Kian stays quiet, and I finally glance over my shoulder at him. His brows are lowered as he stares back at me. “Who do I gotta kill?”
I snort, turning back to face the doors. “No one.”
“Where are you going?”
Spinning around, I give him my best glare. The kind that has fellow FBI agents quaking in their boots. “None of your business.” He crosses his arms over his chest, raising one brow while he narrows his eyes. I scoff and give him my back, tapping my foot as the elevator descends. When we reach the ground floor, I race out, giving Kian the finger as I rush over to the door which hides the stairs leading to the garage. Slapping my hand on the scanner, I glance behind me, Kian running toward me with a look of determination on his face.
Shit. I should have just lied and made something up.
“Come on, come on,” I yell at the fucking scanner. Of course, it decides today is the day to take its sweet time. It finally turns green, and I throw the door open, slamming it shut behind me just as Kian reaches it. A maniacal laugh rips from my chest as I take the stairs two at a time, using the corner railings to spin around the corners.
“Dutch!” comes a shout from the stairs above me, and I curse as I pick up my speed, my heart racing in my chest. Spinning around the final bend, I once more smack into a chest and groan when my brother wraps his hands around my upper arms, halting my progress.
“Let me go, you cretin,” I growl at him, unimpressed with the laugh he offers in return.
“Where do you think you’re going?”
“Out.”
“Out.” Nate’s eyes narrow. “Out fucking where?”
My eyes narrow right back at him as I step closer. Doing a quick move I learned years ago in self-defense, I leave him on the floor, gasping for breath as I take off again, the sound of Kian’s thudding footsteps chasing me. Throwing open the doors, I race into the garage and head toward my bike, victory rushing through me as I throw my leg over and rev the engine.
Putting my helmet on, I tear out of the garage, leaving Kian and Nate behind. But the victorious feeling quickly turns to disgust when I’m caught at a red light and two motorcycles come up behind me. They rev their engines in a clear challenge, making me grin. My hands tighten on the handles, and when the light turns green, I shoot out across the road, weaving in and out of cars, ignoring the shouts of angry drivers. I flip them off, laughing, adrenaline coursing through me.
Heading for New Jersey again, I stay ahead of Kian and Nate, and once the road opens up, I floor it. I lean low over the bike, a wide grin stretching across my face as I take the next turn way too fast. I manage to level up, my heart threatening to punch its way out of my chest at the close call. One of the bikes comes up alongside me, the visor popping up to allow me to see Nate’s scowl.
“Are you fucking crazy?” he shouts at me, eyes full of anger. And maybe a touch of concern.
“Probably!” I call back, flipping my visor up so he can hear me. Winking at him, I lower it again, shooting past him with a whoop. Kian comes up on the other side of me, pointing to the right. Fuck him. I’m not pulling over. I need this.
He shakes his head at me, lifts his visor, but I can’t hear what he shouts. Cackling, I keep going, letting the miles of freeway stretch out before me. Checking my mirrors, my heart detaches itself from my chest and lodges firmly in my throat when I realize what Kian was trying to tell me.
Two black SUVs are flying toward us, gaining quickly. And they don’t look friendly.Fuck.Whipping my head to the side, I notice Kian flanking me in a defensive position, and turning to the left, seeing Nate do the same.
They’re trying to protect me.
Gritting my teeth, I desperately rack my brain, the urgency of the situation quickly depleting my earlier amusement. A shot rings out and I flinch, ducking low over the handlebars. Checking my mirrors, I see a man leaning out of the SUV, aiming a gun at us as the one behind it starts moving up alongside, its window opening as another man appears.
Fuck, fuck, fuck.
A sign ahead indicates a turn-off toward an industrial area, and I signal to Nate and Kian, who both nod in agreement. Hopefully, we can lead the SUVs on a merry chase and lose them amongst the buildings.
More gunshots sound, the large vehicles gaining precious feet as they move closer. As if we’d rehearsed it, the three of us move as one at the last moment, speeding down the off-ramp. Someone up there must like us, as the light at the bottom is green, and we turn left, toward the warehouses.
If we make it out of this alive, I’m going to order Eric or Trey to set up our helmets with some sort of comms system. Although listening to them whine at me won’t be fun.
Glancing in the mirrors, I think we’ve lost them for a second, until they come screeching around the corner, heading right for us. Nate signals to split up, and I nod, going straight while the two of them veer off to the sides. Buildings fly past me in a blur and seeing the end of the road I’m currently on, I bend low, letting the bike spin around a corner before straightening up, speeding through a narrow alley.
The wall in front of me explodes as bullets slam into it. My heart is in overdrive, sweat slicking down my back as I turn another corner, only to nearly slam into one of the SUVs. My bike tips over, dumping me on the ground in an undignified manner. Shit!
Where the fuck have Nate and Kian gone?A little backup, guys!
The door swings open, and my cousin Stefano jumps down, his sneer transforming his usually handsome face into one of cold cruelty. “Daniella, you’ve been a fucking pain in the ass to hunt down. Your father would like to have a chat with you.” Two of Vincenzo’s goons step up behind him, guns raised at me.
I hide my shaking hands by curling them into fists, my own lips stretching into a sneer to match his. Uncle Harris always warned me that my behavior was going to come back to haunt me one day, and now I’m wishing I wasn’t always so obstinate. That I listened to other people now and again.
Because right now? I have a knife tucked into my pocket, but that’s fucking it. And you know what they say about bringing a knife to a gunfight.
