Page 144 of Smoke Screen
She pushed out of her chair, tenting her fingers on the table, but otherwise not moving. Just stood there, her gaze pinned to his. “I appreciate you wanting to protect me. Protecting me also means getting these jewels back and clearing my name. We’re partway there with Louis pulling that gun today. Obviously, he’s hiding something. We don’t know the details yet, but they’ll come. Right now, we need to get these collections back. And we need to do it fast, before they’re gone forever.”
She’d actually talkedthem into bringing her along.
Yay, me.
But, holy cow, getting stuffed into the upper part of an armoire they’d borrowed from one of the Friary’s guest suites, and bumping along in the back of a delivery truck, wasn’t exactly what she’d had in mind. Not to mention the darkness and heat and sweat dripping from every one of her pores.
Maddy needed fresh air.
Pronto.
And light.
And room to move because—yowzer—hot stabs darted down her cramping legs.
And, and, and …
Her mind. Chaos. She closed her eyes and drew hot air into her nose, exhaling slowly while locking her thoughts on the plan and finding the jewels.
Getting her life back.
She lifted her phone to check the time. The screen lit up the interior of the armoire, nearly blinding her. She slammed her eyes closed again, tried again and again until they adjusted.
Phin had told her, barring traffic, it would be forty-five minutes.
Getting close.
After much discussion, the guys decided Zeke riding up front would be safest in case things went kooky, and they had to detain the guard. Fine with Maddy. She’d be zero help with that part of the operation.
As a result, they’d anchored the armoire to the truck wall. For additional safety, Phin tied a rope around it, trapping her inside. She’d never been claustrophobic, but the idea of someone crashing into them and her being stuck inside this thing made her lungs clog.
She lowered her phone, concentrated on the mission. A buzz zipped along just under her skin. By the time this was over, maybe she’d be cleared. No more sitting around waiting for everyone else to decide her fate. That alone was a win.
“Pulling up to the gate,” Phin muttered, his voice streaming through the listening device in her ear.
The plan was for Cruz and Rohan to pull up in a gray sedan Maddy had never seen before and stop midway between the front gate and the end of the fence. Once Phin got to the rear gate where all deliveries were made, Rohan would hop out and run along the front fence throwing what they called flash bangs—a device that created loud noise and flashes of light—over it. If all went well, they’d create general mayhem and draw the rear guard to the front.
“We’re in place,” Cruz said. “On your signal, we’ll roll.”
The truck eased to a stop and surrounded by darkness, Maddy rested her head back.
Waiting.
A few more minutes, that’s all it should be. Long enough to get inside, grab the jewels and go.
She shifted, trying to stretch her legs and battle the cramps.
“Hey, guy,” Phin’s voice came through her earpiece. “Got a delivery for Xavier Vera.”
Silence descended. Maddy froze. What was happening? Had she lost the connection?
“Hang on,” another male voice—presumably the guard—finally said.
Maddy let out a breath. She had to relax. Not freak out at every slight plan variation. A minute later, the pfft-pfft-pfft of papers shuffling filled her ear.Please, let this work.
“I don’t have a delivery tonight,” the guard said. “You sure it’s this location?”
Pfft-pfft-pfft.
