Dante shifted slightly, putting himself in front of Lark again. "That's not your concern."
"It actually is,” the second man said.
Lark felt Dante tense beside her. "Why does she concern you?" he asked.
"Because half the people hunting her tonight don't work for Santos,” the first man said. “Somebody put a very expensive price on her head.”
Lark felt sick. "What?"
He looked directly at her. "You don't know?"
She shook her head. "No."
The man sighed. "Figures."
Dante never lowered his gun. "Who are you?"
"My name's Mason." He gestured toward his partner. "That's Cole." Neither name meant anything to Lark. "We're trying to stop a trafficking network."
Dante's expression didn't change. "Convenient story."
"It happens to be true." Mason reached slowly into a pocket as Dante's pistol tracked every movement. The man produced a badge. He wasn’t with the FBI or police. Lark couldn't make out the insignia, but Dante seemed able to.
His eyebrows lifted almost imperceptibly. "STARR."
Mason nodded. "So you've heard of us."
"A little,” Dante said.
Lark looked between them. "What is STARR?"
"This is a very bad place to end up on our radar." A new voice answered from behind them. Everyone spun around as a man stepped from the shadows with four more armed men at his back. His pistol remained lowered, and his eyes immediately found Lark. Relief flashed across his face before disappearing beneath professional calm. She was sure that she recognized him from her father’s house earlier. He claimed to be one of her father’s investors.
"Looks like we finally caught up to you guys,” the man said.
Dante's jaw tightened. "You know them?"
Rocco nodded toward Mason. "They're on my team."
Lark frowned. "Your team?"
Rocco looked at her. "I wasn't exactly honest about who I was earlier when we were introduced."
"No kidding," Dante muttered.
"My name really is Rocco."
"So is Moretti a fake name?" Dante asked.
"Yes,” Rocco said.
She folded her arms over her chest. "Seems I've met a lot of liars tonight."
Something softened in Rocco's expression. "I'm sorry that I had to deceive you." The sincerity caught her off guard because, unlike her father and everyone else in her life, he actually seemed to mean it.
“I’m here to help you, Lark,” Rocco assured.
Dante stepped closer to her. "Help her how?" he asked.
