Chapter 3

The Bentley crawled through the storm and finally pulled into the parking lot of a cheap motel on the edge of town. A neon sign flickered above the office, buzzing loudly in the rain.

Elvie stared at the water stains on the concrete walkway.

"I am not sleeping in that disease-infested room," Elvie stated, her voice trembling with disgust. "I will sit in this car all night."

Gary sighed heavily and turned off the engine. The heater died. The temperature inside the cabin immediately began to drop, leaving only the heavy, rhythmic thud of rain hitting the roof.

Celina ignored Elvie's complaints. The air in the car was suffocating. She pushed her door open, popped her broken umbrella, and stepped out into the freezing night.

She walked toward the motel and stood under the narrow concrete awning, out of the rain. The wind whipped her wet hair against her cheeks. She crossed her arms tightly over her chest, her dark eyes staring out at the pitch-black highway.

Down the road, a pair of blinding xenon headlights pierced through the heavy rain.

Two massive, black, full-size SUVs cut through the standing water on the road. Sandwiched between them was an extended-wheelbase Maybach. The convoy moved with a slow, heavy, and terrifyingly dominant presence.

Inside the back of the Maybach, the air smelled faintly of expensive agarwood. The lighting was dim.

Donovan Suarez leaned his head back against the headrest. His jaw was clenched tight. A vicious migraine, born from years of severe insomnia and PTSD, pounded behind his eyes like a physical hammer.

In the driver's seat, Preston Vance glanced at the rearview mirror. He saw the tight lines of pain around Donovan's mouth and immediately eased his foot off the gas.

"This storm is a nightmare," Preston muttered. "I-80 being closed completely screws our schedule back to the city."

Donovan didn't answer. He raised his long, elegant fingers and roughly loosened his silk tie. His breathing was shallow. He reached out and pressed the button on the door panel.

The bulletproof glass rolled down a third of the way.

A blast of freezing rain and cold air rushed into the cabin. It hit Donovan's face, offering a tiny fraction of relief to his burning skull.

The Maybach rolled slowly past the flickering neon sign of the motel.

Donovan turned his head. His dark, heavy gaze drifted through the rain and landed on the figure standing under the awning.

At that exact second, Celina lifted her head.

The Maybach slowed to a crawl, its heavy tires displacing the standing water with a deep hiss. For a fraction of a second, the flickering neon sign of the motel cast a dim, eerie glow into the pitch-black cabin, momentarily illuminating the sharp, shadowed profile of the man in the back seat. Celina's eyes cut through the heavy, blinding rain and locked straight onto that momentary gap, meeting his gaze.

Donovan froze.

He saw her eyes. There was no fear in them. There was no despair. There was only a raw, untamed defiance and a chilling coldness that looked like she had already walked through hell and survived.

It was a look that absolutely did not belong to a girl standing in front of a trashy roadside motel.

Donovan's heart gave a single, hard thump against his ribs.

Instantly, the violent throbbing in his head stopped. The silence in his brain was so sudden and absolute it felt like magic.

Celina stood still. She could only see the sharp, shadowed outline of a man's face in the back seat. He radiated a cold, dangerous energy, like a predator resting in the dark.

The Maybach didn't stop. It rolled past her and disappeared into the black rain.

"Stop the car," Donovan commanded. His voice was low, raspy, and carried absolute authority.

Preston jumped. He slammed on the brakes. "What's wrong? Is the headache worse?"

Donovan hit the button to roll the window down completely. He twisted in his seat and looked back.

The rain was too heavy. The motel was swallowed by the dark.

Donovan closed his eyes. The image of the girl's defiant stare was burned into his retinas. His chest rose and fell evenly. The pain in his head was completely gone.

"Run the plates on that Bentley parked at the motel," Donovan ordered.

Preston's fingers blurred across the console. A few seconds later, he had a hit.

"It's registered to the Hayes family in New York," Preston said, his voice laced with confusion.

"Find out exactly who that girl is," Donovan ordered, his eyes still fixed on the dark rearview mirror. Preston leaned in, tapping the screen to pull up the Hayes family's recent movements and background checks. He straightened, his expression clearing. "Sir, it appears the Hayes family just picked up a stepdaughter from this exact town. That must be her."

Donovan tapped his index finger slowly against his knee, the rhythmic motion betraying the sudden, intense focus in his mind. A slow, dangerous smirk touched the corner of his mouth.

"Hayes," Donovan murmured. The name rolled off his tongue like a death sentence.

He opened his eyes. "Change of plans, Preston. We aren't going straight to the penthouse tomorrow. We are going to pay Warren Hayes a visit."

Preston's eyes widened in shock. Donovan Suarez never wasted his time on new-money families like the Hayes. But Preston knew better than to question him.

"Yes, sir," Preston said. He put the car in drive, and the convoy moved forward into the night.