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“Oh, the others are smart, but they’re not as sharp as they think they are. They’ve gotten complacent. It’ll never occur to them to suspect anything like this until it’s too late.”
With every comment she added, I was increasingly sure this conversation was about her backstabbing scheme. I tipped my phone in her direction in the hopes that it would pick up her voice better, wishing I could hear the other side of the conversation too. Which of the other Devil’s Dozen members was she talking to?
“Yes, I think that could be good to begin with, as we discussed before. The south end, around the square. What time do you think would give us the best balance of crowd cover and minimal witnesses?”
As she paused to take in the answer, I rubbed my free hand over the muscles in my thigh, which were starting to burn. I had plenty of muscle power and endurance, but this crouch wasn’t a position I’d ever needed to hold in my figure skating practice.
The floorboards gave a soft creak under Mom’s pacing feet. “Yes, and the water is a good option too. We’ll put something in it—that’ll do the trick. But not right in the Rosewood. We’re better off going for a more discreet route.”
Papers crinkled on her desk. Then she ambled back toward me. A cold sweat broke out down my back.
“That’ll be fine. Let’s get this done as quickly and quietly as possible. You know what your part is.”
She whisked past me. If she’d glanced sideways, I’d have been a goner, but before I could do more than clench my jaw, she’d swung toward the door again.
Mom tucked away her phone and headed out of the office.
The second the door thumped shut in her wake, my shoulders sagged. I exhaled in a long but still cautiously quiet rush and stopped recording.
I wasn’t home free yet. For all I knew, she’d just gone to grab a snack or convey a few orders and then she’d be back. I couldn’t risk emerging until I was sure she wouldn’t be close enough to see me.
I waited one minute, and another, straining my ears for her voice. When I heard it again, it was through the windowpane.
She was out front, giving orders to a couple of the sentries. Nowhere near the second-floor hallway. I had to get the fuck out of here before that changed again.
I had no idea what any of the things I’d overheard meant, but I could worry about that when my head wasn’t on the line.
I squirmed out from behind the pot and dashed for the door. With my hand on the knob, I pressed my ear close and listened to make sure the coast was clear before yanking it open.
But, just my luck, as I eased it closed behind me, a voice traveled from the far end of the hall.
“What are you up to, señorita?”
I spun around to see one of Mom’s higher-level lackeys leaning in a doorway several feet away. Shit.
Octavio pushed himself straighter and prowled closer, arching his pierced eyebrow at me. The twin gold spikes glinted against his darker brown skin. His dark hair fell raggedly to his chin, adding to his general air of menace. “You’re not supposed to be in there.”
I put on my best don’t-fuck-with-me face, my eyes narrowing and my lips pursing. For the first time in my life, I hoped I resembled Mom.
“I think that’s up to my mother, don’t you?” I retorted. “I was grabbing something she asked me to get for a job she wants me to do, not that it’s any of your business.”
He made a scoffing sound. “Oh, yeah. And what is this thing you needed so badly, huh?”
I raised my chin at a haughty angle. “Did you miss the part where it’s none of your business? If she wanted you in on it, I’m sure she’d have told you.”
A spark of anger lit in Octavio’s eyes. I was rubbing my higher position thanks to my familial ties in his face, and he didn’t like that at all. The guy had been working for Mom for as long as I could remember, so I supposed I couldn’t blame him for seeing me as a bit of an upstart.
But all he needed to believe was that he’d better not question his boss about how she handled her own daughter. Not when he couldn’t be sure whether I was lying.
“She tells me plenty, pequeña rosa,” he growled. “Pretty soon you’re going to find out that you can’t just bounce in and out of here whenever you want. It takes commitment to keep an operation like this running, and as far as I’ve seen, you’ve got nada.”
I gave him a hard look in response. “As long as my mother’s happy with my ‘commitment,’ somehow I don’t care what you think. Unless you’d like me to mention your concerns to her?”
His mouth tightened, but he took a wary step back. “Just keep it in mind.”
With one last glower, he stalked away.
I hurried back to my bedroom, my stomach twisted painfully tight. As long as he didn’t call my bluff, I’d be fine.
