Page 60 of The Twilight Theft

“Yeah, Will needs to get on that,” she said to her team, rather than to me. She snorted a laugh in response to something one of them said.

The regular crowd milled around the fountain, enjoying the warm evening. It was only eight, the sun was still barely up, and the light display hadn’t started yet.

“Rav’s just called in to confirm his buddy Marc has finished his sweep.” Jayce’s voice dropped to a whisper. This would have been easier if we’d all been on the same comms. “No one hiding out in the lower or upper floor offices. He’s also confirmed the staff exit off the kitchen and the stairwell exits on the ground floor and to the roof had their locks upgraded. The guards on the stairwells will ensure no one gets to those doors from the inside.”

Ten-foot-high swaths of canvas surrounded the perimeter of the restaurant’s patio, providing increased privacy for the evening. Not to mention the distinct feeling of exclusivity. Men in tuxedos and women in long dresses made their way to the paved trail near the river, where an arch of rose bushes laden with red and metallic flowers provided entry into the event.

As Jayce and I followed the flow of traffic, I eavesdropped on the surrounding conversations.

“They’ve outdone themselves this year,” said one woman in a floral gown to the man with her.

“Ostentatious,” said another.

Both sentiments and everywhere in between rippled through the attendees. Few people on their way up the patio spoke of anything personal, instead marveling at the decorations. Tiny lights wound around the twenty-foot-tall metal sculpture and the potted trees decorating the patio tiers. A red carpet had been rolled down the shallow stairs up to the restaurant’s main floor, with additional greenery dotting the path.

I let go of Jayce when we joined a short line at the rose arch, where four security personnel scanned invitations. One of them, Rav’s other friend who’d joined the security team, discreetly waved us forward. He had us through the entrance quickly.

The inside of the canvas walls was black, decorated with a pattern reminiscent of stars. Here and there, light reflected off the stars, while others twinkled on their own.

Once we were on the long, multi-tiered patio inside the canvas walls, Jayce took my hand, twining her fingers with mine. My heart kicked up, but I refrained from staring at her. I’d thoughtIwould be the one leading the physical portion of the job.

“I reviewed this with Wyatt last night,” she said, her gaze everywhere and nowhere. “Three taps with any finger means danger—”

“Same as when I was on comms with your team?”

She glanced at me for a beat. “Same. Two taps with the thumb means going forward when we can’t say as much.”

That was also the same code as we’d used on the Harrington job.

“There are a few differences when we’re in-person and you aren’t on our channel. Two taps with the pinky finger means we need cover.”

“From something we don’t consider dangerous?”

Two women in wide cage skirts glided around the patio, each skirt decorated with metal hoops that held stemmed glasses filled with liquids of various shades. They brought to mind cyborgs in their own interpretation of Elizabethan gowns. Another woman in a silver breastplate and face mask had only two levels to her gown, carrying single-bite foods.

The second we got close enough to the latter, Jayce grabbed something that looked like a pastry dipped in chocolate. It vanished into her mouth before I got a good look at it. She held her clutch over her mouth as she chewed. “Two taps with the pinky means cover of a physical sort.”

“How does that differ from the thumb tap?”

“Thumb tap means hide. Pinky-tap cover means…” She lowered her hand long enough to pucker up, giving me an obvious hint that type of cover would require us to get a lot closer again. Rather than discussing levels of tongue, she continued, “Deliberately squeezing each finger in order means make conversation.”

“With someone other than you, I assume?”

She frowned, but it was quickly lost to a smile. After the way she’d greeted me at her hotel room, I wasn’t sure I’d earn one of those all night. “If I’m holding your hand and need you to talk to me, I’m pretty sure I can just tell you that.”

“What does this mean?” I stroked my thumb up and down the side of her hand, along her finger. It meant I was more invested in the cover story than the job itself. Wrong, but sadly true.

“It doesn’t have a meaning, other than your fingers are twitchy.” Her smile vanished. The red carpet would take us into the main dining room, where the two sets of double-doors were open. Jayce gestured to the twin doors to the banquet room. “We’re the first ones from my team here, so we should set up in the banquet room for our shift.”

Each door had one large man in a black suit and obvious wired earpiece. They could have worn something more discrete, but Gideon and Liana wanted a conspicuous security presence. Maybe it would be enough to deter whoever was behind the threats—or maybe they were only threats and nothing would come of it. Maybe I was in a tuxedo with a beautiful woman on my arm for nothing.

Nothing other than the opportunity to hold her hand.

And finish the night with a cold shower.

“Holy crapballs,” Jayce breathed as we neared the open banquet room doors. “It’s huge.”

The interior of the banquet room was dim, with spotlights shining on the four VIP items at the center, as well as the paintings and sculptures around the perimeter for the auction. Even from outside, the sheet of black fabric towering over ten feet drew my attention.

---