47. Kaos
CHAPTER FORTY-SEVEN
KAOS
T he cemetery is too fucking quiet, seeing as I just watched four vehicles drive to the center.
There’s no part of me that doesn’t know this is a trap, but what choice do I have but to carefully move toward the hill they seem to have converged on the other side of?
I swallow heavily as I dodge headstones, all the while keeping an eye on my surroundings because I refuse to be blindsided.
A car door slams somewhere in the distance, and I pause for a moment, listening for any other sounds, but quickly continue through the graves.
The sound of my boots squelching in the wet glass combined with animals rustling around the trees that line the edge of the cemetery makes it hard to differentiate a threat from the normal sounds of the cemetery.
My phone vibrates in my pocket, but I don’t pause to pull it out. I need to keep my eyes and ears on my surroundings, even if I ache to make sure Camilla is safe.
I see what Crew was worried about for all those years before we found her. He always said letting a woman get too close would mean having a vulnerability, something people can extort, and after what happened with Bianca, or rather, what we were made to believe happened, I was more concerned about the threat they could pose to us.
But I get it now.
Because there are two members of my family fanned out in this cemetery, walking into what is most certainly a trap, one who is already in the hands of the enemy, and the only thing I can think about is whether Camilla is still locked up safe inside the panic room where she should be.
I shake myself off. I need to get my head in the game if I want to walk out of this alive.
I creep up the side of the hill, using a mausoleum as cover until I reach the top and use a tree trunk. I stand completely still for long seconds, listening for any indication they know I’m here, but when I hear nothing, I peek around the edge of the trunk and find the cars I followed here.
There are men fanned out around the gravestones, and in the distance, Kovu is propped up against one with his eyes closed. He’s bound, which means unless he still has one of his knives on him, he’s probably not going to be a lot of help taking them down.
Fuck.
I continue my surveillance of the area until I see my father approaching from the other side of the hill, his focus on his phone as he snaps orders at the man walking next to him.
A few steps behind them is another man with his gun aimed at someone’s temple, and it’s only when they step into the dim light the lamps emit that I realize it’s Crew.
Two down. Two left in play.
I could pull my phone out and check Bishop’s location, but the light could attract unwanted attention this way, and although it’s clear they know we’re here, I’d like to keep as few of us in their possession as possible.
I watch from a distance as they escort Crew to where they’re holding Kovu and push him down beside my still-unconscious best friend. Under better circumstances, I would be smug that his always perfectly pressed suit is now covered in grass stains, but somehow I don’t think that’s the peak of our problems right now.
I survey the area again, looking for any weak spots in their formation, but from what I can see, you’d think these guys have done this a thousand times before.
Maybe it’s time to call for backup.
I reach for my phone, only to pause when I hear a gun cock.
“Drop the weapon,” they command, and I only hesitate for a second before I do as I’m told.
Three down, one left in play.