Chapter 1 - THE SHADOW ON THE PAVEMENT
“That Hotdog Cart Saved Her Life—Or Ended Mine.”The freezing New York air turned to ice in Lena’s lungs.
The heavy door of the midnight-black SUV swung open. A leather-clad boot hit the slushy asphalt, followed by a tall, towering figure in a tailored charcoal overcoat. His silver hair was slicked back flawlessly, and a deep jagged scar ran down his jawline. His cold grey eyes swept the crowded sidewalk like a predator searching for a lost lamb.
"He's the one who took me from my mommy," Lily whispered again, her small hand clutching Lena’s worn denim jacket so hard her knuckles turned stark white.
Lena didn't hesitate. Survival instinct took over.
She slammed the metal cover of the boiling hotdog cart, intentionally tipping a pot of scalding water into the grease trap. A massive cloud of blinding white steam blasted directly into the faces of two heavy-set bodyguards stepping out behind the scarred man.
"Run!" Lena roared, grabbing Lily under her arm like a football.
Shouts rang out behind them, cutting through the morning traffic. "Get the girl! Don't let the vendor leave!"
Lena sprinted down the icy stairs of the 42nd Street Subway Station, her cheap sneakers slipping on the slush. Behind them, heavy footsteps echoed down the concrete steps. She shoved her way through the turnstiles, sweeping Lily into her arms, and leaped onto a train just as the rubber doors hissed shut.
Through the dirt-streaked glass of the accelerating subway car, Lena locked eyes with the scarred man on the platform. He didn't run. He didn't yell. He simply adjusted his silk tie, raised two fingers to his temple in a chilling salute, and pulled out a sleek silver phone.
Inside the rattling train car, Lena dropped into a seat, her heart hammering against her ribs like a trapped bird. She looked down at the trembling six-year-old beside her.
"Are you okay, baby?" Lena asked, checking the child's arms and forehead.
Lily nodded slowly, reaching into her oversized pocket. "He wanted this," she whispered, pulling out a tiny, silver heart-shaped locket attached to a heavy steel flash drive.
Lena gasped. Engraved across the back of the worn metal were four words that made her entire world spin into darkness:
May you like
PROPERTY OF CLARA VANCE — DO NOT OPEN.
Clara Vance was Lena’s twin sister. The sister who had supposedly died in a fiery car crash three years ago.
