Page 104 of The Scarab's Game

Noah’s eyes finally met mine, cold and calculating. “This is our place right now. We may have more significant concerns than Reynolds Recoveries, but Enzo will kill any of you on sight because he believes his little failures at your hands are important. He wants revenge.”

My stomach churned at each mention of Enzo. Of the memory of what he’d done to me when ithadn’tbeen revenge.

Jayce said over the earpiece, “The first explorers are nearing the secret door. Are we a go?”

I stared at the auctioneer. The Nigerian had raised his bid to four million euros. That was my upper limit. I glanced at Jenn across the room, apprehension and worry written all over her face.

The auctioneer called for any further bids. Everyone else had dropped out.

I raised my hand, pushing the bid to four-point-one million euros. It was close enough to our target, and I wasn’t losing over a hundred thousand. I’d cover that if Mum balked at it.

Noah used his glass to conceal his words again. “Why bid on it if you’re just going to steal it? Jayce not so sure of her abilities anymore? I hear her leg’s getting worse.”

I froze. Of course, he knew our plan. Of course, he knew about Jayce. He knew everything about our team, and we knew next to nothing about his.

Fuck.

Noah was distracting me even more than Jenn. Did he have some bigger game going on?He always has a bigger game going on. But if Fenix considered Reynolds nothing more than irritants, we had to stop thinking Fenix was after us.

Unless Noah said all of that to manipulate me?

Double fuck.

I looked at Jenn again, and calm settled over me. Her presence grounded me, reminding me of what truly mattered. I was getting too worked up during this job, but in the end, I had the most important thing—her.

The auction, Noah’s mind games, even the scarab itself seemed to fade into the background. Turning back to Noah, I changed tactics. Go on the offensive. “Why come here to buy the disc when you could have just kidnapped its owner?”

Concern flashed behind Noah’s eyes, his composure slipping for just a moment. “If you touch it?—”

“Don’t worry, we’re only here for the scarab.” I watched his reaction carefully, searching for any truth leaking out.

The Nigerian businessman increased his bid to four and a half million.

Noah clucked his tongue. “It would appear Osaze’s still sore about those Bronzes.”

Goddammit. An extra hundred thousand over our limit was one thing, but the next bid would eliminate most of the profit Reynolds would get when we handed the scarab over. The reward was five million. Frustration flooded my body—going that high would be stupid.

Before I could respond to Jayce, Scarlett’s voice came through my earpiece. “Osaze won’t sell us the scarab for less than a million profit. Jayce, you’re up.”

Jayce’s confident reply came through, “You got it, boss.”

Scarlett said, “Be careful.”

“What fun would that be?” Jayce was so reckless at times. But she was ready.

Noah stepped in front of me, blocking my view of the auctioneer. His proximity had me clenching the chip again, and I resisted the urge to step back. “Don’t forget, my team’s here tonight. And I also have a past with Martine.”

He winked and walked off, leaving me with a growing sense of unease.

As Noah wove his way through the crowd, my mind raced. Had we been double-crossed? Did Noah plan on us being here? Was Enzo waiting for Jayce? The possibilities made my brain spin.

“Shit,” I muttered under my breath. “Be extra careful, Jayce. Keep an eye out for Enzo.”

“I will, too,” said Drew. No one else could hear him, but everyone knew he’d do anything for Jayce. Rav had been right to insist Drew work on the inside. He thought on his feet well, andif he spotted anything going wrong, he’d choose Jayce’s safety. I could trust in that, at least.

Apparently ignoring everyone else, Jayce said, “The guards are distracted. I see my opening.”

I blew out a deep breath. Time for the real game to start.

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