Chapter 17

　　Alpha Maximus

　　In the city I buy a backpack for Hope while we wait for Sally.

　　‘Hey guys. Here you go,’ she says, handing over the money, I put into the backpack.

　　‘We’re going to have breakfast. You should join us,’ I say.

　　‘Sure. There’s a cafe around the corner that makes really good food.’

　　‘Lead the way,’ I say, cheerfully.

　　We order breakfast and pay for Sally, and get to know her better. Hope keeps staring out the window, watching something or someone. There is a man on his phone a few metres from the window, staring at us.

　　A few men enter the cafe and sit at different tables. Hope and I look at each other. We can smell their scents. Sally notices we’ve stopped listening to her and our body language tells her we’re clearly uncomfortable.

　　‘Is something wrong?’ She whispers.

　　‘I'm sorry, but we need to leave. I don't want you to be involved in this,’ I say.