The Dark Elite (The Dark Elite 1)

I need to get out of this car, sitting with Lucas and Zaid pressed up against me, before I go mental and lose it. I need to get away from where I can see Hale and Ciro looking like normal small town boys, flirting with the waitress.

I can sense Lucas and Zaid sharing a glance over my head, weighing the consequences. I want to reassure them that I have no plans of running, but I know opening my mouth would just make things worse.

“Fuck it,” Zaid says, unbuckling his seatbelt. “I’m stiff as shit too. It can’t hurt anything.”

Lucas shrugs and unbuckles his belt too.

My heart jumps, nearly climbing up into my throat. I can’t believe my luck as I quickly follow suit, sliding out of the car after Zaid. Despite feeling stiff in the car, my legs turn into jelly as I take my first few steps. I steady myself with a hand on the car as Lucas and Zaid stretch, talking to each other in low voices.

Lucas looks down at his watch, then back up at me. “Five minutes, that’s it.”

“Fine with me,” I mutter.

The twins stick close on either side of me as we wander a little way down the street. Subtly, I observe the buildings around me, looking for any clues as to where we are. There are plenty of businesses with the name of the town on them, but some random small town name doesn’t help me figure out what state we’re in, or how close we are to where I think we’re going.

Chicago.

It’s the only reasonable place I can think of where they would take me—back to the pit of vipers I thought I’d left behind for good. It’s clear the syndicate wanted something from my dad, and now they want something from me. But I’m really not sure what I can give them. I don’t know anything.

We come to a crosswalk, but I don’t want to waste time waiting f

or the light to clear, so I turn the corner instead. Zaid and Lucas instantly stiffen, though they try to hide it.

A second later, I realize why.

Two men walk past us, dipping their heads in silent greeting. Two men dressed in blue uniforms, guns strapped to their hips, shiny badges at their breasts.

Cops.

The taller of the two looks at me for a half-second too long, his gaze snagging on me. It’s not a lewd glance, just one of mild interest, like he’s wondering if he’s seen me somewhere before.

Instinctively, I give him a brief nod but tuck my head down, walking by them quickly without another glance. My heart pounds in my chest, and confliction rages inside me. Maybe those cops could have helped me, but even if I’d made a move to signal that I’m being held against my will, I know it wouldn’t have ended well. Zaid and Lucas are both carrying concealed weapons, and the two men we passed were small town police officers. They’re not prepared to go up against members of the Novak Syndicate.

“Good call, Grace,” Zaid mutters in my ear, walking closely by my side.

His hand falls to the small of my back as if to guide me, but I flinch, pulling away from his touch.

Smack!

My body collides with something, and I stumble backward. “Ohmygod—”

My ass hits the cold ground with a hard thump before I realize there’s a middle-aged woman on the ground with me. I ran right into her when I was distracted by Zaid.

“Oh. I’m so sorry,” the woman says good-naturedly.

“No, it’s completely my fault—”

The words stick in my throat as my gaze drops to the ground.

Fuck. There it is. My chance.

I have seconds to act. My heart crashes against my ribs like a drumbeat as I lean forward a little, shaking my head. “No, it was my fault. I wasn’t watching where I was going.”

She chuckles breathlessly, and I try to keep a smile on my face as I grasp blindly for the phone I just saw fall from her purse.

My fingertips brush over the smooth surface. I snatch it up, slipping it discreetly into the waistband of my pants just before Lucas helps me up, apologizing to the woman as Zaid helps her to her feet.

There’s so much adrenaline raging through my veins that I feel sick and shaky, and I can’t tell if either of the men saw what I did.