Chapter 21
Chapter Twenty-One
Remi
“Damn, Remi.” Alessandra whistles. “It’s giving revenge dress.”
“You think?” Checking myself out in the mirror, I run my hands along the fitted gold sequin gown.
Extremely fitted, especially around the bust. While it’s technically my size, the tag is European, and I’m guessing there’s a difference.
But that’s not why I chose it; the dress has pockets, a necessity for tonight’s grab.
“Bet. And love the gold with the purple wig. Oooh, and your mask. It reminds me of a butterfly.”
“Thanks, it was my mawmaw’s.” One last grab, and then I’m out of the pickpocketing game , I promise her.
Maks appears at the door, knocking. “Remi. Are you ready to get set up?”
His word choice has a wave of unease pressing down on my chest, but I shake off the feeling. “I’m ready.” I grab the mask and give Nola a scratch on her head. She opens one eye, annoyed, before closing it. “Love you too.”
We meet Maks in the living room, who has a table of gadgets laid out. He hands me a Fleur-de-Lis pendant. “Camera.”
With the help of a decorative wall mirror, I get the necklace hooked around my neck.
“Earpiece.” He produces a tiny electronic device, holding it up with tweezers. “May I help with this one?”
“Please.” I lean closer as he inserts the device inside my right ear.
“Test. Test.” He calls through a walkie-talkie-looking thing.
“I hear you.”
“Good deal. Tonight, you are filling in for the pianist named Devon.” Maks hands me a Louisiana driver’s license with my photo and Devon’s name.
I raise an eyebrow in confusion. “How?”
“It’s a fake. Good enough to fool an officer at a casual glance, but if they run the information through their database, they’ll realize you aren’t a fifty-year-old, three-hundred-pound male like the real Devon. So I suggest flashing it only at the door to gain entrance.”
“And if the person working the door knows the real Devon?” I press.
“They won’t,” he says.
“I need more than your assurance.”
“They won’t.” Angelo appears, looking far too handsome for my own good. His intense eyes roam over my body, lingering over my cleavage.
His eyes meet mine, and they’re…pissed?
That’s rich, considering one, he bought this damn dress, and two, oh yeah, he just got seduced by Laurie right after fucking me.
Unflinching my fists, I tell him coolly, “I definitely need more than your assurance.”
The doorbell rings, and our little standoff is interrupted when Maks escorts Nic inside. “Hello, Nic.” I smile sweetly at him just to rile up Angelo.
“Hey, Remi,” he says nervously. “Boss.” He ducks his head in respect to Angelo.
“So you’re going to be my duke man,” I comment, ignoring the hole that Angelo is boring into me with his gaze.
He nods. “You pass off the phone to me, and I run it to Maks. Sounds easy enough.”
My fist raps on the wooden coffee table. “Don’t jinx us.”
“You’re superstitious?” Nic asks me.
“I’m careful,” I correct him. “Once the grab’s been made, and the phone returned to me, I’ll slip it back to the mayor and make my way to the extraction point.
” I go over the plan one more time. “If for some reason I’m unable to make it to the extraction point, then I’ll find my own way to Hotel D’Amico.
” And hope Sienna doesn’t recognize me, being that I did sort of steal her cat.
But Angelo and I were both in agreement, meeting back at the apartment to settle up would be too risky, and so a hotel room is on standby.
“You’ll do no such thing,” Angelo says dismissively.
“I’ll make that call in real time, but we’re not ruling anything out preemptively.” Ignoring his scowl, I continue, “If we’re unable to verbally communicate, three taps on my chest and a cough means we abort.” With the flat of my hand, I demonstrate with a fake cough.
Maks glances at his phone, announcing, “Remi, your ride’s here.”
I nod.
“Give us a moment in private,” Angelo commands, and the room clears out.
“Good luck, Remi,” Alessandra calls.
“Thank you,” I call after her.
Angelo angrily strides toward me, but I stand my ground. He stops inches from my face, his warm breath fanning my face. “Don’t make me kill the mayor tonight.”
“I’m not going to make you do anything. This is a business deal, nothing more.”
He grabs my cheeks, causing my lips to puff out like a fish. “So pretty, even when you lie.” He moves in for a kiss, but I lift my knee, blocking him.
“Fuck.” His hand drops from my chin, cupping his balls where I nailed him.
I take a step back, mentally preparing for his anger, but he surprises me by laughing. “I’m stealing a kiss from my little pickpocket tonight, that I promise.”
“I’m stealing the mayor’s phone tonight, that I promise. Don’t lose sight of what’s important here.” I hurl his words back at him as I march out.
Maks is there to lead me to the garage, where a windowless van idles. He pulls open the sliding door, and I say, “Oh my God, Angelo wasn’t kidding.”
A kidnapping would’ve been me snatching you off the street, tying you up, and tossing you in the back of a windowless van while you prayed for your life.
“What?”
“Never mind. Wish me luck.” I climb into the back, taking a seat on the floorboard.
“Let’s hope you’re as good as you think you are.” With that, Maks slams the door.
