Page 21 of Nest of Thieves
My hands shake as I engage the safety. I put the gun on the floor and drop my head into my palms. I’m fucked. More than fucked. I’m going to die. Laurence will kill me for losing the ruby. It was worth more than my life fifty times over.
Who the fuck are these alphas?
Why the hell did they come to Philly?
Goddammit. This time tomorrow, I’ll be dead. I have to call Laurence and tell him what happened, maybe he’ll understand...No. No, no. I know better. That man doesn’t give pardons. I’m supposed to do the job I’m given, no fuck-ups. No interference.
That’s the deal.
Get the job done. Do it right.
Stay alive.
I still have time to grab my things and get out of town.
See you in Atlantic City.
Maybe if I retrieve the ring, Laurence will forgive me for disappearing on him. If not, well, Atlantic City sounds like a good place to hide.
six
VETTE
Lark’s laptop lights up the inside of the vehicle. I climb into the driver’s side seat and shut the door. The ring is heavy in my pocket. It’ll fetch a high price. Hopefully Damien will forgive us the missing cash when we give him the ring. I don’t know much about jewelry, but a gem this big has to be worth at least a million dollars. Mac bursts out of the house a few seconds later.
He releases a soft huff of laughter once he’s inside. “I think I’m in love.”
Lark rolls his eyes at me.
“You hardly know her, Mac.” I turn on the car and glance at him over my shoulder. He’s staring back toward the home. “Forget about her. It’s time to go home.” Even as I say it, I know I won’t be able to forget her either.
Jo’s angry glare is going to haunt me.
It’s because she’s an omega. Your hormones are fucking with your head.
Whatever I have to tell myself.
Mac releases a dreamy sigh. “She’ll be in my wet dreams.”
“That’s disgusting,” Lark mutters, clacking away at his keyboard.
“Don’t act like you’re not attracted to her. Neither of you are blind.” Mac pulls his gaze from the house and flicks his eyes between us.
Lark hits the enter button. “She’s a distraction. We’re here to get a job done.”
“Are we good here?” I eye the door. I don’t trust that omega. She’s likely to try and hop on the hood to keep us from driving away. I fight off a smile at the thought.
“One more minute.” Lark leans toward the screen and hits a few keys. “And done. I wonder if SecurityOne will ever address their cyber security issues.”
“Let’s hope not.” I pull away from the curb. “We exploit that weakness.”
Lark shuts his laptop. “Yeah, but it baffles me how they can claim to be a security company without actually being secure themselves.”
I flick my gaze to the rearview and Mac shakes his head.Don’t engage, he says with his eyes. This is a conversation we revisit frequently. Lark’s a great hacker, so even if SecurityOne fixed their issues, he’d be able to find a way in. That doesn’t stop him from analyzing every weak point in their system.
“What’s the plan?” Mac asks.
“Try to get the ring appraised before we contact Damien.” I navigate onto the freeway.
