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“Or he’s as sneaky as he’s always been,” Gavin mumbles, pulling off the road.
We're almost to the location on Tyler’s map. Rachelle has been parked in the spot for a while, waiting.
I see Hellena’s car before the others, leaning forward, trying to spot her. Tyler is all but hanging out the side door, ready to run for her. Each of us holds our breath, the tightness in my chest releasing slightly as I see her long hair, her jeans and shirt accenting her every curve.
Gavin slams on the brakes as we hear it, a deafening crack, echoing through the canyon.
A gunshot.
32
HELLENA
It's still dark when I leave Gavin's house.
I made a decision as we lay there sleeping, wrapped in each other's arms. It made me realize that danger follows me. It’s a part of my life, like a curse.
And everywhere I go, the people I love will always be in danger. Because Marco Vice will always follow me. He’ll never stop looking for me now that he knows I’m alive.
His shadow stretches over me, haunting me.
Chasing me. I half expect him to pop up in my back seat as I drive through the morning mists, taking the coastal highway into town one last time. The surf crashes far below against the cliffs, just like my life, repeatedly dashed against the rocks. Dashed to pieces.
Yes. I’m having a fucking pity party.
The stops I have to make will be quick, necessary. I need my money. I need a few things from the house as long as Rachelle is asleep or out for her morning run. I can’t bear to say goodbye to her.
I hope she’ll understand.
I hope they all will.
Marco is relentless. He’ll use every person I love as leverage against me. He’ll hurt them just to punish me. He’ll target Rachelle first. My friends from college. Anyone who ever had anything to do with me, torturing them to find me. Then Tell, Gavin, Evan.
I know they can take care of themselves. And woe to Marco if he goes after Gavin on his own turf.
But I think I can mitigate all of it if he takes the bait, if he wants me more than he wants what he found here in Sanctum. War is coming regardless, but I can at least buy them time to prepare for his inevitable return.
If the gangs don’t wipe themselves out first.
The Block is strong. The Ghosts are formidable, from everything I’ve seen. Maybe they can come together, put up a resistance. Even the mayor, after meeting Marco in person, seemed unnerved and scared.
I’ll save his ass too, if it means saving the ones I love.
All of this only works if I can get him to chase me, though.
So, after I gather my things, mementos, a stash I left in an empty classroom on campus, and empty my savings…
I leave Marco a message.
There’s no way to know if he got it. I left it from a payphone to his home phone back in LA. Someone will deliver it, though.
By then, I’ll be on the road.
Going north, away from the paper trail I leave out of town going east. A gas station. One final phone call to Aunt Rachelle’s house from my cell phone before I ditched it for a burner.
Thank goodness she didn’t answer.
I take the long way around town, up into the hills, then the mountains, the sun rising and bathing the city, burning away the morning fog and shimmering in the bay. I’ll miss this place.
