Page 48 of Six
“There,” she said, pointing to a Subaru dealer.
Again, he shot her a look. “We’re going tobuya new car?” he clarified as he turned into the lot.
She tipped her head in acknowledgment of the absurdity. “Believe me, with the kind of money my friends and I have, this is a lot easier than renting. Besides, I’ll donate it when we’re done, or if Abyasa, Candra, or Shinta want to stay once this is all over, I’ll give it to them.”
Gavin made a noise that was something between a grunt and a laugh and pulled into a spot. “If that’s the case, why a Subaru? Why not something more fun, like Devil’s Cayenne?”
“We’re going for generic here, Gavin,” she said, popping her door open and sliding from her seat. “How many Cayennes do you see on the road versus Subarus?” She shut the door behind her and missed his reply. She’d barely started walking to the showroom when a man approached her.
“Ms. Salvitto?” he asked. Six smiled at her ever-efficient friends; he was already carrying a key and had some paperwork on a clipboard.
“Yes, that’s me,” she answered, and held out her hand. He shifted the key to his other hand and shook hers.
“David Holland,” he said, his eyes flitting to Gavin, who’d also exited her Tesla and now stood, arms crossed, watching them. “I’ll need to check your driver’s license, and I have someone inside finishing up the paperwork, but it shouldn’t take more than five minutes. In the meantime, let me show you to your new car.”
“I’ll stay here and get our things together,” Gavin offered. Six nodded. She wasn’t sure where he’d put the gun she’d given him earlier, but it wasn’t the only weapon they’d need to retrieve and transfer to their new transport.
“There are a few things in the trunk,” she said.
He nodded. “I know. Franklin mentioned it.”
That comment gave her pause for about three seconds—she hadn’t known Franklin knew about her secret compartment, though she should have. But then she pulled her license from her wallet and followed David Holland to a dark green WRX STI Limited. She paid no attention to the salesman as he spouted the features of the vehicle and instead, she turned her mind to their next steps. Despite her earlier words, she’d much prefer it if Julian lived to pay for his sins. If he didn’t, she wouldn’t mourn him, but if she had her way, she wanted to bring him—and everyone involved in the actions at the plantation—to their knees. She wanted to strip them of their arrogance and entitlement. She wanted to rip away their money and the insular bubble they’d built around themselves. She wanted the world to know that sometimes, the biggest monsters hid behind suits and luxury homes. Knowing that wolves sometimes dressed in sheep’s clothing wasn’t a new concept. And the men involved weren’t the first, nor, unfortunately, would they be the last. But they were the ones Six could bring down.
“Do you have any questions?” David Holland asked, having finished his spiel that she’d heard none of.
Six shook her head and handed over her driver’s license. David took it and wrote a few things down on the clipboard he carried. Then he pulled out a small tablet, a little larger than a phone, and took a picture of it. He was sliding the device back into his pocket when a phone dinged. Pullingthatdevice from his other pocket, he read a message, then smiled.
“Everything okay?” Six asked.
“Of course, Ms. Salvitto. Thank you for doing business with us, and if you ever need another car, I hope you’ll keep us in mind.” And with that he handed her the key and opened the driver’s door.
She murmured a platitude and a thank you, then slid onto the leather seat. Glancing at the unfamiliar dashboard and controls, she considered that it might have been good to listen to the salesman describe all the features and functionality. Finally, her eye caught on the start button and once she adjusted her seat, she brought the engine to life. David smiled at her, then shut the door and stepped away.
Taking a moment to assess the controls, she was pleased to find it a manual transmission. She loved her automatics, but there was nothing quite like a manual for harnessing speed and power. Shifting into first gear, she pulled the car out of the spot and headed back to where Gavin stood beside her Tesla, a duffel bag slung over his shoulder. She had no idea where the bag had come from, but since she used her car like a closet, its presence didn’t surprise her.
“Hey, sexy, want a ride?” she teased after pulling up in front of him and rolling her window down.
He shook his head and smiled, then rounded the car and took a seat beside her, tossing the bag at his feet. “What about your car?” he asked.
“I’ll have Javier come get it over the weekend.”
“And who is Javier?” Gavin asked, buckling his seat belt.
“My cleaner. His mom cooks for me, too. She’s Spanish but married an Italian and learned all the best Italian dishes. She’s amazing, and her son is a cleaner extraordinaire. He’s a little more like a house manager than just a cleaner, but he’s the best.”
“Right, fine,” Gavin said. “So, what is the plan?” he asked again as she turned onto the road and tested the acceleration.
“Can you set this up?” she asked, handing him her phone and nodding to the small in-dash screen. He took the device and when he started connecting it to the Bluetooth, she continued. “As much as I think the world would be a better place without Julian Newcross, we need to protect him from DePalma. He might not testify against anyone, but I want Abyasa, Candra, and Shinta to have the opportunity to face him in court.”
“You want to humiliate him,” Gavin said, handing her phone back. He’d connected it to the system in less time than it took her to pull her shoes on.
“That too, yes,” she admitted. “I think that’s almost a worse punishment than the swift death DePalma likely has planned.”
“So back to the house?” he asked.
She was about to nod when the phone rang, startlingly loud in the cab of the car. Nora’s name appeared on the screen, and Gavin quickly adjusted the volume, then hit the Answer button.
“DePalma is getting ready to leave,” she said without preamble. “He’s outside, talking to the guard. Devil is trying to lip-read, but she can only see the guard. From what we can tell, DePalma must have asked about you, because the guard definitely said your name.”
