THEO WASN’T OVERLY happy that he had to ditch his bike, but we didn’t have a choice. After making our way around the city and doing everything we could to stay out of sight, we stopped under an overpass and hid behind one of the supporting columns. This area was less populated, so the chance of someone spotting us around here was lower, but we still couldn’t linger too long.

“Where are we going to go? Do you maybe have or know of a good hideout somewhere?” I asked, although I supposed he’d have already told me about it if there was some place we could go and hide from Walter and the Spiders.

“Not really, but we’ll have to find one and soon.”

I spotted a payphone just across the street and an idea came to my mind. “I can call Vix. She and the Cobras might be able to help us. They might have a hideout for us that no one knows about.”

“Okay,” Theo said, “but be quick.”

I took a good look around, and when I was sure no one was watching us and that no one suspicious was here, I raced across the street. Theo was right behind me, and I knew he had my back, so I didn’t have to worry about someone attacking me in the middle of the call. I dialed Vix’s number, and she answered after the second ring.

“Hey, Vix, it’s me. I need your help,” I said.

“Chiara? What’s going on? Where are you? I was just about to check in on you to make sure everything was okay. Is this your new number or...?”

“I’m calling you from a payphone. The Spiders and Walter found Theo’s apartment and we had to run, but now we don’t have anywhere to go, so I was hoping you might know of a place where we could hide or at least get some rest.” Theo and I had been on the move for a few hours now, and even though I didn’t feel particularly tired, probably because of all the adrenaline coursing through me, I was sure that wouldn’t last long. The last thing I wanted was to have to face the Spiders exhausted.

“Oh, my God! Are you okay? Are you hurt?” Vix’s voice was filled with panic.

“No, we’re fine,” I said, although I was sure she’d been asking only about me and not about Theo.

“Can you come to the club? I’ll call the Cobras and tell them to bring their best men. We can protect you.”

“No. It has to be someplace else.” Walter was probably aware of my connection to the Cobras and Vix, so the club and the Cobras’ area were the first places where he’d expect to find me. If he or the Spiders’ spies spotted me in that area, they’d attack Vix and the Cobras, and I didn’t want that to happen.

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah. And you should be very careful too, because Walter and the Spiders might come after you if they think you’re hiding me.” I didn’t think Walter would try to capture Vix and use her as bait to draw me out, since it would be hard to get to Vix and he wouldn’t even know how to get in contact with me because I’d gotten rid of my phone so Theo and I couldn’t be tracked.

“Don’t worry about us,” she said. “I might have just the right place for you, but I need to arrange everything. There’s a room at a hotel and it’s reserved only for me. It’s not in my name or in any way connected to me, but the owner likes the money I pay him. You can go there until we find a better place. You won’t have to check in. I’ll tell them to leave the door open for you, and they won’t know who you are. You’d have to make sure not to be seen and to avoid the cameras, because there’s nothing I can do about that.”

“Okay.” That didn’t sound too bad. Who’d expect us to go to a hotel?

“Great. I’m going to make a few calls. Can you stay where you are so I can call you back? I promise it won’t take long.”

I glanced at Theo, who was keeping watch. His shoulders were relaxed, which meant that there wasn’t any danger at the moment. “I guess I can. If I don’t answer when you call this number, then I’ll have to contact you when I find another phone.”

“Alright.” Vix ended the call.

Theo turned toward me and gave me a questioning look.

“Vix has a plan,” I said. “But I need to wait for her to call me back.”

He only nodded, and I hoped Vix would call soon, because I didn’t want to stay here any longer than necessary. The Spiders and Walter would be looking everywhere for us, and I hoped no one could listen in on my conversations with Vix. The Cobras’ tech, Mick, had probably found a way to secure the line, but I’d have to tell Vix to be as vague as possible with the details since we couldn’t risk someone following us to that hotel. I truly hoped they wouldn’t find us.

***

AFTER VIX GAVE ME ALL the information about the hotel, we immediately headed there, but it took us a few hours to find the best route so no one would see us or realize where we were going.

