The Prada Paradox (26 page)

I’m not most people, though, and neither is Andy. We’ve reached the beach now, and Andy takes my hand. “Run!” he says.

And I do.

Chapter41

Blake’s heart hadn’t stopped pounding since he’d heard Devi scream. She and Andy both had yelled for him to go into the carousel house even as they raced farther down the pier.

He hadn’t wanted to leave her alone, but in that split second he’d had to make a decision, he knew that he had to. Time was running out, and he was no use to her dead.

But that didn’t mean he couldn’t put a few kinks in Janus’s plans even as the bastard tried to get a bead on Devi.

So as she turned back to the west and started racing down the pier, he’d looked for ways to make Janus’s life miserable. He’d caught a break when he’d seen Janus not ten feet away, the bastard raising his gun for another shot.

Fuck that.

He’d grabbed a small helium tank from a balloon vendor, then tossed the thing. It made contact right as Janus was firing, sending the shot wild. At the same time, Blake raced toward him, so that when Janus turned to aim the pistol at him, he was ready.

A nicely placed round kick had knocked that gun right out of the bastard’s hands, but in the confused mass of people, Janus had torn off in the opposite direction before Blake could cross the distance between them.

He’d retrieved the gun, hoping like hell it was the only one Janus had, but not really believing it. He jammed it in the back of his jeans, then cut sideways behind the arcade buildings so he could circle back to the carousel house. He told himself that Devi was safe, and he kept repeating that as a mantra as he slowed to a fast trot and tried to blend into the crowd.

He was amazed that no one had tried to stop him when he’d snagged the gun. Maybe they recognized him and thought this was some sort of movie stunt. Or maybe they were just plain scared. This was Los Angeles, after all, and gangs were prevalent enough that people knew to mind their own business if they wanted to stay alive.

A few more yards, and he was back almost to the start of the pier. The door to the carousel house faced the foot traffic down the wooden pier, and now he moved in that direction, keeping his attention sharp, looking for any sign of Janus—or of Devi.

He saw nothing, though. The crowd had moved back in on itself, like water diverted in a stream. He thought there might be some sort of commotion down at the far end of the pier where it actually extended over the water, but he couldn’t get a good enough look. Behind him, though, on the paved street that ran directly up to the pier, he heard a police car, the siren blaring.

Good.

Surely the approach of the police would scare Janus off Andy and Devi’s trail. He only hoped that Andy and Devi could blend into the crowd before the police latched on to them.

He noticed one other thing, too, that filled him with hope: the police car was alone. No ambulance racing to catch up. No more sirens rushing through Santa Monica toward the pier.

He couldn’t see them, so he couldn’t be sure. But he believed they were safe. And he intended to cling tenaciously to that belief until Devi was in his arms again.

The entrance to the carousel house was only yards away. He stepped inside and entered a past era, the lights and brightly painted carousel and horses reflecting a Byzantine age, when grandeur was of as much importance as the ride itself.

He’d been here once with Devi, but not having grown up in Los Angeles, he was hardly a regular at the pier. Now, he almost wondered why, because this place was surely magical. Even more so, he was certain, at night.

He didn’t have until night, though, and so his acquaintance with each of the ponies had to start now.

Fortunately, the carousel wasn’t running, which meant that he could step onto the platform with the horses and walk around, looking at each, trying to find the antidote that he would pull out of one of the horse’s mouths.

There were a few other people in the structure. Tourist types, there with their kids, either not realizing the carousel wasn’t on at this time of day during the week, or simply taking the only opportunity they could to see the famous landmark. He did his best to ignore them, but as he went from horse to horse to horse, sticking his fingers into the open mouths of the ones that had been molded that way, he could feel their curious eyes on him.

A few months ago, he would have felt compelled to explain himself. Now—after living in the celebrity spotlight—he was comfortable enough to just go about his business. One tourist did snap a picture when he was face-to-face with a horse, and he had to wonder if he’d see that picture in an upcoming issue ofEntertainment Weekly. He looked up to see if he’d been tagged by the paparazzi and found himself looking at a skinny man with graying temples wearing an I™ Santa Monica T-shirt and too-baggy Bermuda-style shorts.

Not paparazzi—tourist.

Thank God for small favors.

“So whatcha doing there, buddy?” the man asked in a thick southern accent.

“Scavenger hunt,” Blake said.

“Right…” The guy cocked his head, obviously trying to decide if Blake was bullshitting him or not. “So, something’s supposed to be hidden in one of them horse’s mouth’s? And then what?”

“Hopefully I find the prize.”

“Prize, huh? Want some help?”

“No thanks.”

The man squinted at him. “Not the sharing kind, huh?”

Blake closed his eyes and prayed for patience. “I don’t mean to be rude, but—”

“Yeah, yeah.” The guy shot him an angry look and then grabbed up his shopping bags and stormed out.

Blake shook his head in exasperation and moved on to the next horse.

Once again, nothing.

And nothing in the next horse, or the next, or the next.

A mom standing with her small son watched him curiously. He gave them a sheepish grin, then walked the perimeter of the building’s interior, reciting the clue in his head, then pulling it out of his pocket to double-check.

They had to be right. The carousel horses fit the clue perfectly.

So where the hell was his damned antidote?

He spent another useless hour inspecting the building—looking in every nook and cranny, searching every horse thoroughly.

Not a goddamn thing.

An unwelcome wave of fear crested over him, and he looked at his watch. Already past two. Just six hours left.

