Page 22 of The Eagle's Vault

“Declan.” Scarlett’s boss mode kicked in. I’d known her since we were twelve—she’d developed that at the ripe old age of fourteen. She didn’t intimidate me. I simply accepted her as the leader of our pack from the day she moved to town.

“Okay, okay.” I straightened, maintaining eye contact with Leigh a little too long, nearly careening into a man coming in the opposite direction. I’d become too used to visiting beautiful cities and rarely played the tourist anymore. Our tour guide. I knew Rome well enough I’d be able to surprise Leigh with a few hidden wonders. Maybe after the vault test. “How do we get past those locks without leaving a trace?”

“You want the extra money?” asked Leigh.

Money? That was never behind what I did. “I want the extra challenge.”

“Typical,” groaned Jayce. She was one to talk. She’d insisted we scale Edoardo’s wall to prove someone could make it up without being caught on camera, instead of simply telling him.

“That means we can’t drill,” I began, ticking off options on my fingers, now that I didn’t have to keep Leigh’s hand trapped on my arm. “Too much of a mess. We can’t torch it, same reason. And no explosives.”

Leigh interrupted me with a raised eyebrow. “Jayce wasn’t joking? How often do you use explosives?”

Was she appalled or impressed?

“Not often enough.” Rav’s tone was dry, but Brie’s laughter rang out in response.

“Ask me about the chihuahua in the Spanish story later.” I couldn’t help but chuckle at the memory of whisking Mr. Bites A Lot away from our work zone. “Today, we focus on what we can do for this job.”

“Do you think you could pick the lock?” Leigh asked. “You’d need a specialized tool… and to do it twice.”

The spark in her eyes told me she was excited to take on the challenge. Disengaging her arm from mine, she rummaged through her clutch and produced the chain key. Her fingers moved over it with an artist’s touch.

There was an unexpected pang of loss at the lack of contact.

Get a grip, Dec.We weren’t a couple. We were just pretending for the recon.

“I have a few contacts who might know more about this design.” Leigh’s gaze remained on the key. “I could…” She paused, correcting herself with a sheepish smile. “Isaac could consult with them.”

The reminder brought my mood down as quickly as Leigh’s mood had fallen. I didn’t want to work side-by-side with him Thursday night. Didn’t want to spend hours practicing with him and refining our plans.

What I wanted was to figure out a way for her to replace him. I wanted to see her eyes light up the way they had on our way out of Cassaforte.

“Last chance for Vatican City?” I whispered to Leigh.

“Dec,” snapped Scarlett.

Leigh bit her lip, holding back a smile.

“I know, I know.” I pulled out my phone to find a rideshare. “See you in twenty, Scar.”

Chapter 9

Leigh

Tuesday,thedayaftermy excursion with Declan into the Cassaforte vault, Isaac and I joined the Reynolds team at their office. Isaac had initially suggested I spend all day at the hotel, since he’d have to leave for his meetings after a couple of hours, but I’d insisted I was safer with them than alone.

It was manipulative to use my safety as an excuse, but it worked.

“Focus, Leigh.” Jayce’s light-brown eyes drilled into mine as she held a delicate white feather in front of me. The wrapper of a granola bar crinkled between her nimble fingers. “You’re a statue. Breathe without making that feather move.”

I locked my gaze onto the feather, my pulse drumming in my ears. My breath, a whisper against the feather, failed to disturb its barbs, despite the activity all around us in the makeshift office.

“You’re getting the hang of it.” Jayce grinned, popping a morsel into her mouth. “I’m glad Isaac let you outside to play.”

Her words lingered, the weight of them pushing against my lungs. I exhaled, too quickly, too sharp. The feather dipped.

“Easy,” Jayce crooned. “You don’t want to disappoint your teacher, do you?”

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