We meet the other three Tailors outside of Danny’s Diner, the restaurant dark inside as it’s closed for the night. Ironically, it’s the place where my mother was shot by Aeron a decade ago and a fissure of pain freezes me for a moment as the memories try to rush in. I was worrying so much at the conference the other morning that I didn't realize this was the place we were meeting. I guess it’s only fitting that my betrayal should start here.
A homeless man walks towards us, and I stiffen, blinking out of my impending panic until he pulls his large ragged coat off and Nick’s face emerges.
“Report,” Aeron commands in a low voice as Nick, the average Tailor, comes closer to us.
“I counted thirty Soldiers going down that alley, none coming out,” Nick tells us, swiping grime off his face with a wet wipe he produces from a pocket.
“And Rufus?” Aeron demands, his voice hard as granite. A chill sweeps through me, making me shiver, and Jude wraps an arm around me, pulling me into his body. I try not to sink into him, try to resist the warmth, but it’s like I have no control over my body anymore, and I do it anyway. Perhaps my body knows that I won’t have many more chances after this.
“He’s there. As well as his second and the boy,” Nick tells him. I straighten, going rigid in Jude’s arms.
“Hush, Nightingale. We’ll get him out,” Jude whispers against my ear. He places a soft kiss on my hair, and I have to take a few deep breaths to try and calm my pounding heart.
“Good work, Nick,” Aeron nods, and I see the man stand a little taller at the praise. Aeron really will make a great leader one day.
If he gets that far.
I shut that bitch down, refusing to believe that I’m leading them to their deaths. It won’t come to that.
The cold of the bright fall night surrounds us as we make our way to the back of the laundromat, all the guys looking around for any threats, any sign that we’ve been spotted. I know that even if we have, the Soldiers won’t stop us. That’s not the plan, after all.
A breath rushes out of me as we reach the broken fence that surrounds the courtyard, and Knox breaks away from the shadows. He jogs towards us, and when he stops, I can’t help butwrap my arms around him and pull him close, my fingers cold from more than just the frigid air.
“Hey, Little Bird. Miss me?” His voice is teasing as he hugs me back, but he brings me closer anyway.
“Always,” I say, my voice rasping and his arms tighten around me.
“I’m here now, love. No need to worry,” he replies, his own voice soft. I hear a scoff behind me that sounds a lot like that cunt, Earl, but I ignore it, closing my eyes and breathing in Knox’s leather, motor oil, and clove scent. God, the weight in my fucking chest is threatening to cave it in.
“Anything?” Aeron asks, his voice tight.
“Nope. Quiet as a nun’s back door,” Knox replies, and I cringe, pulling away.
“That’s a visual I didn’t need,” I tell him, stepping back but he grabs my hand.
“But it made you smile so it was worth it.” He pulls me back for a quick kiss before releasing me. My lips burn with the kiss, and I just want to pull him back to me and hide from what’s about to happen.
“Let’s go,” Aeron commands, and we all follow as he goes through the hole in the metal fence. “Dove, where’s the manhole?”
Letting go of Knox’s hand, I look around the barren space, spotting the dark patch of the broken manhole cover and walking over. I bend down, reaching out with trembling hands to pull it off.
“Allow me,” Tarl offers for the second time tonight, and I pause, staring into the side of his beautiful face highlighted in the moonlight, as if that will tell me all that he knows. As if that might tell me why he hasn’t said anything to the others. He grabs hold of the edges, and in a swift yet nearly silent move, he pulls the cover off, placing it gently down next to it.
“I should go first, make sure no one is there,” I whisper, and turn to see my guys frozen with clenched jaws. “It makes the most fucking sense, Aeron, and you know it.”
“Fine,” he grits out, his jaw tight. “But if you don’t give the all-clear in two minutes, I’m coming after you.”
“That defeats the whole point, asshole,” I grumble under my breath, Tarl’s low chuckle reaching me as I lower myself into the dark manhole and find my first foothold.
Muscle memory takes over, my hands and feet finding purchase easily as I make my way down the short, pitch-black passage. This is the worst part, being enclosed in the dark, hands covered in old coal dust, but it’s not long before I’m jumping down quietly onto the ground.
Glancing around, I see that it’s pretty much the same as I left it, just with a few less packages of all the drugs, alcohol, and cigarettes that the Soldiers trade in. There’s just the light from the coal chute, barely letting the moon cast its glow over the crates and packets.
Taking a final, shaking breath, I lean up into the chute and coo like a fucking Dove. Jude’s idea of a joke.
The sound of the others coming down the tunnel fills the silent space, the rasp of their clothing against the sides as they make their way down seeming loud. I step back so the falling coat of dust doesn’t get into my eyes, and soon dark figures are jumping down into the room until it’s full of the Tailors.
My chest tingles as Aeron is the first to land, immediately coming over to me and pulling me to him. God, I feel like such a fucking asshole for leaning into him, taking the comfort that he’s offering even though I don’t deserve it.
