Wolfe sighed. “Fair enough. I can be there in minutes. Happy hunting.” He clicked off.
Raider pushed a button and erased the last call. He tried to settle into character, but his mind kept going to Brigid and the night before. He’d pushed her hard, and she’d met him every time. They’d gotten only an hour or so of sleep, but his body had never felt so relaxed. Even his injuries weren’t bothering him, he was so satisfied.
Physically. Emotionally, he’d shut down. Oh, he liked her, and he’d have sex with her if she wanted, but his time of trusting her was over. She was loyal to HDD, her bosses, and not to their unit or him. It was that simple. He’d lost.
Never in his life had he had so much fun while having excellent sex, and he’d been angry with her. Still was. What was it about the sexy redhead that just tunneled beyond his good intentions? She’d lied to him, which meant he couldn’t trust her, so why the hell was he wanting to get back into bed with her right now? Maybe take her to a movie? Sure, he got it. The HDD had scared the heck out of her, and she had signed a contract.
Why didn’t she know she could trust him? She should have. If nothing else than to get her a better contract.
Damn it. He had to get his head back into the game. He parked out front of the bar, squared his shoulders, and sank himself into the persona he’d created. Every other concern in the world faded away. Nothing existed but right now.
Adopting his swagger, he stepped from the car and crossed the wet ground, glancing down the sidewalk. Nothing out of place. He pushed open the door and strutted inside the darkened interior where several down-and-outlooking men hunched over drinks at the bar.
The bald bartender gave him a chin jerk in acknowledgment.
So Raider continued past the patrons to the back door, which opened immediately.
Eddie motioned him inside, finishing a phone call and sliding his phone into his back pocket. A bruised lump was raised over his right eye, and an already yellowing bruise covered the entire left side of his face. He looked Raider over. “You look like shit.”
Raider grimaced. “It’s been a rough week.” To say the least. “You’re the one who tried to blow me out of a boat.”
“Yeah. Sorry about that.” Eddie clapped an arm around Raider’s shoulders and led him toward the poker table. Josh stood post at the back door, his expression inscrutable as usual. Eddie steered Raider beyond the table and to the one door they hadn’t gone through together yet. He punched numbers into the keypad, shielding it with his body. The door clicked open. “After you.”
Man, he hoped he didn’t get shot. Raider strode inside and stopped short at seeing the neat bottles of alcohol lined on metal shelves. “All right. We drinking?”
Eddie shut the door and snorted, taking out his silver gun. “You armed?”
“Yeah.” Raider turned to face the threat. “So?”
Eddie shrugged. “Just checking. Do you have the account numbers?”
“I do.” Raider handed over a folded piece of paper with the false accounts Brigid had built. Hopefully she was as good as advertised.
“All right.” Eddie studied him and then tucked his gun away again. “You’re gonna like this.”
Doubtful.
Eddie looked up at a bottle of vodka on the top shelf. “Open.”
What the heck? A wisp sounded, and one side of the far shelves of booze slid outward, revealing an opening. “Nice,” Raider said, meaning it.
“Just wait.” Eddie led the way into a small room surrounded by concrete. A safe had been built into the wall in the far side, which explained the hidden room.
Raider looked around. “We’re getting into a safe?” The door snicked closed behind him, obviously controlled somewhere else.
“No.” Eddie waited for a moment, and the smooth concrete wall rolled to the side. “This way.”
Raider followed him down a flight of stairs to another doorway at the bottom. His heart rate increased as he studied the devices around it. “Those are bombs.”
“Yep.” Eddie punched in numbers on another keypad, the door opened, and he walked inside. Raider shook his head, gathered his courage, said a silent prayer, and followed the mobster. Once past the doorway, he stopped short, letting out an involuntary whistle. “Holy cow.” He looked sideways at Eddie. “This is like NASA.” And it was.
Eddie shut the door. “Thanks.”
They stood on a small dais above several rows of computers in front of wide screens set along the walls. Several techs typed away, a couple wearing headsets. The room was silent, save for the sound of keyboards and a slight hum. “Brigid would love this,” Raider said, reaching for his burner phone.
Eddie stopped him with a head shake. “The second you left the poker room, all electronics jammed. You can’t call her from here.”
That’s what he’d figured. Raider feigned disappointment. “She’d love this setup.”
