The black SUV eased to a crawl as it entered the warehouse district. Night had settled over the city like a velvet shroud, heavy and humid, swallowing the edges of the street until everything blurred into dark shapes and half-seen movement. The weak glow from the street lamps only deepened the shadows, pooling under the metal structures that stretched toward the sky like the ribs of some long-dead beast.
Elena sat in the back seat, her fingers entwined so tightly her knuckles had gone white. Every bump in the cracked asphalt jolted through her, rattling her nerves even more than the silence.
Damian sat beside her, composed in the way only a man accustomed to violence could be. His posture was relaxed, almost leisurely, but the tension humming beneath his skin was unmistakable. The low li
