Page 70 of The Deeper Game
Odin looked over at me. “I could.”
“Do me first,” I said. “We go into this job with everything right.”
Odin’s eyes glittered. “Get the chair.”
Four hours later we were all freshly inked with the full message:You WISH we were dead, motherfuckers.I felt happy and free, like even more of a real outlaw than before.
Zeus declared that finishing them had strengthened the psychophysical play of the robbery—like a sign to the universe that the bank robbers were unstoppable. They were so voodoo about robberies, my guys.
Friday morning, my guys and Matteo and I met up bright and early to wipe bullets and study traffic cams. The job wouldn’t actually take place until after the close of the business day. The plan was to sit there in shifts all through the day in different vehicles.
We grabbed donuts on the way to the bank block, then found our favorite parking spot and began the long stakeout—minus Zeus, who was, of course, inside with the HVAC crew. Things looked normal. Like many businesses, the Prime was the most lax on Fridays.
“I hope you won’t be expecting us to wear tights from now on,” Thor said when Matteo was off for a pee break. We hadn’tspoken much about the elf and woodsmen role play. Really, what was there to say?
“I hopeyoudon’t drug and abduct me every time you want to fuck,” I said, adjusting a curl on my wig.
Thor snorted. “I wouldn’t recommend it simply from a medical standpoint.”
“I legit thought you guys were the feather guy,” I said. “It freaked me out.”
“The feather guy is in jail,” Thor said, eyeing the guard out on a smoke break.
“Well, if he had a partner.”
“There could never be more than one feather guy,” Odin said. “He works alone. It’s his profile.”
“Though he never did confess,” I said.
A strange hush fell down around us. “I know,” Odin said finally. Which was way too long to respond to something so obvious.
“What?” I asked.
“Nothing. You know. Who doesn’t prefer a confession?” Odin said, eying me. “It’s a closure thing.”
I lay my head on Thor’s shoulder. “I trust you guys.” I flicked my gaze to Odin. I’d decided to trust. To trust in everything. I hated that Odin had that bad feeling, but that’s something I had to live with. I had thrown in with them all the way. I didn’t tell them I hadn’t slept at all the night before.
Thor put his arm around me and kissed my hair. “We got you,” he whispered.
I smiled. “Woe betide anyone who messes with the God Pack.”
Odin laughed, but it was just a courtesy laugh.
He was barely listening.
We all got a little remote before a big job—pulling into ourselves, or sometimes out of ourselves. You had to gosomewhere before a heist, that was the thing I’d realized over the months with my robbers. You had to prepare your soul for the intensity.
But this seemed like more. “Something up?” I asked him.
“I’m thinking we could put Thor out here with you.”
“What?” Thor protested. “During the job? I’m bag man.”
“We’re in there for so long,” he said. “Leaving Ice unprotected.”
Thor said, “Ice can protect herself.”
“Yeah, you know you can trust me out here,” I protested, feeling a little hurt. “I can handle it. You know I’m on board one hundred percent—”
