Maybe

Winona

Maybe I should have been concerned about the red stains on my hands as Dante filed in with their cleanup crew. I’d seen a few of them before, but they were nameless associates of our family, ones I’d probably never see again unless they proved their

worth.

Had I proved my worth tonight or lost it all? And what was there to prove to a family that wasn’t mine? If Georgie was right, if he wasn’t lying, I belonged on the other side of the tracks.

My heart didn’t rush when HJ mumbled that Sebastian would be furious. We stood at the elevator doors, HJ with his hat on and my hood back up for no good reason. The cleanup crew would be calling the police later tonight to have them wipe the cameras.

In this city, we were protected.

As the elevator door pinged, HJ walked in and then turned to me, black fire licking through his eyes. “Get in the elevator, Winona.”

He’d almost told me he loved me in that car, and I’d been ready to drive off into the sunset with him. Now, could I love him kno