Chapter Thirteen #2
I got my scanner and swept the small space for listening devices. I kept a close eye on my private spaces. More than once I’d found a small listening device. Some I left until their batteries died. Others I got rid of immediately. Right now, I needed to be extra sure we were truly alone.
Wren watched my frantic movements, anger slowly giving way to confusion but not softening entirely. "What the fuck are you doing?"
"Checking for bugs," I replied without pausing, moving to the bedroom to continue my search. "They might have planted something while we were gone. Talk quietly until I finish."
Five minutes later, I completed my sweep. The apartment appeared clean, though that guaranteed nothing. I returned to the living room where Wren stood exactly where I left her, arms now crossed over her chest protectively.
"What the actual fuck, Rocky?" Her voice remained low but vibrated with rage. "You set me up? Made me think you gave a shit about me? All to squeeze information about my family?"
I approached her slowly, hands still raised in surrender.
"I never set you up, Wren. I never texted you tonight.
They set us both up." I stopped a few feet from her, giving her space.
"Everything I told you at the park about working with Vittorio is the truth.
I had to play along with what Vex thought or we'd both be dead right now. "
"So grabbing me? Threatening me?" Her eyes narrowed dangerously.
"I had to make it look convincing." I ran a hand through my hair, frustration mounting. "I’m so fuckin’ sorry, Wren. I did not want you mixed up in this. Not like this."
"Bullshit. You enjoyed playing the big bad Copperhead." She stepped toward me, jabbing a finger at my chest. "I saw it in your eyes. That cold, dead look. That happened easily for you."
"It comes from practice," I admitted quietly. "Years of pretending to be someone I'm not. Someone who can do terrible things without flinching." I caught her gaze, held it. "But it doesn't mean I enjoy it. Especially not with you."
Wren held my stare, searching my face for truth or lies. The silence stretched between us, taut with unspoken accusations and explanations neither of us had time for.
"I’m going on the assumption my cover is compromised," I finally said. "When Vex checks with Acid and learns I never reported working you for intelligence, they will come after us."
"And I'm supposed to just trust you?" She gave a bitter laugh. "Again."
"No. But right now, you don't have much choice." I let my guard drop completely, allowing her to see the genuine fear in my eyes. “I swear on my life, Wren. I will not let them take you from me.”
"I don't trust you," she said finally. "But I believe you about the danger." Her posture remained rigid, but something shifted in her stance—the slightest relaxation of her shoulders, a fractional unclenching of her fists. "So what the fuck do we do now?"
Relief flooded through me, but I pushed it aside. We hadn't cleared the danger yet. Not by a long shot. "We call for extraction. Get you somewhere safe. Then deal with the fallout."
Wren nodded once, the movement tight and reluctant. "Fine. But when this is over, you and I are going to have a very long conversation about trust and truth. And I'm still not convinced I shouldn't kick your ass when it's all said and done."
Despite everything, a small smile tugged at my lips. "I'd expect nothing less."
I moved to my bookshelf, fingers tracing along the spines until I found the thick motorcycle repair manual tucked between lesser-used references. My hands shook slightly as I pulled it free, revealing not a book but a hollowed-out shell that concealed my sat phone.
"What are you doing?" Wren asked, her voice quiet but still sharp with distrust.
"Calling for help. Vittorio needs to know the situation has changed. We need to get the fuck out of here and will need back up to leave. Vex will bring the whole club down on me after he talks to Acid.”
The phone rang once, twice. I kept my eyes on Wren as she moved toward my bedroom doorway, her figure a silhouette against the dim light beyond.
"Yes?" A familiar voice answered, alert despite the hour.
"It's me," I said quietly. "Sendin’ up the Bat Signal, Tori. They know about the VP's daughter and I’m about to be compromised."
Silence on the other end, then a sharp intake of breath. "How compromised are you?"
"Fully. Vex made me. Or suspected enough to test me." I turned away from Wren, lowering my voice further. "Had to claim I worked her for intelligence. They think she's with me now, talking, but we don't have much time. Vex will talk with Acid then the gig’s up."
Vittorio cursed in rapid Italian. "On the way now. Tell Wren I’m bringing her daddy with me."
"Twenty minutes."
"Copy that." I ended the call then looked back at Wren and sighed.
“Who was that?” She didn’t move closer and still looked wary.
“Vittorio. He said to tell you he’s bringing Ghost. They’re coming for us. We just need to hold out for twenty minutes.”
“They aren’t on to us yet, are they?”
“No. But they will be. It’ll be close.”
Finally, she stepped closer. Close enough for her to place a hand on my chest above my heart. "Who are you, Rocky? Who are you really?"
"I told you. I work for Vittorio Luca and his brothers. Have since we were kids."
"Doing what exactly?" Her eyes never left mine.
"Whatever they need me to. I went inside the Copperheads eight months ago to investigate their trafficking operation."
"Bullshit. You're holding back." She crossed her arms, the hoodie dangling from her fingertips. "Ghost warned me the Copperheads play a long game. How do I know this isn't just another layer of deception?"
My patience thinned. "Look, we don't have time for my life story.
Twenty minutes before extraction. Maybe ten before Vex realizes I'm not actually torturing information out of you and comes looking.
" I stepped closer, close enough to catch her scent of leather and vanilla and something uniquely her. "Everything I told you at the park about the girls, the trafficking, is true. There really is a transport coming in. I really am trying to stop it. And now my cover is likely blown. I don’t think this will stop the transaction, but it might make it more difficult to get close without alerting anyone.”
Suddenly, Wren’s expression looked lost and uncertain. “Is this my fault, Rocky? Did I do something wrong?” Wren wasn’t an indecisive person.
I pulled her into my arms, unable to bear the lost look in her eyes. “No, baby. None of this is your fault. And I will keep you safe. I will get you home safe and sound. I swear it.”
"And what about you?"
"I'll deal with the fallout." I checked the sat phone again. Fifteen minutes until extraction.
“You’re coming with me. Right?” That sounded more like my Wren.
“Only if Vittorio says so.”
“He’d make you go back to the Copperheads? Even if your cover’s blown?”
“No, baby. Vittorio is my family like Ghost is yours. He’ll help us both and we’ll take care of everything.”
The phone vibrated in my hand and I glanced at the screen. “They’re five minutes out. We need to move to the back entrance. Stay quiet, stay close."
Wren nodded, all business now despite the questions still burning in her eyes. I shouldered the bag, checked the window one last time, then moved to the door and paused.
"Wren?"
She looked up, face half-hidden by the hoodie she’d pulled over her head. "What?"
"For what it's worth, I never lied about what I felt for you." The words tumbled out before I could stop them, raw and honest in a way I rarely allowed myself to be.
Her expression softened for a fraction of a second before hardening again. "Save it for when we're not about to die. I'll decide then if I believe you."
Fair enough. I pulled the door open a crack, checking the hallway. Clear. We slipped out, the door closing silently behind us.