Michael Connelly The Crossing Novels & Stories

I thought everything was going according to plan. I grabbed a pair of joggers lily gave to Connor and I put them on, “What do you mean?” I asked Connor, and he lowered his head. “Well, he crossed the border when he saw a woman being sexually abused, so he tried to help, but seems it was a trap for him” Connor explained to me as I clenched my jaws. One of my guys was dead because of Jason. “What time is the meeting tomorrow? It seems it’s about time that we showed our faces to them” I clenched a fist

“You… you all know?” Miles steps forward, scratching the back of his neck awkwardly. “Yeah, Dolores. We’re not exactly blind or deaf.” Connell’s smirk widens as he leans against the doorframe. “And let’s just say, I’m not complaining.” Dolores’s eyes narrow at Connell. “You could’ve knocked.” “We could have,” Connell admits with a shrug. “But where’s the fun in that?” “I don’t find it too fucking fun at all,” Miles grinds out.

For the past day, we’ve been traveling as wolves with Kenna riding on my back, but we’re closing in on the border between the Highlands and the Roguelands now, and we paused to take a break, and Kenna demanded to walk. So, we’re walking, and I’m watching Kenna and Flynn tease each other, and I’ve been purposefully slowing my pace to give them more space. They get along, and while his obvious flirting grates at every single one of my nerves, she’s smiling. She’s also giggling and blushing as Connor, and I walk a few yards behind them down a rough trail leading out of the heavily wooded mountains. “This doesn’t bother you at all?” Connor asks quietly as we walk side by side down the trail.

“Chloe and—fuck, I don’t know, Tits McGee—won’t shut up about your last little… acquisition.” I didn’t bother looking at them. Just stared at him and said, “Then maybe I should buy a muzzle.” The girls laughed—high, stupid, desperate. Elliot laughed louder, like it was his line, like he was in on it. He always did that. Clung to the edge of every conversation like it was a fucking life raft. “Classic Cross,” he said, clapping me on the shoulder like we were frat boys again. “Always the killer.” I moved past him.

Yet, despite the triumph, the wall between them remained completely intact. On the long charter bus ride back home that evening, the rest of the team was in high spirits, singing, shouting, and celebrating their big trophy at the back of the bus. But in the row containing Ethan and Marcus Hale, there was only silence. They sat side by side, staring out opposite windows into the dark winter night, the heavy marks on their necks hidden beneath their high-zipped jackets, keeping their secrets entirely to themselves. AUTHORS NOTE: Double update 🫪

Yet, I still crossed it. I know I had to find Lily. I had no choice but to find the girl. I shifted once I crossed, knowing that my black pelt will make it more obvious I was not part of their pack, but I will be easier hidden in the shadows. I ran through the trees, picking up the faintest scent of Lilacs. It led me further and further away from safety but closer to Lily. That was… up until my senses got overwhelmed by the smell of coffee. O crap…

“Croissants. From the place that pretends they’re from Paris.” “Bless you,” I muttered, taking one. Lila perched on the arm of the couch, crossing one leg over the other. “So… I woke up to your face all over my feed again. It’s giving ‘star-crossed scandal sequel.’” I groaned. “Please don’t start.” She grinned. “Relax. I’m not judging. I’m just saying — the man looked like a walking heartbreak out there. You could feel the tension through the photos.”

When he heard that Sophia was really kneeling at the club entrance and had become a laughingstock for everyone, he panicked and bought the first standing-ticket train out that very night. He fled back to his hometown. But the little villa he once boasted about had long since been sold off to cover debts. Rosa had frozen to death under some unknown bridge during a bitter winter years before, her body discovered only after it began to rot. Everyone in his hometown knew he was a convicted scammer and murderer. No one wanted anything to do with him. The last I heard of him, he was caught stealing by some neighbors, who broke one of his legs on the spot and left him by the roadside.

Avoid thinking about Damon Cross. “Morning,” Hailey’s voice chimed from the video call notification before Elara could even take the first sip of coffee. “You’re early,” Elara muttered, accepting the call. Hailey’s grin filled the screen. “Early? Please. I’ve been dying to ask, how was the symposium?” Elara’s fingers tightened around her mug. “Productive enough.” “Uh-huh. And by productive, you mean you ran into Damon Cross.” Elara blinked. “How---”

“Good to know though that these doors won’t stand up to vampires. I guess August didn’t design them with vamps in mind.” “Where does up go?” Connery paused with hand on the railing, looking up at the curl of the stairs above them. “To the surface, correct?” “Yeah,” Rohan was confused. “But they went down.” “This is where we part ways, my friends,” Connery said to Rhett and Cameron. “I have to return to Meguitte.” “You can’t just…” Rohan protested as Connery began to climb the stairs, but Cameron caught him by the wrist and shook his head.