It wasn’t a request. Douglas turned from me, ending the discussion, and pressed a button on a console next to him. I heard the engine start up.
We stepped out of the situation room as a steel door slid closed, cutting off the area from the rest of the trailer. I saw Carlos at the other end of the corridor. He gave me a smile and a mocking salute as he glared my way.
I felt the trailer move as we stepped into one of the rooms. I made sure to remain silent. Monty had come to the same conclusion I had: the rooms were under surveillance. There was a good chance Douglas or Feelds was listening and watching us.
There was a small table and several chairs. I placed the long case on the floor next to me and smoothed out the map on the table, pretending to examine it.
“Let’s run over the op again,” I said, looking at my smaller copy of the map. “You will be situated where, again?”
Monty pointed to the map.
“Here,” he said, subtly placing three fingers on the map signaling every third word. “I think Rott will have to arrange to be here”—Monty placed five fingers on the map this time—“before the engine is killed.”
“Agreed,” I said. “Will you be able to distract Magnus long enough?”
Monty nodded.
“I will turn him away from you and position him near the automobile,” Monty said. “That will give you your opportunity. Don’t miss.”
“I won’t,” I said.
“Perhaps you should instruct your creature on his behavior,” Monty said. “We don’t want him to create a larger problem. You know he has a tendency to magnify the situation, increasing things to immense proportions.”
I nodded.
<Hey, boy. I’m going to need you to go into XL battle mode soon.>
<This place is too small. It would break.>
<Not in here. Outside, when things go south.>
<You want me to go south? Why?>
<Not you going south. When we face off against these guys.>
<You want to take someone’s face off?>
<When the danger starts, you go large and stay close to me. I’ll let you know.>
<I’m your bondmate I go where you go.>
<I’ll be far away from the danger. Monty will be in the middle of it. We need to keep him safe.>
It was a slight exaggeration. I knew Feelds would try to put me down. She looked trained and dangerous, but I didn’t want Peaches focused only on me. Something told me Magnus wasn’t going to cooperate.
<I will keep him safe and then I will be next to you.>
<Fine. You make sure he’s safe and then you come right back.>
Some time later, the trailer stopped and Feelds appeared at the doorway.
“This is our stop,” she said, looking at me. “Let’s go.”
TWENTY-EIGHT
We reached my location, the roof of the Weill Cornell center, four blocks away from the designated distraction. I lay on the roof and set up my rifle, a Barrett Light Fifty beast that would easily fire past the four blocks without so much as breaking a sweat.
It all came back in a rush. The muscle memory was instant, and I assembled the pieces in a silent meditation, putting the rifle together in quick, smooth movements. I opened the tripod and stretched out on the roof.
I had a clear line of sight about a mile down West Broadway all the way past Canal Street and beyond. Feelds set up close to me and pulled out a specialized telescope.
She sighted down West Broadway and gave me a short nod with a thumbs up. Peaches grumbled on the floor next to my prone position.
“Good to go,” Feelds said. I heard her voice over the comms: “Firing solution in five.”
I looked down the scope and realized it was equipped with night vision. I scanned down the street. The entrance to the TINY was unobstructed. I moved the scope down a few blocks and saw Monty standing in the center of Bogardus Plaza, a small park taking up the corner of the block between Chambers and Reade Streets.
“Eyes up,” Douglas said over the comms. “Delivery incoming.”
I moved the rifle slightly and spotted the Duezy heading down West Broadway. A few seconds later, I saw Gant come outside the restaurant and wait. The Midnight Ghost came to a stop in front of the TINY. It was as incredible as I imagined it would be. It was truly a piece of automotive art, and I could see why Magnus would opt for using it. The car made an impression. I saw Cecil get out and extend a clipboard to Gant, who signed it, taking the keys.
Cecil got into a waiting Urus and pulled away. Gant waited outside as Magnus and Rott stepped out of the restaurant. Gant handed Rott the keys, had some words with Magnus, then headed back inside.
“We have eyes on target,” Feelds said. “Package is being loaded. Thirty seconds to intercept.”
Rott held the door open for Magnus, who looked up in my direction for a brief second before getting in the Duezy. Rott got in, started the Duezy, and began heading south down West Broadway. The streets were mostly deserted this late at night, which meant little-to-no traffic. I took a deep breath and let it out slowly as I followed the progress of the Duezy.
One block and nothing. On the second block, I started seeing white smoke escape from under the hood.
“Engage target once out of the vehicle,” Douglas said over the comms. “Blaster will cover our tracks. Strong, you make sure you take the damn shot.”
Rott pulled over and got out, opening the hood. He was shaking his head and walked over to the other side of the Duezy, gesturing to Magnus
