“So how did she leave without being seen?”

“There’s an external fire escape that’s kept locked unless there’s an emergency. It is easy enough to disengage the alarms and unlock a door if you have the knowledge.”

And Jalvi obviously did. “Is it possible her family warned her you were on the way and she simply absconded before you arrived?”

“Yes, though they were warned against it.”

If his tone was anything to go by, there’d be hell to pay if they had.

“However,” he added, “the fact that the woman seen with your historian before his death wore the same earrings as Jalvi does makes it unlikely. They were handmade and one of a kind. She wouldn’t have been foolish enough to wear them if she in any way suspected she was being tracked. And she certainly wouldn’t have done so if she thought her presence could be linked to the historian’s death.”

His tone was flat and it yet somehow contained a deep wash of anger and sorrow. Or maybe it wasn’t so much his voice but rather the deep connection that flared between us, allowing me to sense his emotions.

“I’m so sorry, Cynwrig.” I slipped a hand over his thigh, and his muscles jumped under my touch. Just for a moment, his natural magnetism surged, making it hard to breathe.

A difficulty that only increased when his hand slid over mine. The sheer force of this man’s presence was definitely dangerous to my health.

“You have nothing to apologize for,” he said softly. “Jalvi seeks vengeance, and that’s an extremely dark and slippery slope—one from which very few return.”

There was something in his voice—an edge that spoke of experience—that made me wonder if it was a slope he or someone close to him had gone down. But the grimness in his expression suggested he wasn’t about to explain it.

Not yet, and definitely not in this place.

The waitress returned with two coffees and my tea. I gripped the handle and wiggled the little pot back and forth for a few seconds to strengthen the brew, then poured it into the cute teacup. “Given the likelihood that whoever killed Jules—be it Jalvi or someone else—might still be out there watching us, what’s our next move?”

Lugh tucked the notebook back into his pocket. “We find a temporary shelter while I sort out the notes. Should only take a few hours, and we can decide what to do next based on the results.”

“I can be of some assistance there.” Cynwrig picked up his coffee—a very strong black—and took a drink. “My family owns an old warehouse close to the West Coast Shipping Hub. It has twenty-four-hour surveillance and top-notch security, with the upper living accommodation only accessible to my siblings and myself. Jalvi—or anyone else who might be watching—will not get near the place.”

“As long as it wouldn’t inconvenience either you or your family, it sounds ideal,” Lugh said.

“Given it’s in my family’s best interests to solve this puzzle and bring these people to justice as quickly as possible, it definitely wouldn’t be an inconvenience.”