The tapping starts up again. “Okay. You’re a big boy, and I really hope your trust doesn’t get you killed.”

“You know what? Me too.”

He laughs. “How did we get into this mess again?”

“I’m still asking myself the same question. It’s pretty fucking extreme just because Yanni didn’t want a bit of competition.”

“Cute that you think you’re competition for them.”

“I don’t. They clearly do.”

Lars chews on his bottom lip. “I know you trust Perry, but do you think we should head somewhere else for a few hours? Just in case?”

“You think he’s going to rat us out?”

“Unfortunately, I get where you’re coming from. Perry doesn’t seem like the kind of guy who’d throw us under the bus, but I also get the feeling that Perry doesn’t have to make our lives harder on purpose. He’s perfectly capable of doing it accidentally.”

I had the same thought. I hate that I had the same thought because I don’t want to underestimate Perry or make him feel bad, but the confidence I have in him thinking things through isn’t high. And hey, I wouldn’t be so damn attracted to his spontaneity if he was the kind of guy who assesses risks.

Unfortunately, that’s great for sex, bad for survival.

“You might be right,” I allow. “But where the hell do we go? We’re only here because we ran out of options.”

Lars tosses the coaster back onto the table. “My parents’ place, probably.”

“You really want them to be caught up in this mess?”

“I don’t think I have a choice.”

I shake my head because the fewer people we involve, the better. Lars’s parents are the kind of people you’d expect to be smiling from the front of a muffin box. Or as the American ambassadors to The Great British Baking Show. Even mentioning contract killers around them would be enough to make their sweet brains short-circuit.

“We’d be going to my parents’ place before yours,” I point out.

“Except there’s a chance they’re being watched.”

That reminder sits heavy on my chest. I’m trying not to reach the point of everything feeling helpless, but I’m already so on edge with radio silence from Colin and now Perry that I’m not sure how much longer I can spend sitting around doing nothing.

A pounding on the front door makes me jump, and Lars immediately stands and pulls out his gun.

“Perry, you think?”

“He’s got a key.” Lars points to the bedrooms. “Go.”