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SEVENTEEN

MADDOX

THIS IS A fucking nightmare. The list of reasons for that is long and far-reaching, but at the very top is Audrey’s safety.

I can’t leave her here at the hotel by herself, but I have to take both Owen and Luca with me because I’m not sure what we’re walking into. It’s a fucking worst-case scenario and has me on edge in a way I’ve never been before.

Luca opens the door to the room he and Owen share, and Owen’s already gearing up in the background. There’s a certain kind of knock that happens when shit’s going down, and we all recognize it instantly.

“We have to go. Now. Becca just called me. Said there’s strange cars on the street outside her house and she’s got a bad feeling.” I wish I could’ve stayed on the phone with her, but it’s too risky. All it would take is one wrong move and her screen would illuminate, giving her location away.

Luca’s eyes move to where Audrey stands right behind me. “Are we all going?”

Scrubbing one hand over my face, I curse under my breath. “I don’t think we have any other option.”

Becca was a variable I didn’t plan for, and now we’ve got to make decisions on the fly, working with what we’ve got.

“Agreed.” Luca checks his watch. “We’ll meet you at the car in two minutes.”

That gives me time to see what I can do to make Audrey a little less conspicuous. She looks adorable in the new sweatshirt and jeans from the haul Luca picked up while we were meeting with Becca, but the light color of her top won’t hide well. Even behind tinted glass.

Hurrying back into our room, I grab one of my black shirts since I don’t have time to dig through her new clothes, and pull it over her head, blotting out the conspicuous pale pink. Then I frown at her head.

“I need you to pull your hair up.” Audrey’s long, wavy blonde locks are gorgeous, but easily identifiable. If I’m taking her somewhere Trevor might be, I need to make her as invisible as I can.

While Audrey twists her locks into a bun, I retrieve the knit hat I wear when I need to be fully camouflaged.

It rolls down to serve as a full mask that will hide any remaining parts of her that could be visible.

That way I can stash her in the car and she’ll blend in completely with the dark interior, reducing the chances anyone will realize she’s inside.

After quickly strapping on my personal arsenal, I grab her hand and we race down the hall, pushing our way out the door into the parking lot at exactly one minute, fifty-nine seconds.

“I should have fucking called for more backup as soon as we left Becca’s.” I’m pissed at myself. Pissed at Trevor. Pissed at the Memphis fucking PD for being so goddamn corrupt.

Audrey squeezes my hand. “There’s no way you could have known this was going to happen.”

Unlocking the doors using the fob, I fling open the back and motion for Audrey to get inside.

I follow her in just as Owen and Luca come running out into the night.

Luca gets behind the wheel, and the second Owen’s foot leaves the asphalt, we’re moving.

I punch Becca’s address into the GPS on my phone and pass it between the seats so Owen can help Luca navigate.

Thank God Luca is here. He’s the best driver on Shadow, and will get us there as fast as humanly possible. Using moderately safe and highly illegal maneuvers if needed. We still might not make it in the ten minutes I promised—a legal drive to Becca’s house takes twenty—but it will be close.

While we drive, I turn Audrey. She sits quietly beside me, looking more upset than nervous. “It’s going to be okay.”

She huffs out a humorless laugh, hands twisting in her lap. “You know, I was relieved when I found out there was another woman involved because I knew Trevor would be looking for her and not me.” She closes her eyes, shaking her head. “I’m an awful person.”

“You’re not, but we’ve gotta deal with that later.

Right now we need to go over what I want you to do while I go save Becca.

” I reach out, tipping her face up until her eyes meet mine.

“I won’t be able to focus if I’m worried about your safety, so I need you to listen and follow my directions, okay? ”

Audrey nods.

I explain how I want her to scoot down as low as she can, making sure my dark T-shirt covers as much of her as possible.

Then I tell her to pull the mask down and be very still.

The windows of the car are tinted, but they’re not opaque.

Still, as long as she doesn’t move, it will be difficult for anyone outside of the car to see her, especially if she’s low and positioned behind one of the front seats, reducing the chance she’ll be seen through the windshield.

It feels like it takes both forever and no time at all to reach Becca’s house, but when the GPS signals our last turn, I go on alert, scanning the area around us for any sign of the men coming for Becca and, possibly one day, Audrey.

