Chapter 5

The alarm startled Finn, sending a surge of adrenalin through him and time seemed to slow. Should he duck and hide? The movement would attract attention, which he wanted to avoid. If he ran, they would surely follow. In a split second, as he sensed a head emerge from around the edge of the door, he decided.

He leaned forward and kissed the strange woman in his arms. She stiffened, as if to fight him off, but he wrapped her tightly in his arms, praying she would relax and not struggle. Thankfully, she did.

Her grip loosened, and she raised her fingers to the back of his head, almost caressing his scalp. Her lips were soft, inviting, and a delight to feel against his own even as he listened to the sounds mixed with the blaring of the alarm. No footsteps that he could hear.

Then the door slammed shut, and the alarm stopped, leaving the night eerily quiet in its aftermath.

Finn dropped his arms and stepped back.

“I’m sorry,” he said quickly, hoping to avoid any ire aimed his way.

The woman looked at him with ... something. Longing? Appraisal? He was not sure what she was thinking but was glad she only nodded.

“We need to be going,” he said. “They may come back.”

“Why are they after you?” she asked in her soft tone, barely above a whisper.

“Long story,” he said. “They are after me because I’m after some bad people. I’ll tell you more later.”

He turned her toward the street and took her hand in his, glancing down at his phone clutched in his other hand. Still no warnings of surveillance.

Street, then turn left, he thought. Half a block to the subway. I can spoof the ticket gate, so no risks there. I’ll jam the cameras once we are on the platform. Depending on the trains, we’ll see how long we stay. Maybe the first train, possibly the second.

He knew every train made the agent’s search coverage expand exponentially. At this hour, any station would be busy. The subway was perfect to get lost in. They might revert to the surveillance feed, but his phone would thwart that.

He glanced out the side of his eye, admiring the calm, careful movements of his companion. She was beautiful and so graceful, as if every movement was planned and practiced until it was perfect. He had never seen someone like her before.

Then he realized the problem she would create. If the agents had seen her, she would stand out on surveillance footage. Her striking silver hair would be a beacon to them and an obvious lead to follow up on. Finn would either need to keep jamming their view, and risk creating a moving bubble of obscurity that would lead them to his neighborhood, or he had to find an alternative before they entered the subway. He would not leave her behind. He had given his word to help her.