Remi
As promised, “Devon” breezes through the check-in, and I’m now on stage with the band getting set up before the guests arrive. “Hey, everyone. I’m filling in for Devon on the piano.”
“What happened to the big man Devon?” The band leader questions.
“Dunno,” I answer honestly. “Got word I needed to fill in, and here I am.”
“Watcha got?” he challenges.
Giving my fingers a stretch, I take a seat on the bench behind the baby grand and begin a serious rendition of pounding the wrong keys.
“Boo!” Everyone in the band ribs me.
I laugh, switching over to arguably the most difficult jazz song in all of history, with its high variables and tough-to-recreate right hand.
“Alright, girl’s got some skill,” he calls. Meaning I’ve passed the initiation test.
“Hey everyone, sorry I’m late.” That voice has me freezing.
“You’re gonna be late to your own funeral,” the leader jokes.
“Probably so.” Ellis unpacks his horn, noticing me. “Well. Well. Well. Who do we have here?” Ever the player, he sidles up to me, leaning on the piano. “I don’t think we’ve met. I’m Ellis.” He flashes that flirty smile.
Noooooo!
Of all the scenarios we ran through, this wasn’t one of them.
“Yvonne, don’t waste your time on fuckbois in the horn section,” the band leader taunts Ellis.
“Hey now, I resemble that remark,” Ellis jokes.
“Everybody’s here?” A man with a headset sticks his head on stage.
“Yes,” the band leader calls.
“Let’s run through a sound check.”
“Yvonne, talk to you later.” Ellis winks at me, sauntering to his position on stage.
On the one hand, I’m relieved he doesn’t recognize me; on the other hand, how dare he not recognize me!
“Remi, are you ready?” Maks’ voice inside my earpiece reminds me of why I’m here.
“Ready,” I say quietly, channeling all my frustrations into the keys.
Angelo
“Ellis has arrived,” Maks informs me through my earpiece. “He acted like he didn’t know Remi.”
“Angelo, did you hear me?” Laurie touches my thigh, and I resist the urge to snap her wrist.
“What was that?” My words are clipped.
“I said, me bringing you as my plus one, make that plus three,” she amends with a disgruntled tone, “is a risky move. You’d better not get me on the mayor’s bad side.”
“Nonsense. It’s politics, nothing personal.” At least, it was politics. The mayor made it personal when he attempted to extort me.
“I hope you’re right.” Turning her attention to my sister, she says, “So, Al, what are your college plans?”
“I’ve decided to study abroad.”
“Since when?” I raise an eyebrow.
“Since I got accepted into the program.”
“Which program? You know I’ll have to vet this?—”
“Already forwarded you the information,” Al cuts me off.
It’s what I wanted, my sister to have some direction for her life, and yet I feel…
I feel?
This is all Remi’s doing.
I’m in an especially foul mood as we arrive at the party. Laurie hands over the invitation, and we flash our IDs to the security at the front door.
“Ma’am, I see your invitation is for yourself, plus one guest?—”
“Yes, well, my plus one brought his ward and private security,” Laurie explains in a huff.
“Let me run this by my supervisor.” The security guard excuses himself, speaking quietly with another individual. The supervisor whispers something over a walkie-talkie before both men join us. “Ms. Khol.”
“Dr. Khol,” she corrects the supervisor with a condescending tone.
“ Dr . Khol. You and your guests are welcome to enter, but any private security must remain outside.”
“I feel more comfortable with my own security,” I interject.
I feel?
There I go, using that four-letter word again.
“Mr. Calvani, rest assured, we have our own private security team, as well as a team of NOPD officers working tonight. You’re in good hands.”
Pushing too hard would only raise suspicion, so I concede defeat. On this round. “Very well.” I jerk my head toward the door, and Nic steps outside.
We enter the party, with Maks in my ear. “Cannon will have to meet Duke Man outside, but we can still make this work,” he says, but I’m too busy scanning the stage for Remi.
Easy enough; follow the gaze of every man in this party.
Something in my chest rattles violently.
“Don’t bring attention to Cannon,” Maks chastises.
I force my attentions elsewhere, which happens to land on Ellis. The fact that this little shit had a taste of what’s mine makes my blood fucking boil.
And when I decided that Remi was mine, God, the woman really has stolen my sanity.
“Get closer to the mayor so we can check out the security situation,” Maks says in my ear.
“Let’s go say hello to the mayor.” I grab Laurie’s hand, with Remi’s words ringing in my ears.
Will you be touching Laurie? Dancing? Holding hands?
Before all of Remi’s predictions come true, awareness tickles the back of my spine. I turn around to find a familiar face, flanked by officers.
“Mr. Calvani?” Detective Pierre plays dumb as he steps forward, his two sidekicks falling back.
“Yes?”
“Detective Pierre, New Orleans Police Department.” He flashes his badge. “You need to come with us.”
“I beg your pardon?”
“We have some questions?—”
“If this is about the coffee with a cop program I’m sponsoring, all questions can be forwarded to my general manager at The Boardroom . If you’ll excuse me.”
I go to brush past him, when the cold metal of handcuffs catches my left wrist.