Chapter 15 · Traceless - Chapter 15: The Door Under the City

Cole didn't say anything the whole ride back.

Layla sat in the passenger seat of his beat-up sedan, the hand-stitched envelope heavy in her lap. Maya. The name carved inside the metal bracelet still burned against her wrist like it was trying to brand itself into her skin. She'd slipped the bracelet back on after Vera left, but now she couldn't stop touching it. Turning it. Feeling the ridge of letters hidden underneath.

Evan followed in his own car. She could see his headlights in the side mirror, staying close but not too close. Like he didn't know what his role was anymore.

Cole's jaw was tight. He hadn't looked at her since they'd left the archive yard. His knuckles were still red from where he'd crushed the HQ chip into the concrete.

"Say it," Layla said finally.

Cole's eyes flicked toward her, then back to the road. "Say what."

"That you knew." Her voice came out steadier than she expected. "That you came looking for me because someone told you to. That everything since the wedding was just—"

"It wasn't."

"Vera said your uncle put me with the Greys. That means someone in your family knew.