“Two residences,” Liam North says after he sends various groups of serious, muscled men to secure the perimeter. “Three adults, one child.”

“They have to be protected,” I say. “They’re all at risk right now.”

I’m not very worried about Beau and Jane, truth be told. Beau has the kind of face that telegraphs his mood. I don’t think the reporter that harassed Emily would try the same shit with Beau. And Beau won’t let anything happen to Jane.

But all of them need security. All of them are going to have it.

North’s men are busy from the moment their feet hit the ground. They’re finding the best surveillance spots. They’re setting up cameras. This place is going to be protected within an inch of its life.

It’s late when I take two men on the team up to Emily’s house. I knock softly on the door. Paige is sleeping. Emily said so when I texted her to say we’d be coming up.

Emily opens the door with a grim expression. She steps back to let the three of us in.

“We’d like to sweep your house for bugs and vulnerabilities, ma’am,” the first one says to her.

“Go ahead.”

His question is just a formality. Emily didn’t argue with me when I told her I’d called Liam North. She didn’t want me to pay the whole bill. I said we could settle it later. Safety first.

The two guards split up and start clearing rooms in the house. One goes into the living room. The first thing he does is shut the blinds.

Emily crosses her arms protectively over her chest. “I thought you were securing the whole cliff.”

“We are,” he answers. “But drones can fly up here. Not much we can do about those until they’re in sight.”

Emily pales. “I didn’t think of drones.”

The man finishes his circuit of the living room and goes out to cover the rest of the house.

“Don’t beat yourself up about it,” I tell Emily. “Drones weren’t going to be the first thing on your mind. It’s not like when we were kids, and there were just newspapers and spies with magnifying glasses.”

Emily doesn’t even crack a smile. “They’re worried about a drone flying up here and looking in the windows. That’s like being hunted, Mateo.”

“They’re not worried about it. They’re prepared for it. The curtains are a preventative measure. If the curtains are down, it won’t matter if someone flies a drone up here. But the curtains being down doesn’t guarantee that it’ll happen.”