Danger. Just the word sent my nervous system into a frenzy. Heated blood rushed through my veins and caused all of my pulse points to flutter erratically. “Is that guy with the half-mask going to come after me?”
Erik paused long enough to make me squirm. Then he said, “No. I’ll make sure he doesn’t.”
He sounded confident.
My eyes widened in horror. “Are you going to murder him?” That was the only way to give me a hundred-percent guarantee.
“No, I’m not going to murder him. Just shut up and trust me, all right.”
That pacified me somewhat, but could I place my trust in someone who ignored the law and sold drugs? Someone who willingly peddled death to humans? Foolishly, I wanted to. Maybe because I was having a hard time reconciling the truth of what Erik was with the fantasy I’d built in my mind.
If he hadn’t doctored me so well tonight, I could have written him off completely. Maybe.
“You can’t seriously expect me to trust you, Erik.” I only wished I meant the words wholeheartedly. “How do you know that man isn’t going to come after me?”
“Camille.” He sighed.
“Erik. I need to know.”
He pinched the bridge of his nose. “Are you always this curious?”
“When it involves my life, yes.”
“As you probably guessed, I’m working for him. He needs me and he knows it, so he won’t want to piss me off.”
I gazed down at my boots. Droplets of blood had dried on the tips. “And hurting me will piss you off?”
A pause, another sigh. “Yeah.”
For some reason, that soothed me as I’d needed and I lapsed into silence. And, God help me, I liked, really liked, that Erik was willing to fight for me. For your life, dummy. Not your affections. He probably doesn’t want your death on his conscience—or his record.
We passed the towering gate that surrounded my neighborhood. The houses that next came into view were medium-size, average really, but well-maintained. Made of polished silver rocks with tin rooftops, they were nearly identical. I’d lived here my entire life, and the familiarity was both comforting and terrifying.
“Uh, Camille,” Erik said suddenly.
The hard catch in his voice was like a punch in the stomach, jarring, painful. Oh no. “What?”
“We’re being followed.”
“What!”
“Look behind us.”
I twisted in my seat and peered out the back window. There were two black sedans lined up inches from our bumper, not even trying to remain hidden. Their windows were so dark I couldn’t see inside. “Who is it?”
“Who do you think?
A.I.R.? I swallowed the hard lump that formed in my throat. “Lose them,” I said, the instinct to remain removed from the situation speaking for me. Please lose them. I didn’t want to be caught with Erik.
If he’d been telling the truth earlier, that would only incriminate me further. Plus, I didn’t want A.I.R. escorting me home. I’d never be able to lie my way out of that.
“Why aren’t you losing them?” I demanded when Erik didn’t reprogram the car’s destination.
“Here, let me just snap my fingers. I’ll produce the cast of Alien Nights, too.”
I ground my teeth together.
“They’ve been on our trail since we left my house,” he added.
“Did they see me get into the car with you?”
“Maybe. Probably.”
“Oh God.” Stomach cramp. Not only had they seen me at the club with Erik, they’d seen me at his house. And I’d been willing. Think, Robins. Think.
Okay. Maybe trying to lose them wasn’t the best plan of action. That would only make me appear guiltier. Maybe I should just get out, walk up to them, and explain what had happened. Maybe they’d let me go without needing to speak to my parents. Maybe my worries were for nothing.
According to Erik, A.I.R. fought to protect innocent humans. I was innocent. But also according to Erik, A.I.R. would beat me up first and ask questions later. Well, what’s it going to be?
“I—I’m going to talk to them.”
“I can’t let you do that,” Erik said. “No telling what you’ll admit to doing.”
“But—but—”
He commanded the car to stop. Tires squealed, and I strained against my seat belt.
“Erik! What—”
“Shit,” he growled.
A black sedan had come out of nowhere, blocking our forward path. We couldn’t advance and we couldn’t reverse. They had us pinned in.
“Just let me out,” I said. “They’ll be reasonable about this. They just have to be.”
“They won’t listen to a damn thing you say.” Motions clipped, Erik punched a series of buttons on the console keyboard. The lights dimmed, and a gear shift I think it was called, rose from the space between us. Panels opened in a wide circle and a steering wheel appeared. Pedals even lifted from the floorboard.
I’d seen this happen on TV, but never in real life. Fear gripped me. “What are you doing?” I managed to get out.
“Overriding the computer system and driving manually.”
“You can do that?” Duh. He just had.
“Just hold on to your seat. It’s gonna get bumpy.” Without another word, he jammed the gear backward and the car speed into reverse. Crrrunch.
I yelped. Metal ground against metal as we crashed into one of the sedans, then Erik moved the gear forward, turning the wheel, turning, turning.
We hit another car.
He slammed his foot into one of the petals. My entire body flew toward the windshield as we sped away from our tails and onto a side road. Thankfully my seat belt pulled me back.
The other cars, of course, followed us. Their tires screeched, burning rubber and wafting smoke in every direction.
Fear raced through me, stronger than ever before. Stronger, even, than when I’d been surrounded by aliens, Lancers pointed at my chest. Not only was I in danger now, but innocent people were, as well. Anyone taking a nighttime stroll…I clutched my stomach to ward off another cramp.
“Erik. You have to stop this.”
“Can’t.”
“Please.”
“What I do is too important. I can’t be locked up.”
“What do you do?” I asked, nearing hysteria. “Helping humans kill themselves isn’t important.”
His lips drew together in a thin line.
“What if we’re wrong and those drivers aren’t with A.I.R.?” I asked sharply. I squeezed my eyes shut when we ran over a recycling bin and jumped a curb. My God, who art in heaven.