Chapter 2

Freezing wind funneled down the narrow alley behind Rockefeller Center, plastering the torn silk of the wedding dress against Janell's damp back.

The heavy iron fire door banged open against the concrete wall behind her. Three men in black suits charged out, their leather shoes pounding the wet pavement.

Judd ripped off his bow tie, his light brown eyes wild in the dim alley light.

"Janell! You think you can run? All of Midtown Manhattan is under Alvarado surveillance!"

Janell's right heel jammed into a crack between the slick cobblestones and snapped. Without breaking stride, she kicked off both shoes and ran barefoot over the freezing, rough stone.

Up ahead, a catering delivery truck blocked the mouth of the alley. Two tall bodyguards cut through a side passage, sealing off her only path to Fifth Avenue.

Judd caught up and clamped his hand around her slender wrist, squeezing until his knuckles turned white.

"Come back with me and tell the press it was a prank! Do you hear me?"

Pain shot up her arm. Janell bit down hard on her lower lip, used his pulling momentum to pivot, and drove her bare right foot straight into the side of Judd's kneecap.

Judd grunted as his knee slammed onto the rough concrete, his grip loosening.

Before he could recover, Janell swung her calloused right palm and slapped him across his greased face. The sharp crack echoed off the brick walls.

Judd's head snapped to the side. Five red finger marks swelled on his right cheek, a trickle of blood oozing from the corner of his mouth.

Janell looked down at him, her chest heaving.

"That slap is for the four years of my youth I fed to the dogs. Get lost!"

The two bodyguards lunged forward to pin her arms.

"Hold it! Grab her!"

Janell ducked under the first man's reach, twisted his wrist using his own weight, and shoved him into the brick wall. Rough brick scraped her elbow, drawing bright red beads of blood that stained her torn lace, but she threw herself through the narrow gap beside the truck.

As she burst out of the alley onto the side street, bright headlights sliced through the rain mist. A custom black Maybach Zeppelin glided slowly along the curb.

Behind her, Judd scrambled off the ground and roared.

"Get her! Don't hold back, just keep her breathing!"

The two guards vaulted over a pile of crates, their fingertips brushing her flying hair.

Janell's pupils contracted. She sprinted straight into the lane toward the slowing Maybach and yanked on the unlocked rear door handle.

The driver slammed the brakes. The tires skidded slightly on the wet asphalt.

Janell pulled the heavy door open and tumbled headfirst onto the plush alpaca wool carpet of the spacious rear cabin.

Warm, dry air enveloped her, carrying the crisp scent of cedarwood and cigar tobacco, but she didn't even look up. Her whole body was still turned toward the window, her breath fogging the glass as she stared out at the two bodyguards sprinting through the rain toward the car.

Her heart hammered against her ribs, her scraped knees stinging against the carpet, and she pressed herself flat, as if she could will herself invisible.

Outside, the guards reached the window and pounded on the one-way bulletproof glass.

"Open up! Hand over the woman!"

Judd ran up to the trunk, holding his swollen cheek. When he saw the low-digit black political-business license plate on the bumper, his steps faltered.

In the front passenger seat, Harley spun around, his eyes widening behind rimless titanium glasses as he reached for the alarm.

"Who are you? Get out of the car right now!"

Janell didn't answer. Her eyes stayed fixed on the window, on the pounding fists and Judd's pale face in the rain. She was too terrified to turn around, too terrified to look at whoever was sitting beside her.

The driver gripped the steering wheel.

"Boss, should I call the security team to clear the street?"

The man in the shadows didn't move. His gray-blue gaze lingered on the trembling woman sprawled at his feet, on the bloodstain on her arm and the way her whole body was locked toward the window like a cornered animal.

He raised one eyebrow slightly, his thin lips curving without warmth.

"You are ruining my carpet."

Outside, Judd spotted the Frederick family crest on the hood. His face went pale, and he frantically yanked his bodyguards backward into the rain.

The man looked away and tapped his long index finger once against the leather armrest.

"Drive."