Page 69 of The Reaper

“Sounds like a plan,” he said, smiling.

We helped the older couple into the jacked-up SUV. “Be safe, my love,” his grandma said. She pulled Archer’s face toward her and kissed his forehead.

“You take care,” his grandpa echoed.

Archer and I walked to his motorcycle, his hands brushing against mine. “I got it,” he said when I reached for the helmet. He put it over my head, his eyes never leaving mine when he fastened the snap. “Thank you, Heath,” he whispered. “For everything.” His gaze intensified, and I swallowed the lump forming in my chest.

Thirty-Two: The Reaper

We’d been on the run for hours and the adrenaline keeping me up was dwindling. A few more hours of this and I’d be running on fucking fumes. The purple sky signaled the dawn of a new day. A lot had changed in the past twenty-four hours, and with those changes came complexities in my simple plans. But I couldn’t find it in me to regret any of my decisions.

We had crossed the state line into Vermont ten miles ago, and I wondered about our final destination. I didn’t care where we went, but we were exposed while traveling and I couldn’t stop worrying about my grandparents following us.

“How much longer?” I asked Heath, reaching back to caress his leg. I had no idea what the new day would bring, but somehow, having Heath fight this war with me was the extra push I needed to keep going.

“About thirty more miles,” he said, tightening his arms around me. “Are you getting tired? We can switch.” Heath rested his chin on my shoulder, rubbing our helmets together.

“Nah. I’m worried about being out in the open like this,” I admitted. It was surprising how eager I was to tell Heath the truth. I used to say I wasn’t afraid to die, but as I rode the stretch of black asphalt slicing through the forest with him, I longed for the prospect of the future. Me. Thinking about the fucking future. I had no clue what was budding between us. It was foreign to me, and it happened in the wrong place at the wrong time, but I hoped to live long enough to find out. I’d never been one to think about what-ifs. However, with Heath’s arms wrapped around me, my hand resting on his leg, I wondered … what if our lives were different? What kind of future would we have with each other?

“Yeah, me too, but we’re almost there,” he said, easing my mind.

My cell buzzed in my pocket and beeped the incoming call notification through my helmet’s speakers. Knowing that it could only be Tobias or Zero, I accepted it. “Tobias?” I asked, figuring I had a fifty–fifty chance of getting it right.

“This is Zero.” Her voice didn’t have its usual playful tone, which made me immediately tense.

“What’s wrong?” I asked, holding my breath for the bad news. It had to be—that would teach me to think all mellow and soft.

“I just logged in to find where you guys are, since I haven’t heard from you since you left the monastery—”

“Zero, get to the point,” I urged. “Please.”

“You’re being followed. I can see twelve phones belonging to The Firm on the same road. Eleven in front of you are closing in and one behind you.”

“Fuck!” I yelled. “How?”

“I have no idea. Nobody asked me anything, and even if they did, I would have sent them anywhere but where you are,” Zero said, and I believed her.

“What’s going on?” Heath asked.

“Someone’s on our asses,” I said, torn between slowing down and speeding up. They would catch up with us from either direction.

“Oh shit!” Heath said.

“Oh, and Reap …” She paused. “The solo dude driving behind you is El Jefe.”

The mention of El Jefe’s name made my world crumble. A rug was pulled from under me; one of the very few people I trusted and looked up to had betrayed me. I took a deep breath and asked, “How far away are they?”

“El Jefe is twenty-five miles away, and the guys in front of you are twenty. You have about twelve minutes to come up with a plan, man.”

“Let me call Tobias. I’ll call you later.” I ended the call and called Tobias immediately.

“What’s up,” he greeted with a yawn. “Are we almost there?”

“We’re stopping,” I said, pulling the handbrake. Tobias’s SUV behind us skidded to a stop. Heath and I jumped off my Harley and ran to the vehicle.

Tobias and my grandfather slid the windows open. “What’s going on?” Tobias asked.

“Is everything okay?” Grandpa added, worry on his face.

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