Page 90 of A Madness of Crows

“I did.” He doesn’t say anything else until I’m turning away, Matteo’s drink in my hand. His muttered words barely register above the carnage around us.

“Alessia is here. Get out tonight, Dom.Quietly.”

I still. He brushes past with his own drink in his hand, lifting it in a toast. “To new beginnings.”

Luc blends seamlessly into the crowd, charming and carefree as he merges with a bigger group, his low voice sending laughter rising up into the air.

Matteo doesn’t look at me when I hand the glass over. Just takes it, downing it before he sets it down, his eyes already scanning the room for entertainment.

I lean against the wall, my head reeling.

Alessia ishere. I haven’t heard a whisper of her, assuming Matteo had her stashed somewhere else as part of his manipulation to keep us all in ourplace.

And Luc is getting her out.

I force my face to blank.

Tonight.

I wait until Matteo’s eyes are at half-mast. He calls out, summoning Amie, and I use the opportunity to lean forward. “I’ll get her. I need a piss.”

He squints through bleary eyes, waving me away. “Fine. Go.”

I slip into the bathroom first. Wait for a few minutes until a man staggers in, nostrils lined with traces of white powder. He throws himself into a stall, and I follow him in, my hand on his back. “Need a hand?”

He shrugs me off as my hands brush against his pockets, searching.

Doesn’t even notice me lifting the keys.

Don’t drink and drive, asshole.

I slip them into my own pocket as I leave, strolling up to the guards on the stairs. “Matteo wants Amie.”

When one guard goes up to get her, I shift, jerking my thumb toward the front door. “You mind? I’ll be thirty seconds – someone had anaccidentin the other bathroom.”

The guard grimaces. “Thirty seconds.”

Just like that.

The Maserati parked haphazardly outside, one of a long line of cars, lights up when I press the keys. I whistle as I slide into the driving seat. “Nice.”

And fast. Which is exactly what I fucking need.

Day 100 – Gio

Light sweeps across the road ahead of us as we drive.

Next to me, Dante is silent, his tight jaw and finger tapping against the wheel the only sign of his agitation. Rocco and Johnno sit quietly behind us, soft rustling trailing forward to our ears as they check their weapons again.

I twist, checking again.

The convoy that follows behind us, hundreds of vehicles crammed with V’Arezzo, Fusco and Corvo soldiers, is only visible by the glimmer of headlights, dimmed as much as possible to hide our arrival until the last possible moment.

Every car rolls to a slow stop barely half a mile from the Asante estate. I can just about make out that fucking wall in the distance, a dim glow the only light in the otherwise pitch-black landscape ahead of us.

Rocco leans forward. “Anything?”

Dante and I both reach for our phones at the same time. I already know there’s nothing, but my stomach still knots as I glance down at the empty screen.