"I'm not entirely sure," he said.
"Well, let's work out what we know. We know that someone from Alpha sent those men to our house, correct?"
He closed his eyes briefly and nodded. "Nobody else could have gotten in there, let alone known where it was."
"Okay, so that gives us something to aim at."
"Kind of, yeah," he replied. "But whoever it is, they're smart. When they kidnapped you, we threw everything we could at them, and we came up blank. Property ownership, the identity of the thugs they'd hired, everything. It was like trying to track down a ghost. Assuming that they're still that competent, I doubt we're going to find them easily."
I knew this conversation was difficult for him, but there was no way to avoid it. "Well, surely some members are bigger candidates than others?"
He understood instantly. "You mean Ewan?"
I nodded. "It was pretty clear from the outset that he didn't exactly approve of me. What did you say he called me? A liability? If those aren't the words of a man who wants me out of the picture, I don't know what are."
His brow furrowed, and he let out a long breath. "I know he seems like the obvious candidate, but I just can't see it. Maybe he'd move against us, maybe, but even that's a stretch. And Charlie and Simon? I'd bet a million to one he'd never do that. They were his closest friends. They'd been in the group together for decades."
"People can surprise us in the worst ways, sometimes," I said.
I could see him trying to make the pieces fit in his head, but eventually he shook his head. "You didn't see his face, hear his anger when he heard about their deaths. Besides, why would he be upset with you for endangering the group if he was also working to destroy it?"
He had a point. That didn't quite stack up. "So what about the others?"
He stared desolately down at the table. "I don't know. I can't really believe it of any of them. The group is a brotherhood, Sophia. I've known them all for years. I can't see any of them just turning power hungry all of a sudden."
"So that's what you think it's all about? Power?"
"Maybe. None of it really adds up. Taking out a few council members, sure, I guess I can see that as part of a larger plan, but then why go after you? That part still puzzles me."
I nodded. "Me too."
The waitress arrived with our food, and we ate in thoughtful silence for a few minutes.
"Let's try a different approach," I said eventually. "Who knew you were coming to my office last night?"
His eyes widened a fraction as he realised my implication. "Of course. I missed that. Whoever it was must have known we'd be out late. Every other night we arrived separately, and at different times. It would have been a nightmare to coordinate."
"Exactly. They saw an opportunity, and they jumped on it."
His expression slipped. "The only person I told was Thomas," he said, a current of disbelief running through his voice. "I'm not exactly on friendly chatting terms with many people over there right now. But there's no way he'd... he's my closest friend." He closed his eyes momentarily, collecting his thoughts. "There were other people in the room at the time. We'd just finished a meeting. I didn't really pay attention to who might be listening in, but plenty of them could have overheard."
"So it could be any of them," I said.
He nodded. "That does limit it to the inner council only though. There was no one else in the room."
"Well, that's something." I weighed our options. "So, we obviously can't go back to the house and, I take it from the way you threw away our phones, using the Alpha network at all is also off the cards?"
"I'm afraid so. They'd find us in an instant."
"So do we have any options at all? Or are we destined to discard our identities and live out of hotels forever?"
"It's not quite that bleak," he replied. "There's a few things we can try. I've got pictures of the men from last night, as well as their weapons. I can send that info off to some of my contacts directly, without going through Alpha at all. Like I said before, I doubt the bad guys are sloppy enough to leave a trail, but it's worth a shot."
I nodded. "Okay."
"Also, Joe should be on his way back right now, and he might be able to help us."
I raised an eyebrow. "I thought we weren't trusting the group right now."
"Joe is a special case. I've known him for my entire adult life. He recruited me, for God's sake. I'm one hundred percent certain he's got nothing to do with this."
The firmness of his tone left no room for argument and, the truth was, I trusted Joe too. "Fair enough," I said.
"We might be able to use his Alpha connection to see if whoever broke into our house left any evidence. Theoretically there should be security footage and a thumbprint record. I expect it's been cleaned up, but you never know."
"Okay," I said again. It seemed like a solid plan, given the circumstances. Then I had another idea. "Have you considered just announcing to the group that someone has gone rogue? Maybe you'll spook the spy and make him do something stupid."
"I thought about it. It might work, but it also might also have the opposite effect. If everyone suspects everyone, all sense of order will break down, and the chaos might help our enemy instead of hurt them. That's not a risk I'm willing to take unless we have no choice. The group is in enough danger already."
That made sense. "Alright."
We finished our food in contemplative silence.
"You know, a tiny part of me is regretting not taking those plane tickets right now," I said.
He managed a tiny smile. "I'm not surprised. The offer's still open, you know. I got you a passport made up just in case."
"Ooh, do I have a code name?"
"From memory, you're Lucy Page."
I made a face. "Makes me sound like a TV housewife from the fifties."
He chuckled. "Sorry."
"In any case, I'm certainly not going to go lie on any tropical beaches while you're stuck here, battling evil. You could come with me, though. Star crossed lovers fleeing to a foreign land together. It's kind of romantic."
He smiled wistfully. "I wish I could."
I'd said it like I was joking, but I'd be lying if I said the thought hadn't crossed my mind. Maybe running off together was the best solution. Would it really be so bad, starting over from scratch? "Have you ever thought about leaving?"