He knew Noreen could make her own judgments, so he didn''t interfere, maintaining a respectful boundary.


    As he was heading out, Castle remembered something else and turned back. "I heard the head of InnoCore is in Harborview City. Most of the local business leaders will probably steer clear out of respect for me, but there will always be some who are tempted."


    After all, business was business, and profit was a powerful motivator.


    "I''ve heard Nexus Dynamics has been getting close to InnoCoretely," Castle added, giving her a heads-up.


    "Understood."


    That night, after Noreen showered and got into bed, Katy snuggled up against her.


    "I have to workte tonight. If you''re worried about the noise, you can wear these," Noreen said, offering Katy a pair of earplugs from her nightstand.


    Katy shook her head. "It''s okay. Even if there''s noise, it won''t bother me." All she needed was Noreen''s scent to fall asleep. Noise was no distraction.


    Noreen bnced herptop on her legs and got to work, while Katy nestled contentedly in her arms.


    After finishing her work, Noreen took a moment to look up Nexus Dynamics. Thepany''s owner was named Ss. It was a tech firm, only three years old, with a corporate structure so simple it was like a nk te-no affiliations whatsoever. Yet, Nexus Dynamics had grown with astonishing speed, carving out a ce for itself in Harborview City in just three years. It had even managed to steal a small slice of market share from Centribo. It was a tiny slice, but for a three-year-oldpany, it was remarkable.


    Noreen decided she would visit Centribo tomorrow and talk to Vincent about Nexus Dynamics.


    With her work done, Noreen closed herptop, turned off the light, and tried to sleep. But the night was too quiet, and even after a long while, she was still awake.


    Half an hourter, she picked up her phone and sent a text to Seth. It was brief, without any unnecessary punctuation.


    [Watch out for the Caldwell family.]


    At the hotel, Jude emptied thest drop of liquor from the bottle. In a weary, almost pleading tone, he begged, "Seth, you really can''t drink anymore! Let''s just call it a night. Please, just finish what''s in your ss and go to sleep, okay?"


    "Can''t sleep," Seth mumbled, his eyes bloodshot from exhaustion He hadn''t even fully recovered from his illness and how he was drinking. How was he supposed to get better? He wasn''t.


    And yet, earlier that day, he had dressed immactely and gone to Centrio to wait for Noreen He was willing to wait all day just to


    enge a single word with her.


    The moment he closed his eyes, his mind was filled with images of


    Noreen The same was true wh they were open. It was as if


    world had been reduced to nothing but her.


    "So, are you going to see her again tomorrow?" Jude asked.


    "Yes."


    "What''s your excuse?"


    "Haven''t thought of one."


    Today, he had used the pretext of returning an umbre. But the weather forecast for tomorrow showed no rain.


    Seth drained his ss andy back. After a few moments, he shot up abruptly, startling Jude.


    "Come on. We''re going somewhere."


    Jude nced at the clock. It was already eleven. Where could he possibly be going?


    Only after they were out the door did Seth tell him their destination: the seafood market.


    Jude finally lost it. "What in the world are you going to a seafood market for at this hour?"


    "To buy seafood. I''m going to make Noreen her favorite seafood soup."


    Jude wanted to scream for help. Was there anyone, anyone at all, who could rein Seth in?