“What, friend?” Surely, Langston or Liesel haven’t been talking to Milo.
“Felix.”
Fuck!
My eyes go wide as I realize Felix has been telling Milo everything we have been talking about. I remember letting it slip that Enzo calls me stingray during one of our talks. Which means I can’t trust the information Felix gave me. The tunnel is most likely a trap. I can’t send Enzo to his death.
My hand falls away from my earring as I choose between my life and Enzo’s. It’s not even a choice.
Milo smiles. “You see, no matter what you do, you will lose. I’m smarter than you. I deserve the throne. I deserve to rule the underground not only here, but in America too. I will be unstoppable. I’ll control the waters from here to Miami. But first, I’ll make you my queen.”
I laugh. “I will never be your queen.”
“Maybe not, but you will have my child.”
I cock my head. “No, I won’t. I can’t have children.”
“Well, at least I will have fun trying.”
I don’t wait for him to speak again. I run. Enzo can’t save me. I’m all alone. I run and run and run. I won’t be taken. I won’t let Milo have me. My plan failed. And if my feet fail, I will lose everything.
22
Enzo
Kai sends messages, but they aren’t enough. I need more. I need daily, if not hourly, updates. I need to know more than broken messages. I need to hear her voice, see her face, hold her in my arms. Until then, the doom growing inside me is going to continue to increase.
Langston brings in a large sheet of paper, big enough to cover the bed.
“What are you doing?” I ask.
“You are going to draw a detailed map of the mansion, the guards you remember, the security, everything. We found the tunnels Kai told us about. We have the team ready to move in, but you are the only one that knows the layout of the inside.”
I stare at the large, white piece of paper. I don’t know if Langston is doing this because it will really help the men to know or if he’s using it primarily as a distraction, but I take the marker from his hand and begin to draw everything I remember.
Liesel sits in the corner of the room watching me. She’s dressed in dark jeans and a tight T-shirt. She’s staring at the gun in the back of my pants as I draw.
“You know you aren’t coming,” Langston says, as he looks at Liesel.
She frowns. “One—you don’t tell me what to do. I don’t take orders from anyone. Two—I can take care of myself. And three—I’m a part of this team same as everyone else. In fact, I came up with this plan, so I will be going if I want to.”
“You aren’t going,” I say, without looking up.
“But—” she starts.
“You aren’t going, Liesel, and that’s final. You don’t know how to fire a gun or have any combat skills. We don’t need to worry about protecting you too. You will stay here with Yolie. You will be able to connect to the security system and alert us to where Milo’s crew is,” I say.
Liesel huffs but doesn’t argue.
I continue drawing the map of everything I remember and try to distract myself from what Kai is going through.
But in a second, my world changes. The laptop makes a high-pitched sound, and we all run to it—Langston, Liesel, and me.
“What’s happening?” Liesel asks.
“I don’t know. An alarm is sounding. Did Kai send an alert to be rescued?” I ask, staring frustrated at the screen.
The door opens, and Yolie pops in.