Smirk of Fire (The Underground #1)

Chapter 2

Olivia

I left the house at midday; Cali was having none of my arguments when I tried to persuade her to let me stay. Apparently, if she saw me anywhere near the house, she'd stop allowing me to work at The Whip. I didn't need the job for the money, but I needed the distraction, and she knew it too. She was just trying to keep me safe; sometimes, they forgot I was twenty-two.

I spent the day hanging around in the city. I wandered around the shops but found nothing. I had this bad feeling itching at me all afternoon. It had been a long while since I'd felt the familiar prickle on the back of my neck when something was amiss, I almost didn't recognise it.

So, I packed up my work. I'd been sketching the ducks in the pond, and rushed home. If it was nothing, I'd kick myself for it, but I was sure something was wrong. The gravel crunched loudly as I drove up the long driveway, I punched in the code, and the gates yawned open for me.

There wasn't a single car in sight, I assumed all the attendees would have flashy vehicles, but there was nothing.

Not a single soul.

My heart sped up, and I rushed inside to find it empty. I shouted out but found nothing. Not a response. Stuff was strewn about like somebody was searching for something. I ran to Cali's office and snatched the gun she kept hidden beneath her desk. It hadn't been touched, so whoever had been inside having caught them unaware had the upper hand.

I was furious. Cali had given the code to only specific people, so few people could've got in. How they had got inside was a mystery, but I was past thinking. I took the keys for the car, the sleek black convertible the fastest we had.

It roared to life and purred like a tiger ready to pounce. Cali had said bits and pieces, enough for me to guess where the regular meetings were. Some lake house up north, secluded and peaceful, no watching eyes. Perfect for keeping their business hidden.

I drove for a long time, refusing to take a rest until I was sure the girls were safe. They were all I had left; they were my family. I couldn't lose anyone else. I couldn't, and I would tear the world apart to find them if I had to.

When I no longer had any idea where I was headed, I hunted through the car for anything to give away a secluded location. I was stopped on the side of the small road when a loud fancy vehicle sped past. I immediately knew only a few people owned a car like that.

I softly followed behind, thanking my car was nearly silent as I trailed the flash vehicle ahead. When they turned off down a small road, I waited a moment before slipping in behind them. I paused at the massive gates before frowning at the dash of the car.

I'd been driving for hours, and the set of numbers counting the kilometres hadn't budged. Either the car was broken, or my suspicions were correct, it was a pretty ingenious way to hide a unique code. It was my only option; I couldn't give up on the girls.

I sucked in a deep breath and pressed the numbers, the light flashed green, and I collapsed against the seat in relief. I moved further into the deep bush before parking my car off to one side for a fast exit should I need it.

With the gun slipped into my waistband, I walked further up the gravel road. No cars approached from behind me, and it was a short walk to a large fancy house. It was surrounded by trees on the edge of a hidden lake. It had large glass windows to allow in natural light, but I couldn't see a single person.

The door was unlocked, and I pushed it open quietly. My footfalls were silent on the carpeted floor, but it only took one wrong step and then a door was opened. A towering male stepped out; he had dark hair that was thick and curly. His hazel-green eyes shadowed by sinister darkness.

When he spied me, his hand flashed to his side before I stared down the barrel of a gun. His loud shout alerted his companions. I was silent as I pulled my own. I wouldn't back down until one of them came clean. If Cali were there, she would kill me.

All of a sudden, I was surrounded from all sides, guns cocked and ready to fire. I took a deep breath; I didn't even recognise a single face. "Liv?" A familiar voice asked, and I spun sharply to find Elijah, a friend from the Whip, standing to one side. "What are you doing here, where's Cali?" He asked and gestured a hand to lower the weapons as he stepped past a female with a gun and strode towards me.

"She was gone, the house is a mess." I sighed and ran a hand through my hair, "I had hoped she would be here." Elijah gave me a grim look confirming my suspicions. She was a no show.

The guns were lowered, and I noted the dark looks on many people faces. The tall male with the dark hazel eyes glared at me from beneath lowered brows. "Taken, Cali wouldn't get caught unaware like that," Elijah said sceptically.

"She said the meeting was happening at home, she asked me to leave, and when I returned, she was gone. Mer too." I tell him sharply, whoever it was will break. Or else I will hunt each of them down until I get some proper answers.

Elijah gives me a grim look, "Go home, Liv, we'll deal with this." He commands, and I stare at him, ready to laugh, but he's not joking.

"Bullshit." I say lethally calm, many people give me cautious looks, "They're all I have left, I'm going to find them with or without you." I warn him, he may have talked to me a few times, but he doesn't know who I am.

Elijah turns away from me and beckons for a few people to follow him. I slump to the floor and sit on the stairs. A few stragglers give me warning looks, but nobody has a gun at me anymore. Elijah owns a casino, a money scam. It doubles as a drug coverup too. Cali warned me of him the night I first met him. He's seen bad stuff, done worse.

Not a moment later, Elijah returns, his face masked. "There's an Italian dealer, he crossed us a few months back, find him, and I'll help you," Elijah says, his voice devoid of any emotion. I do something for them, and in return, they help me.

It's dangerous and maybe a waste of my time, but it's my only option. I've done worse. I've hunted people before, people who are hard to find. If I thought, I could find the girls on my own; I would. But I know I can't, with no lead or trace and no connections I'm stuck.

"Dead or alive?" I lean back against the wall, fiddling with the gun in my hand. It's nice to be back in the business. The thrill isn't quite the same when it's my family I'm looking for. Elijah gives me a sinister look, and I return it with a wicked smile.

"You can stay here for tonight, Kace will give you what we know on him, and you leave in the morning." He says, and I frown at the towering male of his shoulder, whom I can only assume is Kace.

I haven't heard of him, the intricate tattoos across his arms slip beneath the sleeves of his rolled-up dress shirt. There's a hint of ink at his neck when the buttons are undone, but I can't see much more. His dark eyes watch me like a hawk, his eyes dip down my body in a long lengthy gaze before coming back to my own.

Fuck. I swear beneath my breath. The male is gorgeous; all of them are. It feels like I've run headfirst into blue fire. It's scalding, and I'm not sure I'll escape alive.

Not if those silent hazel eyes kill me first.