Daniel’s arms became a nice little cage around my waist. “We should get her back home. I feel the need to tie her up and play with her.”
Dev shook his head. “Why wait? Just let me get my gym bag. I’m like a boy scout, Dan. I’m always prepared. I have a nice set of padded handcuffs for just such an occasion. I think you’ll find after all the exercise last night, Zoey will probably be very sweet and obedient tonight.”
I frowned at my naughty, naughty boyfriend. He was taking all the fun out of it. “I’ll probably misbehave a little. If I don’t, you won’t have any reason to spank me.”
Dev growled and kissed me just a little roughly. “God, she’s perfect. Let’s talk about discipline, sweetheart.”
I smiled in anticipation because I was really becoming a glutton for punishment.
Chapter Seventeen
The night of the heist, I crawled in between Dev and Lee, taking my perch on a hill along the highway. Dev passed me the binoculars he was holding. I stared through the lens, the world shifting to that odd green and black that night vision gives you. At this time of night, there were very few people on the road, which made it the perfect time to transport an important load of priceless artifacts. It wouldn’t do to get stuck in traffic, and I-35 could get seriously congested between Alliance Airport and the cultural district.
The shipment from Chicago had come into the airport on a specialized cargo plane built to handle the delicate artifacts, keeping them at the proper temperature and humidity. The plane had come in late and the transfer had been made in a hanger with some super security. The thought of grabbing the artifact at the airport had never entered my mind. Airports are a veritable field of land mines. There are so many layers of security at an airport a thief would have to be crazy to even try it. Stealing from the Hell plane had been easier. I wouldn’t steal a Snickers bar from an airport.
From Alliance, the wooden crates had been loaded onto the truck. Due to the priceless nature of the collection, the museum had taken the added precaution of hiring three decoy trucks. Unfortunately, I had the insider information of knowing exactly which truck the artifact was actually on and the route it was going to take. One of the decoys had driven by not twenty minutes earlier, and I waved as it went on its merry way.
Hijacking a shipment from, say, your local Best Buy is a different proposition from the job I was doing. The mob long ago perfected the cargo hijack. It was made infinitely easier by the fact that the drivers were usually in on the hijacking. Had I had a longer time to prepare, I would’ve tried to get an inside man or woman at the security company. I preferred to have a member of my crew simply drive the truck with all its goodies to the drop. Since I’d had a week to plan, I was going to have to go a different route.
Unlike the above-mentioned shipment of LCD TVs and Blu-ray players, the truck containing my Roman artifacts wouldn’t be tempted by the usual plays. This truck wouldn’t stop at a local diner so the driver could get a cup of coffee and perhaps pick up a cute little redhead who so needed a ride to Fort Worth. I would have pulled out my Ruger and forced the now wide-awake driver to the drop where Danny and Dev would find my crate, and I would send the driver on his way. Scenario number two involved detouring the truck to the drop and then pulling my Ruger while the boys pillaged. It wouldn’t work with this truck. On seeing the unscheduled detour, the truck carrying my item would simply turn around and head back to the airport until a team could figure out what was going on.
I needed shock and awe. I’d tried to get Danny to jump in front of the truck, set his shoulders, and just stop it with his body. It always worked in the comics, but Danny was a wimp and thought that would probably hurt like hell despite the coolness factor, so we were going with a greener method.
“Zoey, I have the package in sight,” Zack said in my earpiece. “It’s five minutes away. Has the big guy shown up?”
“Negative, Zack.” Daniel was supposed to be here by now. I put the binoculars down and Dev frowned, the moonlight illuminating his tension.
“Where the hell is Donovan?” Lee asked, frowning.
Dev pulled out his cell and hit speed dial. “Dan, where the hell are you? This goes down in five minutes. Get your ass to the drop.”
He clicked the End Call button and shoved the phone back into his black pants. I’d played stylist tonight. For the thief, black is the only color to go with. Dev and Lee were dressed in black from head to toe. They wore black turtlenecks, despite the ninety-five degree temperature. The ski masks they would put on sat on the ground. I knew they were both dreading it, but I had to insist. There were two armed drivers in that truck, and I wanted them both alive at the end of my job. If they were alive, then there was always the chance that they could remember something I would rather they forgot. I didn’t want them thinking about things like hair or eye color. All they would know was there had been two men and one woman. If that was all they could offer, there would be no police sketches and no need to call in a cleaning crew.
Of course, if Daniel had shown up, I wouldn’t have needed any of it. He could have just informed the drivers that they didn’t remember and they wouldn’t. I checked the rounds in the Ruger and Dev did the same in his new, shiny SIG Sauer. Neither of us said a word, but we were both worried. It wasn’t like Danny to not show up.
He’d been quiet and contemplative the last week or so. I knew he was upset about sending another one of his soldiers to the Council, but it had to be done. He’d prepared a young vampire named Brian for the way his life would be during the training period. Brian had been with Daniel for over a year and he was unattached. Though Daniel had not once mentioned it, I knew he was avoiding breaking up another couple if he could. The situation with Neil had affected him more than he would ever admit.
Dev glanced at me, his eyes asking the question.
“We go now or we lose it, Dev.” I wasn’t willing to waste more than a week of planning and work because Daniel was late. In fifteen minutes the job would be over, and I could figure out what had kept him. I was certain it was Council business. He was supposed to fly back in from LA tonight and more than likely, he’d been delayed. It wouldn’t be the first time the Council had forced Daniel to do their bidding on a moment’s notice. The job would have been easier with Daniel, but I’d certainly run jobs without the aid of a vampire before.
“All right, sweetheart. I better get to work then.” Dev gracefully pushed himself up and pulled our secret weapon out of his pocket. Seeds. Oak, he’d told me. He took the handful of seeds out to the road. He crossed the highway, strategically placing each seed for maximum coverage. When he was done, he jogged back to the side of the highway Lee and I were on and I watched as he took a deep breath. He held his hands to his sides, but his fingers splayed wide as he opened that place deep inside of him that called things to life. I felt the air around me pulse with energy. Even Lee sat up when he felt that power filling the air.
There was a rumble as the seeds popped open and life sprayed across the concrete. It was like watching a fast-forward nature video. Suddenly there was a burst of green as a grove of large oaks spread across the highway. It was a strange but beautiful sight.
“That’s pretty damn impressive.” Lee watched Dev work. “I thought he was just a walking, talking dose of Viagra.”
I laughed out loud and had to remind myself we were running a job. “He’s a fertility god, Lee. Most of his magic is about sex, but he also has some Green Man in his background, hence the expertise with plants. Don’t underestimate Dev. Just because he’s not as butch as you or Daniel doesn’t mean he can’t do some damage. He can pull you into the earth with those plants.”