Eight
Diego
I’ve worn a trench through the snow by the time they get back, pacing up and down between the trees for what feels like hours. A snapping twig is the only sign of their arrival, and I wheel around in time to see Holly and Santo slipping between the ghostly tree trunks, two thieves in the night.
“Did you do it?” I call softly, already striding to meet them. Santo nods just as Holly flings herself into my arms. She’s shivering in her thin maid’s uniform, her teeth chattering in my ear, and I put her down long enough to shrug off my coat and wrap it around her shoulders.
“The others are following behind,” Santo says, strolling to the lead car and popping the trunk. A small electric light glows inside, washing over his sharp features and making his cheeks look gaunt. The air smells like pine. “You should leave before she sees.”
“Before I s-see what?” Holly says, the cold slurring her words. She glances between us, her blonde hair almost silver in the moonlight. “Before I seewhat?”
“Come on, baby.” I draw her away by the elbow, leading her through the snow to the second vehicle. “We’ve had the heaters on, getting it good and ready for you.”
“Diego Cedrone, if I’ve been the accessory to a crime, I should know about it!”
Holly’s so easy to lift in a squirming bundle. So easy to deposit in the back seat of the car, her outraged curses ringing in my ears as I belt her in. Gotta go, gotta go.
The car door slams shut. My footsteps crunch through the snow as I round the vehicle.
In the distance, a pair of Santo’s soldiers appear between the trees, one carrying a pale shape slung over his shoulder. Both men are stoic and silent, their suits whispering as they walk.
“Excellent.” Santo straightens as they get near, rapping on the side of the open trunk. “In here, please.”
I shake my head, and my heart sinks down to my belly, because there’s no way my girl hasn’t seen.
Sure enough, Holly’s rolled her window down when I slide into the car, and she’s leaning halfway out to watch the scene in front of us. “Oh my god,” she says, as the pale shape stirs against the man’s shoulder, making dazed noises. “Oh my god! That’s a woman!”
Santo spares us an evil smile. Ass.
“It’s the Governor’s daughter.” I tug Holly back inside as Santo’s captive lands in the trunk with anoof.They must have her bound and gagged. “Don’t worry, he won’t hurt her—the boss doesn’t hurt innocents. He’s just borrowing her for a while.”
The window hums up as I speak, and I jab the button like it might make it go faster. Like it might magically stop Holly from asking questions, and from looking at me with that doubt in her eyes.
Fuck.
“He’s kidnapping her,” she says. It’s a statement, not a question.
“Yes.” I settle back against the leather and nod for the driver to take us away. The car jerks backward, lurching over the uneven snow, and my girl sways in her seat, looking queasy. “This is the mob, Holly. You knew that already.”
“He’skidnappingher. And we’re letting him do it!”
A harsh breath gusts out of me, along with the last of my hope. Because who was I kidding, thinking she’d want to stick around? Thinking that she’d want anything to do with us and our world? Withme?
Holly is good.She’s innocent and sweet, and when she came on my fingers earlier, she gazed up at me like I’d given her the moon on a platter.
It was too good to be true, and this car is stiflingly hot, the air scented with burning dust from the heaters. Up front, the driver’s partition inches toward the roof, and he’s a smart man because he’s avoiding my eyes. Pretending not to hear this.
“Listen to me.” The leather creaks as I shift to face her head on, my gaze hard even though my insides are knotted with misery. The partition thumps softly against the roof, and then we’re alone, rocking over the snow, leaving Santo and the Governor’s daughter in our exhaust. “Edwards is a prime time fucker. He started this war with Santo out of the blue, and he blackmailed you and threatened Ruth. He’s gotten one of us stabbed and one shot already, and there’sstilla price on all our heads. Do you hear what I’m saying?”
The breath shudders in and out of my lungs. Holly blinks up at me from the depths of my coat, her eyes so huge, and she’s like one of those little anime things, especially in her maid’s dress. Damn it. Should have known this could never be real.
“The Governor won’t stop until Santo’s ruined and we’re all dead.Oruntil the boss reminds him who he’s dealing with. Which option do you prefer?”
The car lurches around a bend. I spread one palm over the ceiling, determined not to flatten her.
“There’s a price on your head?” Holly mumbles, her fingers hooking onto my shirtsleeve. “Yours too?”
Is that strain in her voice from worry? Or is she still horrified with me?