Instead, he shoved the documents over to me. I stuffed them back into the hollow space inside the granite, wiped my fingerprints off the diamond vial, then put it inside as well. Although I wanted to, I didn’t take the stone. The cowboy dwarf might not pursue us so hard if he still had the diamond. Big, big maybe, but it was the only hope I had.

I hastily wiped down the granite slab and safe with my jacket sleeve, then hefted the stone slab I’d cut out back into its original place. There was no time to be subtle, so I blasted the rock back in place with my magic, sealing it up tight once more. With his Stone magic, Dawson would be able to sense what I’d done immediately, but he shouldn’t be able to trace it back to me—or more importantly, the Foxes.

Donovan held out a hand and helped me to my feet.

“We need to get out of here,” I said. “Now.”

We scurried down the hallway and into the front of the building. I turned my flashlight off and peered through the thin slats in the blinds. Two flashlights bobbed in our direction. Giants, considering the fact the lights were about even with my head. Beside me, Donovan turned off his own flashlight and drew his gun.

“Put that away,” I said. “Open the door and head straight toward the back of the basin, where we climbed down. Outrunning them is our best chance. Not engaging in a firefight.”

“What are you going to do?”

“Make sure they don’t follow us.”

Donovan shook his head. “No, Gin. Let me stay and help you—”

“This isn’t a fucking discussion,” I said. “It won’t much matter if they capture me, but you? It’ll ruin you, detective. So go. Now. I’m a big girl. I can take care of myself. Been doing it for years.”

Donovan stared at me. I could see the gold glint of his eyes even in the darkness and the emotions sparking in their depths. Worry. Concern. Resignation. After a few seconds, the detective reluctantly holstered his gun. He moved toward the door and opened it.

By the time I stepped outside behind him, Donovan had already taken off back the way we’d come in. Twenty steps later, the rain and night and shadows swallowed him, just the way I’d known they would.

I palmed my silverstone knives. But instead of sprinting after the detective, I slid around the side of the building and moved all the way to the back, where Tobias Dawson’s office was. Ten… twenty… thirty… I counted off the seconds in my head.

I didn’t have long to wait. Despite the rain and mud, their footsteps reverberated through the stone under my feet. Solid, heavy, pounding. Shouts drifted through the rain.

“Do you see anything?”

“No. You?”

“Hey! The front door’s wide open!”