Page 10 of Ruthless Bonds

“I know.”

“But I can’t go down this path with you again. Dove and I have a new life. We want you to be a part of that life. But you have to want to change.”

“I do.” He sighed and dragged his fingers over his face. “Things just got fucked up. And my dad…”

I narrowed my eyes at him at the mention of Ray. Of course he’d had something to do with this. I should have known.

“Look, I promise after this I’m going to do better. I want to do better, Alora.”

I nodded. “Let’s do this.”

We slipped on our masks, and Dylan grabbed his bag of tools from the backseat.

I pushed away thoughts of potential consequences. It wasn’t the right headspace to be in before a job. We’d always been too confident, bordering on cocky, since we’d never gotten caught. We were like ghosts. Invisible. And I had no intention of breaking that tradition. Failure wasn’t an option tonight. Not when Dylan’s life was on the line.

We moved through backyards, avoiding streetlights, leaving the car a few blocks away. Every so often, we would duck down and listen for any signs of people or police. After a few minutes, we reached the house and climbed over the wooden fence. Dylan landed with a groan, and my hand instinctively moved to cover his mouth. I placed a finger in front of my lips, and he nodded.

Minutes went by, neither of us making a move. I studied the house for any movement in the windows. Only when I felt satisfied that the house was empty, and no nosey neighbors were going to pop out, did we move toward the basement.

Dylan pulled out a scanner and checked the window, ensuring there was no alarm. I held my breath as he cut through the pane and slid the whole panel free. He motioned for me to move through, and I popped my head inside.

It was dark down there, but the moon provided enough light that I could see the basement floor was only a few feet down. I turned onto my stomach and shimmied my way through the window, legs first. It was a tight squeeze, but manageable.

Until it wasn’t.

My ass got stuck, and the harder I wiggled, the more the window frame dug into my skin.

Damn Dove and all those muffins and cakes she’d been making. I swore every single pound I’d gained over the past few months had gone straight to my ass.

“I’m stuck,” I hissed at Dylan.

“What do you mean?”

“My ass is stuck. Part of the frame is cutting into me. Push my butt down so I can slide through.”

His eyes widened as he glanced between the frame and my apparently gigantic ass. “You want me to touch your butt?”

“Dylan, now is not the fucking time to be weird, OK? Push my ass down or I swear to God, I’m going to—”

“OK, geez, hold on.” He pushed my ass down as I wiggled my hips, and a moment later I slid all the way through and landed on the basement floor.

Thank fuck. I was going to have to talk to Dove about all the desserts she’d been making. Maybe cut down on the sugar a bit. That was too close a call.

I gave Dylan a thumbs-up and motioned for him to go to the front.

I crept up the basement steps and pushed the door open. The wood creaked under my weight as I stepped out into the hall, making me freeze. Damn, I’d almost forgotten how anxiety-inducing this all was. I held my breath for a few heartbeats, listening to make sure no angry homeowners were coming for me.

Nothing.

There was complete silence except for the hum of a refrigerator down the hall and a ticking of a clock somewhere. I moved toward the front of the house, my eyes slowly adjusting to the darkness. Once I rounded the corner, the moonlight sneaking through the half-closed blinds illuminated my path.

The alarm panel by the front door had my full attention. I frowned as I approached it.

It was already disabled. There were no red flashing lights. No prompt to enter the code Dylan had given me earlier.

Unease coursed through me as I opened the front door. Dylan slid through and pushed it back shut.

“There’s a problem.” I looked over my shoulder, then back to him. “The alarm was already disabled.”

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