the bad on the outside will dissipate. Looking out the window, I see someone across the street who looks familiar. The baseball cap that Jesse wore on the bus is on the head of a man with his build. I look further. He’s wearing a flannel, which is the opposite of anything Jesse would wear. Yet he’s flicking his fingers in the way he does when he’s nervous.
He’s talking to a man I’ve never seen before. He’s wearing a jogging suit, and he has a dog on a leash.
Something about the man is unsettling. He has on a gold chain and thick black sunglasses. He, too, is wearing a hat to cover his eyes.
My internal defense system goes into gear. My imagination runs wild with ideas of who it could be.
Maybe Jesse was never an undercover agent.
Maybe he’s been working for the Lugazzis the whole time—or worse, an even more vicious enemy.
For a girl who put blinders on to the reality that surrounded her, I’m now so far saturated in it that I can’t stop picturing the worst.
Lying is a hard limit.
Then again, maybe he’s undercover right now, talking to someone as Jesse Grant. In that case, I can’t be seen. Not here. Not anywhere near him.
I leave cash on the table and run out the café door.
I hail a cab and hop in. I don’t have a plan, but as I close the door, I imagine hearing him call my name.
Chapter Fourteen
The Metropolitan Museum of Art is a place I’ve always enjoyed. When I was a girl, my father brought me here when I had to research a painting for a class project. It was a rare day, where I had his attention all to myself. Mom was walking Gia to a birthday party, and I remember being surprised that my dad wanted to go to the museum. He showed up in a full suit even though it was a Saturday. That’s my dad. Always dressed to the nines, even when he came to one of my softball games.
He walked me through the museum, which takes an entire day. He really loved the European sculptures and decorative arts exhibit. The Italian sculptures make you feel like you’re traveling back in time.
While I enjoy the artwork in the museum, I have a soft spot for medieval art and the Arms and Armor exhibit. To be transported to a time where your honor was your ultimate feature bewitches me.
I’m looking at the suits of conquest and defense in the Armor room when a worker comes over to tell me the museum will be closing in thirty minutes. I’ve been here for a while. The time passed quickly.
I take one more walk around the room before I have to leave.
A heavy sigh from the other side of the room catches my attention. I peer behind one of the iron horses. I shouldn’t be surprised to see who it is.
“Did you ping my phone?”
“Trust me, I thought about it.” He’s not amused. “Why did you run off like that?”
I start to speak but decide I want answers first. “Answer my question.”
He blanches, seemingly baffled by my attitude. “You like art. You told me that you sometimes go to the museum by yourself. It’s relaxing.”
“You remembered that?”
“I remember everything you say.” He takes a step closer yet keeps a good distance away. “When I saw you run to the cab, I tried running after you, but I lost it when it turned uptown. I took a chance that this is where you went.”
“Those are some damn good odds.”
As he looks down, I can see the frown of worry on his brow. “Amelia, you can’t run off like that. I can’t even fucking call you.”
“That was the point.” I feel guilty for causing him worry, and yet I can’t shake this feeling.
He looks around the room with a wide-eyed expression to see if anyone is here. As he closes the space between us, he grabs my hand and then pulls me to the back of the room, behind one of the knights.
When he’s certain we’re out of eye- and earshot, he whisper-yells, “I can’t protect you if you’re running away.”
“I just … I got scared, okay? You have to understand how unsettling this is.” I shift my feet and wipe my brow, looking around the small space as I try to figure out my feelings. “I saw you talking to that man. I’ve never seen him before. I don’t know if he’s a Lugazzi, an