“Julian, a word,” He grabbed Julian roughly by the arm and pulled him into the hallway. I could see Mr. Montgomery jabbing a finger into Julian’s chest as he spoke.

  “Don’t mind my husband,” Faye whispered to me. “He just has a lot on his mind.”

  I bit back a hysterical laugh. I would have said the same thing about Julian a few days ago.

  Mr. Montgomery took a step closer to Julian. He was clearly trying to intimidate his son. My stomach twisted.

  Julian nodded, and then he and his dad walked back into the foyer. Julian widened his eyes at me slightly as he approached. He was trying to smile, but he was obviously shaken.

  His mom looked between the two of us, like she’d just caught that subtle interaction. She placed a light hand on my arm, briefly. I resisted the urge to swat it away.

  “Clara.” His dad said my name with disapproval. “Julian tells me you’ve left Grayson’s teams.”

  “I did,” I said.

  “Are you going home?” Mr. Montgomery asked. “Where is home?”

  “Texas,” Faye said cheerfully.

  “No, I’m not going back to Texas,” I said.

  “We’re thinking of going to Barbados,” Julian said. “Just for a quick vacation.”

  “Do you really have time for a vacation?” Mr. Montgomery asked snidely. “You helped create this mess we’re in.”

  “Grayson made the mess, not me,” Julian muttered.

  “You helped him along. You certainly exaggerated your ability to keep Grayson under control.”

  Julian flushed but said nothing.

  Mr. Montgomery leveled an intense stare at me. He was trying to intimidate me. I couldn’t bring myself to pretend it was working.

  “Hon, I was going to go say goodbye to the guys before we left. Why don’t you come with me?” Faye took her husband by the arm and steered him back into the hallway.

  “Sorry,” Julian said, once they were out of earshot. “He’s a bit much, right?”

  “He’s horrible,” I said.

  He seemed taken aback. “He gets riled up sometimes. He means well.”

  “Does he? He was pretty harsh.”

  “It’s just how he is.” He said the words heavily. Like he’d once hoped his dad would change but had learned better. “And he’s upset right now because I couldn’t stop Grayson from chasing after MDG. I can’t blame him.”

  I could blame him.

  Julian fished a card key out of his pocket and handed it to me. “Listen, there was a change of plans. Take the car and go to my hotel. I’ll be back later tonight.” He picked up my backpack and handed it to me.

  “Where are you going?”

  “Dad needs me to supervise the stuff going on tonight. I may be kind of late.”

  The stuff was absolutely the scrab shipment.

  “Why don’t I just stay? I don’t mind waiting. I mean, you brought me all the way out here.” I tried not to sound as desperate as I felt.

  He shook his head. “I can’t. Dad’s super pissed that I brought you here, and I don’t want to make him even angrier. Go back. Order some room service. Get a movie if you want.” He planted a quick kiss on my cheek, and then pulled the door open for me.

  I walked through, my heart pounding as I shot him a smile. I couldn’t just leave. I needed to find a way to follow him and find those scrabs before they were shipped.

  The door shut behind me. I walked around to the other side of the car and discreetly pulled Grayson’s phone out of my backpack. I typed out a message to Grayson and Madison, taking a quick glance up to make sure Julian hadn’t reappeared.

  Do you have anyone nearby that could follow Julian? I think he’s going to wherever the scrab shipment is.

  Grayson replied immediately. Is he leaving soon? I just headed out with your team. We’re coming to the location you sent us.

  I don’t know, I replied.

  The driver opened the passenger side door for me. “Are we waiting for Mr. Montgomery, or should we head out now?”

  “Actually, Julian sent me out here to let you know you’re done for the night. We’ll be staying here.” I held my breath. I had no idea if Julian had given him other instructions.

  He just smiled and closed the door. “Have a good evening.”

  I darted out of the driveway as he pulled away. The last thing I needed was for Julian to see me standing around as the car left.