God.

He pressed down on the fear, determined not to let it control him. As much as he hated to admit it, they must have been wrong about the carousel. He was searching in the wrong place, and he needed Devi’s help if he was going to figure out where he should be looking.

Devi’s help, and, yes, Andy’s, too.

He pulled out his phone and dialed her new number, but only got her voice mail. That’s when he remembered that she’d left her purse with the computer in his trunk. She probably forgot to move her phone to a pocket, too.

No matter. He dialed Andy’s number. Voice mail as well.

Damn.

He left a message, but wasn’t confident they’d get it. For all he knew, Andy had tossed his phone at Janus, hoping to give the assailant a concussion.

Which means he was shit out of luck, all alone in Santa Monica and without any idea where to go next.

He needed to find them. But where?

Frustrated, he moved out of the carousel house and looked up and down the pier, hoping for a miracle. Because his luck wasn’t running toward good these days, of course no miracle occurred.

Think, dammit, think.

Devi would be looking for him, too. She’d want to hook back up, not only to get the next clue, but to make sure he’d found the antidote. She’d be trying to think of a location that Blake would know to go to. But where?

He thought back to their first date. They’d come to Santa Monica, walked along the beach, played tourist along the pier, and then they’d ended the evening with a stroll along the Third Street Promenade and dinner at one of her favorite restaurants.

He cocked his head, certain that had to be it.

Because if she wasn’t at the restaurant, he was fresh out of ideas. And almost out of time, as well.

Chapter42

>>>http://www.playsurvivewin.com<<<

PLAY.SURVIVE.WIN.

…please wait

…please wait

…please wait

>>>Password approved<<<

>>Read New Messages<<    >>>Continue To Game<<<

…please wait

>>>WELCOME TO GAMING CENTER<<<

>>Retrieve Assignment<<   >>>Report to Headquarters<<<

>>>WELCOME TO REPORTING CENTER<<<

>>Enter Journal Entry<<>>>Submit Viewable Report<<<

PLAYER REPORT:

REPORT NO. A-0002

Filed By:      Janus

Subject:       Failed Attempt—Lost Tracking Device

Report:        Target located at Santa Monica Pier. Attempt failed due to interference by protector, nature of crowd, and arrival of police.

Tracking device still functioning, but noting location opposite from the direction target ran. Assumption: Target separated herself from tracker.

Will attempt to relocate target.

The hunt continues.

>>>End Report<<

Send Report to Opponent? >>Yes<< >>No<<

Chapter43

I’m dunking bread into the herb-and-spice oil at Gaucho Grill, my absolutely favorite restaurant in Santa Monica. I’m not enjoying being there today, though. Heck, I can barely taste the bread. I’m too worried that something has happened to Blake.

It’s a reasonable fear. We barely got away ourselves, and ended up slogging across the beach in our wet clothes until we could steal new ones from someone foolish enough to leave shorts and tank tops just sitting there on empty beach towels.

“Why don’t we go look for him?” Andy says.

I’m tempted, but I shake my head. “No. It’s not even been an hour since we split. Give him a few more minutes.” I’ve spent the last half hour kicking myself for not having a plan for if we got separated, but there was nothing we could do about that now. I just have to hope that Blake has the same idea I do about where to come.

“We can’t stay here forever,” Andy says. “We need to keep moving. Janus could be out there right now.”

I nod, because he’s right. But we’re in the back, near the exit. And we have a view of the inside of the restaurant, plus the foot traffic along the promenade. For the moment, we’re safe.

“Devi?” Andy prompts.

“Without the next clue, where would we go?” I ask.

“Hole up in a hotel,” Andy says. “We’ve already talked about this. The tracker doesn’t pinpoint an exact location. If we check into a huge fancy hotel, he’ll never figure out what room we’re in.”

“What if the tracker in this game is better?” Certainly it was well hidden. Because although we’d tossed our phones, Janus had still found us. Which meant we’d ditched our phones for nothing. And the location of the damn tracking device was still a mystery.

“It’s not better,” he says, with such surety that I blink. He must see my confusion, because he explains. “He obviously tailed us from the Chateau, right? But he didn’t comein the Chateau. He waited for us to leave. Why? Because he didn’t know exactly where we were.”

“Thirty more minutes,” I say. “We’ll be safe that long, and we have a good view.”

“I’m not willing to risk your life for his,” Andy says, his voice harsh.

I close my hand on his. “I am,” I say, even as the truth of that statement hits home. Because it’s true. I’ve never felt that way about anyone before—never thought that I could willingly sacrifice for someone else. Now, I know I could. And if it came down to it, I would.

Not that I want it to come down to it.

Andy, however, doesn’t seem too keen on my revelation. “I lost one target,” he says. “I’m not going to lose another because you’ve got survivor’s guilt.” He stands up, tugging at my arm as he does. “Now come on.”

“Dammit, Andy,no. I want—”

The words die on my tongue as I see Blake walk into the restaurant, his eyes taking in every face as he works his way toward the back.

I stand up, waving, and watch as he sees me from the front of the restaurant and smiles.

He rushes over, pulling me into his arms even as Andy looks on, his face passive.

“I was terrified something happened to you,” Blake confesses. “I couldn’t get you on the phone, I couldn’t—” He stops, plucking at the blue tank top and baggy shorts I’m wearing, a huge departure from my usual Prada attire.

“Long story,” I say.

“So long as you’re safe.”

“We are. You?”