“What fun do you want to give us?” Raiden asked.
Asher looked into his friend’s calm dark eyes. That was Raiden—always someone he could count on to be your eye in the middle of a storm.
“I want the main elevators out of commission. According to Eden, everybody but the three of them are on the lobby level, but that could change on a dime. Get those elevators shut down.”
“Nic, you’re with me,” Raiden said. Asher watched as the two of them melted into the shadows.
Asher knew they were headed to the sub-basement. Now he had to make contact with Eden as well as secure the teller area. He could take out both of those priorities at the same time, since there was a secure staircase and an elevator that went between the lobby teller area and the vault area in the basement. It totally bypassed the document room below the lobby floor. So, he just needed to get to the basement.
Asher pushed away from the balustrade to head to the East staircase when he caught movement out of the corner of his eye. The long black ponytail swished as the woman quietly shut the west staircase door shut on the lobby floor next to the women’s restroom. He zeroed in on her face. He recognized her from the files that Kane had provided.
It was Eden York.
Goddammit, why isn’t she still in the basement?
Chapter 8
Dammit!
Her boobs just buzzed twice.
Doesn’t Asher know I have a plan? I don’t have time to call his ass back.
Eden was really itching to use the gun. Not that she was going to, that would just be stupid. Didn’t mean she didn’t want to.
Fine.
She looked around the lobby. No sign of the bank employees. She saw Marco talking to one of the other bank guards. She gave him a head nod, then he turned back to the guard. Good. She darted back to the stairwell.
She pressed in the number to Asher’s satellite phone as soon as the door closed behind her. It took three rings before he picked up.
What the hell? He was the one who wanted me to call back so damned fast.
“Stay where you are” were the first words out of his mouth.
It took her a moment. “Did you see me in the lobby? Where were you? I thought you were outside the bank. You got in? That was fast.”
“Geez, Lady, one question at a time. First, getting in fast is what we do. Second, you were supposed to be in the basement. Now, get back there.” She recognized that tone of voice. He sounded like every other typical overbearing male in her life. Well, he wasn’t her father or one of her older brothers. And it wasn’t like she took orders from the men in her family anyway.
“No way, Asher. I have a plan.” She hit the bar on the door so she could go back to the lobby.
“Don’t you dare.” The hair on the back of her neck stood up. She could almost feel the warm air of his voice as he rumbled into the phone.
Eden hesitated. Should she listen? Dammit, they needed a diversion. His team was probably all kitted out in little camo uniforms—they couldn’t divert Carlson, Patel, and Becker, but she could. She started to push the door open.
A big hand covered hers and yanked the door shut. “What the hell did you not understand about stay still?” Asher growled into her ear.
Eden shivered.
She turned slowly around and looked up to see blue eyes blazing down at her. There was nothing typical about this male. He was the antithesis of typical, but…
Oh.
My.
God.
He was male.
“I have a plan.” Was that squeaky voice hers?
“So, do I. It includes you getting your tushie down to the vault with the others and letting me and my men rescue the bankers and getting them safely on a plane,” he snapped down at her.
Eden sighed. They were back to typical.
“Nice to meet you too, Asher.”
“It would have been nicer to meet you if you’d been in the basement, Eden.” His sarcasm was hard to miss.
“Well, if wishes were horses, beggars would ride.”
His lip twitched.
“Humor isn’t getting you downstairs any faster. Seriously, I need you to move your ass, so we can get our job done.”
She pointed her finger and twirled it up and down the front of his body. “So, tell me, Army boy, in all your fatigue finery, how are you planning on blending in and culling the herd without Patel, Carlson, and Becker taking notice?”
“We’ve got it covered, but you running around fucking things up with some cockamamie plan is not going to help things.”
“Really, that’s how they’re training special forces these days? Turning down help? Rigidly staying to plan instead adapting to changing circumstances.”
Asher’s eyes narrowed. “Interesting phraseology,” he drawled slowly, his eyes clearly assessing her in a different light.
Gotcha!
“You said there were only seven men. Seems to me that having Leland and me as extra hands would be a Godsend.”
He took a deep breath. “Okay, Ms. York, lay it on me.”
“Well, it’s a partial plan. It totally depends on who’s in the office. When I left, Carlson was in the office, and I passed Patel heading into the there too, as I took Suzanne to the stairway. Hell, I don’t know if they’re still there or not. God knows who’s where. But I thought I would gather them up in the office. Hopefully track down Becker while I was at it.
