Chapter 1
CHRISTOPHER
Present Day…
Glass shatters against the roof of my car.
“Oh, shit!” Jasper’s shriek echoes through my earpiece, the front end of his bumper grazing the drop-off ramp we set up earlier today.
“Did you clench your cheeks this time, mate?”
Mae’s laughter rings from her position in my passenger seat, her motorcycle helmet bumping soundlessly against the smooth leather.
“Fuck yeah, I did. And you better believe you’re washing the brown streak from my pants tonight.”
“Don’t tease me with a good time.”
Jasper groans loud enough to wake the dead and Mae laughs again.
A grin splits my lips as I punch the gas, checking my rearview mirror for the third car that should be right behind Jasper’s blue beauty.
Corvette Stingray. 6.2L V8 engine. Eight-speed dual-clutch transmission of pure bliss.
It’s the kind of car that screams fuck me nice and slow, baby. We’re going to enjoy the ride.
Not my particular style but it suits the driver well. The boy-turned-genius swerving in the lane behind me finally had enough of the geek stereotype and traded it in for something sleek and sexy.
I didn’t have the heart to tell him the nerd status never really goes away.
“Where’s Horace?” The last member of our crew remains suspiciously absent from my rearview mirror. Alarms and sirens meld together as the jewellery shop gets further from view, but Horace’s ridiculous punch buggy is nowhere to be found.
“I thought he was right behind me.” A drop of panic leaks into Jasper’s voice.
Mae turns and looks at me, her eyes masked by the dark tint of her helmet. I don’t have to see her face to know what expression is hiding under there.
“Horace!” Craning my neck, I blindly check over my shoulder, “Where the fuck are you?”
“Twenty seconds.”
Shit.
I hit the brakes hard, causing Mae to jerk wildly against her safety harness. Cranking the steering wheel, my tires skid all over the road as I swing my car around.
“Meet us at the warehouse.” Barking the directions to Jasper, I start heading back to the scene of the crime we just committed.
The countdown reaches its mark and explosives start to go off in a string of beautifully timed distractions. We were supposed to be halfway to freedom by now, not using our insurance policy to drive back towards the emergency vehicles swarming the jewellery store.
Fucking Horace.
“Do you think he’s okay?” Concern bleeds through my earpiece, and it comes as no surprise to see a blue Corvette pull up beside me.
A job isn’t complete until every crew member is out of the line of fire. Call it pack mentality or sheer stupidity, we never leave anyone behind.
Especially not the idiot who has become an integral part of our family.
“I’m sure he’s fine.” Mae’s gloved hands press together, as if she’s trying to stop them from shaking, “He probably stopped for food.”
Plumes of smoke cover the street and disappear into the dreary sky. I grip the steering wheel tighter, easing my foot off the gas pedal as a black cop car goes whizzing by me.
Jasper’s heavy breathing creeps over our intercoms and I can hear the wheels of his big brain turning. Horace isn’t known for his radio silence, and up until three minutes ago, he was yapping our ears right off.
“It’s probably that shit car.” My voice comes out as confident as ever, my role as team leader resting heavily on my shoulders, “Ugly scrap of metal deserves to be put out of her misery.”
“Careful, Deville. If Horace hears you saying that-
“Oi! What the hell do you think you’re doing?” Angry huffs blow down the line, “Talking about my Betsy like that. She’s a classic, I’ll have you know.”
The yellow monstrosity shakes and rumbles her way down the road in front of us. Horace’s thick frame is tucked neatly in the driver seat, his face obscured by a motorcycle helmet.
“Thank God.” Jasper whispers the prayer while Mae shakes her head with a laugh.
“Where the fuck you been, Horace?”
My curt response is met by silence.
“You owe me an apology.” He pauses, forever trying to build the drama, “After you clean Betsy and tell her what a beautiful girl she is.”
A loud snort comes from my passenger seat.
Biting back the grin threatening to spill over my cheeks, I shove the relief aside and take a sharp right, past the flames licking the side of the building we just blew up.
“I’ll kiss her ass later. Would you mind not falling behind this time?”
“No need to be a wanker. I dropped my earpiece back at the shop and didn’t want the cops to get it.”
A stunned silence falls upon the group.
“You… you went back for your earpiece?” Disbelief fills Jasper’s voice.
Horace grunts, his vintage Volkswagen weaving its way between cars, “I wasn’t about to leave it there. Somebody could have traced it back to us.”
“Jasper would have cut the signal, mate. You could have just said something.”
“Oh.”
Another moment of silence while we all ponder the empty residence between Horace’s ears.
We don’t keep him around for his intelligence, that’s for damn sure.
“Moving on to Plan B. Take the next left and circle back to the main strip. Keep the speed low until you hit the backroads. Reconvene in an hour.”
“Has anyone ever wondered why it’s called Plan B?” The man of the hour muses out loud, “Next time we should call it Plan H. That would be way cooler.”
“H for Horace?” Mae doesn’t bother hiding her amusement.
“Nah, I was thinking more like helicopter. So, we can fly out of here.”
Nobody ever accused Horace of being a complicated man.
“Stay focused. We’re still thirty minutes from the… oh, fuck.”
The three cars holding London’s biggest collection of uncut diamonds come to a stuttering halt in front of the police barricade. Spikes on the ground, concrete dividers spaced between them, the road to freedom is just out of reach.
Cars are being pulled over as officers shut down the street, checking pedestrians and drivers for any potential suspects fleeing the scene.
Yellow tape hangs from the blown out entrance of Mark’s Jewellers, the shattered glass looking suspiciously similar to the shards glittering along the hood of my car.
“He’s waving us over.” Mae speaks quietly, as if her soothing tone might help the situation. The police officer waves his hand again, gesturing impatiently to the space in front of him.
“Jasper, reverse into that parking garage behind you. Take the side exit and loop back to the intersection. Hit every roundabout you can find.” Easing my foot off the brake, I let my car roll forward, “Horace, you’re going to swing that bug around and get lost in traffic. I’ll see you both back at the base.”
“Christopher-
“I’ll see you back at the base.” Unplugging my earpiece, I let it dangle on the cord hanging around my neck. Mae sighs heavily, her own com undoubtedly blowing up right now.
Inching closer, I watch Horace make a painful three-point turn while Jasper slowly disappears from my rearview mirror. Once the boys are out of sight, I lean over and open my glove box.
“Mae, darling, would you mind grabbing that package for me?”
My longtime friend passes it over with a smirk, “You know, this never happens when I’m riding with Jasper. Or Horace, for that matter.”
I flip up my visor and offer her a devilish grin, “Sounds like no fun.”
Mae watches me rip into the padded paper and empty the contents on my lap. Small explosives tumble out, each one primed and ready to be set off in case of an emergency.
“One of these days, your top dog status is going to get you into trouble.” Amusement bleeds into her voice as I pluck a couple of stun grenades from the pile, “More than you are already.”
“Hate to disappoint you, but trouble and I are on the same page.” Casting one last grin her way, I slide my visor back into place, “And I don’t plan on breaking up with her anytime soon.”
Mae snorts, grabbing a sound bomb for herself, “Save the flirting for your omegas. Let’s get the fuck out of here.”
Motorcycle helmet in place, I roll down my window and give the officer my friendliest wave. It takes all of two seconds for him to realize we aren’t average citizens.
The explosives in our hands were a bit of a giveaway.
“Everybody, get down!”