groups, whispering and glancing at their phones. Adaline ignored them. She kept
cold wind bit into her tear-stained cheeks, stinging her s
r hand, hailing a yellow cab. A man in a business sui
her expression so dark and unyielding that
the cab. "Downtown. The Neon A
. The city lights blurred into streaks of yellow and red. Sh
s, her chronically ill younger brother, sat in the transaction queue, waiting to drain the accoun
daline paid the fare with trembling fing
lined alley to the staff door. Even out here, the heavy bass of the c
cker. She stripped off her ruined corporate blazer, shoving it into the back of the m
shuddering breath, physically compartmentalizing her grief. She shoved t
k hallway and took her place beh
shaking, wiping down the counter. The intense physical labor numbed
his way through the crowd. He looked s
need you to run this bottle of scotch to B
tle and two glasses. She stepped out from behind the bar and wove her way t
was slouched over the curved leather sofa. His breathing was heav
ray down on the glass table
me water, sir?"
was buried in his hands, his fin
ws. She smelled strongly of cheap perfume. She leaned over the
's get you out of he
, uncoordinated. "Get lost," he muttered. His voice
Dilated pupils, excessive sweating, loss
man. She squared her shoulders. "I need to see y
reath. She glanced around, realizing a bouncer was looking in thei
rned back
ind his generic, wire-rimmed glasses. Sweat dripped down hi
eak, Kory lunged forwar
iated through her uniform sleeve. Adaline gasp
s strangely arrogant, demanding, despite his com
r wrist away. "Let go of
humb brushed heavily against her pulse p
chaotic mix of profound despair and reckless rebellion washed over her broken hear
r completely tonight. She wa
ory in the eyes.
stand, pushing off the leather
vy frame against her shoulder. The w
room and signaled for them to cover her station. Sh
ng," she o
se to the wall to avoid the main crowd. Kory's hot breath fann
of the hall. The alarm had been deactivated by the stafftepping out into the freezing, dark alley behind the bar. Kory
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