Page 8 of The Royal Flame (The Royal Academy #3)
“Am I?” I bat my eyelashes innocently at him. “I mean, it’s not like I know anyone who would steal from a drug lord.” My tone oozes with sarcasm.
He glares at me because he knows what I’m referring to.
My father has stolen from drug lords multiple times.
Here’s the thing: Will could probably get more cash from River in return for letting us go. But the bait I set up is more than just about money. It’s about power and credit, which Will hasn’t had since the incident.
Will points the knife at me. “Your father took that money?” he growls out, his face red.
I honestly don’t know if he did. But my father—the man I spent most of my life believing to be my father anyway—has a tarnished reputation, so all it takes is a grin from me for Will to take the bait.
I start running backwards, and River follows suit as Will charges at us.
“Get them!” he yells at his crew, his voice roaring with rage.
“It’s time for us to use our running skills,” I tell River, hoping his stitches won’t rip open.
He shouldn’t have stayed behind. I had it handled, but I am touched he did, even if I now have to worry about him injuring himself.
Both of us spin around and run. Footsteps barrel after us along with shouting.
“Can you sprint?” I ask River as we veer around a corner, heading deeper into the murky, run-down shadows of the city.
River nods, and we quicken our pace, sprinting across the street and heading for a cluster of two-story homes that are worn out enough to be condemned, but aren’t.
Music is flowing through the air as the noise of parties going on fill the streets.
People are loitering outside on front lawns and near cars parked.
I grab River’s hand as I tug us toward the closet house.
“What’re we doing?” he whispers as I steer us into a crowd crowding around two guys fighting in a gravel driveway.
“Blending in,” I whisper as I slow to a powerwalk. I flit a glance over my shoulder. Will and his crew are a ways back so I quicken my pace and let the crowd swallow us.
“Fight! Fight! Fight!” people are chanting as I steer us through the mob.
River’s other hand finds my waist, and he skims his finger along the sliver of flesh peeking out from between the hem of my shirt and the waistband of my jeans. It brings me a drop of comfort, but I remain on edge as we brink through the last of the crowd and hightail it toward the river.
Gravel crunches under our boots as we make our way down the shoreline with nothing but the glow of the moonlight to light up our way. The space between the edge of the river and the bushes beside us is narrow, and occasionally, my shoes end up in water.
River stays near me the entire way with his arm curled around my waist and his chest pressed against my back.
“Where are we going?” he finally whispers when we’re far away enough from civilization that the only noise is from the swishing of the water flowing over the rocks.
Mud and water seep through my shoes as I accelerate my pace, swinging around the branches of trees.
“There’s an overpass up right up here,” I explain, hoping that Will didn’t see where River and I went. “Finn can pick us up from there. Just ping him our location.”
“Okay, I’ll give him a heads-up now. Plus, I want to make sure they made it to the car safely,” he whispers as he removes his arm from my waist to get his phone out his pocket.
We keep hiking up the shoreline as he sends Finn a message, and I cross my fingers that we’re going the right way.
“He’s already sent me like ten messages,” River mumbles. “Wondering where the hell we are.”
Branches snap under my feet as I climb up a shallow incline. “Are they okay?”
“Yeah, they made it to the car. He says he’s parked in a grocery store parking lot.” The glow of his phone is making me nervous that if someone is close by, we’ll be seen.
Thankfully, he puts it away fairly quickly. “They’re just waiting for us to send them the exact location.”
“Okay, good.” My foot slips in the mud, but River steadies me by placing my hands on my hips.
Once I make it up the incline, the trees and bushes thing and the glimmer of the city lights are bright enough that I can spot the overpass in the distance.
River and I jog toward it. Once we arrive, my nerves skyrocket.
“There’s nowhere to hide,” River notes my worry aloud.
“Hurry and ping Finn our location,” I say, wrapping my arms around myself as I scan the sidewalk for shelter for us to duck behind.
A row of trashcans is across the street next to a dumpy motel. I take River’s hand and pull him with me as I cross the street, clumps of mud falling off my shoes. It’s like a trail right to where we’re hiding, but there’s nothing I can do except hope Finn gets here quickly.
River and I hunker down behind the garbage cans and wait.
“Did he say how far away he is?” I whisper as I peer around.
A dog barks from somewhere, and someone shouts at it.
“He’s only a few miles away,” River tells me as he gives an edgy glance at the motel behind us.
We’re crouched down low, facing each other, and the light of a lamppost is spotlighting down on us. It’s not the most ideal situation, but the only alternative is to walk somewhere else, and that’s too risky.
“Do you think Will and those guys are still looking for us?” He shifts and sits down.
I nod, sitting down on the gravel, too. “After what I told them, they definitely are.”
“Was that true?”
“Could be. But I don’t know for sure. I just knew if I said it, Will would go after me so he could get his street cred back.
Speaking of which…” I lightly shove his shoulder.
“Why did you come back for me? I could’ve handled it.
And you’re not even supposed to be running. What if you popped a stitch.”
His gaze is more intense than the beam of light above us. “Like I’d just leave you. I care about you, Maddy. I’m not going to bail on you.”
His words make me squirm. He’s so nice, and I’m not used to it.
“And I didn’t pop a stitch.” He extends his hand toward me and brushes his thumb along my jawline. “How’s your head?”
“Fine,” I murmur as I struggle to process the emotions flooding me.
I’ve always been in this alone.
And now I’m not.
And it’s almost as frightening as being alone.
Because alone is familiar.
And familiar, even crappy familiarity is easier to process than the unknown.
“Are you sure?” His fingers continue to explore my face.
All I can do is nod.
And think about kissing him.
But that thought hastily dissolves at the sound of a deafening engine.
“That’s probably Finn,” River mumbles as he carefully pushes up and peeks over the trashcans.
I hold my breath and prepare to dig out my Taser, just in case.
“Thank god,” River breathes out, some tension leaving his muscles.
Taking my hand, he effortlessly pulls me to my feet.
Parking in front of the curb is Finn’s sleek car with an engine that is too deafening to bring me comfort.
The headlights are on, lighting up the dark night-kissed street, and the windows are so tinted no one inside is visible.
The driver’s side door opens, and Finn hops out, worry consuming his features.
“Are you guys okay?” he asks as River and I jog toward him.
“Yeah, just get us out of here,” River tells him as he hurries around the front of the car.
Finn climbs back in while Noah gets out of the passenger side and signals for me to hop into the backseat with Lily. I’m about to duck in when a shout echoes across the air.
“Don’t you dare take off!”
River's and mine’s attention darts across the street. Will is standing with his crew. Rage possesses his features like a demonic possession, and he’s still holding the knife. Our eyes briefly lock, and then I dive into the backseat.
River scoots in beside me. Then Noah moves to get into the passenger seat.
“Go!” River shouts at Finn as Noah starts to close the door.
Right before it shuts, Will yells one final thing that sends enough adrenaline through my body that I almost jump out of the car.
“Hey, Maddy! How’s your aunt Ellie? I heard she just up and left you! Or did she?” His voice pierces the air like a needle through flesh.
I stiffen. “Let me out.”
But Finn is already peeling away, taking me with him and leaving a potential answer behind.