He couldn’t draw his gun in their presence either.
He pretended to be fumbling for his keys as his neighbor slowly moved past him. She greeted him and he nodded, waiting until she approached her own door before pretending to unlock his own. He was poised for trouble until he smelled the cigar.
Rodrigo.
Which wasn’t exactly cause to relax.
His apartment was in darkness, the ambient light from the street illuminating a plume of smoke in his living room. Pierce could see the orange glow where the cigar was lit, too, and that helped him pick out Rodrigo’s silhouette. He let the door slam back against the wall when he opened it and looked inside, seeking Rodrigo’s men before stepping into his apartment. They weren’t in view, but that didn’t mean Rodrigo was alone. Pierce didn’t turn on the lights, but shut the door and leaned back against it, waiting.
“I’m alone,” Rodrigo said.
“And you think I’ll believe you?”
Rodrigo laughed, just a little. “You should. It’s the truth.”
Pierce flicked on the kitchen lights, then scanned his apartment, liking that it was so compact that he could see it all. Rodrigo had claimed a bowl from the kitchen and was using it as his ashtray. Pierce wondered how long he’d been there and guessed from the amount of cigar smoke and ash that it hadn’t been long.
He returned to the door, folded his arms across his chest and waited.
“You’re not going to ask for an explanation?” Rodrigo asked.
“You’ll tell me when you’re ready. It must be important, if you’re alone.”
“Is this what retirement looks like?” Rodrigo asked, waving his cigar at the apartment. “A little box in Manhattan, furnished like a hotel?”
Pierce shrugged.
“Not a very good hotel either. You don’t even have much of a view. You were paid better than that, Pierce. Or did you spend it all on sins of the flesh?”
Pierce waited.
“I wouldn’t have expected it of you, that’s for certain. The pillar of restraint.” Rodrigo tapped the ash in the dish, then coughed. He didn’t stop coughing quickly and Pierce wondered whether he should give the older man a pat on the back—or whether he’d be stepping into a trap to do so.
Instead, he got Rodrigo a glass of water, offering it to him from a distance.
Rodrigo sipped of it, then eyed his cigar. “I should quit, but it’s too late to matter.” He sighed when Pierce didn’t speak. “I’m joining the ranks of the retired, Pierce, although I’d hoped for a beach, not a hospital. Maybe after my treatment is completed.” He shrugged. “Maybe not.” He coughed again.
“I’m sorry,” Pierce said, understanding that Rodrigo was ill.
“So am I.” He held up the cigar. “Farah’s father said these things would kill me, and even though he died first, he might have been right.” Rodrigo sucked on his cigar, making the ember burn more brightly again. He took a long drag and exhaled it slowly. “Do you know how I came to Greater Alghenia?”
“No.”
“I was hired by Farah’s grandfather, the old king, when I was only twenty-nine. We understood each other well. He was a king who believed might made right.” Rodrigo shook his head. “Farah’s father, the crown prince, grew up with me always close by. Funny how our relationship was never that easy.” He tapped the ash. “And then there was Farah, who only ever listened to you.” Rodrigo looked at Pierce and his gaze was cold. “She told me that she’d hired you.”
“Yes.”
“I thought you wanted to leave this life for good. Those were your terms, that it would be the last time.”
“The last time working for you.”
“So, it’s personal?”
Pierce shrugged. “I wanted to be done with working for other people. I wanted to make my own choices. The work is still something I like.”
Rodrigo nodded slowly, watching his cigar burn. “I wondered whether you were deliberately pushing me aside.”
“No.”
Rodrigo’s brows rose, and Pierce couldn’t tell whether the other man believed him or not. “The prince’s widow was pleased to hear of her daughter’s choice.” He gave Pierce a hot look. “She wishes to make changes. I don’t agree with her ideas, and she did not take my objections well.” He tapped the ash from his cigar. “We have parted ways. It’s a good opportunity for me to retire and tend to my own health.”
“I wish you well.”
Rodrigo was silent for a long moment. She may call you.”
“I would be honored to hear from her majesty again.”
Rodrigo surveyed him, his thoughts hidden, then stubbed out his cigar and rose to his feet. “The world has changed, Pierce, but you know that.”
Pierce inclined his head. “I do.”
To his surprise, the older man offered his hand.
“Take care of them. They are as much my family as they must be yours, although no one but we two would see it that way.” And Rodrigo smiled crookedly at Pierce. “Good bye, Pierce.”
“Good luck, Rodrigo.” They shook hands and Pierce realized it wasn’t just the royal family who had eschewed contact. He’d never shaken hands with Rodrigo before, and was sure his former supervisor had never considered him worthy.
The older man coughed a little, and had another sip of water. “It’s too late for luck, at least for me.” He paused on the threshold and looked back, his words soft. “Take care of them, Pierce.”
“I will.”
And with that, Rodrigo left, looking much smaller and older than Pierce recalled.
He locked the door after the departure of his unexpected guest, flushed the ash down the toilet and drowned the cigar before throwing it out. Pierce’s phone rang then but he didn’t recognize the number.
“Pierce Aston.”
“Commander,” a
