Block Ice Knight consideration.
Grant Ice Knight status.
45
COLE
“What the actual fuck?” Kate asks.
All last night, I was so careful. By force of habit, I locked down my computer when I collected pillows for her, when I grabbed the throw she likes from the chair in her office. I automatically reviewed every screen I threw to one of the monitors on the wall, reminding myself repeatedly that Kate couldn’t be allowed to see the Winter Reckoning admin screens. I’ve had these precautions in place for weeks, from the moment I let her enter my home.
But this morning, I fucked up. She moaned when she woke, aching and disoriented, and I sprang into action like some sort of dark savior superhero.
And now it’s time to pay the price.
I cross the room like I’m still the one in charge. I reach for the mouse, so I can close the screen, so I can hide the evidence it doesn’t take a master coder like Kate to read. She bats my handaway, using her forearm, pivoting her body to keep me from reaching my goal.
It would be easy enough to defeat her. I could shove her out of the way. Grip her arms and lift her off her feet. After the past two weeks of conditioning in the dungeon, she’d probably drop to her knees if I bark out one sharp command.
But my wife deserves better than that.
“I can explain,” I say.
“You run Winter Reckoning.”
That’s a shorter explanation than I was going to give her. Fewer facts. A lot less nuance. But I say, “Yes.”
“And you know I play the game as CyberGhost.”
The evidence is there on the screen. I’m through with hiding. “Yes,” I say again.
“And you gave Ice Knight status to everyone else on my team.”
“Yes.”
“You’re a fucking shitehawk.”
“You’re my wife.” I start to explain.
“You gave Ice Knight to MaskedMarauder. To Shaddow. To feckin’ IceKiller and DarkMoney!”
“I didn’t trust you.” That’s part of the explanation.
“Trust?” The word doesn’t sound like English when it rips across her throat. “Who cares abouttrust? It’s a fucking game!”
“It’s how I find employees for Lone Wolf. I make offers based on how players solve the puzzles.”
“So you’ve hired my whole feckin’ team?” Her voice cracks on the last word.
I’m not sure when I started being able to tell what she’s thinking, without her even saying a word. Kate would feel betrayed if her team had become Lone Wolf employees. But the blow would be a thousand times worse if her team members hadn’t told her, if they’d kept Lone Wolf employment a secret.
But for the first time since this miserable conversation began,something is finally going my way. I can truthfully say, “Not yet.”
She’s immediately outraged on behalf of her fellow raiders. “Why the fuck not?”
“Instinct.” I sigh. “Fate. I don’t know.”
“What’s wrong with my team?”