Page 44 of Unmask (Crew of Elmwood Public #2)

Raine leaned over from the driver’s seat, his long legs pressed up against the worn leather, phone in his tattooed hand.

The screen’s blue glow cast harsh shadows across his angular face as his eyes scanned the message.

“A girl matching Kenny’s description was seen being transported through the South Rail district.

Three nights ago. With two other girls. They were loaded into a black SUV outside the old cement factory. ”

Adrenaline flooded my system so fast it made my hands shake. Three nights ago. That would put the timeline right after Kenny disappeared.

“That’s Raven territory,” Maddox growled from the back seat, his voice rough with sleep but already alert. He turned to look at me through the partition, his eyes hard and calculating. “Why would the Vipers trespass? You think it’s a trap?”

“Probably.” I opened the door, the cold night air immediately biting through my hoodie and raising goose bumps along my arms. My boots hit the asphalt as I circled to the back of the SUV and popped the trunk with more force than necessary. “Doesn’t matter. We’re checking it out.”

The trunk opened to reveal our arsenal, guns nestled in foam, magazines lined up like soldiers, blades gleaming under the streetlight. The sight of it all made something dark and hungry stir in my chest.

Maddox joined me at the trunk, his movements fluid and practiced as he began loading magazines into a Glock with an efficiency that spoke of experience. His fingers moved with mechanical precision, muscle memory taking over. “It doesn’t make sense.”

Raine stayed calm as always, but beneath the fall of his black hair, his eyes were focused.

He was already dressed for this brand of work, black jeans molded to his lean frame, combat boots laced tight, and I caught the glint of a blade tucked into the back of the waistband of his dark jeans.

“Kaylor?” he asked, glancing toward the house where a single upstairs window glowed softly. “You leaving her behind?”

My teeth ground together. I couldn’t tell from his tone if he approved of the idea or thought it was a mistake, and that uncertainty scraped against my nerves.

“Mason’s inside with her,” I said, checking the action on my own weapon.

“He’ll stay until I say otherwise. She doesn’t leave the house. Not tonight.”

And if my sneaky little fox somehow managed to slip past Mason, which, knowing her, she’d try, Evan and two of Brock’s most trusted friends were stationed around the perimeter.

“She’s gonna love that,” Maddox muttered, checking the safety on his gun with a metallic click that sounded unnaturally loud in the quiet night.

“She doesn’t have to love it,” I replied as I slammed the trunk shut.

“She just has to stay safe.” Because if something happened to her while I was gone, if I came back to find her hurt or worse, I’d never forgive myself.

The thought of her scared and alone, of coming home to an empty house and cold sheets, made my chest feel like it was caving in on itself.

Maddox snorted. “Are you sure this is the girl for you? She’s a lot of fucking trouble, man.” His eyes narrowed as he studied my face.

He was telling me. I scraped a hand through my hair, the cost of every wrong move, yet leading us here. “Regardless of my feelings, we owe her for what we did.”

Maddox’s frown deepened, carving harsh lines around his mouth. He kicked at a loose chunk of concrete, sending it skittering across the asphalt. “You think this lead’s real?”

“Only one way to find out.”

Raine grinned humorlessly. “I can’t believe you’re trusting her with Mason.”

I shook my head. “I can’t trust her with any of you. Mason just got lucky tonight.”

“Let’s hope he doesn’t get lucky, or he’ll be dead in the morning,” Raine muttered.

“Just get in the fucking car and drive,” I grumbled over my shoulder, heading back to the SUV, my thoughts spinning in circles that led nowhere good.

We drove, and the farther south we went, the more the city decayed around us like a wound that wouldn’t heal.

Boarded windows stared back at us like dead eyes.

Graffiti-tagged concrete walls told stories of territory wars and forgotten dreams. Chain-link fences stretched between abandoned lots, their razor wire catching fragments of neon light from distant signs, leading to nowhere and protecting nothing.

The old building stood like a forgotten ruin against the bruised sky, its broken windows staring out like hollow sockets in a skull.

Rust stains streaked down the concrete walls like dried blood, and weeds pushed through cracks in the loading dock where trucks used to bring hope in the form of honest work.

We pulled up down the block, headlights clicking off with a soft whisper.

The engine ticked as it cooled. Raine was the first out, his hand hovering over the hilt of his knife, fingers flexing and releasing in a nervous tell he’d never quite managed to shake.

“We’re going through the side. Briggs said they were seen entering near the loading dock. ”

I nodded. “Maddox, you cover rear. Stay sharp and watch for runners.” I turned to my right-hand man. “Raine, you’re with me.”

As we crept toward the building, our footsteps muffled by years of practice and necessity, adrenaline simmered beneath my skin.

We’d been doing shit like this since we could walk.

At least it felt that way. I’d never forget the first time the old man stuck a gun in my hand.

It was a memory you never forgot. I told myself I was done with this shit, and I was.

Once this was over, that was it. I was walking away from it all.

The air hung thick and stagnant, smelling like rust and mold, old concrete, and something else, something that made my nostrils flare and my gut clench, but we were getting closer. I could sense it.