Page 15 of Savage Rule

It takes me several minutes of pacing as I rehearse a truth so twisted it might be believable before I can bring myself to text Gideon.

Me: 786 Mission aborted. Location compromised

I’ve barely hit send when the song Purple Rain blares from my phone.

“Fuck.” I stare at the wordGiddyon my screen, the nickname Maisie gave Gideon just to annoy him.

I didn’t want to talk to him. It’s a lot easier to tell half-truths in a text.

“What the fuck happened?” he says the instant I accept the call.

“I had to abort the mission.” Truth.

“Why?”

“I was followed.” Also true.

“By who?”

“Luca Sinacore’s right hand, Gunn Sinclair.” Accurate.

“The Sinacores are in New Orleans?”

“It would appear so.”

Silence. Then, “How did he know where you were?”

“That’s a good question. Does your brother know where I am?” Proactive deflection.

“No.”

“Are you sure?” I push to get that seed of doubt in Rowan Kane nice and planted. I mean, it could be true. Blood does not always equal loyalty. He barely even knows the guy.

The quiet tells me it’s working. “What happened?” he asks after a moment.

“Gunn spotted me on Bourbon Street.”

“Near the target?”

“No.” Sort of. Depends on who you ask. Everything in the Quarter is close, so near is relative. A few blocks can be considered far. “I took him in the opposite direction.”

“You managed to lose him?”

“Yes.” Definitely true. Once I blacked out, I lost sight everything.

There’s a scratching sound, and I imagine he’s rubbing the scruff on his chin. “Finish the job tonight, before Sinclair sounds the alarm. They should still be expecting you.”

“Yes, sir. I’ll be on the road home before sunrise,” I assure him.

“No. You’ll have a second job now. Another target.”

“Who?” I ask even though I already know the answer.

“Gunn Sinclair.”

5

SCARLET

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