Chapter 8
Sable launched her bumble bee drone into the air and opened the accompanying book.
Cash would not die on her watch. She would rather lose the egg than lose him, so after Cash’s private tour, complete with selfies that conveniently included shots of the sensor, Sable said goodbye to her date with a kiss and a silent promise.
She wouldn't sacrifice him to win, and since the violent thief didn’t view her as a threat, he didn’t bat an eye when she left Cash’s side.
Tracking the thief was almost too easy after that.
She kept her bee drone trained on him the entire time he stalked Cash, and when he finally left the museum, Sable followed him to his accommodations.
It didn’t surprise her to learn he was staying at the most expensive hotel in the city.
Unlike her style of slipping through the shadows, this man didn’t care if anyone recognized him.
They would be dead before they ever opened their mouths to turn him in, and Sable would normally steer clear of such a threat, but her self-preservation was nowhere to be found.
All she could focus on was Cash’s safety.
“Hey girl, what’s up?” Peter answered on the second ring.
“Can you do me a favor and get me access to the La Ville Plaza’s security footage?”
“Sure. Thinking of changing your residence to something nicer than a glorified college dorm?”
“No… we have company. I’m texting you a picture.”
The line went silent as she sent him the photo she’d snapped of Cash’s stalker, and Peter’s concerned inhale drifted through their cell’s connection.
“Sable…” he trailed off for a moment. “Maybe we should rethink your involvement. If he thinks you’re in his way, he’ll kill you.”
“I know, hence, why I want to keep an eye on him.”
“Many have tried keeping an eye on him,” Peter said. “It never ended well for them.”
‘Yeah, well, none of them were trying to protect the man they were falling for and his innocent son,’ Sable silently told herself.
“Will you please help me?” she said instead. “Can you track his movements?”
“Of course, I’ll help you. You don’t even need to ask,” Peter said.
“Thanks… oh, and one more thing. Can you link my phone to the number I’m texting you? I want to be able to track its location.”
“Sure, send it over.”
Sable texted her friend Cash’s cell number. She knew he would be upset if he learned she was tracking him, but she wasn’t doing this for the egg. She was doing this to save his life.
With Peter’s help, Sable set up extensive surveillance on Cash, Clover, their house, and their stalker.
At first, the thief merely watched the museum, completely unaware that she was watching him.
She didn’t want to draw any more attention to herself than she had when taking that private and very cozy tour with her sexy guard, so she lied and told Cash she was sick.
It would buy her a few days of separation to stalk the stalker without ending up on his radar.
The man did nothing but observe, though, and for the next week, Sable spent her afternoons trailing him and her nights video chatting Cash.
She wore makeup to give herself a red nose and bags under her eyes, and she mussed her hair before burrowing under the blankets to talk to him.
She felt guilty for lying, especially when he delivered chicken soup to her apartment, but their late calls became her obsession.
Night after night, they talked as she pretended to sniffle and cough, and she learned everything she could about him.
Their conversations grew deeper as the hours grew later, and by the fourth day, Sable knew she was forever changed.
She was falling in love with this man, and she was tempted to call her mother and ask for help because how was she supposed to walk away from him?
How was she supposed to break his heart?
She ached to call her mom because she was afraid Cash was her soulmate, and she wanted to escape this heist with their relationship intact.
But if she didn’t steal the egg, someone else would, and they might kill him in the process.
If she confessed her sins, he would never forgive her for endangering his son with her presence.
If she stole the egg, he would hate her, but at least the target would be off his back.
Her mother didn’t know she was The Rabbit’s Foot, but maybe she should confess because she desperately needed guidance.
Sable scrolled through her phone until she found her mom’s contact, but before she could dial, an alarm dinged from her workspace.
Terror ripped through her as she raced for her computer.
She’d programmed that sound for one specific purpose.
She didn’t need to see the security footage to know what danger it heralded.
The dangerous thief was headed towards Cash’s home, and it didn’t take an expert to predict his plans.
He was going to kill the Fae guard and steal his security badge.
“911, what is your emergency?” the dispatcher asked, answering the call two rings after Sable dialed.
“Some guy is peaking into my neighbor’s windows,” she lied, using her voice disguiser to turn herself into a man. “Kids live in this neighborhood. We can’t have someone peering into their rooms.”
“What’s your address?” the operator asked.
Sable rattled off Cash’s street, but when the operator asked for her name, she knocked the waiting pots and pans onto the floor.
They clattered to the tile with an excessive bang, and Sable started yelling at an imaginary pair of kids and dogs for running in the kitchen as she hung up.
She then pulled the battery out of the burner phone and threw it in the trash before climbing out her window and aiming for the roof.
The only way she’d make it to Cash’s house before the thief was if she leaned into her Easter Bunny’s natural abilities, and even then, she might be too late.
Hence the 911 call. Reports of a man lurking around homes with children would kick the police into gear, and while she doubted it would stop the stalker from killing Cash in the future, it might save his life tonight, and that was all she cared about at the moment.
Save father and son, then make a long-term plan.
Inhaling a lungful of the night air, Sable prayed she’d make it in time as took off running.
High above the citizen’s heads, she sailed through the sky, each leap more powerful than the next.
She was grace and speed and fear as Peter’s surveillance pinged the thief’s movements.
He was gaining ground. He would arrive at Cash’s house before she did, and the exhaustion plaguing her lungs was the only thing stopping her scream from escaping her lungs.
She had to make it in time. Cash didn’t die tonight. Clover wasn’t going to be an orphan.
With a curse, Sable picked up her pace, the multi-story buildings morphing into residential houses below her boots.
Her agility carried her silently over the slanted roofs, and just as her breath threatened to burn to ash in her lungs, Cash’s street came into view.
She almost signed in relief until she registered the silence.
No police sirens disrupted the peace. The squad car hadn’t arrived yet.
“Shit!” she cursed as she pushed herself faster. “Please be alive. Please be alive. Please be alive.” Cash was ex-special forces. He wouldn’t let a threat enter his home without a fight. He could handle himself against a monster… right?
Sable leaped onto a neighbor’s roof and almost choked when she saw a figure slip through the shadows toward Cash’s back door.
The house was dark save for the soft light glowing in the upstairs master bedroom, and she knew from their video chat that Cash was about to turn in for the night, which meant the thief had a clean entrance into the home.
If he got inside, Cash and Clover’s chances of survival dropped significantly, and Sable pulled out her phone.
That man wasn’t getting inside. She’d make sure of it.
Sable
Peter, check the surveillance I asked you to set up the other day. If something happens to me, warn the number I gave you. Tell him someone’s coming for him, and that I tried to stop him. Don’t let this thief kill the guard and his kid. Please, for me.
Peter’s answer was immediate.
Peter
Sable? What the hell are you talking about?
Promise me you won’t let the guard die. I don’t have time to explain. Just swear it.
Anything for you.
Thanks. You’re a good friend.
Sable shoved her phone in her pocket, slipped the brass knuckles onto one hand, and gripped a knife with the other.
Just because she didn’t use violence to achieve success didn’t mean she couldn’t defend herself.
She grew up with brothers. She knew how to fight, and while this was one she’d probably lose, she didn’t care.
She didn’t have to win. She just had to buy Cash time.
And with that, she jumped.
Sable landed on the thief, her boots crushing his shoulder as he collapsed, and with agile grace, she jammed her knee into his neck.
“Don’t you fucking move!” She gripped the back of his ski-capped head and shoved his face into the pavement. “Put your hands behind your—”