When the Shadows Fall by Elise Noble
CHAPTER 11 - SKY
THREE DAYS LATER, the moment finally arrived. Preparations weren’t perfect, but we’d done the best we could. Nate, Ravi, and an electronics specialist from Blackwood’s LA office had done a little rewiring work, we knew the main building at the Grove like the backs of our hands, and both Spirit and the Picasso were temporarily ensconced in the ballroom—the Picasso on the wall, and Spirit of the Lake in pride of place on a stand on the stage. There were obvious gaps in our planning—we hadn’t been able to have a full rehearsal, although the team had been practising with a replica layout at Riverley, and there were still question marks over the staff and guests. Tables were booked in the name of the host only, and the Grove seemed to use a lot of agency workers. Who would turn up for the gala was still something of a mystery.
On the bright side, Marshall had landed the job, so at least we didn’t have another team of art thieves to worry about. The Master had thoughtfully sent his confirmation in a “Good Luck” card.
“Ready?” Rafael asked.
“Nearly. Can you help with my zipper?”
We’d all worn long dresses in solidarity with Mack, whose poufy number looked like one of those dolls grandmas put over the spare toilet roll. Except for Rafael’s grandma—she most probably kept a cattle prod in the middle of hers. My dress was made from teal satin, and it fit me like a second skin. Which was a slight problem when it came to underwear. I wasn’t wearing any. And even Rafael had to concede there was nowhere for me to put a gun or even a knife.
“What do you want me to do?” I’d asked as he stood there studying me with a Benchmade Infidel in his hand. It was his favourite model of knife, and it certainly looked the part. A mini black dagger. “Stuff it up my—”
“Okay! Enough. I’ll hold on to it, all right?”
I felt weirdly naked as he slid the zipper up. Vulnerable. I suppressed a shiver and told myself to knock it off. I was the baby of the team, the newbie, and I couldn’t let Emmy or Rafael down. They’d both taken a chance on me.
“Now are you ready?” he asked.
“I just have to finish my make-up and sort out my earpiece.”
Hallie was upstairs in the honeymoon suite, and she’d helped with my hair. Bradley had offered to come to the Grove and assist, but Emmy had vetoed that idea because we were undercover and Bradley didn’t know how to do subtle. I also wondered whether there was an element of her protecting him too. The outcome of this job was far from certain, and although Emmy and Bradley bickered constantly, it was clear they cared about each other.
“In that case, I’ll take one last look at the camera feeds before we head downstairs,” Rafael said. “Back in five.”
I applied lipstick, then put in my earpiece. For the moment, we were in push-to-talk mode, both to save battery power and because it was less annoying. There was a button on my bracelet. Later, for the actual job, we’d run with open channels to give us one less thing to worry about.
Five minutes gone. I figured I’d head for the stairs and meet Rafael halfway. Anything was better than sitting alone with my butterflies.
Well, almost anything.
I was so busy trying to work out what to do with my room card because hello, no pockets, that I walked right into Brock fucking Keaton.
Right. Into. Him.
“Sorry, sorry,” I muttered before I realised who it was. Before the stink of his aftershave burrowed its way into my lungs and choked me.
“No worries.”
There wasn’t the slightest flicker of recognition in his blue eyes. Why would there be? Last time he saw me, I’d been hawking shots in a London nightclub, and now I was on the other side of the world dressed up like a society girl. Besides, he hadn’t exactly spent much time looking at my face.
Tonight, he must have mistaken my horror for awe because after a quick glance at my cleavage, he turned to the gorilla of a bodyguard walking behind him.
“Hey, Frank. Give the lady a signed postcard, would ya?”
The guy thrust a card at me, and the whole entourage carried on along the hallway as it fluttered to the carpet, leaving me clutching at the doorjamb for support. My knees buckled as an iron fist clamped around my chest, squeezing harder, harder, harder. I couldn’t breathe. The air wouldn’t go in. Stuck. Stuck.
What had Rafael told me to do? Think of five things I could see. I tried, but Brock Keaton’s smug face stayed front and centre of my vision even after he’d gone.
Breathe, breathe, breathe.
I managed half a ragged lungful of air before my legs gave way completely, and then I was on the floor. Carpet. I could see carpet. Swirls of pink and cream, all fuzzy and blurry.
“What the fuck, Sky?”
Then I was in Rafael’s arms. He snatched the room card out of my hand and bundled me back through the door. It slammed behind us, and then the tears came, a salty flood that did nothing to wash away the shame and anger and dismay inside me.
I clung to Rafael as he sat on the bed, and after a moment, his arms wrapped around me.
“Shh, it’s okay.”
“No, it’s not.”
I’d fucked up yet again.
“He can’t get near you, Sunshine.”
“But he did. He’s here.”
“What?”
That was the first time I’d ever heard Rafael sound shocked.
“He’s right here in the hotel.”
“Are you sure?”
“I didn’t bloody imagine it.”
“Lo siento. I should have known better than to ask.”
A little more air trickled into my lungs, and along with it came Rafael’s musky scent. I let it filter through me, let it push all the cloying fear away. He handed me another pocket square, and I wiped at the mess on my face. There would be no fixing it this time.
“I’m so sorry,” I whispered.
Rafael blew out a long breath. “It’s okay. Take a few minutes to calm down and fix your make-up. I’ll let the others know we’re running late.”
“I can’t go to the gala.”
“Don’t talk yourself down. You managed to get through Marshall’s dinner.”
“You don’t understand. He was wearing black-tie. He’s going to be there. When Emmy and the others get started, there’ll be chaos, and if I bump into him in the middle of it…”
“Fuck. Fuck, fuck, fuck.”
Rafael tore a hand through his hair, and I wished I’d never come to Virginia. Wished I’d never set eyes on him or Riverley because now that I’d had a taste of this life, leaving it would be so much harder. But how could I stay? I cracked under pressure like a rotten egg.
“Just go, okay? Get the job done.”
“Stay in here. We’ll talk about this later.”
I didn’t confirm that I would because there was a good chance I’d have been lying. Instead, I scrambled off Rafael’s lap so he could do what he needed to. Never before had I felt like such a failure, and considering some of the places I’d woken up, that was a big statement to make.
“You’re stronger than you think, Sunshine,” he whispered right before the door clicked shut behind him.
No, I wasn’t. He’d got that completely wrong. In London, I’d acted tough enough to fool Emmy and the rest of them, but in America? I’d been found wanting.