The lie bought me exactly four hours.
By 1:47 p.m., I had walked every available listing within a twelve-block radius of campus. Three were already “under review.” Two more mysteriously lost my application the moment my name appeared. One landlord actually hung up when I gave my full name.
Reid Capital’s shadow had long arms.
I sat on a bench outside the law library, thesis draft open on my lap, highlighter bleeding uselessly across the same paragraph for twenty minutes. My phone stayed dark—no new cancellations, but no victories either. Just the heavy silence of being watched by three different powers.
A black car pulled up to the curb again.
This time, Shawn didn’t wait inside it.
He stepped out, jacket slung over one arm, sleeves rolled, the late-afternoon sun catching the sharp l
