Lance Dickson mopped off the sweats that beaded on his face and winced as he touched his cut lips. He couldn’t focus on the pain though as he knew that he would feel more than that or he wouldn’t even be able to feel anything again if he made the mistake of giving a wrong answer or making a wrong comment to the man who was speaking unhurriedly to him over the phone. He was just thinking of what he could have done differently about the situation that he found himself in at that moment. That bastard Jordan had proven stubborn to the end. What was he to do now? How was he supposed to know that he wouldn’t take the offer he had been preparing? After going to the ASP’s office to file his complaint with the ASP, not that he needed the man’s consent anyway but he had to go through the pretence of protocols anyway. He knew the man favoured Alarick but in the end, it didn’t matter. Lance had gone back to his office to wait for the moment when Alarick would come to his office to beg for lenie

Jordan didn’t have what he could call ‘friends’ not in Baleria. He was still in touch with friends from Rova but Rova was another case. He had acquaintances and contacts but that was the extent of it. He had tried the friend route once after he resigned and that was how he earned the badge of his puckered flesh close to where his heart was. Very close. He rubbed at it absently as he could still remember the pain like it was yesterday. “It is getting worse, Chi,” he said as his cousin squirted a generous amount of honey on the pancake he had met her eaten when he got home in a tiff. “You would figure something out,” she said with her mouth full “Many more like you would figure something out. You have started already. That is what you should focus on” she chewed her food “Aaaaand I might join you in your….” “Don’t even think about it” Jordan snapped. It had been an ongoing debate between them for a while. After she had wanted to come back with him to Baleria three years ago, he had

Valencia’s misconception about her job due to the way she had been received the day before was dispersed within the first hour after she resumed work the next day. This time she was directed to the outbuilding a bit farther from the house. She wondered what the building was used for in the past but none of its former purposes could be seen in the current state the building now. It had been converted into a modern office. The three comprises three well-equipped rooms. “This one is mine” Jordan had told her that morning as he pointed to the largest and she could see that the office where he received her the night before was more of a backup office compared to this. One side of the room was adorned with rows and rows of walled shelves that were choked with books. Valencia could almost hear the antique oak shelves protesting under the weight of so many books. She wondered what anyone would need with that much book but then being a private investigator must involve searching for a lot of

He still had no idea why she had suddenly switched from being his capable assistant to his apprentice but he couldn’t find fault with her. She was efficient. Every task he gave to her, she got done. It might take her a while but she was always pulling her own. Jordan dismissed the niggling thought that there was more to this woman than paranoia. “What more do you want, man?” his subconscious whispered to him one day when he was thinking the same thing. She had just completed a new task he gave to her and uncovered a tangible clue that was vital for the police investigation in the process. Sitting on the porch of the office that evening with a glass of brandy in his hand long after they have closed for the day, Jordan thought of what she had accomplished in the past weeks. He had given her more things to work on after working together with her on cases for a while. Her first independent job earned them a glowing review from the client. Alarick PI Firm was getting well known in Baler

“Woah there,” Jordan said easily even as he wondered what made her so jumpy. “What’s up?” he asked with a grin.“Oh sorry, I didn’t see you there” she replied with an uneasy smile.“Welcome sir” Laura chirped brightly with her signature smile in place as she stood up to greet Jordan.“Hello, Laura. Hope the books are getting balanced?” he asked with a smile.“With me here, you have got nothing to worry about sir,” she said with a huge grin. That had become her regular answer since Jordan joked that he slept easier with her around.“Awesome” he replied with an answering smile “And as you know; with you here?”“You slept easier sir” Laura completed for him.“Good, you carry on. Do not let me distract you” he replied with a wink then turned to Valencia who was half looking at them and half looking at the system. “See me in my office, rookie”“Yes, sir” Valencia answered with a smile.Jordan had taken to calling her like that since he agreed to accept her as his apprentice.As he entered h