the door.

“Maybe they could—” he began.

“No.”

“For just a little—”

“No.”

“But what if they
promise
to be good?”

“Oh my God.”

Wyatt flipped Jinx over to face him, puffed out his lower lip and attempted a full on pout.

“Not gonna work, cowboy.” Jinx stared him down.

As if sensing they had an ally on the inside, the pups picked up their song again, scratching at the door so that it thumped in the frame, a gentle percussion accompaniment to the keening.

Wyatt puffed his lip out further and joined the dogs in their whimpering chorus.

Jinx curled her lips in disgust. “Are you seriously making that sound right now?”

Wyatt wagged his head.

“Ugh. That is truly disgusting. Stop it.”

Wyatt shook his head.

“Jesus!” Jinx threw the blankets from her legs, rose from the bed, and stalked to the door. “Fine! I’ll let them in. Just stop. Oh my God, if you ever want to have sex with me again, stop.”

He stopped. Jinx opened the door, and the dogs came flying through, leaping up into Wyatt’s lap and covering him in kisses.

Jinx scooped Clyde up and delivered him to the bed with the others.

“Rules,” she said, standing over them, finger raised like a teacher chastising a class of naughty children. “No snoring. No slobbering. No barking in your sleep. Absolutely. No. Farting.”

Wyatt nodded, and the dogs wagged their tails.

“Mom says be good guys. Okay? This is a special treat. We gotta show Mom we can be good, or she’ll never let us have a sleepover again.”