Page 72 of Hot Pursuit
Leo put his hands against Nate’s back and gave him a hard shove toward the exit. “I only have one request, Parker.”
He risked a glance over his shoulder as he opened the door. “What’s that?”
“I’ll call the guys in the field.” They stepped into the hall and Leo motioned toward the room ten feet down, pointing with his thumb. “You have to wake up the rest of the team.”
- 25 -
Jo
Speed was the greatest advantage a thief could have—get in and get out before anyone had a chance to notice. Jo was forever grateful for that singular fact as she rounded the corner to find Thad standing in the shadows, arms crossed, eyes a raging storm as they found hers.
“Where the hell have you been?”
Jo stepped smoothly past him. “I’m five minutes late, relax.”
“Jo—” But he cut himself off with a growl.
Because, like she’d said, speed. The Feds weren’t here—yet. And they had to get this done before they were.
“Did you deal with the cameras?” Jo asked, getting right to business.
Thad shot her a look, like how dare she question him. “Of course.”
The step had been simple enough. Jo had hacked into the city database and grabbed screenshots of the overnight images on each of the street cams within a two-block radius of the townhouse. Thad sized and printed the images, then attached them to the lenses. As long as no police officer happened to be watching during that split second when the photo was slipped into place, which really, was incredibly unlikely considering the cams were mostly used to retroactively search for evidence since there were hundreds, heck, thousands of them, they’d be in the clear. The digital timer would keep counting, and it wouldn’t be until morning that someone noticed the street still looked like it did at night—dark and empty—instead of swarming with people in bright daylight. Simple, but effective.
Thad handed her a black ski mask. She tied her hair into a ponytail and slipped the cotton over her head to cover her face. She hated breathing in these damn things. They made her entire chin and neck sweaty and itchy, but they were necessary, just in case anyone happened to burst in before they were done. What she hated most of all, though, was the fact that as soon as she pulled the hood over her head, she truly felt like a criminal. And there was no way around that.
“How’d it go with Parker?” Thad asked, voice slightly muffled as he pulled his mask on. “Did you get anything?”
“No, sorry.” Jo looked to the ground as she answered. If he saw into her eyes, he’d know she wasn’t telling the truth. The flash drive burned a hole in her metaphorical pocket, but she didn’t want Thad to know she had it. To know how close she was to uncovering the truth. “How long ago did the Feds leave?”
“About an hour and a half,” Thad murmured. “I didn’t come out of hiding until I saw them pull away. But that doesn’t mean they won’t be back.”
Jo nodded, trying her best to act casually. He stared at her a moment longer, then stepped out of the shadows and crossed the street, moving swiftly toward the front door of the townhome. She followed his lead. It was late and quiet and dark, at least by New York standards. For all the money and social status, the Upper East Side was one of the easiest places in the entire city to rob. The streets were more residential than commercial. People went to sleep at a reasonable hour. The only big hindrance was the high-tech security systems, but that was why Jo was there. When they reached the front door, Thad pulled a small needle from his pocket, but it was her moment to shine.
Jo glanced up, finding his steely eyes. “Thaddy…”
He tilted his head, curious.
Jo swallowed. Once they got inside, there’d be no more talking. And once they were done, they’d split up, two different hotels, two different flights, two different destinations. If there was anything she wanted to say, she had to say it now. About Nate. About the Russians. About her father. About them. About anything. But the words caught in her throat, too much to explain, too much to think about when the mission required all her focus.
“Good luck.”
“I don’t need luck, Jo Jo.” He put his finger under her chin, tilting her face up, studying her. And then he winked and dropped his hand. “Not when I have you.”
Jo rolled her eyes to cover up the twinge of guilt needling her side. And then she took out her tablet and got to work.
My final job.
One way or another, this is it.
The last time.
With that thought as fuel, she typed a few strands of code and cut her way into the security system using the bugs she’d planted earlier. Her fingers moved fast as lightning over her keyboard as she disabled the house alarm, turned off the cameras inside, and shut down the motion sensors. Then she looked up, meeting Thad’s questioning gaze with a nod.
He knelt, pushing his needle into the lock. A few turns of his wrist and the door clicked open. They slipped inside and shut it quietly behind them. Even though Thad hadn’t attended the gala, he’d studied the blueprints they’d stolen same as she, and he found the staircase easily, moving fast but absolutely silent through the house, a panther on the hunt, stalking its prey. As they crested the steps, Jo spared a moment to glance his way. A thrilled gleam flared to life in the corners of his eyes, one Jo couldn’t help but notice resembled the glinting edge of a sword in the sun, lethal and beautiful and terrifying all at once. He zeroed in on the Degas, taking it in hungrily, a starved man finding food for the first time. Art was his drug, his life, his passion.
And his downfall…The thought broke through before she could smother it.
