Then Mocha moved under the table, nudging at the center tree that kept it standing.
“Don’t knock it over!” Liv slid off the chair, grabbing the table before Mocha could flip it over.
But Mocha kept pushing at it, then whining.
Carefully Liv tipped it down to the ground, so she could see the underside. Nothing looked out of place or particularly ominous.
Then she saw it. Tucked to the inside of the table legs was a small flash drive.
What was she, in a spy movie?
Still, she used a napkin before she pulled it off of the table. Then she sat it on a different table, staring at it. Whose was it? Who had put it there? It was plain and black, but when Liv turned it over, the top side was decorated as a joker card.
Liv shivered. Was it a trick?
She glanced around outside, then went and double-checked that the front door was locked. She slid the flash drive into her pocket, as casually as if she was resting her hand there, and headed to the back office. She had a computer there that was primarily used for keeping track of expenses and supplies, but it did have a USB slot.
Turning on the computer, Liv slid the USB drive into the computer until a small light turned on, indicating it had connected. The little computer USB thing that indicated her computer was processing popped up, a little circle spinning in circles and circles.
NO CONTENT.
It was just a pop-up. Liv frowned at it, ejected it and then put it back in. Who would hide an empty flash drive in her coffee shop?
But there was the same ‘No content’ message as before.
She looked at the flash drive, her mind spinning. Whose was it? What should she do with it?
The ringing of her phone reminded her that the real world existed. “Crap!” She’d forgotten Ryan was coming over.
“Let’s go, Mocha.” She headed straight to her car, Mocha trotting beside her.
25
Tuesday 25th October; 7pm
Liv parked the car, letting Mocha out first so she could check the surrounding area. But Liv could tell it was safe. The prickling, we-are-watching you feeling had disappeared. She was home now. She was okay.
Ryan was standing at the front door, one hand on her hip and a half-smile on her face. “Got sidetracked?” she teased.
Liv could feel the weight of the flash drive in her pocket, but she didn’t mention it. “You know work.” Liv smiled in return.
Ryan pulled her close and kissed her until Mocha barked in protest. “I’m sorry, I didn’t greet you.” Ryan crouched down to greet Mocha, giving her scratches.
“She’ll lay down and sleep soon enough.” Liv chuckled. Her emotions were running high. Was she making the wrong decision? She had no proof it was related to the case, and she didn’t want to worry Ryan unnecessarily.
“Is Gram okay?” Ryan looked at her, alert.
Liv looked down at her phone and nodded. “Last I talked to the nurses, she was sleeping.” The icy grip of fear curled around her heart. “Her surgery’s tomorrow.”
“It’ll be okay,” Ryan said softly.
“You don’t know that.” Liv looked away from her.
Ryan pulled her close. Liv didn’t protest. “I don’t,” Ryan admitted. “But no matter what, we’ll make it through.”
Liv didn’t miss her use of the plural. “So…”
Ryan pulled back so she could look at her. Liv met her eyes, ignoring the anxiety that prickled across her skin. Was Ryan ready to trust her? Was Liv ready for it? “Up to you,” she said simply.
Liv studied her, her heart lurching in a steady beat against her rib cage. “Okay.” It felt like jumping off a cliff, like she was taking a risk she wasn’t ready for. But if she had learned anything, it was that you never truly felt ready to take a risk. You just had to jump, and trust that things would turn out okay.
Ryan’s smile turned her stomach into a swarm of bees. “I can stay the night, if you’d like the company.”
Liv swallowed, her throat dry. “I’d like that.”
Liv closed her eyes as Ryan bent down slightly and kissed her, their lips melding together and a heat building between them. There were words she wanted to say, words she felt yet couldn’t voice, so she tried to send them in her movements, her body, instead.
She barely heard a faint sigh as Mocha settled on the couch, apparently resigned to the fact that the humans were going to ignore her. Liv would apologize to her later. She had more pressing priorities.
“Your room?” Ryan asked against her lips. Liv went straight for her blazer, trying to undo the buttons, but Ryan’s hands caught hers. “Bedroom first.”
Liv frowned at her, but nodded and led the way to the bedroom. Anticipation sizzled across her skin. It already seemed like Ryan had a plan for what was going to happen, a plan that Liv was undoubtedly going to enjoy.
There was a fluid confidence in the way Ryan moved, something Liv had envied since they had been together in high school. She was so sure of herself, so unashamed of everything she did. Liv still felt like she needed to hide, and preferred the dark.
But she was a decade older now, and stronger, too. She was running her own business, taking care of her family. She’d survived ten years in the big city, living on her wits and flitting from job to job. Surely she could do better now.
Ryan beat her into the bedroom, pausing and looking around.
It wasn’t exactly what Liv had expected.
“Let’s see…” Ryan’s attention seemed to have shifted off her. Liv stood there, hot and bothered. She almost wanted to pout, but she didn’t.
Liv’s eyes narrowed as Ryan fiddled with a few knobs on the small stereo she had in her room. Although Liv preferred the dark, she couldn’t sleep when it was dark and silent. Suddenly, soft music started playing. It wasn't classical, more like the light pop she listened to at the shop when working.
“This works,”