  I crept around the side of the house, in the direction of the vans I’d seen earlier. I stopped when I heard voices, and then carefully peered around to the back of the house. My hands were shaking, and I folded my arms against my chest, willing my body to calm down.

  Mr. Montgomery stood with a red-haired man and Julian near the vans. A stocky man was loading boxes into the back.

  “Yeah, Julian’s going to take the van,” Mr. Montgomery was saying. “I’m headed out to the docks to check on the transport.”

  “Then you’re out of here?” the other man asked.

  “Yes, thank god,” Mr. Montgomery muttered. He squinted up at the overcast sky. “I hate London.” He began to turn, and I quickly ducked behind the corner again.

  When I peeked back out, Mr. Montgomery and Julian had disappeared. The man was loading the last of the boxes into it. He closed the doors and headed back to the house.

  “All set!” he called. I heard a distant reply.

  There was definitely no time to wait for Grayson. I needed to get in that van.

  I took a cautious step forward, until I could see the back doors of the house. Julian and his dad stood in front of them. The vans had been backed into their spots, the rears facing away from them.

  Julian’s dad walked inside. Julian stepped off the porch.

  I grabbed his phone from my pocket, almost dropping it as I desperately pressed the message button.

  I should have told you that I missed you, I typed frantically.

  We were so close that I could hear his phone buzz after I sent it. He stopped several yards from the van, his face breaking into a smile as he read my message.

  I darted to the back of the van and tried the door. It had to be unlocked. I hadn’t seen the man lock anything before he walked away. It had to be.

  The door clicked open. My phone buzzed. Julian’s footsteps got closer.

  I slipped into the van and softly shut the door behind me. It was full of boxes, but there was enough room for me to hide amongst them. I pushed a few aside and wedged myself in between them.

  A door opened and then closed. The van started.

  Julian let out a sigh. I heard his shoes hit the ground as he stepped out.

  The back door opened.

  I stayed perfectly still.

  It slammed shut again.

  I let out a slow breath as I listened to Julian walk back to the driver’s seat. The van jerked forward.

  Oh god. I was really doing this. I had jumped into the back of this van bound for some MDG location, and I had no plan. What was I going to do when we arrived?

  I held my phone up with shaking hands.

  I missed you too. So much, Julian had written back.

  I did not think he was going to take it well if he discovered me in the back of this van.

  I typed out a message to Grayson and Madison. Ok I did something.

  Madison replied immediately. That sounds bad.

  Grayson: What did you do?

  Clara: I’m in the van with Julian. Hiding, I mean. I jumped in when he wasn’t looking.

  Madison: CLARA THAT’S BAD.

  Clara: We can’t let them ship those scrabs. Can you track this phone?

  Grayson: Yes!

  I bit back a curse as I typed out my next message.

  Clara: I should have just put the phone in the van. I’m a dumbass.

  Grayson: No you’re not! You’re brilliant. We’re held up in traffic, so we might be too late anyway. Take photos. And video. If it’s safe.

  I’ll try. I may have been a total dumbass, but at least I was surrounded by people who would make equally stupid choices, if given the opportunity.

  Madison: Edan wants to know if you have your weapons.

  Clara: Yes.

  Madison: Good. Also the whole team is here, and they say you’re a badass. I concur.

  I smiled despite the terror still coursing down my spine. Thanks.

  41

  It was nearly an hour before the van stopped. My heart stopped with it, and I froze, listening to the sounds of Julian sliding out of his seat. The door slammed shut.

  I waited a full minute before slowly sitting up. I couldn’t hear voices or footsteps. He hadn’t opened the back door to unload the boxes.

  I carefully crawled to the rear of the van and tried the handle. The door creaked open. I pushed it slowly and peeked out at my surroundings.

  The van was parked in front of a small two-story wooden house. The windows were all dark, even though the last wisps of sunlight were almost gone.

