Her heart pounded. This was dangerous, familiar ground, taking them right back to the place where they’d fallen apart, to the same place Enne thought about every night when she wished she wouldn’t—to the same place she desperately wanted to go.
“Youare the only thing that feels right,” he told her.
All her life, Enne had used words to wind herself back together. After the Shadow Game, and when the weight of losing her mother crashed upon her, Enne might’ve used these words to mend her wounds. But in the months they’d spent apart, she’d learned to cherish the broken parts of herself. So as she clung to his words now, she did so to treasure them, not to use them as a crutch.
“I know you don’t believe in destiny,” he continued. His skin was hot beneath hers; he was embarrassed. But Enne made no effort to stop him. “I know you think I’ve gotten everything I’ve always wanted, but none of it has felt right. And I think that’s because, somewhere before, I made a wrong turn. I should never have made that promise to Jac. I should never have let you walk away that night at the Catacombs. And I should never have let you walk away every single night after.”
She squeezed his hand tightly, on the off chance her heart might rupture. “Do you really believe in destiny like that?”
“I want to,” he answered. “And I think that’s what matters.”
Enne liked those words, and so she leaned closer and pressed her forehead against his. Neither of them spoke for several moments, and when Enne closed her eyes, she swore shecouldfeel a force pulling her toward him. A force far greater than desire.
She wanted to believe in their story, too.
“Are you going to say anything?” he breathed.
“Is that what you want to do right now?” she asked, opening her eyes and smiling. “Talk?”
He licked his lips. “No. No, that’s not what I want.”
Then the doors to the den blasted open, and a gunshot cut through the music.
Enne and Levi sprang apart, their hands still locked together. At the opposite end of the hall, several whiteboots stormed inside. Enne immediately pulled Levi down into a crouch behind their table.
“You have got,” Levi growled, “to be mucking kidding me.”
No one else in the hall moved—breathed, even—as one of the whiteboots jumped onto the stage. He pushed the singer aside and spat into the microphone. “The North Side is now under curfew, starting at seven o’clock. After you all show us your identification, you have twenty minutes to crawl back to your gutters. This whole city is going on lockdown.”
Enne’s breath caught. This situation was dangerous for her, but deadly for Levi. The door to Tropps Street filed the hall with the wails of sirens. Even if they escaped, what awaited them outside?
Enne pulled her revolver out from her pocket, and though the whiteboot didn’t see her, she pointed it at him, prepared to play dirty once more.
Levi squeezed her shoulder. “You could hit one of the musicians.”
“I won’t miss,” she said firmly. They needed a distraction so they could run.
“Then aim for the lights.”
Enne directed the revolver to the lights above the stage. No one would get hurt, but even so, she wasn’t sure it would be enough.
“Everyone up!” the whiteboot barked. “Your time is already running out.”
Chairs scraped across floorboards. The owner of the establishment ran out of his office, complaining about the new closing time and lost business.
The whiteboot laughed, jumped off the stage, and grabbed a bottle of ale from the first table. The customers seated there let him take it. “Breaking curfew is now worth a week in prison. I don’t think anyone here wants to be an example.” His eyes scanned the room, and to Enne’s horror, landed on them. He squinted. “’Lo! What is—”
Enne fired. Half the lights in the room flickered, then blackened, and everyone screamed at the sounds of bullets and shattering glass.
Levi yanked Enne forward, and the two sprinted toward the kitchen. Gunfire followed them, and a glass bottle along the bar’s shelves exploded. But they were already pushing open the doors, stumbling away.
Whiteboots charged after them, but they didn’t make it outside until Enne and Levi were already halfway down the alley. The Casino District looked darker than usual—it was typically bright no matter the hour, even during a storm, but its many neon lights had been switched off. The sirens blared so loudly, Enne needed to resist covering her ears. The wind whipped the rain sideways.
“Do you know where you’re going?” Enne asked as Levi turned them down the first alley they came across.
“We’re not far from Olde Town.”
“Harrison’s bribe can’t stopthis, Levi. It won’t be any better there.”
