Page 6 of Cozen

Cozen smiled, and looked over the pretty, colorful streaks in the sky. “I don’t need your compliments, Ace.”

“You know what, better I don’t even act friendly with you.”

“Why is that?”

“You know why, Cozen.”

Yeah, she did.

“You were warned once, Ace,” was all she said.

He didn’t even reply.

Excessive and extravagant did not do the Astor mansion justice, as far as Cozen was concerned. Tucked away on Tahiti Beach Island Road of Coral Cables, the three-level, two-wing monster of an estate looked to be the largest home in the area. And the most private, considering the carefully placed shrubbery and towering trees looming all around the property.

“We’re not going in?” Cozen asked as Ace directed her down a pathway along the side of the east wing. “What, they don’t want people to see the inside of their home?”

“This place is nearly thirty-thousand square feet,” Ace muttered. “They almost always hold their meetings in the back where they can overlook the ocean. Sure, we could go through the house, but it’ll take twice as long to navigate.”

Windows looking inside the Astor mansion covered the east wing. Cozen caught sight of crystal chandeliers the size of small cars, and displays of wealth in every corner.

“Has no one told them that showcasing their wealth is a bad thing in a world like ours?” she asked.

Ace chuckled, and his gaze drifted to the right. “I don’t think the Astors are very concerned, all things considered. They are the largest gun trafficking family in the world at the moment. It would be stupid of anyone—even a thief like you—to assume they go without protection.”

Cozen followed his gaze. “Damn.”

Walking the length of the east wing of the property was a man dressed entirely in black. Even his face was covered with a black bandana imprinted with the image of a skull. The crisscrossed belt around his chest showcased an assortment of weapons. In his hands, he kept a firm grip on an assault rifle.

“One of many,” Ace murmured. “And always assume one is looking at you—even if you are inside the house.”

“Noted.”

Cozen wondered if the Astors would keep a better eye on her because she was a known thief. Of course, she didn’t steal just to steal, and certainly not from a client. Sure, it was her job to steal, but there was the whole don’t bite the hand that feeds you thing, too.

It was never good to betray those you worked for. No thief wanted their last job to go sour in that kind of way because it was unlikely they would ever get another job.

Not that it mattered.

This would be her last one.

It had to be.

It wasn’t long before Cozen and Ace rounded the back of the east wing only to come face to face with another man dressed in black. He swung the assault rifle in his hand over his shoulder, and without saying a word, twirled a single finger at them.

“You should tell Fourth that his people need to start recognizing my face,” Ace bitched under his breath as the man patted him down. First his front, and then after a quick spin, his back, too. “Fucking ridiculous.”

The man in black came for Cozen next.

She cocked a brow at him. “Touch me, and I’ll use one of your pretty knives to bleed you out on this walkway. It’s a little dull with all the white marble—I’ll bet it’ll look far better with a bit of red on it, too.”

All she could see of the man’s face behind his skull bandana were his eyes. A flash of challenge and irritation answered her back, but he still didn’t speak. She thought he was going to test her threat out—a threat she would have followed through on—but someone else saved them.

A dark, low laugh echoed from around the terrace.

The man who came around the corner wore an amused grin on his handsome face, and yet, he still managed to look severe. As though his amusement could just as easily be replaced with violence. His straight, thick eyebrows gave him a disinterested expression. It was a bright contrast to the smugness of his grin. He couldn’t be any older than her, and if he was, then it wasn’t by very much.

Dark brown eyes looked Cozen over as the man dressed in black Armani came to stand beside the guard. He waved one finger—showing off a black Rolex incrusted with diamonds around the face—and the guard was gone without a word.