  I edged out of the van and quietly pushed the door closed. Julian was nowhere to be seen. There was a thick row of trees to my left, and I couldn’t see neighbors. We were definitely out of the city. On a farm, maybe.

  No, an equestrian facility. The iron fence at the front of the property had two horses on it, and there was a three-rail fenced area to my right that had obviously been used to exercise horses in the past. Now it was overgrown and deserted, since you’d have to be insane to keep horses this close to a highly populated area.

  To the right, set a bit back from the house, I could see the edge of a large wooden structure. A barn or stables. The area between the house and the structure was just a grassy field.

  To the left of the house was a smaller, square building, like a shed or a guesthouse. Past that was a truck carrying a large blue shipping container, muddy track marks showing its path through the grass.

  I followed the tracks back out to the narrow road. Two more trucks. These were even bigger. The container on the grass could hold maybe fifty scrabs, if they were tightly packed, but the ones on the street could easily hold at least a hundred. I snapped a quick picture, but it was very dark, the containers barely visible.

  I pulled out my phone and texted Madison and Grayson.

  There are three shipping containers here. I think they’re planning to ship scrabs by boat.

  A reply came a moment later. Grayson wants to know if you can get a license plate number. And a description of the shipping containers.

  No license plate. The containers are blue. It’s hard to see anything.

  One of the trucks began moving, slowly rolling down the street.

  One truck is leaving, I texted. Headed south on Dalten St.

  Are the scrabs already loaded in that one?

  I don’t know.

  We’re sending UK team thirteen to follow it. The police should be on it as well.

  I heard voices from behind me, and I scrambled to hide behind the van.

  “Yeah, I’ll show you,” a voice said. “Come on.”

  Footsteps headed away from me, and I peered around the side of the vehicle. I couldn’t see anyone.

  I crept across the lawn, staying low to the ground. I realized as I rounded the corner of the house that there were actually four shipping containers. There was one sitting in the grass just past the large barn. Its doors were open, waiting to be loaded.

  Two men walked toward the barn. I knew them both: Julian and Webb, the MDG guy who had kidnapped Edan and me in Paris.

  They both had their backs to me, so I ran silently across the grass to the large barn. I stood at the corner of it, peering around at them. They were maybe twenty yards away, studying a small tablet in Webb’s hand.

  “So SAC control is pretty basic,” Webb said to Julian. “You just—”

  “Are we seriously calling them that?” Julian asked. “SACs?”

  “Yes,” Webb sighed wearily. “They’re convinced people will warm up to them faster if we rename them.” He turned his attention back to the tablet. “Anyway. These are numbered, silent scrabs. You heard anything about them?”

  Julian shook his head.

  “Hey, let me get one out here!” Webb called into the barn. “Any one will work.”

  A man emerged from the barn a moment later, a leashed scrab following behind him. It had a red 5 painted on its chest.

  “You can drop him,” Webb said. The other man let go of the leash. The scrab remained motionless.

  “The first thing you have to do is activate the number you want,” Webb said. “See this row of numbers on the side here?”

  “Yeah,” Julian said.

  “Press the number, and it activates the scrab. Watch.” Webb tapped the tablet. The scrab straightened and looked left and right. “You can activate a bunch at once and give them all the same command. These scrabs have a device in their ears that’s connected to the tablet, so you don’t need to shout a command, you just press the button on the tablet and the earpiece gives them the command.” He tapped the tablet, and the scrab galloped forward. He tapped again, and the scrab stopped.

  “Wow,” Julian said.

  “Good, right?” Webb said. “It’s how we’re working around their pack instincts. And these scrabs also understand hand signals, so you can point them in specific directions, or at specific people. Works well with the attack button, so you can sic them on certain people. Usually.”

  “Usually?” Julian repeated.

  “We still get a few that break off and do their own thing every now and then. Loud noises confuse them, get them all agitated. Something with the earpiece, I think. We’re working on it.” He pointed to the tablet. “But that’s what the red button is for. This big one at the top? It will shock all the scrabs that are currently activated. Should make them all stop what they’re doing.”

