Page 55 of Nest of Thieves
“Reggie seems nice.”
I frown at my cone. “He is.”
“You don’t like him?” she asks.
I glance at her. “I like Reggie.”
She scrunches her nose. “Then why did you seem so pissed inside?”
Because he made you laugh and I wanted to murder him.
“Stomach cramps.”
“Uh-huh. I don’t believe that, but keep your secrets.” She sticks a spoonful into her mouth, sweeping our surroundings with a keen eye. I do the same. Nothing but families. Jo relaxes in her seat.
Who’s coming after her?
She mentioned needing the ruby, but she never explained who or why. There’s no way she went after that ruby alone. Jo has connections to some shady people in Philly. I lick my ice cream and try not to stare her down. When we get home, I’m going to dig deeper into her past, find out everything there is to know about Jo. Figure out what makes her tick. Find whoever she’s worried about. Dive headfirst into her history, even though I know it’ll make my infatuation worse.
“I texted Vette about the job. We’ll need to leave around ten.” Mac’s voice pulls me out of my head.
Right. Pony. The trucks.
That’s what I need to do when we get back. Plan for the job. Not lose focus because of the gorgeous firecracker of an omega across from me.
* * *
The small box of mice was delivered while we were gone. The gardener, a man in his late sixties, set the box inside the garage, knowing he’d meet certain death if he tried to take it in the house.
“A present?” Jo asks as I pick it up.
“Not for you.” I hand her the box and her forehead wrinkles in question. “It’s for the snake.”
She peeks in the box and frowns. “You didn’t need to do that.”
“I didn’t. Vette did.”
“Oh,” she says, glancing at Mac.
He simply shrugs and stretches his arms over his head. “I’m going for a swim. Care to join me?”
She scowls. “No.”
“One day,” he says.
We head inside, and I lock myself in my room and work on hacking into the security system of the large warehouse where the trucks are being delivered. The industrial district is big, and trucks arrive at all hours of the day and night. It’s not unusual for them to arrive late like these two will tonight. What is unusual is what they carry.
The Philly Vipers are bad news. They’re not above human trafficking, and we’ve been waiting to catch them in the act. Damien doesn’t want that shit in his city, and ever since they started toeing into our territory, things have taken a turn for the worse. More skeezy criminals have come out of the woodwork, all in hopes of buying or taking what Philly Vipers has to offer. Tonight is the first step in eradicating the vermin from our city.
I rendezvous with the guys in the garage a few minutes before ten. We’re all in black. Fatigues, black sweaters, beanies, sneakers. Vette tosses some leather gloves at me. I catch them and slip them on, grabbing two of the handguns from the top of his Raptor and sticking them into the holsters at my side. Vette and Mac are already geared up.
“Ready?” Vette asks, grabbing one of three semi-automatic rifles from the hood. “We’re going to be a few men short. Damien had some trouble.”
Damien has people who work the casinos, counting cards, cheating at tables, winning money in whatever way possible. It wouldn’t be the first time his guys got caught.
“Yeah. I got the cameras on the block down and looped the warehouse.” Mac and I grab our guns.
“Jo?” Vette asks.
