Chapter 27
Hannah grabbed her bag by the front door as Olivia Scott joined her. “The girls were great today,” she said. That wasn’t a lie. The Scott girls were still young and fun. None of the back talk or entitlement she got from some of the older kids she looked after.
“That’s always wonderful to hear. They’ve really taken a shine to you.”
Hannah smiled at the woman, thinking about the jewelry she’d seen haphazardly tossed into one of the drawers in the main bedroom.
Olivia had enough “casual” jewelry in her bedroom for Hannah to sell and pay her mortgage for a year.
Or close to it. And there was no telling what was in the safe in their closet.
But Olivia was a lawyer, and in Hannah’s experience, they tended to pay attention to details.
She didn’t think she could get away with snagging a few pieces without it being noticed. “They’re great girls.”
“Are you sure we can’t talk you into staying past your contract?”
“I wish, but it just doesn’t work with my schedule.
” When she’d been hired by the Scotts, it had been for a very short contract basis.
Their normal nanny had gotten sick and the Scotts had needed coverage for a couple weeks.
Since Hannah had moved on from the Alexanders she’d taken this last job so she’d have continued access to Emerald Queen Gardens.
Thankfully it wasn’t listed as a firing, or she’d have had a hard time getting more work with her current agency.
But now their normal nanny had decided to move on to something else and they were desperate. Under other circumstances, she would have capitalized on that desperation, but it was time to move on.
She could feel it in her bones that she’d been in this neighborhood way too long. And she knew enough that she could be in danger. “I’ll really miss the girls,” she added, because she would still need them as a reference if she kept nannying elsewhere.
“Well, we understand. If there’s anyone you personally recommend from the agency, let us know.”
“I will.” She hefted her bag up slightly on her shoulder. “And I’ll still see you tomorrow, and of course next week.” Tomorrow was Friday, then she had only one week after that, and she was done with this place.
As she drove out into the street, she saw Marcus Chesky pulling out in front of her.
She’d seen him driving a Jeep, an SUV, and a plain four-door sedan that looked out of place in this neighborhood.
Now, he was on a motorcycle. She couldn’t know that it was him for sure, given the helmet, but it was his body type. Big and broad.
Luckily he didn’t pay her any attention, just zoomed out of the neighborhood.
As she drove, she used the hands-free device and called Kade, her on-again, off-again boyfriend/fuck buddy—and business partner.
Their actual relationship wasn’t serious (they both saw other people), but their working relationship was.
She got them into nice neighborhoods, and he fenced everything they stole.
(Almost everything. She’d kept a few pieces for herself.)
“Hey,” he answered on the second ring. “How’s the last week?”
“Good. They want me to stay on longer.”
“There’s no reason you shouldn’t.”
“I can think of a couple,” she said dryly. But of course he wasn’t the one taking any risk. Sure, he took a small one when he fenced the jewelry or other items she stole, but that was minimal. And their blackmail scheme was so foolproof that no one was ever coming for them.
Until now. Because she’d screwed up. Marcus must have seen her planting those pictures on one of his many cameras.
“What’s the deal with the latest mark? We calling it?”
“I think it’s a bust,” she said. “He was weird when I confronted him—”
“I still can’t believe you went to his house,” Kade snarled. “That was dangerous.”
He was right. But she didn’t want to admit how stupid she’d been.
“I’m going to walk away from it.” She had something bigger she was handling anyway.
Not that she’d told Kade. For years they’d been splitting everything and this was her turn for a big score.
One where she could walk away for a few years, buy a small place of her own in cash, hopefully on the water.
“You sure?”
“Yeah. You feel like meeting up later?”
“Yeah. I’ve got some shit to deal with, but our usual place?”
“I’ll be there.” After she took care of something.
She’d thought about bringing Kade into this, but the reward outweighed the risk.
Besides, he ran other jobs without her. It wasn’t like they were real partners.
Just part-time partners. “I’m going to be home soon enough.
Gonna shower and get ready, then I’ll call you when I head out.
” She had a couple hours to kill before her upcoming meeting and needed to be fresh for it.
Sharp.
Eventually she made it downtown. And once she was inside her little condo, she felt like she could breathe again.
This was her safe haven, a place that was all her own.
Her mom had dragged her all over the country running cons, never settling down in one place, so being able to call something her own was everything.
Of course she was going to have to sell this place soon. She’d already called a real estate agent about putting it on the market. Once she made this next big score, she would need to relocate, buy a place under a different name.
Get some distance from the Seattle area. Hell, maybe she’d move out of Washington altogether.
She left her bag on a hook on the door, slipped her boots and jacket off, then made her way into the kitchen. She needed a hot tea, a shower, then she’d be back at it.
As she started to pour water into the pot, a soft squeak behind her sent a punch of alarm through her. But as she turned, pain exploded in her skull and blackness overtook her.