“Touch. Her. And. Die.” My jaw tics.
“A man like you should know better than to wear his heart on his sleeve.”
Dominic interrupts, “You’ll want to think about it, Mr. Kent. My employer’s offer doesn’t stay open long. Gabriel here,” he smirks, “is the nice one in the family. He’s offering you the best deal.”
“Shut up. Not your turn to speak,” Gabriel snaps. “You’re our public timekeeper. But this deal is between us and Kent.”
Dominic flinches, resentment flashing in his eyes. But the emotions snuff out when he bows and steps back.
Gabriel stands. “Dominic will give you my father’s number. He looks forward to our partnership.”
The Scheduler takes out his antique pen, scribbles on a slip of paper, then hands it to me.
I pocket the note and watch them leave.
The moment the door closes, the air decompresses.
They’re playing a different game, and I don’t know the rules yet. I really hate being in the dark.
The clock chimes eight. The house is silent as I sit in my chair, staring at the paper, pondering my next steps.
Suddenly, Lana bursts in, breathless, holding up her phone. “I got a message!”
“I’m on it.” Aleksei barrels in from the hall, already typing on his laptop.
I take the phone from her. An anonymous email.
For the birthday girl: your present is located at Safe Way Storage. Locker 35. Retrieve it within the hour.
Below it is a string of numbers—a code.
Aleksei frowns. “IP’s bouncing across multiple dark-web nodes. This person’s good. Probably spoofed credentials. Could take a while to trace.”
“What do we do?” Sofia asks from the doorway.
Sebastian sidles up behind her. “The decoy plan. Nothing changes. It’s the logical move.”
“But the Carusos,” Sofia says. “Won’t they follow us?”
“Let me worry about them.” I brush past Lana, kiss her, and whisper, “Stick to the plan. Stay safe.”
Sebastian and I peel out of the mansion, heading straight for the storage facility thirty minutes away. Whoever this messenger is knows us all too well. The package isn’t delivered to New York City but right at our doorstep.
Someone’s mapping our every move.
“We got this,” Sebastian murmurs, steering toward our destination.
Click. Click.
My fingers twirl the lighter. I flip it open. The flames burst in a staccato rhythm.
Lana and Ren should be en route to the Navy Pier now, with Sofia shadowing them. Large crowds should keep them safe.
Minutes later, Sebastian parks a block from the facility.
Safe Way Storage is dilapidated, with a lone fluorescent bulb flickering above the entrance.
It’s go time.
