My upper arms burned from holding myself to the wall. We turned the corner and climbed over a railing, landing on a balcony. We fell over each other and breathed in relief when we saw a large oak tree not too far from it. Scrambling, we hurried onto a thick branch and then climbed down to the ground.
As soon as her feet touched the ground, Evie bolted back around the house, toward where we’d exited. I followed quickly, only to stop short when she dove into a large bush, removing a backpack.
“What is that?” I hissed as she slung it over her back and put her arms through the straps.
“I couldn’t leave the notebooks, so when I heard people coming, I stuffed them in a bag I found in the closet and threw them out the window,” she explained, adjusting the straps and hauling forward. With a sigh, I stopped her and took the bag. I grabbed it, and the bag hit the ground. I wasn’t prepared for the weight of all the notebooks.
“Jesus, Evie,” I said, lifting it and tossing it over my shoulder.
“I had to get them all!” she exclaimed as I took her hand, and we ran to my car.
Thankfully, I’d had the foresight to park it a distance away and under another oak tree, so it was hidden in the dark. I shoved the bag into the back and started the car, zooming off down the drive. As we reached the gates, we found them destroyed. Someone, presumably Arthur, had taken industrial strength bolt cutters to the bars, hacking them to pieces, creating a large hole for a car to drive through. It looked like the Kool-Aid Man had ripped through the metal.
“Who were they?” Evie asked as we drove through.
I cringed, praying the twisted bars didn’t scrape the sides of my car. Once we were safe, I slowed down and answered.
“The monsters you’ve been looking for. They’re on to us.”
“What does that mean?”
“It means this isn’t just us tracking them down anymore.” I gripped the wheel tighter, getting angrier the more I thought about it. “We’re being hunted now too. And it’s going to come down to who’s faster.”
“Faster at what?”
I turned my head to look at Evie. Her eyes were large and full of worry. Something had changed in that house. She’d spent so long putting on a brave face, acting as if she didn’t care if she died. But now, it was clear she did. She was scared, and so was I.
Elliott Bradley knew we were coming for him, and he wasn’t going to let us just run up and catch him unaware. There was a reason he was powerful. Lita Reyes wasn’t the first person he’d gotten rid of, and we certainly wouldn’t be the last. I looked back at the road and turned toward home.
“Drawing their gun.”
Chapter 53
Sebastian
The Quiet Beat
“Do you want to be my date to the Roses event?”
“The what?” I asked, walking into the living room with a towel wrapped around my hips and nothing else. Evie and I had come back to my place after leaving Charles’s all-blue mansion, and I’d gone right upstairs to take a scalding hot shower to soothe my muscles. I needed an evening to relax and not worry about Evie’s murder list.
She lifted her gaze from the journals she was going through and trailed it up my frame, pausing at my middle, before continuing to my eyes. I went to the couch and plopped down.
“My mom’s charity? We Become Roses. I’ve told you about this.” She sighed with annoyance.
I squinted. “Right. Sorry, I remember.”
“They help Latine women who are victims of sexual assault. I’ve never been involved. This is the first time I’ve ever been in town for their annual awards night, and I want to go. It’s basically one giant PR op. All the big donors dress up, have their red carpet moment, and eat a fancy dinner while listening to speeches, awards, and requests for donations.”
“When is the event?” I put my feet up on my coffee table, and my towel opened slightly, causing me to quickly grab it and wrap it back around me.
Evie’s cheeks took on a pink flush as she flicked her eyes away from where I’d accidentally flashed her.
I bit back a smirk.
“This Saturday.”
“Sounds boring, but I’ll always take the chance to go on a date with you.” I grinned.
