Page 89 of Betrayed in Blood
“That’s a human trait.”
“Maybe. It doesn’t make the sentiment any less true.” I turned to the opened back door, but before I got in, Sergi had to have the last word.
“Do what you do best, Cressa. Plans are only a guide. Follow your instincts. Be Pandora tonight.”
I didn’t turn around, but I nodded. His words meant the world to me and were a stark reminder that best-laid plans rarely went without a hitch. We were prepared for that.
ChapterTwenty-Six
The SUV stoppedbehind Roxie’s van, and I scanned the neighborhood from the back seat. Dusk was fading into night, and the street was quiet. Sergi stepped out and knocked on the back door of the van. Roxie, the young, dark-haired hacker, stuck her head out, glanced around, then waved Sergi in, closing the door behind him.
We waited. I checked my watch every minute until Devon put a hand on my leg.
“Take a breath. There’s still two minutes to go.”
I glanced at Mateo, who sat in the front passenger seat, sure that he was listening while focusing on the right side of the street. The driver’s head was turned toward the left.
My earbuds crackled.
“Checkpoint test. Team One.” Sergi’s voice was calm.
“Team One check,” I responded.
“Team Two check.” Harlow’s voice was all professional. On a typical heist, Harlow maintained his composure, but it wasn’t unusual for him to utter a random sexual innuendo or share some inane trivia he’d recently read. When he worked with vamps, all that went away, for the most part.
While the rest of the teams checked in, I went through my utility belt and touched my dagger. When we’d first slid into the SUV, I noticed my short sword was on the floor. Devon must have added it. It would be up to me whether to use it. Maybe for phase two. For now, we were on a seek, find, and remove mission.
Once the last team checked in, I moved forward in my seat, ready to go, my leg bouncing.
“Team One and Team Two. The security net is down. You have a go to the first checkpoint.”
Devon and I opened our doors at the same time, quietly shutting them before running down the street toward the main entrance of the estate. We kept low as we approached the double wrought iron gates. I pulled on one, and when it opened, I slid inside. Devon was right behind me, and he pulled it shut.
I kept to the trees as I led Devon to the pool house, which was our first checkpoint. We moved quickly but stayed in the shadows. The estate was lit with landscape lights, but with the thickening clouds, there was more than enough darkness to hide in. We anticipated outside guards, but we didn’t run across any as we approached the pool house. Harlow and Russell would be coming through the back gate. I sighed with relief when I spotted two dark shapes leaning against the wall of the pool house.
Harlow nodded with a wide grin. So far, so good.
“Teams One and Two at checkpoint one.” I readied for the next command.
A minute went by before Sergi responded, “House security is down. Teams One and Two, you have a go.”
The reason I’d selected the pool house for our first checkpoint was two-fold. We would have to run through a portion of the property, allowing us to spot any outside guards. Since Harlow hadn’t reported anyone, it was a fair assumption that if there were any outside guards, they would be at the house and not the gates or the perimeter.
The second reason was that the pool house was only twenty-five yards from the manor and was positioned center to the house. I led Devon to the front of the house while Harlow’s team worked their way to the utility door at the back of the house.
When we got to the front door, I bypassed it and moved to the garage. If anyone in the house noticed the security was down, the front door would be a dangerous place to enter. And it was the prime location for a camera. They should be down with the security, but I preferred not to risk it.
Roxie would be monitoring the security sensors and the handful of cameras around the house. But just because security was down didn’t mean there wasn’t a vamp on the other side of a door. That was why I chose to stay away from the two patios with French doors and as many windows as possible.
The side door to the garage was locked, and I pulled out my lock picks. Within a minute, the door popped open, and we moved inside. I moved directly to the door that entered into a long hall. We passed by the laundry room and a second pantry. The hallway continued to other rooms on the first floor, but I turned down a short hall toward the foyer where the main staircase was located. So far, no one was around. The house was deathly silent.
I stopped at the stairs and pointed to the right. Devon nodded and moved on, searching the bottom floor for any signs of humans or vamps. I remained behind the staircase and waited. Harlow would have entered near the kitchen and should be stationed by the back stairs.
While I waited, I hit my earbud. “Team One in position, clearing the first level.”
I waited but heard nothing from Harlow. There weren’t any sounds, but it was a big house.
“Team Two in position. One vamp down.”
