Total pages in book: 94
Estimated words: 88119 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 441(@200wpm)___ 352(@250wpm)___ 294(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 88119 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 441(@200wpm)___ 352(@250wpm)___ 294(@300wpm)
“Just tell us!” I shouted.
His small eyes twinkled angrily. “If you want to meet up with your daddy, you’ll have to let him catch you. There is no other way.”
Maybe I should just let him catch me. The odds of us finding Holly without being captured were incredibly slim. My mother had made him sound okay, and the photo of him holding me showed a softer side too. But he was still an unknown entity: he had kidnapped Holly, and I didn’t know what his plans were for me. I had to try to get Holly to safety, and then I could still decide if I wanted to risk a meeting with my father.
“That’s not going to work. He won’t let me leave once he has me. I need to get inside their headquarters without their knowledge.”
“Didn’t you listen? You can’t find them. Very few people know where they’re located. They have their ways of making sure that no one can reveal it.”
“You mean their Variant who can alter memories? Do they make sure that no one can remember where they are?”
He stared at me for a moment. “Not as clueless as you pretend to be, eh?”
We were getting nowhere with this. Devon ran an impatient hand through his hair. “This is all bullshit. Can you help us or not?”
I gave him a warning look. “Tell us what you know. My mother said you knew something.”
Stanley glowered at her, but she had curled up sideways on the bed and her eyes were now closed. “Your mother doesn’t know what she’s saying. But I’ll give you some advice. Get the hell away from here and stop looking for Abel. If you’re not willing to be part of his army, you shouldn’t get near them. They won’t leave you with any other choice.”
The door was ripped open and Penny stumbled inside, eyes widened in panic. “They’re here!”
Stanley went very still.
“Who?” I whispered, fear slicing through me. Devon stepped up beside me and I slipped my hand into his.
“Abel’s Army. One of their cars just pulled up in front of the bar. Benny is sure it’s them. They’re just waiting. They haven’t gotten out yet.”
“They won’t wait for long,” Stanley said.
My eyes flew to Devon. He let go of my hand and hurried toward the window to peek through the gap in the curtains. I pressed myself against his back and peered down into the lot. A black limousine was parked below the window with its engine running.
I whirled around. “Did you call them?” I demanded, narrowing my eyes at Stanley.
He glowered back. “Do you think I’m desperate for trouble? Someone must have recognized you in the bar. With those eyes of yours, no surprise.” He released a harsh breath. “I told you to leave. You should have listened!”
“What do we do now?” Devon asked softly.
I glanced at my mother, still passed out on the bed, then at Devon. There was no other way. If I let them capture me, they would leave Devon and my mother alone. They would take me to Holly.
I looked at my mother and then back at Devon. “Hide her or get her away from here,” I told him.
“No, I won’t let you go alone.”
“It’s the only way.”
“What? Letting yourself get captured? Tessa, you’ve got to be kidding!” he said desperately. “You don’t know what you’re getting yourself into. You’ll both be prisoners. How is that going to help Holly?”
I knew he was right. “Is there only one car out there?” I asked.
Penny shrugged. “It’s the only car we can see. That doesn’t mean there aren’t more hiding out of sight.”
I touched my mother’s shoulder, but she didn’t react. She must have spent all her energy talking to me. Now her body needed time to recover from the Spittle and the antidote. I couldn’t just leave her here. But I knew she couldn’t come with me.
“I’ll keep her hidden,” Penny said suddenly. Stanley, who had been staring into nothing, snapped his head around. But Penny glared at him. “We owe it to her, Dad.” Then she turned to Devon and me. “You should really leave now.”
I pressed a brief kiss against the top of my mother’s head, then followed Stanley into the corridor and down the stairs. Patches of sweat had spread under his arms. “There’s a tunnel in the basement that leads to another bar. I have something of an agreement with the owner, so he doesn’t care who enters or leaves.”
I knew he wasn’t doing this for our sake. He just wanted to get rid of us as fast as possible and without causing a big stir. But Stanley froze the moment we reached the bar area. He stopped so short that Devon and I almost ran into his back.
“What’s—” I never finished my question because a boy with eyes like mine had just entered the bar. He was unmistakable, even after all these years.