Page 81 of Edge

“We’re almost there,” Carbon said.

Moments later, we were outside in a small alcove surrounded by brick walls on three sides. One black SUV was parked in the loading area with two more idling behind it at the curb.

Phoenix opened the rear door, and Carbon pushed my wheelchair as close to the vehicle as possible. “Do you need help getting in?”

“I want to say no, but the truth is probably yes.”

Ever so gently, Carbon scooped me up like a small child and placed me in my seat. I opened my mouth to thank him, but the words disappeared when I saw Edge sitting in the seat beside me. “Edge!” I gasped and practically fell into him.

“Evie,” he breathed as his arms circled around me. “I’ve missed you so much.”

“I’ve missed you, too. I hated not being able to see you.” We’d been able to talk on the phone a handful of times, but seeing him settled something inside me.

Carbon got in and took his seat in the row behind us. “Ready when you are, Prez.”

“Wait!” I blurted. “Where’s Irene?”

“I’m right here,” she said from the front seat.

“If we’re all riding together, what’s with the other SUVs?”

“It’s another layer of protection. We’ll pull out together, change positions a few times on the road, and turn in different directions. If anyone was trying to follow us, they won’t know which vehicle to follow,” Carbon explained.

“That’s clever,” I said, followed by a yawn. “Sorry, the pain medicine makes me sleepy.”

“If you’re tired, go to sleep,” Edge said. “I’ll wake you when we get there.”

I was already closing my eyes by the time he finished his sentence.

23

EDGE

We’d been home from the hospital for a few days when I jolted awake and quickly surveyed the room. Evie was sound asleep next to me, and nothing seemed out of place. After glancing at the time, I groaned. Six-thirty was earlier than I usually got up, but I knew I wouldn’t be able to go back to sleep. Something seemed off. After a few minutes of internal grumbling, I started the slow process of getting out of bed and trekking to the bathroom. Then I went out to the kitchen to make some coffee.

Ranger was sitting at the kitchen table sipping his own coffee. “What are you doing up so early?” he asked.

“I woke up and couldn’t go back to sleep.”

“Something wrong?”

“I’ve got a weird feeling, but I don’t know why,” I admitted.

“Fucking hell. I hate weird feelings.”

A few minutes later, Carbon walked into the kitchen, followed by Shaker and Byte.

“Well,” Ranger said expectantly. “What in the hell’s going on?”

“We don’t know yet. Phoenix called and told me to get the guys up. He said he’d be here soon,” Carbon said.

“This can’t be good,” I mused.

Thankfully, it didn’t take Phoenix long to arrive at our temporary home. “Where are the girls?” he asked when he joined us in the kitchen.

“They’re still asleep,” Carbon answered.

“I got a call from Walter about twenty minutes ago. He and Buck were driving past the diner and saw smoke. When they pulled into the parking lot behind the diner to see what was going on and call nine-one-one, they saw a man coming out of the diner carrying a gas can. He saw them and started to run, but they were able to stop him. Turns out, it was the guy they got into it with and saw talking to the Mad Dogs. Walter asked if he should hold the guy for the cops or bring him here. I told him to bring the piece of shit to us. They’ll be here in fifteen minutes or so.”