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I nod. “Mostly. Just need to throw my toiletries in my purse.”
Matty nods. “Great. I’ll carry our things and you can help Bear with Clyde. Moving her obviously isn’t ideal. I’m sure she would rather not be disturbed, but we’ll be as gentle as we can.”
“Better disturbed by a gentle move than mobsters coming to snatch and grab her,” I say, flashing what I hope is a comforting smile Bear’s way. “Which won’t happen. She’s safe, we’re safe, everything’s going to work out fine. And yes, I will gratefully accept two kittens. Thank you so much.”
“My pleasure.” Bear glances at his watch. “I’ll do another quick kitten check.”
“Nora, could I have a word in the other room?” Matty asks, jabbing a thumb toward the hallway.
“Sure thing.” I shift past Bear and follow Matty into the living room. When we’re alone, I ask, “What’s up?”
“I actually won’t be going with you to the safe house,” he says in a softer voice. “I need to get to the Sweetwater database while they’re busy with other things and now is as good a time as any. If I head for Bad Dog as soon as you two leave with the team, I’ll get there right after the employees have closed the cupcake shop for the night.”
I exhale. “Okay. But you’ll be really careful and not go alone?”
“I’ll be alone, but I’ll have backup close by if I need it. No one wants to see this mission go south. My handler is making sure I have the support I need to close this out without any further hiccups.”
I nibble my lip. “I don’t like that. You shouldn’t go alone. Take me with you. I can be your lookout.”
“No,” he says without hesitation.
“Why not?” I prop my hands on my hips. “I’m a very observant, AKA nosy person. Who better to keep watch and make sure you’re not interrupted while you’re lurking and sneaking?”
“No,” he repeats. “You’ll attract the wrong kind of attention. I’m going to be disabling the surveillance cameras and breaking in wearing blacks and a ski mask.”
“Then, I’ll cover my face, too! And I can wear bulky clothes so no one will be able to tell if I’m a man or a woman.”
He arches a brow. “They would be able to tell. You move like a woman.”
“Oh yeah?” I lean closer, not above using my feminine wiles to sway him into letting me help.
But before I can think of something witty to say to convince him that having me along is the smartandsexy choice—we could celebrate our victorious mission by making out in nothing but our ski masks afterwards—the fire alarm blares.
My hands fly to my ears as a red light on the wall begins to pulse. “Oh wow, that’s loud. Should we head to the lobby?”
“Not yet,” Matty says, shouting to be heard over the sharp, screaming siren as he moves toward the door. “Let me do a quick sweep first. Make sure it’s not a false alarm or the Sweetwaters trying to flush us out.”
Bear appears in the hallway, carrying Clyde’s box, looking stressed and confused.
“Wait here,” Matty shouts, before sticking his head carefully outside the door. After a beat, he turns back to us. “Don’t leave the room unless you smell smoke. Right now, it looks like it might be a false alarm. I’ll be back as soon as I can.”
He leaves and I turn back to Bear with a rush of breath. “I’m sorry! This isn’t how any of us wanted Clyde’s big day to go. How is she?”
“Burping. A lot,” he says, his brow furrowing. “She always does when she’s stressed. The acid reflux medication the vet gave us helps, but he advised against giving it to her while she was pregnant.”
I nod, relieved. “Oh, that’s great. I was hoping there was some way to help her feel more comfortable. She was getting really sick in the car when we first picked her up. But then, Matty was driving like a maniac to get away from the people who were following us, so no wonder, really. I was getting a little sick, myself, and I have an iron stomach.”
Bear makes a noncommittal noise, clearly not in the mood to discuss gastrointestinal issues—mine or the cat’s. “Are you sure we shouldn’t head down to the lobby? Everyone else will be evacuating, too. Surely, we’d be safe in the crowd.”
I shake my head. “No, we should stay here. I trust Matty, if he didn’t smell smoke, we’re still fine.”
“But the fire could be on a lower level,” Bear says, clearly agitated. “We might not smell the smoke for a while, and by then, it could be too late to get safely down the stairs.”
I chew my bottom lip again, torn.
On the one hand, I know firsthand how scary fire can be. Aaron and I had to drag my unconscious mother out of our burning house when we were kids after she accidentally set fire to her bed. We all made it to the front lawn without so much as a minor burn, but the flames took half the house and all my toys before the firefighters put out the blaze.
I had nightmares about fires and melted dolls for years.
