Chapter 5

It was after midnight when we reached home.

Ethan stopped in the entryway and sneezed twice. Mochi loved sitting there.

"Are you bringing the cat home tonight?"

"No. The vet is keeping her."

He exhaled in relief.

The door to my office stood open. Mochi's carrier was gone.

I crouched and found a fresh scrape across the floor.

The pet camera on my bookcase showed as offline. Ethan had unplugged it.

The disconnect time was 2:17 p.m.

What he did not know was that I had enabled cloud event storage when I bought it. The final clip before the power went out had uploaded automatically.

I took a screenshot without opening the video.

Next, I checked the smart lock. Ethan's fingerprint had opened the front door at 2:11. The door opened again at 2:24 when he left.

Thirteen minutes. More than enough time to force a cat into a carrier.

The garage system showed our black SUV leaving at 2:27 and returning at 3:03.

The attack happened at 3:15.

At my desk, I wrote out the timeline.

2:11. Ethan entered the condo.

2:17. The camera lost power.

2:24. Ethan left.

2:27. The SUV exited the garage.

3:03. It returned.

3:15. Mochi injured the boy.

Ethan called from the living room.

"What are you doing?"

I closed my laptop.

"Looking at real estate listings."

He came into the office, and his expression finally softened.

"Don't put too much pressure on yourself."

I looked at him.

"Are we really in this together?"

He paused.

"Of course. I'll be right here for you."

I could not help laughing.

"What?"

"Nothing. You managed to promise everything without offering a dime. I'm impressed."

He frowned. "You've been acting strange all day."

I stood and wrapped my arms around him.

His body stiffened. I had just come from a veterinary clinic, and he desperately wanted to push me away. He forced himself not to.

I pressed my face against his shoulder.

"Ethan, is Lily really just a client?"

His back locked.

Two seconds passed before he answered.

"Where is this coming from?"

"She spent the whole day defending you."

"She's a kind person."

"Right."

I released him.

"That's nice."

Relief crossed his face.

I went to take a shower. The second the bathroom door closed, I heard him hurry to the balcony. His voice was barely above a whisper.

"She doesn't suspect anything."

A pause.

"No. Don't come see me for a while."

Another pause.

"Video? There isn't any video."

I stood behind the bathroom door and listened.

The camera on my collar was still recording.