Fear iced my spine.
They’d been waiting for me.
My mother had warned me how persistent and clever they were. Before he’d died, my father had sold me and my mother out to his cronies in crime, promising them we could repay his debt.
Of course, we couldn’t.
My mother and I had run, but the stress of it had driven her to drugs, which had killed her when I was fourteen.
Since then, I’d been alone. Ten years, alone.
I’d run and run and run, trying to stay one step ahead of the mob who wanted me to settle my father’s debt.
Time’s up.
The car behind me revved its engine, speeding up until I could see the men in the front seat when I glanced into my tiny rearview mirrors.
Fear spiked my heartbeat, followed by cold calm.
I’m getting out of this.
I sped up, taking a turn so fast that I had to lean with the bike to keep from overturning. The car was unable to follow, but they’d catch me at the next block.
I drove faster, almost hoping that a cop would catch me going over the limit. Instead, the white car joined me two streets over, speeding alongside my bike as I raced in front of the shops that dotted the street.
The car kept up.
Shit, this wasn’t working.
Abruptly, I put on my brakes. The larger car couldn’t manage the same. Making a quick U-turn, I flew back down the road.
Adrenaline coursed through my veins as I weaved in and out of traffic, ignoring the outraged drivers honking their horns as they swerved to miss me. I spotted an opening between two cars and took a sharp left turn. My knowledge of Seattle’s streets came in handy as I raced home.
Well, that made one thing clear—they’d definitely been following me last night, and I’d lost them before I’d gotten to my apartment. I’d felt it in my bones when I was no longer being followed, and I’d assumed they didn’t know where I lived when they hadn’t shown up on my doorstep.
I hoped.
With any luck, I’d have enough time to get home and pack a few things before hitting the road.
The idea of running again turned my stomach. I had a life here. It kind of sucked, but it was mine. And I had just been accepted to school. My life was about to turn around.
So of course, my miserable father was about to make an appearance, even though he was long dead.
Nope.
I wasn’t going to think about him. I was just going to keep moving forward. I’d get myself out of this jam just as I’d gotten myself out of plenty of others.
Finally, I reached my apartment complex. The streets were quiet as I pulled into the parking lot and killed the engine. I took the stairs two at a time up to the third floor, then slammed into my apartment and began grabbing up items I didn’t want to leave behind, along with my tiny savings.
My crappy duffel bag was bursting at the seams by the time I headed back through the living room and opened the front door.
Four hulking figures were standing in the hall, and my stomach dropped.
Shit. They had known where I lived.
Did I try to fake it?
My gaze raced over them. They were all equally brutal looking, with stupidly huge muscles and square jaws.
Where the hell did the mob find these clowns? They’d be comedic except for the fact that any one of them could snap my spine with his bare hands.
“We’ve been looking for you.” The leader stepped forward, entering my living room with a deadly grace that was petrifying. His silent approach made him even more dangerous and terrifying. With stealth like that, he could sneak into my bedroom while I was asleep and suffocate me.
His eyes were so cold they looked dead.
“I have no idea who you are," I said, my voice shaking.
“There’s no point in pretending, Lilibet.”
The mention of my real name made my heart jackhammer. “It’s Lyra. You’ve got the wrong girl.” I backed toward the bedroom, hoping if I were quick enough, I could make it out the window.
As if.
“We don’t have the wrong girl.” He cracked his knuckles, and ice shot down my spine. “We’ve been watching you for quite a while, in fact.”
Sickly dread rose in my stomach. Was that true?
“Seriously, you’ve got—”
“Shut up.” His quiet, menacing words had me snapping my mouth shut.
Shit.
I swallowed hard, glancing behind me toward the bedroom.
“Don’t bother.” His tone was dismissive. “We’ve got guys in the alley below.”
Damn. I drew in a deep breath. It was time to cut the crap. They clearly knew who I was. “What the hell do you want?”
“Your father owed us a lot of money before he died.”
Did I try to keep pretending?
No, he clearly knew who I was. “That was over ten years ago. And it’s not my debt.”
“Like I said, it was a lot of money. You know how these things work.”
I gestured around the crappy apartment full of secondhand furniture. “As if I can afford to pay you back. Look at this place.”
“That’s why we haven't contacted you until now. You never had anything that could cover your father’s debt.”
“Well, I haven’t won the lottery lately, so you’re still shit out of luck.”
“I wouldn’t say that.” He strolled around the living room as if he owned it, his steps slow and deliberate. “Your current job has finally proved interesting.”
“Finally?”
“We’ve watched you over the years. Kept track. First, you lived at Remy Street and were engaged in a bit of petty crime. Next, you moved to an apartment on Kingston Avenue and upped your skills. Jewelry stores, wasn’t it?”
“Only the big chains that could afford to lose a few little pieces.” My stomach turned sour. Kingston had been years ago. I’d been a teenager. And yet they’d known where I was?
The knowledge that they’d been stalking me all this time chilled me to the marrow of my bones.
“You have a friend at the hotel, don’t you? Megan Marrow?”
“Are you threatening Meg?” Acid twisted my stomach.
“I see you’re starting to understand. If you don’t do this, she’s dead.” The cold determination in his voice made my soul freeze. “Do I need to continue?”
“No.” I believed him, wholeheartedly. They’d always known where I was. There was no way to keep hiding—not if they had this kind of reach. And it didn’t matter anyway because they were threatening Meg. “What do you want?”
“We want you to do a little job for us, that’s all.”
A little job.
Famous words when they came from the mob.
5
Lyra
* * *
“You want me to what?” They had to be kidding.
“You’re not deaf, and you’re not stupid. You know what we asked you. Steal the book from Garreth Locke, and your debt is paid in full. You won’t owe us a cent.”
“No way I’m doing that.” My mind raced. Garreth led their rival criminal organization, so they basically wanted me to be the filling in a mob sandwich. No way in hell. “And how do you even know he has it?”