“I see you haven’t witnessed any actual business deals.What did you say you did again?”
“I didn’t.”
“So nothing of note, then.”
“Emmet is well-known within our circles,” Niko interjected hastily before Emmet could start a fight.“We appreciate his contributions immensely.”
Before Jamie could respond, Kyle’s voice ripped through Katie’s telepathic links, his warning burning straight through Jamie’s mind.
Splice bombs are being worn by suicide bombers.They’re on attendees.Don’t know how many, but I’m guessing enough to do a lot of damage.
Jamie fought against the urge to immediately start checking out the people nearest him for any hidden threats.Of fucking course Cillian would change up his MO to impress someone of Stanislav’s reputation.
“I’m sure you do,” Jamie said, returning to the conversation at hand.“But I only work with people I know are on my level.You’ll forgive me if I take the wait-and-see approach with Emmet here.”
“With an attitude like that, I don’t think you’ll last the night among everyone else,” Emmet replied, mouth twisted in a half sneer.
“You’d be surprised at what I’m capable of surviving.I’d bet good money I’m far more resilient than you are.”
“I doubt that.”
“As much as I find this dick-measuring contest amusing, I have better things to do with my time.If you think you have something to offer me, I will gladly take your contact information.Otherwise, we have nothing more to discuss.”
“You can take your contact information and—”
Kyle’s mental warning cut through Jamie’s mind again, drowning out whatever else Emmet said, even as the familiar sound of gunfire erupted from inside the museum.
Gear up!We got hostiles, and they’re coming up from the tunnel entrance!I’m going after Pavluhkin!
Jamie took the initiative to handle the insult in a manner most well-bred people would consider impolite, but which he’d been itching to do all night.
Jamie punched Emmet in the face hard enough to knock the man out before cutting the follow-through short and ramming his elbow backward into the side of Niko’s head, catching him in the temple.Both men collapsed to the ground, unconscious, because Jamie hadn’t bothered to pull either blow.
Jansen is taken care of, Jamie announced to his team even as he yelled loudly, “Everyone might want to take cover.It doesn’t sound like this is a party anymore.”
Even the thick walls couldn’t muffle the sound of automatic gunfire.Jamie pulled the nanotech strips out of his tuxedo pocket and applied them to his face as he approached the bar while everyone else ran for the nearest exit.
Tariq Hameed was the Royal Legion’s third most longest-serving member, a metahuman whose power over blood could permanently stop a person’s heart or burst a blood vessel in their brain.It didn’t take much effort for Tariq to kill a man, and Jamie wanted to get him on the front line as soon as possible.
“Long or short?”Tariq asked as he hauled two heavy cases from beneath the portable bar he’d been manning in the corner.
“Long.”
Tariq opened a case and slid it over to him.Jamie took less than thirty seconds to assemble the AKR-75 assault rifle inside, feeling a little calmer now that he had a weapon in hand.Shrugging out of his tuxedo jacket, he pulled on the tactical vest Tariq handed him, strapping it into place.Spare magazines were clipped to the tactical vest as well.He wished they’d been able to sneak in more armor, but there wouldn’t have been any place out of the way to gear up in.Even out here in the garden courtyard, people were looking their way.
Katie?Could use some mental cover, Jamie asked as he and Tariq sprinted toward the door he’d come through earlier.
I’m scrambling as many minds as I can near you, but I need to separate the suicide bombers from everyone else first.There’s only so far I can stretch myself, she replied.
Understood.Alpha Team, switch to comms.Call in.
“They’re Irish, Reborn IRA probably.And they got a few metahumans in their ranks,” Donovan said.
“Cillian’s or Emmet’s?”
“Does it fucking matter?”
“Am with Icarus and Wraith.He’s off comms.Have disarmed five suicide bombers,” Alexei reported.
