Page 32 of Twist of Fate

A beat later, the device vibrated in his hand. Oh, right, there hadn’t been a signal in Connal’s castle. He was back online now.

Angling slightly toward the wall, he unlocked it and scanned the displayed message.

Proceed to drop location.

His jaw tightened just a fraction as he read and replied.

Understood.

“Problem?” Connal asked.

“I’ve been ordered to continue the delivery.”

Connal’s gaze sharpened. “What are you delivering?”

Luke’s hand brushed the hidden pocket at his waistband. “A small human device containing information. My job is to deliver it to a contact.”

He slipped the phone back into his pocket and looked up, already adjusting his plan.

“Come on,” he said, changing direction without hesitation. “We’ve got a job to do.”

Connal didn’t question it.

He followed.

Luke plotted the new direction on his phone, then quickly locked it into his head. The route unfolded in his mind automatically as he considered pace, timing, and line of sight. Fortunately, he’d studied the city map in advance of this operation.

Intersections, blind corners, traffic patterns, escape routes—Luke knew how to read all of it.

This he understood.

This he could control.

Behind him—or beside him, because Connal apparently didn’t do distance—Connal’s footsteps fell into perfect rhythm with his own.

Too precise.

Too close.

Luke ignored it.

His phone buzzed again as he turned down the next street. Luke angled his body just enough to shield the screen without breaking stride.

The message was short. Efficient. Which meant things had gone sideways faster than expected.

Status compromised.

Proceed to secondary drop. Coordinates attached.

Luke exhaled slowly through his nose, scanning the rest.

No questions.

No instructions beyond that.

No acknowledgment of what had happened to him.

That was…not ideal.