Jayson tapped the message again, re-reading the reply from Orion. 
"Jay..Stop. Suspicion are being drawn towards you at the bureau. Mainly your department. Give me a few hours. I'll dig into Tyrone's background."
He let the phone drop onto the bed. The room was quiet except for the hum of the old air conditioner struggling against the afternoon heat. His motel felt smaller with each passing day, the walls seeming to inch closer every time he slept. 
He'd been dodging shadows, chasing leads, connecting dots that only seemed to get more dangerous. 
But Nadia....She had been thrown into the eye of the storm. He felt guilty, knowing he'd not only damaged her relationship but also potentially put her in harm's way. Maybe she needed a break, just for a day, before things spiralled further out of control.
Jayson picked up the phone and called.
"Nadi."
Her voice was soft, guarded. "Jayson? You're calling—"
"I want us to go out," he cut in gently. "Just to breathe. You need it." He hesitated, then added, "We both do."
She hesitated. "Aren't you supposed to be hiding?"
"Not at all. I was on leave. Though my boss thinks I traveled out of town." A faint smirk danced on his lips. "Tomorrow, I'm officially 'back' to work. So today? Got back to town. What do you think?"
There was silence on the line for a beat. Then: "I'm at the hospital. My mom's."
Jayson's expression shifted, concern etching lines around his eyes. "You're sick?"
"No," she exhaled, the sound weary. "She is. Sick. Cardiomypathy. Two weeks ago. And... I've been staying with her on some days."
"Why didn't you tell me?" The words escaped before he could stop them.
A bitter laugh crackled through the phone. "Really, Jay? Do you think__"
He swallowed hard. "I deserved that."
"Yeah, you did." Her voice softened slightly. "Look, it's not a good time—"
"Which hospital?" he asked.
She hesitated again, longer this time. "Unity Hospital"
"I'll be there in twenty."
"Jay—"
"Please, Nadi."
She sent the location.
When Jayson pulled into the hospital parking lot and found Nadia waiting by the entrance, something inside him shifted. Her shoulders were drawn in, face pale, eyes tired. The vibrant braid hair he remembered was tied back in a messy ponytail, a few strands falling around her face. She didn't look like the firecracker she used to be.
"I thought you said you were fine," he said, stepping out of his car.
She offered a small smile that didn't reach her eyes. "I am. She's not."
Jayson's eyes narrowed slightly as he took in the dark circles under her eyes."And you're staying there with her?"
Nadia said nothing, just glanced back at the hospital building looming behind her. Her fingers played with the visitor's badge clipped to her wrinkled shirt.
Jayson understood.
He didn't press.
Instead, he opened the passenger door.
"Come on. Two hours. That's all I'm asking."
She hesitated, looking back at the hospital entrance. "I told the nurse I was just stepping out for some air."
"Call her. Tell her you're getting food. Your mother would want you to eat something that isn't from a vending machine, wouldn't she?"
A ghost of a real smile flickered across her face. "She'd definitely have something to say about the coffee."
She slid in, quiet, and let the city pass by as he drove. The familiar buildings of downtown slid past the windows, oddly unchanged despite everything else that had shifted in their lives.
"How bad is it?" Jayson finally asked, eyes fixed on the road.
Nadia sighed, her breath fogging a small circle on the window. "Bad enough. She can't take on bad news. The doctors say..." her voice caught, "...they say she might develop heart failure.......there's no cure Jay, just management..."
Jayson reached across, squeezed her hand briefly before returning it to the wheel. "Your mom's a fighter. Always has been."
"Like mother, like daughter, right?" There was a bitter edge to her words.
Then a text message alert chimed just as Nadia was about to put her phone away. 
Her brow furrowed as she read the message.
"What is it?" Jayson asked, noticing the sudden change in her expression.
Nadia looked up from her phone, her eyes widening. "It's Zora. Someone broke into her house."
Jayson's body tensed. "Was she there? Is she hurt?"
"She says there's no sign of theft, but it looks like someone was searching for something." Nadia turned the phone screen toward him, showing him Zora's frantic message.
Without hesitation, Jayson pulled the car to the side of the road, tires crunching on the gravel shoulder. He kept the engine running.
"Call her," he said, his voice calm but urgent. "Now."
Nadia nodded and dialed Zora's number. The phone rang three times before Zora's shaky voice answered.
"Nadi?" Her voice was thin, laced with fear.
