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“Is there another way in or out?” I asked.
“Of course there isn’t,” the asshole answered.
I turned to my two bodyguards. “I’ll be fine.”
“We’ll be right here,” said Ink, taking a step closer to the bank manager, who hurriedly opened the vault and escorted me inside.
“Here it is,” he said, pointing to the number on the box that matched the key. “Would you like a privacy room?” He motioned to a door.
“That won’t be necessary. I’ll just take the contents and be on my way.” I opened the lid of the box and pulled out an envelope that felt almost empty. My stomach sunk when I peeked inside and saw all it contained was a small, distinctly blue bag. “Fucking Barb,” I mumbled under my breath.
“Everything okay?” he asked as I folded the envelope.
“I’ll need that privacy room after all.”
In the vault, and you are not going to believe this, I texted Buck once I was inside the room, pulled the blue bag out, and discovered all it contained was another key.
There was an immediate response that the message could not be delivered. That had to mean either I didn’t have signal where I was in the bank or Buck’s plane had already taken off.
I tucked the Tiffany bag inside my tank, next to my gun, then folded the manila envelope it had been in, and put it in the pocket of my jeans. I signaled the manager that I was ready to leave and walked over to where Rock and Ink waited.
“Everything go okay?” Rock asked.
I shook my head, but only enough for him to notice. “Let’s get out of here.” We were about to exit through the revolving door when I pulled out my phone. My message had gone through to Buck, but he hadn’t responded yet.
Just as I stepped out onto the sidewalk, my phone pinged. I pulled it out and was about to tap my passcode in when I felt something jab into my side. I raised my head and saw five men, all dressed in black tactical gear reading NYPD. I immediately heard two simultaneous shots fired and watched both Ink and Rock fall to the ground as two of the men led me away.
We rounded a corner, and a black bag went over my head. My phone fell out of my hand when one of the men tossed me over his shoulder.
A few seconds later, I was placed inside a vehicle that sped away as soon as I heard the door close.
35
Buck
I pulled my phone out when I heard an alert that I’d received a text. In the vault, and you are not going to believe this, it read. I tried to call Stella and then Ink, but when neither answered, I called Rock.
He answered right away, but all I could hear was rustling. “Rock, are you there?” I shouted.
“Officers down,” he wheezed. “They got Stella.”
“No!” The cry involuntarily escaped my lips; Crash and Vex raced out from the cockpit. “Send a bus, two officers down!” I shouted. “Help is on the way, Rock. Hold on.”
I raced out the plane’s door and down the airstairs. The other two men were right behind me.
“What’s going on?” asked Vex at the same time I heard Crash calling for transport.
“Rock and Ink are both down. Someone has Stella.”
My worst nightmare had come to life. Someone had Stella, and without her phone, I had no way to track her.
36
Stella
I recognized the man sitting in front of me the minute the bag was removed from my head. Nicholas Kerr had aged since the last photo I’d seen of him was taken.
“Leave us,” he said to the two men on either side of me.
