Page 34 of Twist of Fate

Warehouse.

He could figure everything else out later.

Luke kept moving as the street opened up ahead of them. The transition from crowded blocks to quieter industrial space happened almost seamlessly. The pros? Fewer people, better sightlines. The cons? Less noise and less cover.

He moved automatically, slowing enough to avoid drawing attention while still maintaining forward momentum. The rhythm of it settled into place without thought—when to cross, when to pause, where to angle his body so he could see without being seen.

Connal matched every adjustment. Seamlessly.

Luke cut another corner and didn’t bother looking back this time. “You’re going to need to stop doing that.”

Connal’s voice came immediately. “Doing what?”

“Moving like you’re hunting something,” Luke said. “You stand out.”

Connal seemed truly baffled by Luke’s request. “I am hunting something.”

“Yeah, well, try doing it like a normal person,” Luke huffed.

Connal was silent for a beat. “I am behaving normally.”

Luke almost laughed. “Trust me,” he said, glancing sideways just long enough to make the point, “you’re really not.”

Connal didn’t argue, which was…new.

Luke filed that away and kept moving, changing his pace again as a car passed too slowly on the adjacent street. He altered their path without thinking, putting a building between them and the car’s line of sight before continuing forward.

Connal immediately moved between Luke and the suspicious vehicle. Luke hadn’t asked him to. The gesture landed harder than it should have.

“You’re watching everything,” Connal said after a moment.

Luke shrugged one shoulder. “That’s kind of the job.”

Connal studied Luke for a moment. “You anticipate movement before it happens.”

Connal sounded almost impressed.

Luke pushed that aside, too. He’d already revealed too much, and since Connal was determined to follow him, he’d likely see more than he should. Luke would have to figure out how to clean up that mess later—if he made it out of this in one piece, that is.

Ahead, the buildings became taller, emptier, and more spaced out. The air felt different in the warehouse district, heavier in a way that had nothing to do with location and everything to do with neglect.

Luke slowed as his focus narrowed. He scanned the structures ahead. There. Second building on the left.

Minimal windows.

Reinforced entry.

Too quiet.

“Stay close,” Connal said again, lower this time.

Luke nodded as he studied the building ahead. The structure matched the coordinates exactly—industrial, reinforced, the kind of place no one looked at twice unless they had a reason to.

He had a reason.

But something about it didn’t sit right.

“No activity,” Luke murmured, more to himself than anything else. “No movement, no visible security….”