“Listen.” She points at the roof of the car. I glance over her head, starting to get a little concerned about her sanity.
But then I hear it.
A low hum, threading through the trees. At first, it sounds like the wind. This high, it can play tricks on you. But then it gets deeper, more mechanical.
“The fuck is that?” I start to open my door, but she grabs my arm.
“I know what it is.” She starts to gather her things. “Give me your jacket. Now!”
My eyes lock onto the trees in front of us that start to bend as the source of her alarm comes into sight.
A helicopter—sleek and silent—blades flashing silver with each rotation. Not military, not medical, not police, just matte-black with a familiar logo.
Etheridge.
Jack Romney glares down as the helicopter descends. Beside him is another older man with gray hair and glasses. For a split second, I consider firing up the engine and flooring the pedal. Take her somewhere they’d never find her. But she is already a puddle of nerves.
“Fuck. I have thirty missed calls from Thea.” Eva starts to panic, her eyes widening at the man beside Jack. “Jonathan came, too? I’m so screwed,” she mutters, putting on my jacket and tucking my mark on her neck under her hair. “I don’t even have my phone on me. How did they even find me?”
The only way they could have.
“They didn’t track yours,” I grit with a clenched jaw. “They tracked mine.”
Fucking Kane.
21
EVA
I’m sweating bullets,my pulse syncing with the sharp chop of wind lashing against the cabin as we land on the Etheridge Mansion helipad. Dust and gravel whirl through the air when I step out. I clutch the hem of my dress—barely peeking out of Mason’s jacket, which swallows me whole, as I make my way up the long path.
Jonathan. Grace’s father. My godfather. The tall man in a gray suit, which matches his eyes, follows me, looking shockingly calm. As if he’s about to perform another surgery and didn’t just airlift me out of Fort.
“Okay,” I call over the dying whine of the blades, “on a scale of one to ten, how much trouble am I in?”
“You didn’t break your curfew, Eva, you breached your security protocol. We had police officers circling Fort’s perimeter in the middle of the night. Now, Elton and Daniel have to make multiple apology calls. So, on the scale of one to ten? I’m thinking… fifty.”
I groan, burying my face in my hands. I’m so tired of this. The security protocols, everyone treating me like a child. All ofit. I get it now. Why Dad didn’t want us near all this. Two months and I’m already suffocating in their cage.
Jonathan eyes me from head to toe. “Actually, add another five for that outfit.”
I shoot him a look. “Are you going to help me or not?”
“That depends.” His tone turns surgical. “Is Daniel right?”
“About… what?” I ask, wary.
“All this.” He gestures toward the helicopter. “Breaking your detail. Mixing with Fort families. Is this a cry for Daniel’s attention, or just a spectacular lapse in judgment?”
The words hit sharper than the wind. My lips part.
That’s what Dan thinks? That arrogant dick.Like the world revolves around him.
“On second thought,” I say coolly. “I won’t be needing any help.”
Jonathan studies me, then sighs with the faintest shake of his head.
“Come on. Your grandfather’s waiting.”
