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"Yeah," Gunnar says. "Luka's meeting us here. Just...hurry, okay? We want to get going ASAP."
I hurry over to the bathroom and step into the shower, finding my borrowed clothes hanging from a hook on the wall. We set them out to dry days ago when we came in from the rain, and I'm not sure how long they've been there, but they're completely dry now. I only get a couple minutes in the hot water before I hear the door creak open outside, and Gunnar's voice talking with another man.
"Where is she?"
"In the shower," Gunnar says. "Just give her a second."
Luka's here...which means it's time to go.
I hustle to get out and dry off, and then I slip into the clothes I borrowed from Luka when I first got to the church. Both men meet my eyes when I step out of the bathroom, Luka's expression unreadable while Gunnar is clearly worried.
"Glad to see you okay," Luka says, his hands shoved in his pockets. Gunnar is going through a backpack on the bed, yanking out some new clothes...and a gun.
"Go put these on," Gunnar says, tossing me some leggings and a black hoodie. "They'll fit you better."
"You went shopping for me?" I ask with a sly smile.
Luka snorts. "Iwent shopping for you...credit where credit's due."
"Hey, that's my girl you're talking to," Gunnar growls, humor and real warning mixed together.
Luka just keeps staring, glass green eyes trained on mine. "You don't have to worry about me, newbie," he murmurs.
I'm not sure if that's true.
Because Luka...he looks at me like I'm a ripe piece of fruit, ready to bite.
I go back to the bathroom to quickly change, and I come out to find Gunnar in a new set of clothes as well. Luka stands out withthe tattoos on his cheekbones and knuckles, but he pulls up a hood to drape around his shoulders, casting his face in shadow.
"Ready?" Luka asks.
"I was born ready," I shoot back. "Been wanting to get out of this damn city since the moment I washed up on the beach."
"You should take this," Gunnar says, and I look over to find a pistol in his hand. "You know how to use it?"
"I wish I didn't...and I'm not sure how," I mutter, "but yeah, I know how."
"Good," he says. "Then let's hit the road."
We slip through the door, the night air slapping some sense into me. The city's heartbeat thrums beneath my boots as we make a beeline for the heap of black metal that must be our ride out of this mess.
"Shit, dude--what the fuck happened to your car?" Gunnar says. "I don't remember it looking like this a few days ago."
"Yeah...it didn't," Luka says. "Eclipse has been rolling through Celestial Hills and shooting up whatever Angels property they can find--the church included."
"Fuck me," I mutter. "I'm so sorry, Luka."
"It's not your fault, pretty girl," Luka shakes his head. "Shit's been fucked up in the city for a long time...you're just the spark that lit a whole fuckton of kindling."
"Wait." Gunnar stops us dead, his head cocked to one side like he's listening to something beyond my range. "You hear that?"
All three of us stop in our tracks, and Gunnar's head snaps toward the highway.
"Were you followed?" he demands.
"Damn it," Luka curses, peering into the streetlights. "We've got company."
I reach for my gun, but Gunnar stays my hand as the cars pull up. "Don't," he says. "Shit...it's Vance's people. Rook's with them."
