“And we will get Elle back on its feet,” Reyna said passionately. “Visage will not win. They will not break us. No matter how they try. We will always come back swinging.”
Gabe, Tye, and Meghan looked up at her with a newfoundrespect. As if she had suddenly grown into the person she was always meant to be. And Reyna vowed to do whatever it took to live up to this new role. Beckham’s sacrifice would not be in vain.
Chapter Four
“So, you really up for this?” Gabe asked as he pulled out an assortment of guns.
“Please stop asking that question. Between you and Meghan, I think I’ve been asked enough about my feelings on the matter.”
“Hey, you should go easy on Meghan.”
“I know,” Reyna said with a sigh. She pinched the bridge of her nose. “I know what she’s lost. I know what it all feels like, but I can’t stand being babied. I’m not the same person I was when I joined Visage or the person Meghan met when she broke me out.”
“I can see that. But Megs can’t help but look out for you. It’s in her nature.”
Reyna shrugged. “You’re right. Just trying to keep the train on the rails. I don’t want us to get so lost in our feelings that we stop doing shit.”
Gabe chambered a bullet in his weapon and then smiled at her. “Don’t worry. I’m all for doing shit.”
“You’re ridiculous,” she said with a laugh.
Gabe collected all the guns and loaded most into a duffle bag. He stuffed one into his waistband and attached several others to holsters on his body. Then he handed one to Reyna. “Hope you don’t need this.”
“Me too.” She took it reluctantly, checked the safety, and then strapped it to her side. She pulled her jacket over it, and they headed out the door.
“Can you believe that Washington has had this place since 1805?” Gabe said with a shake of his head. “Fucking vampires, man. How fucking old is he?”
“Old.”
When they reached the garage, Reyna’s eyes doubled in size at the amazing selection of vehicles that Washington had. From flashy sports cars to SUVs to a fucking Hummer. The guy was a collector. This must’ve been where the groundskeeper spent most of his time. Thank God, he kept the garage outfitted with up-to-date tech. Reyna and Gabe hopped in the passenger seat of one of the more inconspicuous cars.
“Why the hell would he work as a doctor with this loot?” The car revved to life and then Gabe peeled away.
“It clearly didn’t start as an Elle establishment,” she said, voicing the thought she’d had all along. “Fifteen years ago, he would have been helping Harrington start Visage.”
“It’s a little poetic that the rebel organization that’s going to take Harrington’s ass down is working out of a base he started all this shit in.”
“Couldn’t agree more,” Reyna said with a vicious smile.
They drove for over an hour in companionable conversation. Gabe was a carefree, flirtatious sort. When she’d first met him, she’d immediately pegged him as trouble. That much was still true. Except now it was one of her favorite qualities about the quick-witted Irish mobster.
As they moved through more decrepit streets, their conversation slowed until it lapsed into silence. The neighborhood was decrepit to say the least. Waste and refuse littered the street. Most of the streetlights were out and left an eerie glow on everything. Graffiti littered the buildings and only a handful of people walked around, none of them looked particularly friendly.
Her heart sank. She sure hoped Jodie had already left this place.
“I’m not sure what to do about the car,” Gabe said. “I thought it would blend. I greatly underestimated how shitty this neighborhood is.”
“Yeah. I think we need to find a place to stash it.”
“You okay with a bit of a walk?” Gabe grimaced.
“Whatever we need to do.”
It was probably a mile away from their destination before Gabe found a place to leave the car that didn’t look as if it would be stripped down for parts before they returned. The weather was brisk, but it was nice to be out actually doing something. She hardly noticed the walk or the cold as anticipation fluttered through her stomach.
“Try not to get your hopes up,” Gabe muttered. “This isn’t the kind of place people linger if they don’t have to.”
Reyna ducked her head and tried not to make eye contact with anyone on the streets. She’d grown up in the Warehouse District. She’d thought she’d known hardship but that was nothing compared to what she saw now.