"Zora, are you okay? What happened?" Nadia put the call on speaker so Jayson could hear.
"I—I don't know exactly. I wasn't home yesterday." Zora took a deep breath. "After you left, I went over to Kevin's. When I came home this morning, everything was... God, Nadi, everything's ransacked. My drawers emptied, cushions slashed open, even the damn flour container in the kitchen was dumped out."
Jayson leaned closer to the phone. "Zora, it's Jayson. Did you call the police?"
There was a brief pause on the line. "Jayson? What are you—" She stopped herself. "No, not yet. I panicked and texted Nadi first."
"Listen carefully," Jayson said, his detective instincts taking over. "Don't touch anything else. Take a careful look around and see if anything of value is missing. Jewelry, electronics, cash—anything."
"That's the weird thing," Zora replied. "My laptop is still here. So is my grandmother's jewelry box. Even the cash I keep in my dresser drawer is untouched—and it wasn't hidden well."
Jayson exchanged a meaningful glance with Nadia. "We're on our way."
He put the car in drive and made a sharp U-turn, heading in the direction of Zora's neighborhood. Navigating through traffic with practiced precision. 
When they arrived at Zora's apartment, the door was ajar as Zora was sitting on the stairs scared. 
"Stay with her," he said to Nadia. Nadia sat there with Zora, her hand over her shoulder.
Jayson entered first, scanning the room.
And there it was, tucked at the edge of the bed a piece of paper that wrote:
Don't dig up a buried past. Bringing up decayed skeleton won't do anyone any good. Why not take a vacation?
Jayson quickly grabbed the paper, folded it into his jacket, making sure the ladies didn't see it.
I'm checking for hidden cameras, listening devices," Jayson said. "But there's nothing here" He stepped outside.
"Wait! You two are..." Zora gestured between them, momentarily distracted from her ordeal.
Nadia shook her head quickly. "It's not like that. The Westlake case brought us together. We're just working together."
Zora raised an eyebrow but said nothing more on the subject. She hugged herself tightly, surveying the chaos of her room.
"I haven't moved anything," she said. "It's exactly how I found it."
"They weren't looking for something specific, just wanted to make a mess" Jayson muttered, more to himself than to the women.
"What if they were?" Zora asked.
Nadia placed a gentle hand on Zora's shoulder. "Don't sweat it. This has all the marks of a common thief."
Zora shook her head firmly. "I don't think so. Whoever did this... they were looking for something specific."
"Which is precisely why I need to distance myself from you for the time being," Nadia replied, her voice dropping low.
"What are you talking about?" Zora's brow furrowed with concern.
"Listen, Zora. You and I go way back, but if anyone comes asking, you need to deny knowing me. You don't know where I live. You don't know what I'm involved in. Nothing."
"And you think that would be easy for me?" Zora's voice cracked slightly.
"You have to. At least until I figure out my next move." Nadia's eyes hardened. "They were searching for evidence, I'm sure of it."
"That's true," Jayson interjected, pulling a folded paper from his jacket and holding it out. "Found this tucked against the edge of the bed."
"Nadia, it's not too late. You can still walk away from this," Zora pleaded.
"I already know their secret, Zora. Do you honestly think they'd let me just walk away?" Nadia shook her head. "I need to figure out how to outmaneuver them first."
Nadia turned to face Jayson. "We've got to move quickly. The primaries are just around the corner."
Zora pulled Nadia into a tight embrace. "Be careful," she whispered, her breath warm against Nadia's ear.
Nadia nodded against her shoulder. "I will. I promise."
Later, Jayson and Nadia returned to their car. As they slid into their seats, Jayson cast a sideways glance at her—a look filled with equal parts pity and something deeper, more affectionate. He started the engine, and they drove away from Zora's neighborhood in weighted silence. The implications of what had transpired hung heavily between them.
Finally, Nadia broke the silence. "Jayson?"
"Yeah?" His voice was soft.
"Do you ever wish you'd never taken on this case?"
He glanced at her briefly before returning his attention to the road. A ghost of a smile touched his lips.
"If I hadn't, I wouldn't be sitting here with you right now." He paused, fingers tightening slightly on the steering wheel. "And despite everything, that would have been a real shame."
Nadia felt warmth rising to her cheeks. She turned toward the window, hiding her expression from him.
After that, they drove in companionable silence until the car pulled into a bustling waterfront district. 
She blinked, sitting up straighter, taking in their new surroundings.