Page 79 of The Eagle's Vault

Fuck Fenix.

And fuck whoever at Barton was working with them.

Or maybe for them. It could have been a simple job for a paying client. Not every company researched their clients as thoroughly as Reynolds did. Once we were back home, I’d go through everything the analysts had collected on the Barton staff. And if I didn’t find the guilty party, I’d demand they do the research again.

Rav, all business in the driver’s seat, flicked his gaze to me in the rear-view mirror. “Brie’s right. Do we need to reschedule?”

“No.” The word came out more forcefully than I’d intended.

“You know…” Jayce swiveled in her seat to look directly at me. “Leigh wasn’t in our room when I got up from my nap. Don’t suppose you and she made up after whatever boneheaded thing you said to her at Ferraro’s?”

I did not huff out a breath and stare out the window.

Jayce squealed. “She’s back in your room right now, isn’t she?”

Someone gasped over the earpiece. It was female, which meant it was either Scarlett or Brie. Considering Scarlett didn’t react with any emotions when we were on a job, it had to be her sister. “Do you have a new girlfriend?”

Girlfriend? Bah.

It was one night of sex. That was it. Good sex, though.

Really good.

And then a fight.

“There’s nothing going on between Leigh and me. We aren’t even on speaking terms, so you can both calm down.”

Scarlett cut in before the women could probe any further. “Focus, you three.”

“Relax, boss.” Jayce twisted in her seat and tossed another chip into her mouth. “It’s just recon. Low-risk trip in. Eyeballs only. Yadda, yadda.”

“Stop eating in my ear, Jayce,” said Scarlett.

“Don’t get cocky.” Rav didn’t need the reminder to focus. Our safety was always top of his mind, no matter what else was going on around us. “Remember Noah’s thug and the kidnappers? They wanted info on the vault. It’s possible they’ve already gone down and looted the place.”

Jayce scoffed, turning in her seat to face him. “Rav, you see ghosts everywhere.”

A glimmer of a memory flitted across my mind. Rav, years ago, his face shadowed by secrets and memories of some far-off country where he served with JTF. The man I’d known most of my life had changed after that last mission. But that transformation made him perfect for our team. He’d go to the ends of the earth to protect us.

I studied his reflection in the mirror. The same determination was there, mirroring my own resolve. We were about to infiltrate a centuries-old catacomb in search of a mystery vault. This was no time for distractions.

“Rav’s right. We need to be careful.” I flexed my hand before it locked in place in the fist. “We stick together. We stay alert and get the job done, like always.”

“Status update?” said Scarlett.

Brie’s bright voice filled my ear. “Got all your GPS locations up on my screen. Will’s almost done with the map imaging from the notebook.”

A wave of anticipation rolled over me as the car pulled off to the side at a transit stop. The road into the Callixtus Catacombs, where we’d done our tour, was a small, private one that could bring too much attention if we went in after hours. Instead, Rav was dropping us off a two-minute jog away and would wait nearby.

Jayce swiveled in her seat again, giving me an intentionally narrowed-eyed stare. “You should fix whatever stupid thing you said to her that put you two on the outs. She likes you and she’s had more than enough men making her feel like shit.”

Scarlett cut Jayce off. “Back on task, team. I’ve got Brie and Will feeding me data. Plus, Emmett and Malcolm are on standby if we need extra hands.”

Jayce rolled her eyes. “And if we find something at the vault?”

Recon only. No opening it, Dec.“We look. We don’t open. But if we do find something and have to open it, it belongs to the Roman authorities.”

Rav’s glower found mine in the rear-view mirror, as though he knew how desperately I wanted to crack her open. “What about Ferraro? What’ll he think of that?”

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