Chương 2 - The Safehouse
Celia stared at Lorenzo in stunned silence.
He released her wrist and smoothly drew a suppressed pistol from beneath his ruined suit jacket.
"Get your shoes," he ordered without looking at her.
"How did you get into my apartment?" she asked in a breathless whisper.
Lorenzo did not answer her question.
He moved toward the open front door and aimed his weapon into the hallway.
The frantic footsteps outside stopped abruptly, replaced by the sound of heavy breathing.
"Travis?" Celia whispered, her blood running cold.
"No," Lorenzo replied flatly.
He reached back, grabbed her hand, and pulled her toward the emergency fire escape window in the bedroom.
"My men are handling the person outside, but we need to leave right now," Lorenzo explained.
Celia did not argue as he pushed the window open and helped her onto the rusted iron platform.
The freezing Chicago rain instantly soaked through her clothes all over again.
Lorenzo climbed out behind her and shut the window just as her apartment door was kicked wide open.
She heard the chaotic sounds of a brutal struggle echoing from inside her living room.
"Keep your head down and move," Lorenzo instructed.
They descended the slick metal stairs into the dark, trash-filled alleyway.
A sleek black luxury sedan was idling by the dumpsters with its headlights off.
Lorenzo opened the rear door and ushered her inside the warm, leather-scented interior.
He climbed into the driver's seat and immediately sped away into the stormy night.
Celia wrapped her arms around herself, violently shivering from both the cold and the sheer terror.
"Who are you?" she finally asked as the city lights blurred past the tinted windows.
"Someone who hates bullies," Lorenzo answered while checking his rearview mirror.
They drove in silence for twenty minutes until pulling into an underground parking garage of a high-rise building.
Lorenzo escorted her into a private elevator that required a retinal scan to operate.
The doors opened to reveal a massive, breathtaking penthouse overlooking the Chicago skyline.
"You are safe here," Lorenzo said as he removed his wet jacket.
Celia walked toward the floor-to-ceiling windows, trying to process the absolute madness of the last hour.
She looked down at the rain-swept streets far below.
Her breath hitched in her throat.
Standing on the sidewalk directly below the penthouse, completely ignoring the pouring rain, was Travis.
He was staring straight up at her window, holding a bright yellow envelope.
Celia spun around to face Lorenzo, panic rising in her chest.
"How does he know we are here?" she demanded.
May you like
Lorenzo pulled his ringing phone from his pocket and looked at the screen with a grim expression.
"Because he didn't act alone," Lorenzo said.
