"Why?!" I demand, horrified.
He shrugs, already grabbing his cards again. "Ask him, not me." He turns back to his hand.
What the hell is happening in here? It all feels... tilted.
Like I slipped sideways into some alternate reality where I play poker, Gio is my guard dog with a nicotine problem, strangers ship us out loud, and I'm the one telling him not to die young.
Very normal.
Very me.
24) Partners In Crime
(Soundtrack for this chapter: Tesla – Corvad)
Rava
"COPS!" Someone screams it from the hallway.
Oh, fuck. Of course. Of course this happens theonenight I decide to act cool and gamble with Fontana.
Everything shatters. I know I shouldn’t have come.
This is it. I’m done. I’m going to jail.
I’m never becoming a teacher. I’m gonna rot in a cell with actual wild animals. I survived high school bullying just to get arrested in a random dungeon.
Someone screams again. Gio’s head snaps up. His eyes blow wide. "Fuck," he mutters, already moving.
He’s on his feet in a second, faster than I’ve ever seen him.
He dives behind the bar, yanks two black trash bags full of God-knows-what, and turns to me.
"Move!"
I don’t even have time to stand before he grabs my wrist. And he pulls me. We start running and shoving through people. My heart is in my throat from the anxiety. A guy trips next to me. A girl screams for someone desperately.
I’m confused as shit.
Gio doesn’t stop. He reaches for the back door.
We burst through it. We rush out into the alley, and then I hear sirens.
Sirens.
Blue lights bouncing off the buildings.
Shit. Real cops. Real fucking chase.
Everyone runs to the bikes. There’s like fifteen of them. Cars too. A lot of them. All scattered in the alley, like some kind of Fast and Furious movie about to start.
I’m still staring when Gio throws me a helmet.
"Get on, sweetheart," he says. "Showtime."
I don’t even argue. I don’t havethe timeto argue. My hands are shaking as I put it on and jump on behind him.
I grip his waist. He’s already turning the throttle. He leans forward and calls out to the guys around us.
