Chapter 24

He had cursed right after reading her note. He couldn't believe that after all this time, she wouldn't trust him with whatever she was dealing with and had just left.

Shu Kori watched from the driver's seat as the plane drifted up into the clouds and disappeared from view. The hand he'd used to hit the steering wheel clenched into a fist. He had no idea what Lily was thinking, leaving the safe haven of Las Vegas.

She was an enigma — self-reliant, overly independent… but he was not so easy to get rid of either. He would find her, no matter where she went.

~~~

Obsidian Alley in New York City was a hidden alley that appeared ordinary during the day, but was the source of nearly all of the city's darkness; it was a place where all kinds of information could be purchased and sold — such as, where the largest arms smuggling organization's latest goods were being exported, and on what route.

Everything could be bought for a price.

It was also here where drug addicts came for their cocaine and heroine; its grimy pavement was a perpetual witness to a plethora of violent murders, gang shootings, and prostitution.

Over time, the previously ordinary alleyway gained reputation amongst the city's criminal underworld and earned its name: Obsidian Alley.

Lily stood at the dim entrance of the aforementioned alleyway, leaning against a wall. She was fiddling around aimlessly with a lighter, faint glimmers occasionally glinting off its metallic silver body as it caught the occasional ray of sunlight that passed into the otherwise dingy place.

"Come to buy information again?"

The deep, heavy voice came from behind her and she watched as a distinctly human shape emerged from the shadow of the wall.

Without turning around, Lily asked, "I want to know the latest on the thieves."

"A million."

"I can do that."

Neither of them wasted any time.

"Follow me," the voice responded, turning around and heading off in the opposite direction. After a beat, Lily followed him down the familiar path.

"They got a new job recently…" The cold, detached voice in front of her made her whole body tense.

~~~

Lily walked slowly down the brightly-lit streets of New York City, deep in thought. She couldn't fight the uneasiness that enveloped her since leaving Obsidian Alley. The information she had received had been clear and concise… unnaturally so.

She had been a personal witness to her former organization's prowess all her life, and she had never known them to leak their agenda to the outside to such a degree. Anyone who was determined could have gotten the information she'd been given; there was no secret about it. A thief sent on such a blatantly overt mission was a thief that had been sent to die.

The organization wanted Misha dead.

The information Lily had received from Obsidian Alley didn't say who was actually being sent on the latest mission, but females were always chosen before males; lately, that had meant either she or Misha.

The job involved stealing a treasure that belonged to the Di Clan. Which was to say, either they wanted to force her to come back to help Misha, or they really wanted to send her friend to her grave. Antagonizing the lead crime syndicate was not a joke.

"Fucking hell."

Everything was to go down the next day. There was no time for Lily to prepare — no time to decide whether or not to even go, whether or not it was a ruse. It was hard to calm herself down to think rationally because it was Misha. If the information was true, Lily wondered what the organization had over her partner that she would risk her life to run this errand. She couldn't understand it.

Overhead, the sky was still dark. She and Misha used to steal from their targets when they were at their most defenseless. Misha would have chosen this time of day to make her move. Lily raised her head towards the pitch-black sky and made her decision. She would risk it and go check things out. If Misha was really on this mission, then she would regret it for the rest of her life if she didn't go help her.

~~~

Hidden inside a safety deposit box on the 112th floor of a bank was a piece of jade from the Warring States period that the Di Clan had just recently purchased from France. It was unknown how much they had spent on it, but Lily was sure it was of similar value to the Western Qin jade she and Misha had stolen for the organization during their last job, which was also the reason she felt that Misha must have been the one sent on this mission. The two of them specialized in ancient antiques.

She wasn't going to steal anything… just take a look, Lily thought as she made her way confidently into the building disguised as an employee. It was nighttime, but not everyone in the plaza worked from 9 to 5 — the janitors, for example.