Page 57 of Secret Redemption

“Zack wants ears on Henderson and Hamilton. If Angel and I cause a distraction, can you tag them?”

Lucy put her hands on her hips and looked at her in disgust. “Please, I can do this in my sleep,” Lucy said with no false modesty at all.

“Okay. Well, I have an idea.” Ava explained the plan to Angel and Lucy and then with a smile the three filed out of the bathroom and headed back to the ballroom.

Crossing to Zack, she found him at the bar talking to someone she didn’t recognise. He made some introductions that she half listened too and smiled in the right place. Henderson and Hamilton were by some miracle still at the bar, and the conversation looked a lot more heated than it had a few minutes previously. They needed to move or lose their window. Moving in she put her arms around her Zack’s neck and flattened her body as if she were flirting with him, but in actual fact it allowed her to explain the plan to Zack.

Right on cue Angel came storming over like an avenging angel in red lace and got right up in Ava’s face, shoving her hard and making her take a step back.

“Bitch, you keep your fucking hands off my man!” she screamed as Drew came running up behind her looking furious and kinda hot in Ava’s opinion.

“Don’t you touch me, you little tart,” Ava gasped as the man behind her steadied her and Zack grabbed her arm.

“What the hell is going on?” he demanded loudly. They had drawn quite an audience now, and Henderson and Hamilton were both looking on in avid fascination. There was nothing like women fighting to draw a man’s eye at the ball.

The two men moved closer as Roz and Kanan descended, coming up behind Henderson on his left.

“This bitch has been eye fucking my man all night, and I won’t have it anymore,” Angel spat, and made a move to grab Ava’s hair.

“No, you don’t,” Drew said and grabbing Angel around the waist held her while she kicked and clawed and tried to get at Ava. Not to be outdone Ava dove at her causing Zack to jump and catch her by her midriff and hold her tight.

“Seriously man, keep your woman on a leash and if you can’t handle it maybe stay out of the big boy’s pond,” Zack growled at Drew.

“Fuck off grandad, just because you can’t get it up. Let me know if you need some little blue pills, I can hook you up,” Drew said snidely

“That’s it. You’re dead you little prick,” Zack said and was about to go for Drew when Jace jumped in putting a hand between the two warring men.

“Seriously, take it outside. These nice people are having a good time and don’t want to deal with this sort of behaviour,” Jace said angrily. Zack shrugged Jace off and straightened his jacket.

“Fine! Come on,” Zack said and grabbed her hand dragging her towards the French doors that led to the patio area.

Pushing her through he turned and in a furious voice said, “What the fuck was that about?”

“Please honey, she has it all wrong,” she implored as she wrapped her arms around him. Zack whispered in her ear, “That was fucking brilliant, but what just happened?”

The fact he trusted her and didn’t bawl her out for not telling him the plan in more detail meant more to her than he knew. “Lucy slipped trackers and mics onto Henderson and Hamilton while we had our scene. Roz and Kanan will stick to Henderson and be ready if we need them to pick him up.”

He looked at her, and the stern look morphed into a devilish grin. “Fuck me you’re perfect,” he said. “I’m going to kill Drew for calling me a fucking grandad though. Cheeky little fucker.”

“Oh, come on Zack, everyone knows you’re not old, and anyway experience trumps the stamina of youth any day.”

He leaned back and looked at her in astonishment. “You did not just insult my stamina!” he said haughtily as he stroked a hand over her ass. “We’ll see who has stamina later won’t we Miss Drake,”

Ava laughed. “You say that like it’s a threat, Zack.”

“Come on woman let’s go back in before I prove to you here and now who has the most stamina.

They returned to the ballroom, and Drew and Angel were nowhere in sight. Roz and Kanan, and Lucy and Jace were dancing.

“Dance?”

“Love to, Mr Cunningham,”

~~~

Zack watched Walter Hamilton as he schmoozed with government officials, minor royals, and elite businessmen. The man was a piece of work. Seeing him with Henderson had sealed it for him. Zack didn’t believe in smoke without fire.

As the two men had spoken at the bar when Ava had disappeared into the ladies’ room, he had seen the tension ratchet up between them. Ava’s plan had worked like a charm, and now both men were tagged. Drew and Angel were watching Henderson, and he and Ava would keep an eye on Hamilton.