Chapter 19
CHAPTER 19
Ivy
I check the kiddie monitor and make sure it works before I head out the door and hop on my bike. As long as she’s asleep, she’ll be safe. I won’t stay away for more than fifteen minutes, tops. I’ll just bike to the industrial side of the city and pop in and out of warehouse five hundred eighteen.
I count down the time it takes me to get to the location by checking my watch every now and then, and I push the pedals as fast as I can. No time to waste. The only one watching over Cora right now is Bagel, and if an intruder steps in, Bagel will flop down on their toes and ask for pets instead. Traitor.
Sweat rolls down my back as I come to a stop beside the warehouse.
I fish my phone from my pocket and look at my messages to remind myself why I’m here in this secluded area of the city.
Anonymous: Come to Warehouse five hundred eighteen. Eleven p.m. Bring cash. Come alone.
I swallow back the nerves and check the kiddie monitor next. She’s still fast asleep. Good.
I put my hoodie over my head and tighten the straps. With surging adrenaline, I enter the warehouse’s open door, clutching both bands of my backpack strapped around my shoulders tightly. The only light comes from the small streetlight behind me, and it casts an eerie shadow deep inside the warehouse. I wouldn’t normally come here unless my life depended on it, but unfortunately, that’s exactly the case.
Get in, get out. That’s it.
My senses are on high alert as I look around in the dark. My breathing comes out in short puffs, the chilly night air making me shiver as I dig my hands into my pockets and feel the safety of the metal handle of my knife, my only form of protection.
At the end of the hallway, a man stands, lurched over a makeshift fire he put together from pieces of logwood stored in this warehouse.
“You brought the money?” His voice brings chills to my bones.
I approach him, but he holds up a hand. “That’s far enough.”
With a racing heart, I pull my bag off my shoulders and take out the wads of cash I stole from the boys. When I told them I spent it all, I lied, but it was a necessary lie.
“Put it down on the floor.”
I slowly place the stack on the concrete floor in front of me, but I don’t let go of it yet. “What guarantees can you give me that we’ll be safe?”
“Did you think you’d still be frolicking around in that apartment of yours if you weren’t?”
I swallow down the lump in my throat.
He knows where I live.
Shit!
I knew that fucker’s reach was huge, but not that he’d be able to track me within a few months already.
“As long as you keep paying, I won’t talk,” he says.
“How much?”
“Five grand. Each month.”
“Five?!” My nostrils flare. “I can’t—”
“You’ll make it happen.” He chuckles, stepping forward into the light of the fire. An eerie-looking scar goes all the way across his lip. A scar I recognize from my past life, one that brings terror to my bones.
“Because you made this choice. And now you’ll live with the consequences. Won’t you?”
With furrowed brows, I nod.
“Good. Now step away, and I promise you and your little Cora won’t get in trouble.”
I pull away from the money and slowly step back, but my hands still dive into my pockets as I contemplate whether to take my chances and flee with the money.
It’d be one witness down, more money for me, and our location kept secret.
“Don’t even think about it,” he says. “I already told one other insider. In case you’d try something on me.”
Fuck. So that plan is out the window.
I pull my hands from my pocket. “You keep your end of the deal, and I’ll keep mine.”
“I already told you the terms of our agreement.” A devilish smirk forms on his face. “Now leave. Before you get in more trouble than you’re already in.”
I scowl but still turn around, telling myself it’ll all be fine.
I’ll just have to find a new place to rob every month. That’s it. I can do that, easy. Right?
Max
I follow her all the way to the warehouse without her noticing and park my motorcycle a few blocks down, then trail her on foot.
She never noticed I already installed the tracker on her bike.
Not because I want her to be afraid or feel stalked but because I need to know if she’s safe. If I can’t be near, then at least I’ll make sure she’s okay.
What the fuck was that all about?
She gave this gnarly-looking guy a wad of cash, and he couldn’t even promise he’d protect her and the kid… from who?
A shiver runs down my spine, and I swiftly make my way back through the streets before she catches me here. However, a few screams up ahead make me turn my head.
What the … ?
There’s a bloody trail on the ground as well, and when I follow it, it leads into an alley. Two guys with knives stand in the dark with only a small flashlight to mark their prey. My eyes widen. “Heath?”
Both of them look at me like they’re seeing an uninvited guest .
“I thought you didn’t wanna come?” Heath asks.
Silas turns to him, lowering his knife. “You asked him to come?”
“Of course, I did,” Heath says.
“I thought he hated this kind of stuff,” Silas replies.
Oh shit. What do I tell them now?
I can’t say anything about Ivy being here too, or they’ll definitely want to know what she’s up to.
“Um … I finished reading the book and then decided I actually did want to come.”
“Why didn’t you just call me?” Heath asks as he pulls out his phone to check.
I shrug. “Forgot.”
“How did you know where we were?” Silas asks.
“I followed Heath,” I lie. “Right after you left the building.”
He grins as he lowers his phone. “Oh, well then, why didn’t you fucking say so?” He approaches me.
“Because I like to watch without people seeing me,” I say, laughing awkwardly.
Heath pats me on the shoulder. “Well, c’mon then, ogler.” He drags me along with him. “Here.” Heath plucks a mask from his bag and stuffs it into my hand. “Put this on and come join in on the fun.”
Ivy
I swiftly exit the building and hop on my bike, getting the fuck out of here before that asshole decides to come after me because he’s got his money now. I race through the streets so I can get out of the industrial area as quickly as possible. This dimly lit neighborhood is no place to be at eleven o’clock at night, and I barely know this place. I can’t remember if I took a left or a right here, so I opt for a left instead, only to come to a dead end.
But something on the other end of the street makes me hit the brakes.
A man is lifted against the stone walls of a building, at least two feet off the ground, with four fucking knives stuck in his hands and feet. His screams echo across the street. Three men stand in front of him, two in all black, the other with a … pink unicorn shirt?
I blink twice to see if I’m getting this right.
The pink-shirt guy lifts a giant machete, and my jaw drops.
Inch by inch, he slowly cuts the man like he’s carving off pieces of flesh, draining him of his blood.
My eyes widen in shock.
Holy shit.
The man’s head turns sideways, and his eyes suddenly dart to me. “Please! Help me!”
I stand there, frozen to the ground for a split second, as the three masked men turn their heads like vultures, eyes sparkling with vicious murder on their minds.
One with black-tipped hair and icy green eyes, one with brown hair, and a third with longer brown hair in a bun and a piercing in his lip and brow.
Oh fuck.
I hop back on and make a U-turn, racing off on my bike as fast as I can. I’m not sticking around. I just caught those three fuckers from the Skull and Serpent Society in the process of torturing someone, and I’m not about to be their next victim.