I should have told her about the note in our mailbox, about Josey showing up out of nowhere. Then she would have been on higher alert. Maybe she wouldn’t have stormed off. She could have stayed with me, been mad at me at home, where she was safe.
I climb into the passenger seat of Luciano’s black sedan. I ignore how nice it is, the deeply tinted windows and immaculate condition it’s in. Café ownership isn’t the most lucrative of professions. Maybe he’s good at investing or into cryptocurrency. Whatever the hell that is.
He pushes a button to start the car, the engine roaring to life.
I hope this thing is as fast as it sounds and not a phony like those frat boy cars around town.
“How do you know Franklin?” I ask, despite being hesitant to know the answer.
Luciano peeks at me out of the corner of his eye. “He’s blood.”
I let my head fall back against the seat. Great. I just got into the car with my adversary’s family. I should have just mailed myself to Franklin’s doorstep with a glittery bow and saved Claire the misery of getting wrapped up in this nightmare.
“It’s bad blood, though.” Luciano grips the steering wheel with one hand and shifts aggressively with the other.
At least there’s that. Perhaps we share a common enemy. Maybe this isn’t my funeral after all. But what about Claire? What does Franklin have in store for her?
“He’s forbidden from this territory. If he was in town, I’d know it.” Luciano blazes through a red light, completely ignoring traffic laws. “Doesn’t mean he didn’t have someone do it for him, though.”
If Franklin wanted to expose me, this is the perfect plan. Of course, because I’d do anything for her. But if there were no hints on how to find her, Franklin was probably more clueless than I thought. Which means that he’s trying to get information out of Claire. And if I know her the way I think I do, there’s no way in hell she’ll give him any details on my whereabouts. As much as I would sacrifice for her, she’d do the same for me. Meaning if she doesn’t spill soon, he’ll end her life just for fun.
“How do you know Franklin?” Luciano repeats the same question I asked him.
I sigh, running my hand over my face. Where would I even begin? With Billy? No, that would show weakness, and without knowing a damn thing about Luciano, I don’t want him to have any insight into what kind of person I am.
He skids the car sideways and onto a nearly hidden path, leading down rows of abandoned industrial buildings.
“It’s a long story,” I finally say.
“Keep an eye right, I’ll look left.” Luciano points to the access passages between the structures. He slams on the brakes and points ahead, where a lone van is parked in the distance.
Immediately, I hop out of the car and take off on foot.
Luciano catches up to me within a second, reaching behind him and pulling out a gun.
If he was going to kill me, he would have had the chance numerous times again. I allow the uncertainty of this man to be pushed aside as I run with all my might toward where my soul is screaming at me to go.
I only hope I’m not too late.
I hear her voice first, a soothing melody to my aching existence. But it’s her words that breathe a new wave of fear in me.
“I’d rather die,” she tells someone.
Followed by the uncanny sound of Franklin. “Very well. I’ll find him with or without you.”
I step into the open space, only a dozen feet away from my beloved. My heart seems to leap out of my chest at the sight of the weapon pointed in Claire’s face.
I reach over, grabbing the gun from Luciano’s hand, not a care in the world about what consequences could come from my actions. I point it at the man in front of Claire and just as he realizes there’s a weapon aimed at him, I pull the trigger. The reverberation crashes through my wrist and up my arm, settling in my chest. My ears ring, the casing of the bullet rattles against the concrete floor. I shift my mark, pointing the end of my barrel at the other guy. I don’t allow myself to think, I just do what I have to do, Claire’s safety my only concern at the moment. I fire another shot, the loud noise secondary to everything else.
I glance at the screen in his grasp as it falls to the ground with the man’s now lifeless body. Franklin’s face pressed up close to get a better look, in total disbelief of what he’s witnessing. I rush over, take one look at the still connected call and aim the gun one more time.
“You’ll pay for this.” I don’t give Franklin time to react before I shoot the tablet and end any chance he has of saying a damn thing to me.
I turn around, dropping to my knees and grabbing Claire’s face in my hands. Her eyes are pressed shut, her hair caked to her face with a mixture of blood and snot.
“Claire, I’m here.” I hold my breath and frantically wait for some kind of response.
Did the man get off a shot before I could finish him? Or maybe his finger pulled the trigger in his final moments?