Chapter 30
Alex
I’m already moving before the thought finishes forming.
“Where are you going?” Mason calls after me.
I don’t stop. “Getting her out,” I throw over my shoulder.
“Alex!”
I don’t wait for the rest because there’s no time. My mind is already running through scenarios. If they’ve been watching, if they know her routine, and if they decide to move now…
My chest constricts. Every time she walks to work and back home, she’s at risk. At any moment, they could grab her and I won’t know until it’s too late. And then she’ll be getting shuttled through their system and being forced to-
No, not happening. Not on my watch. I smash doorbell buttons at the entry until someone lets me in, another flaw with her building, then take the stairs two at a time. My pulse is a steady roar in my ears. I knock once, hard, then again. “Liv!”
The door swings open and suddenly she’s there, alive and unharmed.
For a second, everything stops. I’m just so glad to see her that I can’t think.
But she pulls me out of my trance, worry flooding her features. “What’s wrong?” she asks, her eyes scanning my face.
No time.
“Pack a bag,” I say.
Her brow furrows. “What?”
“Now,” I repeat. “Essentials only. We’re leaving.”
Her expression sharpens. “Alex, what’s going on?”
I step inside, closing the door behind me, already scanning the room out of instinct. “They know.”
Silence. Her breath catches slightly. “Know what?”
I hesitate. Because this means admitting to her that I did something that I’m sure she’ll think is insanely dangerous. “They know someone got inside. Into one of their locations.”
Her eyes widen slightly. “And they think it’s you?” she asks.
“No,” I reply. “Worse.”
Her stomach drops, I see it.
“They think it’s connected to you,” I continue. “Your neighborhood. Your calls. You’ve seen too much.”
Understanding hits her fast. “They’re watching me,” she says, her voice going hollow.
I nod. “Yeah.”
A half of a second of silence passes. Then she moves, with no argument or hesitation. Just action. She turns heading for her room, already grabbing a bag.
Good.
I follow, my gaze sweeping the apartment again. The curtains are open; it’s too exposed, too easy.
“I’m taking you somewhere secure,” I say. “My dad’s place. It’s got a full security system and controlled access.”
She glances back at me from in her bedroom. “Your dad’s?” she asks.
“Yeah.”
“Not just… your apartment?”
As much as I’d love to show her my place, Dad has much better security. “Dad’s is safer.”
I can see her turning it over in her mind. Finally, she says, “okay.”