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Rania checked the CCTV footage captured by our building system, but all she got was a hooded figure wearing jeans and a gray top that might have been a man or woman. On our way home, I closed my eyes, relaxed into the plush seat leather, and controlled my breathing.
I searched recent and distant memories, desperately trying to convert a fragment of white hair into a complete picture. There was no remaining doubt in my mind that I’d seen Strix, the mysterious hacker stalking me through the virtual and real worlds.
I came up with nothing.
At home, I headed directly for my study even though Rania wanted to talk. I ignored the light tapping at my door three times until she left. If Victor wanted me, he knew how to get in; everyone else would have to wait because I was falling seriously behind in my studies.
After four hours, studying became too much of a chore, and my brain was fried, so I slipped into the corridor between our bedroom and my study, staring out into the twilight, searching the shadows for Strix. I was missing something significant, but it wouldn’t come to me even as I closed my eyes and scrambled up the steep scree slopes of my mind, dislodging memories like rocks tumbling away.
I lay on our bed and read a book on my phone. As each page was read and scrolled past, it was forgotten two minutes later, and I was pleased after half an hour of literary torture when Victor joined me.
“Mom was looking for you.”
“Assassin, Mom?”
“Yeah, but don’t let her hear you calling her that.”
“I’ll see her later. I was about to shower because I need to relax. Did you get my schedule, Victor?”