Page 42 of Tainted Love

“Elijah,” I say, relieved to hear my little brother’s voice. “What’s going on?”

“It’s over, man. Snake Eyes is finished.”

I’ve never heard my little brother sound so worried before in my life.

“How is that possible?” I ask.

“He leaked everything,” he says. “Our names, aliases. Every hit, every job. Everything.”

I push it aside. I can hunt down that traitorous prick later. Right now, I have to get out of Chicago.

“I haven’t received my orders from Myra,” I say. “What’s she say about all this?”

Elijah pauses. “Myra went dark, Dante. There are no orders.”

“She went dark?”

“It’s over,” he says again. “It’s every man for themselves now.”

So, that’s it, then. One card slips and the entire house comes tumbling down.

“Where’s Lilah?” I ask.

“She’s with me.”

I breathe a little easier. “Put her on.”

A few seconds of noise and I hear my little sister’s voice.

“Dante? You okay?”

“I’m fine,” I say. “Just a little surprised.”

“Yeah, no shit.”

There’s panic in her tone, too. Of the twins, I expected her to keep her cool better than Elijah. “Where are you?” I ask.

“We’re on our way to you.”

“Don’t,” I say. “Stay out of Chicago.”

“Then, where do we go?”

That’s a good fucking question.

If the feds know everything about Snake Eyes, then they know everything about Snake Eyes, including our hideouts and safe zones. There’s nowhere to go but six feet under. Or a concrete cell.

I’d rather take the former.

“The house,” I tell her. “Can you two get there?”

Her voice goes soft. I can barely make out her gentle whispers as she confers with Elijah. “Yeah,” she finally says. “We can get there. Won’t make it until after nightfall, though.”

“I’ll be there as soon as I can get out of the city.” I reach down into the bag, rifling all the way to the bottom to find the pistol buried beneath the stack of clothes and money. “Get rid of your phones, too.”

“As soon as I hang up, they’re going in the fucking river.”

“Good.” I slide the clip free, checking to make sure it’s still loaded. “I’ll see you soon, little sister. Keep your head down.”

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