Page 89 of The Eagle's Vault

“Do you have night vision goggles?” Brie said through the earpiece.

“I packed for a black-tie wedding, not for underground.” My tone was too sharp, but I couldn’t control myself. My woman was being held by men with guns.

I flicked off my flashlight and stowed it in a pouch at my thigh before turning the last corner where I could see Jayce. “I see you.”

Her tiny form was curled up on the floor, peeking around the edge to watch the men. She’d donned her black head covering, so it was unlikely anyone would spot her, even if they looked directly at her. Her fingers wiggled in my direction as a hello.

My heart pounded with increasing anxiety as I neared Jayce, the voices beyond becoming clear. I knelt behind her, leaning to her ear to keep as quiet as possible. “She’s not working with them.”

Jayce tucked back against the wall to look—glower—at me. “Of course she isn’t. No one thinks she is.”

“What do we do?” I cupped my hands around my mouth to ensure I was silent to everyone but the team.

“Get out,” said Scarlett. “They’re armed.”

“I’m not leaving her. Come up with something better.”

“Just passing the gate.” Rav wasn’t on my GPS display, but his steady breaths told me he was moving through the corridor faster than I had. “But I’m not armed.”

“Crap.” Brie wasn’t the bravest of the Reynolds siblings, but her tone had me plastering myself against the wall that blocked Jayce and me from the armed men in the chamber. “You’ve got company. I can see police cars pulling in along the private road. No lights, but there’s two of them, so it’s not likely a random patrol.”

Leigh’s words carried down the hall. “There’s more of the mirror writing on that plaque by the vault door. Let me flip that one, too.”

One of the men—not Isaac—said, “It’s also Italian, but different from the last one. It says to turn back. And that the contents of the vault are cursed.”

I peeked around the corner, my eyes finally landing on Leigh for real. What was I going to do? How was I going to fix this?

We had to separate Leigh—and Isaac and Daniel, if possible—from the two thugs. Distract the big men. Take them out separately.

I ducked behind the corner again and slipped my pack around, opening the top. There had to be something. I rummaged, more to get my brain running than anything. I knew exactly what was in this pack. I just had to change how I was thinking about things. Then my hand landed on a small container tucked neatly in a pouch near the top. “Will, I have the drone. Can you pilot it if it’s connected to my phone?”

Will hummed aloud. “It worked in Venice.”

“Good.” I withdrew the tiny drone’s case and pulled out the technical marvel—it would be Leigh’s savior—which spanned less than two inches. “Glad you built it so small.”

“Finally! Someone’s appreciating it,” said Will. “Brie, I’ll need you to take over the map and figuring out the other exit.”

“Got it,” she said.

“What are you planning?” Scarlett would give me some latitude to improvise, but only if the plan made sense to her.

“Step one, we separate the two thugs. Step two, we get everyone to safety.”

“Step three?” she asked.

I pressed the back of my head against the cool brick behind me, a war battling in there.Step three, I’m going to open that beautiful safe and see what’s inside.

Rav’s rhythmic breaths sounded again. He must have muted himself, which was rule number one at Reynolds—never turn off your earpiece. Somehow, most of our rules didn’t apply to our head of security. “You missed the step where you wait for me to take care of whichever man stays behind.”

I could take one of them. Rav had given me plenty of hand-to-hand lessons, and I’d have help from Isaac and Daniel. “Jayce, you up for a little distraction?”

She smacked my shoulder, hauling off her hood so I could see her familiar grin. “Let me guess. Make noise and stay ten steps ahead of whoever chases me and the drone?”

“You read my mind.”

She hopped up from her spot on the ground. “Those assholes aren’t going to hurt my best student.”

“Student?”

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