Page 109 of Pretty Dark Vows
“We’re ready,” I answer her, still more agitated than I should be before an operation like this.“Let’s load up.”
Logan’s plan is as airtight as shit like this ever can be, but there are still variables. If it’s all going to come together the way we need it to, we’ve got to arrive and get into place before McKenna’s people and Capside show up, and that means leaving now.We all head out to the Yukon, and I slide in behind the wheel, cranking the key in the ignition as the others load up.
“Recap,” I tell Logan as I pull out of the garage and start navigating toward the warehouse district where it’s going to go down.
Logan starts going through the plan one more time, laying out each phase step by step, and I notice Riley listening closely from where she sits in the back seat with Dante.
“I still don’t understand why they have to use Chloe for this,” she mutters after Logan has run us through the plan, the back-up plan, and all the contingencies.
“Good faith,” Logan explains, surprising me by turning around in his seat to look at her as he answers. “It’s the first time McKenna has done business with Capside.”
“It is?”
There’s a subtle strain in Riley’s voice, as if she’s working to keep her voice even. I can tell she’s nervous about what we’re heading into, and I find myself inexplicably wanting to soothe her. Maybe Dante does too, because his voice is gentle as he answers.
“We think it is, princess, yeah. Which makes your sister fucking perfect for the drop, since West Point is gonna see her as expendable if the deal goes south—”
Riley makes a distressed sound, like a wounded animal, and my knuckles turn white as I grip the steering wheel.
“—but like Logan said, it’s also a gesture of good faith from McKenna,” he finishes.
“How?” she asks.
“Sending someone non-threatening, like your sister, is a way McKenna can let Capside know he’s not planning on trying anything stupid. That it’s just a drop, nothing else. Drugs for cash. Establishing that goodwill so they can start to build a business relationship on it.”
“And because she’s expendable,” Riley whispers, her voice shaking slightly.
“Enough,” I snap, worried that she’s getting too lost in her own head and will end up being eaten alive by her nerves. I’ve seen younger Reaper recruits go through the same thing, and my job as a leader is to keep them from spiraling. “We need to stay focused. Warehouse in five.”
I can feel Logan’s and Dante’s eyes on me, but when Riley finds my gaze in the rearview mirror, I can see the resolve hardening like steel behind her eyes. She looks a bit pissed at being snapped at, but I don’t give a fuck. I’d rather have her be annoyed at me than get swept under by her worst fears.
I drive past the warehouse where the drop is scheduled to go down, looking for the lot Logan identified as the best place for us to stash the Yukon. It’s behind the warehouse but separated from it by an alley and some conveniently placed concrete pylons, and the layout means we should be able to park in it without risking detection once McKenna’s men and the Capside crew arrive.
“How many weasels did McKenna say he’s sending in with Chloe as backup, Logan?” Dante asks.
“Two that we know of,” Logan says without looking up.
I hear a distinctive click and know without looking that he’s just snapped a magazine into one of the Glocks he’ll be carrying, going through a final gear check.
Good. Because we’re here.
“And we don’t know how many Capside will bring,” Dante tells Riley as I pull into the lot. “Logan was able to make a guess, but bottom line is that Chloe’s gonna be surrounded by hot tempers, short fuses, and a metric fuck-ton of mistrust. Not to mention a lot of very large guns. So, Riley?”
I throw the Yukon into park and check the rearview mirror in time to see her turn to him, her face calm but her eyes wide.
“Yeah?” she asks.
His lip quirks up. “Don’t fuck it up.”
Riley laughs, then slaps a hand over her mouth like she can’t believe she just did that. But the stiffness in her shoulders bleeds away a little, and I’m glad to see it. My specialty is barking at people and riding their asses until they get their shit together, but Dante’s specialty is breaking all of that tension. Hopefully, it will keep her loose and focused as we head into the mission.
I catch Dante’s eye and give him a small nod as Logan zips up the gear bag at his feet and pops his door open. “Let’s go.”
Riley scrambles out of the back as Dante, Logan, and I move into action, every motion in sync and efficient as we do on-site prep, then silently but swiftly move toward the location.
For Riley’s sake, Logan drilled the fact that we’d have to be fast over and over. If either group decides to arrive earlier than we allowed for and catches us out here, flat-footed and out of position, we’ll have to roll into a contingency plan that’s guaranteed to be both bloodier and less beneficial to the goal of pitting McKenna’s organization against the ruthless motherfuckers in Capside.
But so far, we’re good. There’s no sign of either organization as we fan out. Logan and Dante take their sniper rifles and other gear up to the elevated positions Logan identified, and Riley stays with me at ground level.