“We need to return Rhys’s car to him,” Nikos added.
Markos arched a brow. “So, what do you suggest? We wave down a cab and plaster our faces across every surveillance system in the city? We need transportation.”
A grin spread across Nikos’s face.
“I’ll leave a message where he can pick it up. I have a car—or rather, a van we can use,” he said.
Forty minutes later, they were standing in a dimly lit, industrial car storage garage on the edge of Queens.
And staring at a 1990 Volkswagen Westfalia.
Not just any VW Westfalia. This one bloomed with wild swirls of purple, orange, red, yellow, and green flowers painted across every surface. Neon green peace signs spiraled over the hood and peppered between the colorful blossoms. In addition, there were yellow paw prints trailing up the back like a parade of glitter-drunk puppies.
It was, without question, the most ridiculous vehicle Nikos had ever seen.
And still just as shocking.
Markos looked at the vehicle with an offended expression. “You’ve lost your damn mind.”
Nikos laughed. “You’re just jealous.”
“Jealous? Of that?” Markos pointed. “That’s not a getaway vehicle. That’s a cry for help.”
“It’s Rose’s,” Nikos said, retrieving the key from its hiding spot behind the rear bumper. “Theo’s wife. She bought it when she was dodging him cross-country. They asked me to store it.”
“Why?” Markos dryly inquired before he pinched the bridge of his nose. “Never mind. I know Rose. I’m riding in the back. Wake me when it’s all over.”
Kiki suddenly lit up. “No way! I’m calling dibs on the back. I want to check it out.”
Nikos opened the sliding door for her, watching the transformation in her face as she climbed in.
“Oh my god,” she whispered. “I’m in love.”
“She says that now,” Markos muttered. “Wait until we hit fifty and have to push it uphill.”
Nikos snorted as he climbed behind the wheel. “We’re not exactly trying to outrun anyone, remember? We’re hiding.”
Markos stared at him. “In that?”
Nikos grinned. “Nobody would think of looking for us in a Scooby-Doo van. It’ll be perfect to take to a lake house in upstate New York. It fits in.”
Markos groaned and climbed into the passenger seat. “Angel’s place. That’s your next master plan? You know he’ll kill you if that place gets wrecked.”
Nikos snorted. “It’s isolated, secure, and stocked. We go there, rest, call in Angel, Lucas, Cole, and contact Theo. Once we get the team in place, we take the offensive.”
As they pulled out of the garage and hit the road, the city lights faded behind them.
Rain misted the windshield. The low hum of tires on wet pavement filled the silence.
In the rearview mirror, Nikos caughtKiki’s gaze.
She was watching him, her eyes luminous in the dark. Fear swirled behind them. But so did something else.
Hope… and curiosity.
He smiled softly, then looked forward, tightening his grip on the wheel.
Whatever came next, she wouldn’t face it alone again.
