Chapter 35

CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE

Maddie

“Is the front door locked?” I whisper.

“Yes, but…” Josh grabs both my hands, pulling me up from the bed. I’ve got a small walk-in closet, and he pulls both me and Lucia toward it. “It’s not going to keep them out for long.”

“I don’t want to hide,” Lucia hisses. “I’m going to?—”

“No.” I shake my head even as Josh closes the closet door. “Vigo and Vincent are not like Mason and Roman who would hold back. They’re not morally gray, they’re black. You’d get a good shot in, Lucia, and then they’d break you apart.”

Lucia harrumphs but I know she heard me because she stays in the closet.

Even through the door and the walls, I hear the engine cut. A sheen of sweat breaks out on my skin as I try to force myself to remain calm.

Roman is coming.

Of course, the last time he met Vigo and Vincent at my house, he and his cousin ended up shot.

And I know he’s not wearing a bulletproof vest today.

A small whimper falls from my lips. Josh, Lucia and I are huddled together and at the small noise I make, we all press closer in.

A pounding starts on the door. “Maddie,” Vigo calls. “I’m home. Miss me?”

“Fucker,” Lucia mutters. “You got anything that could pass for a weapon in here?”

I frown. “An umbrella maybe?” I whisper back.

“Let me in, sunshine, so we can talk.” Vigo pounds some more.

I draw in a stuttering breath. “He can’t know we’re here, can he?”

“I like your shiny new car,” he says as he keeps banging. “But how does a blind woman drive a Tesla?”

“Shit,” Josh says.

Here I am again. Vigo knows I’m here.

Last time, I answered the door. This time…

“Think we should go out the back?” We’re trapped like rats if we stay in this closet.

“How long until Roman arrives?” Lucia shifts, like she’s looking at her watch. In the dark of the closet, I can’t see anything.

“A few minutes.”

Josh lets out a long breath, but the sound is interrupted by Vigo kicking the door. It holds, but barely.

We don’t even say the words, we just move back to the door, opening the closet.

The door to the backyard is right next to my bedroom, the hall keeping us blocked from view.

“Make sure Vincent isn’t waiting at the back door,” I hiss, Josh slowly turns the knob.

“It’s clear,” he mutters and we all step into the late-afternoon heat.

It’s a covered veranda, where I would keep most of my animals. The fans are off since the yard is empty, which means I can hear Vigo’s assault on my front door.

I hear the creak of wood above and I look up, seeing the blurry outline of a person.

“Mrs. Higgins,” Lucia hisses waving her hand, “come down!”

My upstairs neighbor. Who is deaf…

I wave my arms wildly, gesturing to her to come but I have no idea if she sees my efforts or not.

The front door gives, the sound of wood splintering echoing down the street,

We all duck down, heading for the small back gate that’s hidden by a few overgrown bushes. It leads into a back alley, and Josh shoulders the gate open just as I catch the scent of gasoline. “No,” I turn back toward the yard and Mrs. Higgins on the stairs, just in time to hear the ignition of gasoline converting to fire…