  Julian said nothing. I couldn’t see the expression on his face, but it made Webb laugh. He clapped Julian on the shoulder.

  “You’ll be fine. This whole shipment is high-level SACs, and you’ll have some other guys with you. I’m just going to show you how to control them in case of an emergency. Better safe than sorry, right?” He gestured for the man to take the scrab back into the barn.

  “Yeah,” Julian muttered, taking out his phone.

  “You know you can’t take pictures, right?”

  I grabbed my phone from my pocket. I should have been taking pictures. I held up the phone and started recording.

  “Why would I take pictures?” Julian’s tone was deeply annoyed.

  “That squad of yours chronicles every single moment of their life. I can’t turn on the news without seeing one of their selfies.”

  “I’m not taking selfies with the scrabs. I’m not an idiot.”

  “All right, no need to get testy. Just keep in mind that your dad threatened to kill me if anyone gets proof of MDG’s involvement in this, and I think he was half serious. He’s a scary guy, your dad.”

  Julian shrugged. “Are we almost ready?”

  “Still loading.”

  I ducked out of view, pressing Stop on the video. I switched to my messages and started a message to Grayson.

  There are actually four containers, they’re still loa

  “Clara?”

  The voice made me jump. It was Julian, standing only a few yards away, and staring at me with mounting confusion.

  “What are you doing here? Did you—” He strode closer to me, his expression baffled. “Did you follow me here?” He looked down at my phone. The phone that was very obviously not the one he gave me.

  “Uhhh . . .” I quickly pressed Send on that partial last message and fumbled for the button to lock it.

  I wasn’t fast enough. He snatched it out of my hand and read what was on the screen. I dove for it, but he spun away and swiped through messages, his face contorting with rage as he read.

  “Are you serious?” he hissed, turning to face me. His eyes had gone black. “Were you spying on me?”

  I said nothing. I was searching for an escape route. If I just took off, I might be able to outrun him.

  He grabbed my arm. I’d missed my opportunity.

  “What was this, then?” His voice rose with every word until he was shouting. “When you came back to me, you were lying?”

  I took a deep breath. The only option here was to try and keep Julian calm. “I was just—I was just scared and confused, and I—”

  “You lying bitch,” he spat. “You ungrateful, lying bitch! What the fuck is wrong with you?”

  I froze. I should have tried to twist out of his grasp—he was hurting me—but my brain wouldn’t listen.

  Danger.

  “I saved you!” he yelled. “You would have been back on a bus to Dallas if it weren’t for me. And this is how you repay me?”

  He was nearly shaking with rage. My breath started coming in short, panicked gasps.

  “I trusted you! I told you . . .” He trailed off, eyes widening. He grabbed my other wrist, yanking me closer so he could scream in my face. “You stupid, worthless piece of—I can’t believe I ever thought I was in love with you. You’re fucking pathetic, you know that?”

  “Julian, please let me go.” My voice wobbled. I was suddenly replaying every moment of our training in my head. He was incredibly strong and fast, and I didn’t think I could hold my own against him, even if I managed to grab a weapon from my backpack. A scrab I could handle, but Julian? Julian was scary as hell.

  “Let you go,” he scoffed. “You really are a moron, you know that? You think I’m just going to let you walk out of here?”

  He yanked on my arm and began walking. I dug my heels in, desperately trying to twist out of his grasp. But he held firm, pulling so hard on my wrist that I stumbled and hit the ground.

  He tore my backpack off, tossed it out of reach, and then grasped the back of my shirt. The fabric pulled tight around my neck as he began dragging me.

  “Julian,” I wheezed, my feet kicking up dirt. “You’re choking me.”

  “Too damn bad!” he yelled. “This is what you get for picking Grayson over me. You brought this on yourself!”