28
Mercy
Kaige gavethe door of the truck one last swipe with his rag and turned with a big smile on his face. I wasn’t sure he’d stopped smiling since our spur of the moment threesome last night. When his eyes caught mine, a tendril of heat unfurled through me despite the jangling of my nerves over the operation we were setting in motion.
“All clean,” he announced.
“Good.” Wylder set a somewhat possessive hand on my shoulder, but he grinned back at his friend without any noticeable animosity. “I think that’s the last of it. Rowan?”
“Just finished the doors,” Rowan replied, emerging from the back. “There shouldn’t be any sign left that we were ever here.”
A smirk curled my own lips. “But the Steel Knights will leave their fingerprints all over the place coming in. Let’s see them try to explain away that.” I was starting to warm to the idea of getting my revenge by siccing the cops on those bastards. Colt would hate being behind bars, losing control over his budding empire while he slowly rotted away in prison.
Wylder motioned for us to follow him. “Let’s get back to our lookout spot and kick off the last few pieces.”
We slipped out the back using gloved hands and headed into the restaurant next door. It was cooler today, especially now that evening was falling, a slightly damp breeze wafting against my face. We’d just driven the truck into the old auto-repair shop an hour ago and spent the rest of the time wiping the place down of any trace of our presence.
Once we were inside, I stuffed the gloves in my pocket and touched the outline of my bracelet through the fabric there, then the smooth pearl on Anthea’s hair pin, which I’d worn today as another lucky charm. I’d gotten through one dangerous situation in an unusual way wearing it. Maybe as long as I had it on me, it’d somehow protect me from actually needing it.
Okay, that was silly superstition, but I liked the idea even if I didn’t totally believe it.
We rejoined Gideon on the rooftop terrace. He nodded to us and tapped a few keys on the laptop balanced on his knees. “Cameras now sending their footage to the hard drive in the front office.” He’d set up the surveillance system so that the cops could find the recordings we wanted them to have, but he could still keep an eye on them from his computer. I doubted he’d sever that connection until he absolutely had to.
Kaige prowled over to the narrow notch we’d carved into the terrace wall from the top edge to halfway down. It allowed us to watch the street below without anyone catching a glimpse of us. “Nothing strange going on out there right now. What do we have left to do?”
Rowan pulled out his phone. “I’ll have a couple of connections drop our last rumors about the exact location of the drug shipment.”
Wylder nodded. “Gideon will keep an eye on the traffic cams to see when the Steel Knights start heading our way. Mercy, Kaige, and I will head down so we’re ready to spring the jams on the doors once the Steel Knights have stormed the place. Then Rowan will give the cops their final tip to bring them down here ASAP. And we get the fuck out before all hell breaks loose.”
Everything was taken care of. I dragged in a breath and froze when I saw Kaige stiffen.
“Hold up,” he said. Rowan lowered the phone he hadn’t yet placed a call on. “There’s a guy outside. He just drove up in front of the restaurant, and now he’s rapping on the door like he’s trying to get someone’s attention.”
“What the fuck?” Wylder stalked over to the wall.
I hurried after him. Once he’d gotten a look, I peered out. In the hazy evening light, the face I saw below us made my pulse hiccup.
I pulled back, speaking under my breath. “It’s one of the Claws members—well, former Claws. I’ve seen him with Jenner helping out the Steel Knights.”
Rowan frowned. “That’s not good. No one should have figured out the exact location yet. But why would he come alone if he knows what’s up?”
“Maybe he doesn’t?” Kaige said doubtfully. “Maybe someone spotted one of us around here, but they don’t know the whole thing.”
“That still doesn’t explain what he’s up to,” Wylder said, and paused. “He isn’t wearing one of the bandanas.”
The guy’s voice reached us then, rough—almost frantic sounding. “Mercy! I know you’ve got to be around here. I have to talk to you.”
A shiver ran down my spine. Had I screwed up somehow, and the Steel Knights had tracked me here?
Gideon had ambled over to take a look. He rubbed his jaw. “It doesn’t make sense. He poses no threat. You could take him even with that bullet wound in your shoulder. Why would he think you’d come out?”
“Because I know him, and he isn’t actually here to hurt me?” I suggested.
Wylder jerked around, giving me an incredulous look, but I was remembering the appeal I’d made to Jenner in the warehouse the other night. This guy had been there too—he’d heard me.
Had one person actually listened?
“Is there any sign of any other Steel Knights or their allies around?” I asked.