Chapter 3 - Through the Back Alleys
The grease-stained door of the kitchen slammed shut behind them, cutting off the heavy silence of the dining room. The alley outside was slick with a cold, relentless drizzle that immediately soaked through the shoulders of Leo’s black shirt. Toby remained dead weight against Clara’s chest, his breathing slow and even, mercifully oblivious to the chaos dictating their every step.
"Give him to me," Leo demanded, holding his tattooed hands out in the dim amber glow of a flickering security light.
"No," Clara said flatly, dodging his reach. "You're shaking. If Vance or anyone else comes around that corner, you won't be able to hold a weapon, let alone a child. Follow me, or stay here and get yourself killed."
Leo swallowed his pride, his chest burning with a mixture of grief and adrenaline. He checked the alley behind them—empty for now, but Vance was thorough. Men like Vance didn't lose trails; they simply followed the blood and the broken glass.
They ducked behind a row of overflowing industrial dumpsters, weaving through a labyrinth of brick walls and fire escapes until they reached Clara’s battered sedan parked near the edge of the industrial district. The vehicle was old, its primer-grey paint peeling along the wheel wells, but the engine hummed to life instantly under Clara’s practiced touch.
"Where are we going?" Leo asked, sliding into the passenger seat and pulling the door shut with a heavy thud.
"A safe house," Clara lied smoothly.
Leo turned his head sharply, narrowing his eyes in the dashboard light. He saw the hesitation in her eyes, the microscopic twitch of her jaw that betrayed her fabrication.
"You don't have a safe house," Leo said. "Who are you really, Clara? Waitresses don't know federal marshals by name, and they certainly don't navigate back-alley extractions without blinking."
Clara shifted the car into drive, her knuckles gripping the steering wheel just as tightly as Leo’s had gripped the milk glass.
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"You're not the only one running from a ghost, Leo," she whispered as the car surged forward into the dark rain. "And the woman who left you alone in that diner tonight? She isn't dead."
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