Page 91 of Inside the Wicked

“We need to get him the fuck out,” Rhett snaps, straightening and running a hand through his hair.

“He’s around a whole group of guys at all times, never alone. We’re at a loss, man. If he tries to run, they’ll shoot him on the spot. We try to close in, and it could end in a bloodbath.”

“I’ll meet with Jacob,” I say.

“Not alone,” Rhett counters.

“I should. He’s not best fond of you and might not talk. He’s not a fool to trust you.”

“He won’t trust you either in that case. Anything he says to you, you’ll relay to me anyway.”

I purse my lips. “We would meet every second Sunday at a rooftop restaurant in the city. It’s been a couple of weeks, but I imagine he figured out what happened with Alistair and realized why I haven’t shown. We should go this week and hope he turns up.”

Rix says, “Should we tell him about Lanshall? If we really think he’s buying that he’s part of our team, he might be able to get Jeremy out next time he’s sent to his location. Fake his death as a weeded-out spy or something.”

“I don’t like this,” Rhett mutters.

I watch the wheels turning in his mind as he surveys the screens, but he’s not attentive to anything on them. He stands with arms crossed, his chin in one hand. “Something doesn’t feel right,” is all he says.

It wouldn’t seem like much from anyone else, but I trust Rhett’s intuition more than anyone’s.

“Let’s just meet with him. Perhaps you’ll get a better sense of whether we can trust him then,” I say.

Rhett nods. “We can’t give up Jeremy’s position as one of us yet. It’s too much of a risk.”

“Damn it,” Rix exasperates. He looks so tired and concerned. I don’t know exactly how long Jeremy has been in Alistair’s clutches, but Rix is getting desperate.

“I know,” Rhett says, and the concern of a brother lingers in him too.

“He seemed well when I saw him a few weeks ago,” I say. It’s not much, and my chest is tight as I think of his kindness. “He really helped me. Asked about Frodo and Sam. I think he’s worried about your wrath when he gets out.”

“At least he’s keeping confident he’ll get out,” Rhett mutters.

“That’s always him. It’s like he believes he’s fucking Batman sometimes,” Rix grumbles. His mouth slowly upturns, and he chuckles. Even Rhett almost smiles with his breath of humor. “Fuck. I miss that damned kid.”

“We’ll get him back,” Rhett promises, but I hear the note of wariness in him. “It’s late—we need to all get some sleep.”

The thought of going to bed in the warehouse apartment with Rhett sounds like the best thing in the world right now. I wish wecould have a week, just one full week, to spend locked up in there alone before we have to dive into the devil’s work. For now, I’ll take every moment, however short, that I can get.

CHAPTER 34

Anastasia

“I’m glad you’re here, but I also wish you weren’t,” I say to Rhett.

I sip my water again as we sit hand in hand at the usual table I meet Jacob at in the rooftop restaurant.

“Would it make you feel better if I dyed my hair as a disguise?” Rhett muses.

My eyes rove over him, trying to imagine brunette, black, or red in place of his silver-blond hair.

“Absolutely not,” I decide.

He knows my anxiety is that he’ll be seen by the wrong person. I don’t know what I’ll do if law enforcement gets ahold of him. It would cause far worse friction between my dad and me. I wouldn’t care what kind of crazed person it would make me look if I defended someone who, to my parents and everyone else, is a fraudulent criminal they’ve concluded could have been part of Gregory’s setup to assassinate my father.

“We’re being careful.” Rhett consoles me, slipping a hand over my bouncing knee. “Rix has eyes everywhere, and we’re diligent before going in anywhere.”

I nod. I know this, yet I can’t smother my nerves.

---