“Do we know who’s in charge?” Brick asked.
“Not yet, but I should have a better idea before the end of the day,” Spencer answered.
“Good. We’ll be heading out for chow soon.”
“Let me double-check to make sureall your trackers are working properly,” Spencer said before facing something off-camera.
Woodley came into view when Spencer moved, immediately capturing Harris’s attention. Neither said a word, but there was no need. The angry look on Woodley’s face and his furrowed brows indicated that he still wasn’t happy about the mission.
Spencer came back onto the screen. “Okay, I have all four of you tracked, and your hidden cameras are recording.”
The trackers weren’t attached to them or their clothing. They’d been implanted using a special needle that hurt like a son-of-a-bitch when shoved under the skin. For him, they’d done it twice as a precaution in two different areas of his body. Harris wouldn’t be goinganywherewithout the team knowing. It was reassuring but creepy at the same time. The cameras were no bigger than the head of a needle and attached to their watches, sunglasses, and buttons on their shirts. The team would be able to see and hear everything they did.
“We’ll be in touch,” Brick said, and the transmission ended.
“Wow, he’s pissed, eh,” Shaw said, followed by a long whistle. “Woodley’s still not on board with this mission.”
“No,” Harris said, hoping that would end it.
“You can’t blame the guy,” Fletcher chimed in. “I wouldn’t be too impressed if Elias went out on a dangerous police call without any physical backup.”
“You idiots are my backup,” Harris said.
“Yeah, but we won’t be in there with you,” Shaw said.
“It doesn’t matter. We aren’t in the same type of relationship you have with Elias; hell, the two of you are engaged,” Harris stated.
“I wouldn’t be too sure of that,” Shaw said.
Before Harris could argue, Brick spoke up.
“Let’s go make an appearance at the restaurant downstairs. I’m sure the first guy has called in some of his friends by now, and they’re ready for Act Two.”
The four men stood and headed out. Harris tried to clear his mind of Woodley, but it was useless.
When they arrived, the restaurant was half full, and the waiter seated them in a semicircular booth in the back, as Brick had requested. This position gave them the perfect view of the entrance and the rest of the restaurant so they could keep tabs on the place.
Brick fell into his role the minute they stepped out of the elevator, acting agitated and scowling at Harris. Fletcher and Shaw placed themselves between them to make it appear they were still trying to keep the peace between the other two men.
“Six and eight,” Fletcher whispered, indicating where he’d spotted their potential audience.
“Got ’em,” Harris answered. Jeez, whoever was in charge of this faction of the Noah Group needed to invest in some training for its goons. They stuck out among the other restaurant guests, and anyone with a trained eye for their surroundings could have picked them out.
The first guy looked to be in his early twenties, while the second was closer to fifty. The younger man sat at the bar, and the other sat alone at a table, each with a glass of beer sitting untouched in front of them. Harris snorted. The idiots should at least order some food or something to make it less obvious.Newbies were playing spies.
Brick handed out the menus, chucking one at Harris with more force than the others, and he wondered if the leader was enjoying this game a bit too much. Harris was oddly enjoyinghimself and fought not to smile and give them away. He felt more like part of the team, despite Brick giving him death stares.
“You better have brought some cash, dude. I ain’t paying for you,” Brick said to Harris.
“Don’t worry about me. I can take of myself, asshole,” Harris huffed.
“I doubt that, or we wouldn’t be stuck with your useless ass this long.”Good one.
“Okay, you two. Can we have one meal without this shit,” Fletcher growled. “I’m losing my appetite.”
They all returned to their menus and pretended to ignore each other but continued their conversation in code. The waiter came and went, and all four ordered beers; two got burgers, one steak, one fish, and all with chips. Harris was hungry and downed his burger in record time when their meals arrived. Once he was taken, Harris doubted he’d get fed like this if he was lucky enough to get any food. He sat waiting for the other three to finish when he got an idea.
“I’m going to the john.”