Instead of going directly to her house, Luca circles to the next street over, parking under a tree still holding its bright red and orange leaves in spite of the cooling weather.

As he parks, I turn to Audrey. “I’m gonna leave you my phone, and this—” I pull my sidearm from where it’s strapped at my ankle.

The pistol is smaller and lighter than my primary weapon, so it should be relatively easy for her to handle.

“All you have to do is point and shoot. I don’t care how many people you take out, as long as you’re here when I get back.

” I flip off the safety and position it in her palm.

“Promise me you’ll be here when I get back. ”

Audrey nods, reaching up to grip the extra knit fabric at her forehead before tugging it over her face. “I promise.”

“Time to go.” Luca opens his door and silently slithers out. Owen does the same.

I linger a second longer, pulling Audrey in with a hand at the back of her neck, pressing my mouth against what I can reach of hers with the mask between us. “I’ll be right back.”

I open my door and slip out, pausing yet again to turn back to Audrey. “Do not get out of this car for any reason.”

She silently nods, slouching down in the seat just like I showed her, tucking herself against the door so she’s as out of sight as possible.

“We’ve gotta go.” Luca’s warning is low and urgent.

I’m torn between doing what I love and keeping my eyes on the woman who means more to me every day, and it fucking sucks.

Audrey motions for me to go, and I gently close the door.

Luca silently engages the locks, and we’re off, moving quietly through the middle-class neighborhood.

This one is trickier to navigate than the one where Audrey lives, so we proceed cautiously, avoiding any motion activated lights or cameras.

Luckily, the ones most people install nowadays are easy to spot, so we manage to reach the edge of Becca’s property without triggering a floodlight that would mark our location.

Again, we luck out, because the privacy fence edging Becca’s property is high enough most people won’t be able to jump it, and solid enough it will be easy to hide our movements.

Working quickly, I hoist Luca up, keeping him stable as he clears the top.

Then Owen does the same for me. When I reach the top, I pause, legs locked on each side, holding one hand down so I can pull him up.

Once Owen’s angling over the edge, I drop to my feet, landing silently on the grass.

When Owen’s feet make a soft thud behind me, the three of us begin to move again, weapons out, covering the span of Becca’s small backyard in a few seconds.

So far I haven’t seen any sign someone’s here, but that doesn’t mean they’re not, so we move along the backside of her home, angling our line of vision into the first-floor windows and through the sliding doors.

That’s when we see them.

I tap Luca to get his attention and motion at the shifting light on the other side of the front door where someone is attempting entry.

“They’re not in yet, but we don’t have much—” Luca goes silent, glancing up as a soft sliding sound reaches our ears.

I follow the path of his gaze, but all that’s above us is the vinyl fascia of the roofline.

This time it’s Luca who taps me. He points toward the other side of the house where an upper window has been opened.

Becca’s house is a tri level, so there’s a central floor that’s ground-level, a lower floor that’s half as deep as a basement, with an upper floor stacked above it.

Even the highest part of the house is only slightly higher than a single story, so the open window isn’t that far off the ground.

Definitely a short enough distance someone who really wanted the fuck out of there would think was manageable. For me, Luca, or Owen it would be. For a tiny woman with no experience jumping out of windows?

Not so much.

There’s movement at the window, and the sight of Becca’s feet coming out the opening confirm my suspicions.

“Is she gonna jump out of that window?” Owen’s question is soft, but carries an amount of awe.

I’ve only met Becca the one time, but she came across as pretty straightforward, so if her feet are coming out, I’m gonna guess she’s probably committed. “Yeah. She’s going to jump.”

“Fucking hell.” Luca starts moving first, staying low as he clears the distance between the back sliding door and the window Becca’s upper half is now exiting in the blink of an eye.

I rush behind him, tucking the weapon I had ready back into its holster just in case I have to catch her as she comes down.

“Becca.” I whisper-yell her name, hoping to stop her before she hurts herself.

I don’t want to be loud enough anyone else can hear me, but I need to get her attention so I can help her do this safely.

Relatively safely.

Her head swivels fast, eyes wide as they lock onto where we stand. I have less than a split second to react when something large and heavy comes sailing directly at my head. I manage to catch it, but just barely.