Tonio lifted his head and looked at her.
She was wrecked. Beautifully, utterly wrecked. Limp from exhaustion, flushed from release, glowing from the inside out. A dangerous satisfaction curled deep in his gut. Sofia yawned, soft and unguarded, and he shifted immediately, giving her room to turn onto her side. She curled into him without hesitation, tucking her face against his chest as if she belonged there. Tonio wrapped an arm around her, holding her close, and a strange contentment settled in his ribs—something he’d never felt before because he was holding her while she drifted into sleep.
Within two minutes, her breathing deepened. He absorbed the rise and fall of her chest, let the steady rhythm ease the tension in his shoulders, let himself sink into the quiet alongside her.
Then his phone buzzed. Tonio went instantly alert, every muscle tightening; the softness in him burned away in a heartbeat.
Luc:Tail confirmed. You’ve got a few hours. Net closes in six.
Tonio stared at the screen, his jaw tightening.
Six hours. Not much—but enough. He set the alarm, flipped the phone facedown, and slid the gun under the pillow, the metal cold against his fingertips. Lying on his back, he watched the ceiling in the dim room, every sense still tuned to danger even as exhaustion dragged at him.
In three hours, they would be up and running until they reached the cabin.
CHAPTER NINE
The next day, Tonio ran the numbers. Twenty-four hours straight would leave them ragged. One more stop—a last nowhere motel—was the only play. The cabin in New York was the finish line. After that, he could plan instead of running.
He had Sofia check out while he scanned the perimeter, every sense sharp. Luc’s window was gone.
Tonio still couldn’t believe he’d overslept—slept straight through the damn alarm. Having Sofia wrapped around him had been like a drug, warm and disarming, pulling him into a sleep so deep someone could’ve kicked in the motel door and he might not have heard it.
The thought made his jaw clench. He couldn’t afford that kind of softness. Not now. Not ever.
There were more vehicles in the parking lot now. A utility van. A mom wrestling with a car seat. A black SUV down the street, engine idling. Tonio closed in, palm pressing to her back. She stiffened, shoulders tightening, then eased under his touch.
“Don’t look.”
She slid in. Her fingers brushed his wrist once as she clicked the seatbelt. A small tremor ran through her hand. He felt it but kept his grip steady.
He pulled out smoothly. Three blocks. Hard left. The SUV mirrored every move.
“Clock’s up,” he muttered.
Sofia’s jaw clenched. Her eyes flicked from the side mirror to the road ahead. He cut across two lanes, the SUV clinging to their bumper. Outrunning it was suicide. He needed terrain.
Service road. Tonio exhaled slowly, centering himself, muscles coiled for what came next. Sofia leaned forward, her eyes wide, but she never looked away as Tonio made his move. It was time to flip the board. He floored it—one brutal second—then slammed the brakes and cut the wheel hard. Tires shrieked. Dust sheeted around them, blinding everything. The SUV shot past, its driver overcorrecting wildly into a skid.
Tonio dropped it into reverse and shot backward down the narrow service road.
“Second car,” Sofia breathed.
A dark sedan roared onto the narrow service road, decisively cutting off their only exit.
Tonio didn’t blink. He veered off the road, bouncing over rutted ground toward the half-built structure. Rebar and raw concrete loomed. He killed the engine crookedly, staging a crash.
“Down.”
He was out of the car before the dust settled, gun up, braced on the doorframe. The SUV lunged toward them again.
Tonio squeezed off two shots, controlled and tight. Both front tires blew, rubber shredding. The SUV lurched forward, nosediving with a groan of metal.
Rounds snapped back. He yanked Sofia with him, dragging her as he dove behind stacked industrial pipes. They hit the concrete hard.
Her pulse hammered against his arm. “What now?”
Tonio reloaded without looking away from the open ground. “Exit’s blocked. Stay on me—no hesitation.”
