Her shoes sunk into the plush patterned carpet of blues and grays while she made quick work of noticing where the cameras were located. Ethan would have to tamper with them so no one would notice them coming and going, but it wouldn’t be difficult for someone with his level of skill.
They stepped inside the penthouse suite, and Grace immediately felt the hairs prickle on the back of her neck. She reached for the small Beretta she had at her back just as Gabe pulled out his Ruger.
“It’s about damned time,” Jack said from one of the smaller bedrooms. “You’re two hours late.”
His transformation was remarkable. His skin had been darkened, and his hair was thick and dark. Brown contacts covered his green eyes, and he wore an expensive suit. A diamond ring glittered on his pinky. Just another business man who’d get easily lost in a crowd. Nothing remarkable about his features.
“Jesus, Jack,” Grace said. “What are you doing in here?”
“I got worried when you missed rendezvous time.”
“We ran into a little maintenance trouble with the plane.”
“Uh-huh,” Jack said disbelievingly. “Maybe next time you guys could keep a clock by the bed while you’re getting reacquainted.”
“Fuck you,” Gabe said as Grace laughed.
“Not unless Grace agrees to join in. Otherwise it would just be awkward.”
Gabe’s smile was razor sharp as he opened his mouth to respond to Jack, but a soft knock interrupted them.
“Bedroom,” Gabe whispered to Jack. “It’s our luggage.”
Jack went into the spare bedroom and closed the door just as Gabe let the bellboy in. Grace wandered around the room, ignoring the opulence surrounding her as if it were subpar and instead checked out the balconies and the best vantage point of the museum.
It was a modern building of angles and glass, and it sat at a diagonal a little over five hundred yards away. All sides could be seen except for the back. It would be up to Ethan to be the eyes on her blind side and watch Jack and Gabe’s backs until they were safely on the roof.
“What do you think?” Gabe asked when they were alone once again.
“I think it’s risky,” she said. “If things go to shit and I have to take a shot, we’ll have to get out fast and quiet. And with as many guards as there are, the chances of me having to bail one of you out increases. We’re practically trapped up here, and any investigator worth his salt will know this is where the shot was fired from.”
“Then Jack and I will have to make sure you don’t need to fire any shots. Just be our eyes.”
“Speaking of eyes,” Jack said, “Ethan has us all tapped into his screens at headquarters.”
Gabe tapped his watch, and Ethan’s voice came through clearly from his earpiece. “Checking in, Dragon. Do you read?”
“Loud and clear, Ghost. Grim Reaper and Renegade checked in earlier,” Ethan answered, referring to Logan and Jack. “I’m only waiting to hear from Kill Shot.”
“I assume that’s me?” Grace asked, rolling her eyes. “I guess I should be grateful it’s not Pussy Galore.”
Jack burst into laughter, and Gabe’s eyes crinkled at the corners as his shoulders shook. She flicked the switch on her watch and said, “Checking in, Dragon. How’s the security at the hotel?”
“Why is everyone laughing? What’s going on?” He asked.
“Jack’s fly was unzipped.” Grace answered.
“I’m sorry, who am I speaking with?” Ethan said deadpan. “I don’t recall you having a sense of humor.”
The smile left Grace’s face, and she averted her gaze from Gabe’s as their laughter died. Something tightened in her chest, and she realized she was holding her breath. She could feel the person she’d once been hammering away at the woman she was now. There had been a time when she’d had a sense of humor—when she’d been the one on the team who always had a sarcastic word or a quick quip. The thing that made her feel the worst was she was just realizing how much she missed being a part of something like this over the past couple of years. Being part of a team—a family. But there was something inside of her that felt ashamed that she could so easily go back to the person she’d been when her life was only tatters of what it had once been.
“Security, Dragon. Tell me what we’re dealing with.” Her voice was cold this time, and she could hear his sigh over the line.
“It wasn’t hard to tap into the main computers at the hotel. They use a satellite system, so I slipped in undetected and can monitor and control as you need. I can override the elevators and phone systems if needed. The hotel is covered unless you get ambushed inside your room. Gabe wouldn’t let me set up visual in your suite.”
“I can’t imagine why, you perv,” Jack said.
“I would stop looking the minute I saw she was taking her clothes off. I swear,” Ethan said soberly.
“Jesus,” Grace said. “Someone tell me again why we’re working with a teenager.”
“I’m an adult. I’m eighteen.”
Jack groaned, and Gabe looked like he wanted to start drinking heavily. “Dragon” he said. “You’re pushing it.”
“It’s not like you can replace me,” Ethan mumbled under his breath.
Gabe’s fists were clenched tightly, and his voice sounded like he’d swallowed shards of glass when he growled out, “Dragon.”
“Sorry. Like I said, the hotel is covered. It’s the museum we need to worry about. I can’t tap into their feed. They’re using a military-grade security system, but the sensors I gave you should render it penetrable.”
“What do you mean ‘
“It’s not like I have the opportunity to practice on many military-grade systems. But it will work. I’m almost sure of it. Just place the sensors I gave you in the correct locations. Technology will take care of the rest.”
“We hope,” Jack muttered.
Ethan had created a camera so small it fit on a clear sticker no bigger than the tip of a woman’s pinky finger. It was almost invisible and virtually undetectable, so they’d have a clear shot of every dark corner and niche inside and outside the museum, as well as every guard. Once the sensors were in place, Ethan would activate the device, and the electronic frequency would give him the ability to tap into the control room and manipulate everything from the temperature to the monitors watched by security.
“Kill Shot will run through the spot checks in case we run into trouble,” Gabe said. “She’ll be able to alert us if anything unusual is going on around the perimeter of the museum. Grim Reaper will be our eyes inside, and Dragon will monitor the security while we get the painting.”
“It doesn’t seem like Renegade is very important to this mission,” Ethan said. “I don’t know, Ghost, it seems on a mission like this that everyone should be pulling their weight. Maybe you should cut him loose.”
“I’m too fucking old for this,” Gabe muttered and turned to Jack. “I’m going to give him to Logan when we get back to headquarters. He has more patience than Job, and he probably won’t kill the kid.”
“Bollocks to that,” Logan said through the earpiece. He was walking all the exit paths from the city to the cars they had stashed for a quick getaway to make sure no unexpected construction had popped up to block their escape. “They’ll never find all of the pieces once I get through with him.”
“You guys are a laugh a minute,” Ethan said.
“Enough,” Gabe commanded. “It’s go time. Everyone stay connected and report in as if this were tonight. I want to know everyone’s line of sight at all times.”
“Roger that,” Logan said.
Gabe nodded and left the suite. As Luc Piccoult, Gabe had an enormous influence over a lot of very important people in Iran. Piccoult also happened to have a collection of bronze statues from the Renaissance period that the curator of the Tehran National Museum had been salivating over for several years. Gabe had set up a meeting with the curator so he’d have the opportunity to place the sensors throughout the museum while promising the man a loan of his bronzes for display. Everyone would be happy. Except the curator when he found one of his paintings had gone missing.
Grace went to unpack her weapon. Her hands were sure and steady as her fingers glided over the cold metal. With every piece she put together it was as if she were becoming more whole. No matter what was going on in her personal life, she always had this she could count on. She didn’t load the rifle for this practice run.
“What’s your ETA, Ghost?” she asked.
