Total pages in book: 106
Estimated words: 100791 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 504(@200wpm)___ 403(@250wpm)___ 336(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 100791 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 504(@200wpm)___ 403(@250wpm)___ 336(@300wpm)
“Panicking, they handed the tampon off to one of their people and ordered them to take it to the movie theater and arm the bomb so that whoever was following that tracker—”
“—wouldn’t live to tell anyone about it,” Sienna finished, lifting her head. “That trap wasn’t new. That’s why there was still dust and cobwebs on everything. The Brotherhood must’ve booby-trapped it a long time ago, knowing it was an old Merchant property.”
She inclined her head. “Exactly. But that old horror isn’t my concern. What I need to know is—”
“—what was the first stop Madison made?” I blurted, understanding slapping me over the head. “Not the last one. The first stop on the map was the Brotherhood hideout!”
“Do you remember what it was?”
“I— I uh— I need to see a map.” I jumped up, snatching my phone off the coffee table. The screen was cracked from having to break my fall, but I didn’t let that slow me down.
I hunched over the map of Cinco City, scouring my memory as thoroughly as I scoured all streets, lanes, and roundabouts in Rockchapel.
Sliding metal, and then footsteps sounded behind me. Liam, Bane, Sunny, and their fathers reentered the room.
“What’s going on?” a deep voice asked. “Have you found Genny?”
“Not yet, but Mackenzie will,” Adeline replied, speaking like it was a certainty. I wasn’t going to let her down, and Hera knew I refused to.
Come on, Blaine, think. Madison was driving in circles for a long time, clearly trying to shake off the tail that was sitting right next to her. Where did she stop before the blue dot went racing to the movie theater? Where...?
My brows crumpled.
“What?” Sunny seized, dropping down next to me. “What is it, baby? What did you remember?”
“I remember... that Madison did make a stop,” I said slowly. “For like twenty minutes while I was still in the cab driving from the park. But I didn’t think anything of it because—”
“Because what?” Killian Hunt, Genny’s dad, demanded. “If she stopped for twenty minutes, why wouldn’t you think anything of it?”
“Because she stopped at a gas station.” I lifted my head, meeting the heavy, intense stares bearing down on me. “I assumed she was fueling before driving in more circles around the city.”
“No, my dear.” Adeline shared a look with her husbands. “It’s the gas station. That’s the hideout.”
I had to ask. “How do you know?”
“Because a gas station is everything an empty abandoned movie theater isn’t.”
“It’s perfect,” Liam hissed. “Gas stations have random people going in and out at all hours of the day. Even better, those people are always in a hurry. They don’t know who’s standing at the pump next to them, and they don’t care. Who’s going to notice a couple members of the Brotherhood?”
My stomach twisted. “Wow. That’s... wow.” Genny was right. If I was going to survive in this world, I needed to learn to out-think vicious, soulless criminals. Sweet, innocent, naïve Mackenzie wasn’t going to cut it.
“Kenzie.” Liam dropped down next to me. “Please tell me you remember which gas station it is.”
“I do,” I said, loosening half a dozen shoulders with two words. “I remember because it’s close to Banana Tree, and I thought what a weird coincidence that was.” I winced. “Another lesson for me to learn. There’s no such thing as coincidence when it comes to the Brotherhood.”
Liam handled my phone like the harsh breath could break it. Squinting, he pointed where I pointed on the map before handing it to his mother.
“Okay.” Adeline rose from her seat. She was still the picture of calm even though I knew inside she was raging. “We’ve underestimated this enemy for far too long. We have to accept that, one, they’re in the middle of clearing out this hideout—if they haven’t already. Two, they’ll leave more exploding surprises for anyone who busts in after them, and three, they’ve already moved Genny to another location.”
“What?” I deflated like a burst balloon. “Genny’s not there either? Oh no, this is all my fault. I was so stupid, sending her in there alone with a frickin’ tampon.” It was a sleeping Laurel that stopped me from screaming, and saying worse. “If I hadn’t sent you guys racing in the wrong direction, we could’ve gotten to her in time, and Masie wouldn’t be a burning hunk of metal in an abandoned parking lot!”
“Babe, easy.” Sunny kissed my cheek. “None of this is your fault. You didn’t send Genny anywhere. She chose to go, and it’s because of you two that we know where one of their hideouts is. Cleared out or not, it’ll have hints that will tell us more about who these fucks are. Maybe even where they’ve gone next.”
“He’s right,” Saint said. “This is a victory, not a failure. You’re forgetting, Little Blaine, that our Genny is dangerous with or without a weapon. With or without backup.” Saint aimed a smirk out the window and into the distance. “Right now, those bastards are scrambling. They’re scuttling out of their hole like the cockroaches they are, they’re making mistakes, and they’re doing it all under Genny’s watchful eye.”