“How would you know that?”
“The way you hold it. They’ll know too.”
My eyes cast down to the ground, my breathing faster as my chest ached. “I need to get it back for him. No matter what.”
Henrik was silent for a moment before holding his hand out. “Give me the gun.”
I did. He shrugged his backpack off and unzipped it. There was a second helmet attached to the side that he took off and handed to me. Then he disarmed the gun and tucked it away, digging around before retrieving a switchblade and handing that to me too.
“You think I have a better chance with this than the gun?” I asked as I took it.
The knife looked old. Well used. It felt heavier than the mix of metal and pale wood it was composed of, as if it was possessed by something unseen. I flicked it open, eyeing the cloudy silver of the blade with its razor-sharp edges. Where it had come from and what I would do with it, I didn’t know, but I clenched it tighter, accepting the feel of it, the warmth of my palm seeping into its coldness.
“I don’t think you need a weapon. But just in case.”
“Why don’t I need a weapon?”
“Because I’m coming with you. Now get on.”
He was an arrogant bastard, but I didn’t question him further. Henrik knew what we should expect better than I did, as much as I hated to admit that even to myself. I wasn’t sure how involvedhe was planning to be in the confrontation with Bates, but I felt better with him on my side.
I pulled the helmet over my head, and Henrik gave me the bag to put on my back as I got on behind him. His bike was much better equipped for carrying two people, but I still tried not to get too close to him.
“You’ll have to hold on tight. We’ll go faster than you’re used to on that old relic of his. Don’t want to tell Coyote his rabbit is now roadkill. I don’t think he’d like me anymore.”
I shuffled a little closer. My hands rested on his waist, but then the bastard took off at a stomach-twisting speed. The moment we were out of the parking lot, the front wheel was lifting off the asphalt, and I screamed as I clutched onto him with my arms and legs so I didn’t get thrown off.
I could almost hear my heartbeat above the roar of the bike’s engine as it thumped rapidly with adrenaline. I could also hear the bastard’s laughter, and I might have fucking hit him if I wasn’t so concerned about him doing that to me again and ending up as a smear on the road.
Thankfully, for the rest of the long trip—that would have takenmuchlonger if he wasn’t speeding like a madman—he kept both wheels on the road.
We pulled up at an old warehouse on the outskirts of Deltran.
It took me a moment to find my balance on shaking legs as I got off, immediately scrambling away from Henrik. I’d spent far too long clinging to his body on the ride, and when we were done here, I didn’t want to be in so much as the same room as him ever again. I yanked the helmet off to heave in blissfully cool air.
“Alright? Looking a little green there.”
“I’m fine,” I snapped, trying to convince myself of that as well, because the twisting of my stomach was only half due to the ride. We were here. And now I had to face whatever came next.
Henrik took the helmet and backpack from me, securing them to his bike.
“How do you know he’s here?”
“I just know things,” he told me, fixing up his stupid man bun. “Come now, Bunny. You can do the talking, but when things turn violent, you stay behind me. Don’t get in my way.”
Whenand notifthings turn violent. My mouth dried up.
I took a deep breath, steeling myself for what lay ahead, and reminding myself of why I was here. For Dex. For his father’s lighter. For the pain this fucker had inflicted on him multiple times now. Never again. Getting his lighter back wasn’t enough. I had to make sure that when I left here, Mason fucking Bates would never be a problem for my devil ever again. I couldn’t do anything about Pierce, or about Dex’s piece of shit mom. ButthisI could protect him from.
Henrik stood behind me, waiting patiently for me to lead the way.
The warehouse, with its boarded-up windows, chipped paint, bright graffitied walls, and dark abandoned interior, stood like an enemy fortress. Still, I pushed forward, hiding my limp to the best of my ability, in case anyone was watching from somewhere unseen.
When we stepped inside, it was too quiet, motes of dust illuminated by the limited light that streamed through gaps in the window boards and broken glass. I pushed onward, all my senses on high alert.
With nothing here but the silent darkness, a wave of coldness rushed over me. Henrik had brought me out here alone. I’d told no one where I’d gone, and they certainly wouldn’t expect me to be with him. What if he brought me here to get rid of me? To get me away from Dex and the Strays?
“Keep going, Bunny,” he whispered in my ear, far closer than I expected him to be. My pulse thundered, my hand dipping into my pocket for the switchblade. “That way.” I followed his gaze, his profile only just visible enough. There was a closed door on the other side of the room.
