“Has he been back here?” I asked, forcing every word out. I wanted nothing more than to stay silent and disappear into a quiet area.

“No, sir. Not that we have noticed.”

I stared at her, working on voicing the question. Words twisted, and my tongue rested heavily in my mouth, determined not to move.

“He questioned a server about you but nothing more. The breakfast was half eaten before he left in an Uber,” she supplied.

I turned away once I took the note, disappearing toward the elevator. My control and patience were that of a saint. Yet, the piece of paper burned against my fingertips, demanding I open it right then and there. It momentarily distracted me from my discomfort but the moment the elevator dinged and opened I ran to my door. All control went out the door as I snatched the clothes off my body. My flesh was itching and burning all at once.

Taking them off wasn’t enough, and I frantically moved to the bedroom. I tossed the note on the bed and started up the shower. I didn’t wait for it to warm. The ice cold was a reprieve from the overwhelming heat threatening to consume me. I knew it was all in my head, but it changed nothing.

Once I was fresh out of the shower and dressed, I made my way over to the bed. The envelope was still there, taunting me. I picked it up and opened it. A single little note fluttered onto the bed.

Something close to laughter broke free as I shook my head. I stared at the piece of paper with a smile on my face.

Fuck you.

* * *

Enzo: Ray Lends taken care of.

I sent the message to Benito and ground my molars as I placed my phone in the cup holder.

Another unsatisfying kill. It wasn’t enough, and I felt the edge of chaos closing in on me. Tension built between my shoulder blades, and the feeling of a needle piercing my flesh repeatedly grew tiresome. No amount of reading or meditation was helping.

I found myself on the other side of the city where a certain rookie cop lived. I checked my messages, and Tex was working. Five days since I’d last seen him, and strangely thinking about him and the night we’d had calmed the whirlwind of insanity inside of me. However, the memory was getting old, and I needed to do something about it soon.

Keeping tabs on him was my job, but I’d stayed away from him. He was the kind of toy I’d end up breaking too fast. Or get fixated on, and the last thing I needed to become obsessed with was a cop.

I knew it wasn’t a good idea, and yet I got out of the car and walked right up to his door. The apartment was easy to break into, boasting two simple locks that wouldn’t keep a teenager out. Then again, looking around, there wasn‘t much to steal. Anyone breaking in would either have to be desperate or obsessed with Tex.