27. An Opportunist’s Moment
27
An Opportunist’s Moment
Lilith
By the time we land at the private airstrip in France, I’m entirely fucking sick of sharing the same space as Dmitri. He is one slimy, charming motherfucker, and if I thought we could’ve managed on our own, I would’ve tossed him out of the plane at 30,000 feet without even blinking.
Unfortunately, we still need him; therefore, he still breathes.
And speaks.
“Someone get me a fucking ball gag for this dickhead,” I spit out, looking around the small space in the hopes some kind of goodie chest will miraculously appear in front of me.
“This is not Declan’s plane,” Mickey explains helplessly.
Frowning, I ask, “Whose plane is it?”
“A rental.”
“We’re resorting to renting fucking planes now?” I level Mickey with a patient look, though I’m sure he knows I’m feeling everything but patient at this point. “Mickey, you bought me a fucking farm to store my new backhoe. Surely, you can buy me an airport to store a fleet of planes.”
He laughs and leans back in his chair. “Well, sure, Lils. I’ll get right on that when we get back, but you may wanna take a look at the price tag on this supposed fleet.”
Squinting at him, I think over his comment, knowing he’s likely correct that the price might put me off. If it was at all economical, Mickey would’ve already taken care of it.
Glancing at my phone, I ask, “Are we sure this is the right airport? Aggie’s not answering my texts.”
“Yeah, it’s the right one. We’ll be taxiing for a bit, so she’s probably just waiting us out.”
“Waiting for what?”
“For us to arrive at the hangar,” Mickey explains. “They’ll drive us right in to protect our privacy.”
“Fancy.”
“Come on, Lilith,” Dmitri drawls. “I’m sure a woman such as yourself knows a thing or two about privilege.”
I ignore him. He scowls.
The plane enters a hanger, coming to a stop a short ways inside, and then the light outside dims as the hanger doors close. The flight attendant comes around to stand by the door, but then the pilot sticks his head out of the cockpit, motioning to Mickey, who immediately goes to see what’s up. They have a brief, hushed discussion, the pilot hands Mickey a bag, and then Mickey walks toward where I’m still seated with Antoinette. Bending down close, he whispers, “We got company.”
Nodding, I say nothing, meeting Antoinette’s gaze before we both stand. Mickey pulls a gun out of the bag, hands it to me, then pulls out another one for Antoinette. We both check our weapons, then walk over to the door where the pilot and flight attendant are waiting by the door.
Mickey motions toward the cockpit. “You two go in there and lock the door. Don’t come out until one of us comes back.”
They both do as they’re told without comment and as soon as the lock clicks into place, the three of us move slowly toward the door.
“Hey,” Dmitri whisper-shouts. “What about me?”
Antoinette gives him a dirty look. “You just sit there and shut the fuck up.”
He opens his mouth as if to respond, but Antoinette glares and shushes him. He returns her glare but remains quiet, and with a short nod, Antoinette turns back to me. “Shoot first, ask questions later?”
“Business as usual,” I retort, pulling the lever to release the air stairs. “Best bet is to go over the side and circle around.”
“There may not be anyone to engage, but there are definitely a few bodies behind us,” Mickey states, watching as the stairs descend, showing no immediate enemy in sight.
Antoinette smiles, then ducks through the doorway, stepping off the side of the stairs and ducking under the handrail, disappearing beneath the plane. Mickey attempts to go next, but I stop him with my hand on his arm. He scowls but allows me to go first, and I follow Antoinette’s path, scanning the area for movement.
Motioning to Antoinette, I take off in one direction, scurrying to the perimeter and slowly walking around, checking for anyone hiding in the shadows. Antoinette does the same in the other direction, with Mickey taking up watch from beneath the plane.
Gunfire sounds from the other side of the hanger, and I turn, my eyes zeroing in on the other plane parked there. Another shot sounds, and I take off at a run, Antoinette doing the same as I yell, “Agatha.”
A tall figure appears in the doorway, staggering, then falling backward and tumbling to the ground. Another shot fires, and then another person staggers into the doorway, falling unceremoniously to the ground.
I stop at the bottom of the stairs, gun drawn. Antoinette joins me, stepping off to the side so she has a clear view of anyone attempting to exit the plane. Mickey steps up behind me, able to see what Antoinette cannot.