We were just across from the hotel and hiding behind a thick tree trunk. There was a nice park surrounding the hotel, which was almost at the edge of the city, and luckily, this area didn’t belong to any gang. The only problem was that there were a lot of people, and even though they might not be a threat to us, we still had to make sure no one saw us. It was getting dark, though, so that would help us a bit, but there were a lot of lights in and out of the hotel.

“How are we going to reach the back door?” I asked. As Vix had requested, the door would be unlocked today, but if we didn’t get inside soon, they’d close it and then it would be much harder for us to reach the room, especially when we weren’t overly familiar with the layout of the hotel. Vix could have told me more over the phone, since the Cobras’ tech guy, Mick, had claimed the line was secure, but we hadn’t wanted to risk it.

Theo looked around, then nodded toward one of the shops. “We should disguise ourselves.”

My eyebrows shot up, because on the way here, he’d told me we shouldn’t go to any of the shops because of the potential cameras and spies. “But if we’re seen in there...”

“Oh, but we’re not going inside,” he said, and I frowned.

“I don’t understand.”

“Look closer.” His lips turned up.

I focused my gaze in the direction of the shop and realized he must’ve been indicating a bus station that was nearby instead. A group of people was waiting there with their suitcases and bags. “Did you just suggest we steal one of those people’s suitcases?”

His answer was a wide grin.

I groaned. “Come on! We’re not going to do that. Those people are probably on vacation here and the last thing they need is a missing bag.” Not to mention it wouldn’t be easy to get there and take a bag without being seen. But then again, there were plenty of people and they were busy chatting, and some of their bags were a bit farther away from watchful eyes.

“It’s not our fault if they’re not careful enough. Besides, if they can afford that hotel, they can buy new clothes.”

“I don’t know. What if someone sees us?”

“Look at them. They’re tourists. They don’t even know the Spiders exist, and they won’t contact them. I can go and snatch one of those bags without anyone noticing. I’m sure of it. And there don’t seem to be any cameras around here.”

I eyed him for a moment. “Okay, but I’ll make fun of you if you pick up a bag with some weird stuff in it.”

“Don’t worry. I have a plan.” He flashed me a smile, then headed toward the bus station, keeping close to the trees and hedge. I supposed he already had someone in mind, so I wondered who it was. A few moments later, he disappeared from view. I kept looking in the direction of the station, but I couldn’t see him anywhere.

The people were still talking and laughing about something, and then their bus arrived, blocking my view. I waited near the tree, wondering where Theo was. What if someone had seen him or if Walter and the Spiders had shown up? My stomach did a nervous flip when the bus went away, leaving the station empty.

“Boo,” Theo said behind my back, and I yelped.

“Seriously?” I shot him a glare. “I was worried about you.”

“Why?” Amusement flashed in his eyes. “Did you think some old lady saw me and was trying to beat me up with her purse?”

“Well, yeah.” My gaze fell on the black duffel bag in his hand. “Is that some guy’s clothes?”

He only grinned at me and bobbed his head toward the bushes. “Let’s go over there.”

When he opened the bag, he pulled out two hoodies. “Which one do you want?”

“The black one,” I said, and he handed it to me so I could put it on. He took the dark gray one with a yellow symbol on it and grabbed a pair of shades out of the bag. There was also a black scarf, which I wrapped around my neck so I could easily cover my mouth and nose if I needed to. “If anyone sees us, they’re going to think we’re robbers and call the cops.”

“Nah. They’ll just think we’re very weird tourists.”

“Yeah, I can say I have a skin condition or something.” I chuckled.

“I’m glad you’re enjoying yourself.”

“A little.” I’d enjoy this a whole lot more if there wasn’t a chance we were going to end up in the Spiders’ web. “I wonder how the Spiders got their name. Did a spider fall on Jerome’s shoulder one day and he got this awesome idea for a gang name?”

“Maybe.” Theo focused on the hotel. “We should get going. It’s dark enough. We’ll go through the park and to the parking lot. It should be easier to reach the back door that way, but we’ll have to be careful of the cameras and not look up at them no matter what.”

“Okay. Let’s do this.” I slid the hoodie over my head. It was kind of chilly outside, so it wouldn’t be weird to go around with a scarf. God, I really hoped this would work.