Soulmate Run

Suspicion

The motel room was smaller than I expected.

One narrow bed.

A bedside table with chipped corners.

A tiny bathroom tucked behind a faded wooden door.

It wasn’t comfortable.

But it had four walls.

And a lock.

For now…

That was enough.

I closed the door behind me and rested my back against it.

Silence.

Real silence.

For the first time since yesterday…

Nobody was chasing me.

Nobody was calling my name.

Nobody was knocking on the door.

I let out a slow breath.

Only then did I realize how exhausted I really was.

…

The shower took longer than I intended.

The hot water stung against my skin.

I didn’t care.

I stood beneath it until the steam filled the tiny bathroom.

Trying not to think.

Trying not to remember.

It didn’t work.

The photograph.

The men.

The way one of them had looked straight at me.

My stomach tightened.

I shut the water off.

I brushed my teeth.

Honestly…

That alone felt like a victory.

After everything that had happened since yesterday, finally getting rid of the stale taste in my mouth brought me an embarrassing amount of relief.

I changed into a loose grey T-shirt and a pair of black cotton shorts before sitting on the edge of the bed with the paper bag of food I’d bought downstairs.

I wasn’t hungry.

I forced myself to eat anyway.

I needed to keep thinking clearly.

When I finished, I emptied my wallet onto the bed.

A few notes.

Some coins.

My bank card.

That was all.

It wouldn’t last long.

Another problem.

Another thing I had no answer for.

My phone vibrated.

Amara.

Again.

I stared at her name until the call ended.

A second later…

A voicemail notification appeared.

I pressed play.

“Aria…”

Her voice was quieter than usual.

“I don’t know what’s going on, but…”

“…you’re really scaring me.”

She paused.

“I’ve called so many times.”

“I don’t know if your phone is off…”

“…or if something happened.”

Another pause.

“But please…”

“If you’re okay…”

“…just send one message.”

“I don’t even care what it says.”

“I just want to know you’re safe.”

The voicemail ended.

I stared at the screen.

“I’m sorry,” I whispered.

If I answered…

She’d come looking for me.

And if she came looking for me…

She’d become another target.

I couldn’t let that happen.

Even if she hated me for it.

I placed the phone face down on the bedside table.

Then looked around the room.

One night.

Maybe two.

After that…

I’d need another plan.

⸻

Kai’s Supervisor

The office had finally gone quiet.

Most of the morning had been spent on briefings, phone calls and damage control.

I should have moved on to the next operation.

Instead…

My thoughts returned to Kai.

Our last conversation replayed in my mind.

He’d told me he was following the target’s known contacts.

Reasonable.

Nearly an hour had passed.

Long enough for Kai to eliminate a weak lead.

Long enough to request additional support if he needed it.

Instead…

Nothing.

I reached for the secure phone.

“Operations.”

“Sir.”

“Any new report from Kai?”

A brief pause.

“No, sir.”

“Nothing since we last spoke?”

“No, sir.”

“Has he requested backup?”

“No, sir.”

Silence.

Kai wasn’t the type to disappear.

If a lead collapsed…

He moved on.

If it showed promise…

He reported it.

This silence…

Was unusual.

I picked up the receiver again.

“Operations.”

“Sir.”

“Bring me Kai’s vehicle movement log.”

“Right away.”

I ended the call.

We rarely needed vehicle movement logs.

Most operatives reported their movements accurately enough that checking them became unnecessary.

Kai especially.

In all the years I’d supervised him…

I’d never once had reason to verify where he’d been.

If I was overthinking this…

The log would prove it.

A knock sounded at the door.

An operations officer stepped inside and handed me the file.

I opened it.

The highlighted route stretched across the page.

I followed it once.

Then a second time.

My eyes settled on one section.

He hadn’t gone anywhere near the area he’d reported.

Silence settled over the office.

I closed the file.

Picked up the secure phone.

The call connected after the second ring.

“Elias.”

A pause.

“Report to headquarters.”

“Immediately.”

The line went dead.