Slowly, I creep up the stairs, gun at the ready, listening intently for any movement. I pause in the doorway, glancing around the open space, swinging around to check the lavatory and cockpit before venturing further into the plane.
Spotting Agatha at the back, I quickly check the known hidey holes of the plane before circling back to where she is slumped in a chair. “Fuckin’ hell,” I mutter, giving her a good shake, and then I shout, “Aggie. Aggie, are you okay?”
She peeks an eye open and slaps me away. “You don’t have to shout. There’s nothing wrong with my hearing.”
I fall into the seat beside her, a relieved sigh rushing out of me as I glare at her. “You scared the fucking shit out of me, you bitch.”
She smirks, sitting up and adjusting herself in the chair. “I’m a bit knocked around, but I’m fine.”
“What the hell happened? Where’s Antonio?”
“He went on ahead to tend to some business. I was just sitting here, minding my own business, when those little cunts showed up looking for a good time.”
“Lilith?” Mickey shouts from outside. “Everything good?”
“Come on up,” I yell back, and soon, he and Antoinette appear in the doorway, matching relieved expressions on their faces as they spot Agatha seated next to me.
Antoinette kneels in front of her sister, her hands resting on her knees. “Are you hurt?”
“Just knocked around a bit, but I’m fine.”
Antoinette scans her up and down a few times before finally nodding. “Have you checked in with Antonio?”
“Not yet,” she answers, then holds up her obviously smashed phone. “I was going to but got thwarted.”
Grimacing, I retrieve my phone from my back pocket and quickly send Antonio an update. I watch the screen, anticipating those bouncing little dots, but nothing happens. “How long has he been gone?”
“I don’t know. An hour or so, maybe.”
“He may be busy,” Antoinette says. “If he’s tending to business like you, then he wouldn’t want to get his phone bloody.”
“Fair.”
A loud clang draws our attention outside. The group of us run to the door, hitting the concrete just as the hanger door swings shut. Micky and I look at each other, cursing, and then he takes off in the direction of our plane, Antoinette right on his heels.
Agatha gives me a questioning look, and I grimace and answer, “Dmitri.”
“Oh, for fuck’s sake,” she mutters, kicking the ground with her booted foot. “You guys just let him have run of the place?”
A gasp of outrage falls out of my mouth at her vicious allegation. “Of course not. He was certainly secure when we went off in search of you.”
We stand at the bottom of the stairs just as Mickey and Antoinette are exiting the plane. Antoinette looks annoyed, and Mickey shakes his head. “Fucker is gone.”
“Goddamn it,” I spit out. “And here he said he wouldn’t try to escape. I knew we couldn’t trust that snake.”
“That’s not what he said.”
I look to Antoinette. “What?”
She rolls her eyes and then sighs. “That’s not what he said. He said he wouldn’t do anything to hurt me. That was the extent of his promise.”
“What an odd thing to say,” Agatha murmurs from beside me.
I check my phone again, scowling at the blank screen. “Did Antonio say where he was going?”
“I believe he was headed to see his father. And not in a happy family reunion way.”
If Antonio is going to see his father after speaking to Dmitri, that can only mean one thing.
“Mickey, are the guys headed this way?”
Mickey nods. “They’re a couple of hours behind us.”
“How the fuck are they only a couple of hours behind us?” Antoinette asks. “It must’ve taken them a fair amount of time to get loose and get to a plane.”
“Camilla rescued them, and then Declan showed up.”
Antoinette gives him an impatient look. “And?”
“Declan has the super-fast jet,” Mickey explains rather sheepishly, and I can’t help but laugh.
“Of course he does,” Antoinette mutters, though the corners of her mouth twitch as she forces herself not to smile.
“You stay here and wait for them,” I instruct Mickey. “We’re going to go rescue Antonio.”
“How will I know where to find you?”
Agatha raises her hand, and I reply, “We still have tabs on Aggie.”
“You got it, Lils. I’ll call in a clean-up crew while I’m waiting.”
Antoinette, Agatha, and I head toward the doors, that deep dread in my guts alerting me to something being off.
“Lilith?” Mickey’s voice behind me has me turning back toward him. I raise my brows in question, and he says, “Promise me something?”
“Anything.”
“Shoot first.”
I smile, nod. Then I turn and walk out the door.