Chapter 21 #2
I slip on the glove, before raising my hand to the panel at the side of the safe, which Maya recently added.
Then I glance at my watch: The moment that my finger touches the scanner, the countdown begins.
I rock on my heels, hyper with the thrill of the upcoming challenge, waiting for it to tick over to 12:21.
Three seconds…
Two…
One…
I press my gloved finger with the fake fingerprint to the scanner.
Exactly seven minutes to complete the mission.
The countdown has begun.
I watch with bated breath for what feels like a horrific lifetime but is no more than a couple of seconds, as the panel flashes to red, sending the alarm notification. But then, it calms back to green.
The fingerprint passed.
“Thank you, Ms. Fields.” I wrench off the glove and drop it back into the bag.
I crouch and drag out the iPad, thrumming with nervous energy.
Next I must pass the facial recognition.
I have to stop myself from cringing because holding any electronic device is breaking the number one staff rule of the hotel, supposedly to promote ultimate discretion for guests.
I turn the device on, hoping that this will work. A disturbingly accurate deep fake of Maya’s face appears.
I raise the iPad up to the panel as quickly as I can.
The panel flashes red.
Shit, shit, shit.
I try not to shake and force myself to hold still and not run.
Finally, the panel settles back to green.
“Passed.” I puff out a breath, and my shoulders slump.
Without allowing myself a moment to recover from the shock, however, I drop the iPad back into the bag.
Now, onto the third and hardest part of the heist.
I have to actually prove that Omegas have a true savant ability with their enhanced senses and are the best safe crackers.
Less than seven minutes will be hard but I can do this.
When I drag the stethoscope out of the bag, however, despite my concentration on the mission, the hairs on the back of my neck suddenly rise.
Someone is creeping up behind me.
I twist and grab the person by their arm, slamming them against the safe. I press my hand over their mouth to muffle their protest.
I find myself staring into the startled eyes of my Omega soulmate.
Piper and I gaze at each other in shock.
What the hell is Piper doing breaking into the penthouse in the middle of the night, dressed in a black hoodie that hides his dramatic outfit and distinctive hair?
Also, he’s wearing a black mask that would make him unrecognizable to most people, especially as he’s drenched in a scent blocker. With his swagger, most people would assume that he was least a Beta.
Except, I would never mistake my own soulmate’s midnight green eyes.
Why didn’t I realize that the Idols weren’t normal guests?
The tour? The men’s backgrounds? The secret that they were trying to hide?
“You’re a criminal,” I blurt.
Piper raises his pierced brow, as if to say that if he’s an Omega kettle, then I’m the pot.
I narrow my eyes. “What were you trying to steal?”
Then it hits me: The priceless Frost diamonds, of course.
Conflicted, I am filled with both admiration at the Idols’ scheme and fear that they only courted Icarus and me to cover their theft.
I lied to the Idols. How can I be angry that they lied to me?
“I don’t have time for this.” I shove away from Piper. “I have only six minutes now to break into the safe.”
“Want some help with that, Gracie?” Piper asks brightly like I haven’t just caught him out.
Shameless.
“No thanks, Wolfie. Just get out of my way and watch me work. I got here first; I call dibs. Isn’t there meant to be honor amongst thieves?”
Piper leans against the wall. “I should have guessed that this is what was going down. Wings and you aren’t as subtle at hiding your scheming as you think, you know. We just couldn’t work out the details.”
“Who are you?” I hiss.
Piper tilts his head. “Short version: I work with Lion and Zero for an illegal unit that protects abused Omegas. The government will execute me, just like they did my parents, if they catch me. Our plan was to steal the evidence of the abuses and creative accounts that prove the Frosts are guilty of tax evasion. Then free you, your brother, and the other Hotel Omegas.”
“You’re not after the diamonds.”
I stare at him in shock.
Piper is an outlaw but one who has been working with the rest of his pack to save the Hotel Omegas.
He was here to free me.
I don’t have time to process the fact that there truly are gangs of Merry Men out there fighting for Omega rights.
I thought that I was alone. The hotel feels like a world apart from Haven.
I have been surrounded only by Traditional packs.
But here is a liberal who has broken into my world and is trying to break us all out from it.
While Icarus and I have been trying to protect our new pack, the Idols have been doing the same right back.
I don’t know whether to laugh or cry.
Piper, however, laughs. “You think that I look like a diamond thief…? Well, maybe in this suit and mask. Wait, are you here for the diamonds?”
“Short version: I am also an Omega safe cracker here to steal my family’s rightful shares and my dad’s bond ring — the Frost diamonds. I will use the money to take over the hotel.”
Piper blinks. “Your plan is better. How can I help?”
“Keep lookout.”
Piper salutes me. “Good luck.”
He darts toward the door of the office.
Then I stare at my watch in horror: 12: 22.
Only five minutes left.
“Give me one minute countdowns starting from five minutes.” My voice is tight.
Piper nods.
I have never cracked the safe in that short a time before.
But then, I glance at Piper’s back, as he turns fully to guarding the door.
Everyone I know and love is now implicated in this heist. If I don’t pull this off, then Piper will be dragged away and executed for trying to free me.
I won’t let that happen.
My mind clears.
All of a sudden, I have reached a quiet in my mind. Nothing exists but me and the safe.
I rest my hand on the safe next to the combination lock to center myself.
Then I turn the dial several full revolutions clockwise to reset the lock and make sure that all the wheels are disengaged.
Then I put the stethoscope into my ears to amplify the vibrations, before placing the cup-shaped bell end near the dial surface, as if it’s the vault’s heart.
I spin the dial, moving the bell end, working out the best place for it.
Got it.
A thrill runs through me that is better than anything.
“Four minutes,” Piper calls.
I focus, listening intently for the vibrations, as I rotate the dial counterclockwise.
As I turn the dial, I try to hear the notches lining up.
I’ve got it.
That’s one.
“Three minutes.” Piper can’t hide the mounting tension in his voice.
The best Alpha safe crackers would need to map hundreds of readings to break a three digit combination lock.
I am an Omega, however, and I have spent years working on this exact safe.
Never under this level of pressure, however, while falling into heat.
Because I can’t lie to myself any longer.
My knees feel like buckling. My pussy is wet with slick, which is soaking through my leather trousers. My mind is becoming fuzzy.
Desperately, I struggle with every shred of strength in me to not slip fully into heat because if I do, then this has all been for nothing.
And we are ruined.
Click.
The second notch lines up.
Sweat drips into my eyes, and I blink it rapidly away.
“Two minutes.” Piper is trying hard to hide his panic but he can’t.
I turn the dial, struggling to hear the final sound that I need to; it’s made so much harder by the shaking in my hands.
Please…
Just one more…
I only need…
Then I hear the final notch lining up, and I have it.
The code!
“825,” I whisper. “825.”
I drop the stethoscope into the bag, before tapping the code into the safe.
Piper runs to join me. “You fucking genius.”
Let me have been right.
I spin the wheel, standing shoulder by shoulder with Piper, as the vault clicks open.
“I love that sound.” I exchange a delighted grin with Piper.
Piper pulls open the heavy door.
I stare inside at the piles of papers and the neat boxes of rings, Ryan’s and Dad’s, which are stacked on top of the other jewelry.
The diamonds.
“You did it.” Piper snatches the rings, dropping them into my bag. “The shares as well, right?”
I stumble against the vault, suddenly dizzy.
Slick gushes between my thighs. My eyes slide closed.
Gracie, Gracie, Gracie…
Someone is calling me.
But it’s too late.
My heat is here.