Tr0lz had already begun to wend her way through the tables in the food court. From the back, he discovered that her over-the-knee kitty socks revealed a black cat tail that curled up the back of each of her slim thighs.

He fell into step beside her. “I don’t know your name.”

She flipped her hair as she flashed him a look. “You do know my name.”

“No, I don’t. I’m—”

She gripped his wrist. Her fingers had a tensile strength that shocked and excited him at the same time. She reached up to murmur in his ear. “You are AggroBoy. And I am Tr0lz.”

“But—”

“And that is how we will always be. Got it?”

Then she released his arm.

He nodded. But his mind raced.

Tr0lz strode in front of him. The tails on the back of her tights curled confidently.

Or threateningly.

He knew, without a doubt, it was the latter.

Chapter 32

Chapter 32

5:40 p.m.

An x-ray confirmed that the bones in her hand had miraculously withstood the blow of Mel Owen’s gun. Kate left the ER and found an empty bench outside the hospital. It was a beautiful supper hour, the air dry and warm, with enough breeze to lift her hair.

She closed her eyes and breathed deeply. Just give yourself a minute, Kate.

But it was no use. Her mind raced.

She straightened, dialed the Crown prosecutor’s number, hoping he would still be at work.

“John Hillcroft.” His voice was pleasant, crisp in her ear.

“Hi John, it’s Kate Lange.”

“Kate! I heard about what happened. Are you okay?”

“Yes, I’m all right. Look, I wanted to discuss the possibility of an immunity agreement for my client, Leah Roberts.”

His voice immediately became guarded. “Why do you think the Crown would be interested?”

“You have a second suspect on the loose who has not yet been captured. My client might have information about his whereabouts.”

“But why would we give up prosecuting Leah Roberts? She was caught in the act, so to speak. And the police might find our guy.”

“I suspect there’s more to this than meets the eye. Her actions are not consistent with her background or what others say about her.”

“You’d be surprised by how many people with the best opportunities in life commit crimes.”

Kate gave a wry laugh. “I wouldn’t be surprised. I may be new to criminal defense, but I was the one attacked by Kenzie Sloane, remember?”

“Right.” He cleared his throat. “So you think that the mastermind behind this break-in wasn’t Leah Roberts, even though we believe the break-in is connected to cyber security and Leah Roberts is a cyber security analyst?” His tone made her theory sound completely implausible.

Save it for the jury, John.