A surrender.
She let out the faintest sob against him. “I love you,” she whispered. Enne hoped it was her own will that said it, because she meant it. “I trust you.”
Boom!
The entire casino rattled—crystal chandeliers clacking, guests screaming, dancers stumbling. Enne held on to Levi so as not to fall.
The ballroom was thrown into darkness. This only caused the guests to scream louder. The noise of it pierced through Enne’s ears, but the sound was sweet. This meant the plan was still unfolding. There was still hope. She clung to that, and to Levi, in the dark. Tock had managed it.
I love you. I trust you.
Maybe that really would be enough.
Bang!
A woman’s scream rang out, followed by a chorus around the room.
Someone had been shot.
It was impossible to make out the victim in the darkness, but Enne spotted a figure only feet away, wearing a dark mask with a hooked bird’s beak, like a vulture. They held something in their outstretched hand, and it gleamed through the dim light of the stars through the window.
“Holy muck,” Levi breathed. “Is that—”
But then someone slammed into them, knocking the wind out of Enne. Their hands broke apart, and Enne was pulled away in the stampede of bodies toward the exit.
“Enne!” Levi called, pushing toward her, but there were too many people between them.
Everyone kicked and shoved to reach the door, though the shooter had only fired once. Enne, smaller than so many of them, was wedged painfully between several panicked couples.
Now that she was separated from Levi, she had her chance. She could turn herself in. She could claimshe’dbeen the assailant. Enne had told Levi that she’d trust him, but Levi’s plan had been violently disrupted. They hadn’t planned for a murder, and with such high-profile attendees at this party, the whiteboots and private bodyguards would quickly secure all the doors, to ensure the assailant didn’t escape.
And that the others outside couldn’t get in.
Enne made a split-second decision, pushed through the crowds, and wove through the maze of hallways in the darkness. Then she found the door where Lola and Grace had left her earlier and sighed with relief. It was still unmanned. The plan hadn’t failed yet.
The door swung open, and Jac stumbled inside, his tuxedo covered in dust, his black hair windswept and tangled from running. Through the open doorway behind him, Enne heard the unmistakable sound of gunfire. Her stomach lurched—what was happening outside?
Jac took several deep breaths, his hands on his knees, then he looked up. His eyes widened with relief when he saw her. “You’re okay,” he breathed. “What happened? Is Levi here?”
Something sinister planted itself in Enne’s mind. She didn’t know where the thought came from, but she felt a sudden tightening in her lungs. And then she knew.
The omerta.
“We’ve been betrayed,” he rasped, taking a step toward her and letting the door close. “You need to find Levi. Tell him it’s all over. If we don’t escape, it’ll be a massacre.”
As Jac spoke, Enne’s fingers reached for the slit of her dress, but it was not of her own doing. Her heart clenched as she struggled against the omerta’s power. But of course, she couldn’t fight it.
“What’s wrong? Did something happen?” Jac laid a consoling hand on her shoulder. “Just tell Levi—”
She cupped a hand over her mouth and choked on a sob.
Jac’s eyes widened when he saw what she held, but he didn’t react in time. He moved only enough to let her go.
You will break his heart, and then you will die.
Enne raised the gun and pulled the trigger.
K
