He didn’t stop, his long strides taking him down the hall.

“I’m coming with you,” I said, catching his arm.

He looked at me, his eyes dark with a mixture of fear and resolve.

“It’s going to be dangerous, Elena,” he said.

“She took five years of my life, Dominic,” I said. “I am going to watch her lose hers.”

We ran out of the building and back to the SUV.

The tires screeched as Dominic pulled out onto the empty Manhattan streets, heading for the Lincoln Tunnel.

The dashboard clock glowed green, ticking down the minutes.

The tunnel was a blur of yellow tiles and white lights.

Dominic drove faster than he ever had, weaving through the light early-morning traffic.

We crossed into New Jersey, the industrial landscape of the Meadowlands rising up around us.

My hands shook as I watched the highway signs for Teterboro.

Dominic’s phone lit up on the console, showing an incoming call from an unknown number.

He pressed the speaker button.

“Dominic,” a cold, familiar voice came through the speakers.

It was Caterina.

“Mother,” Dominic said, his voice flat.