Sandra and Jana remained quiet as her words settled. I had an urge to reach out and hug her, but Melanie didn’t seem like the hugging type.
“Thank you,” I quietly said instead.
“Sure. And if you swear you aren’t going to fuck us over, I can get these two on board, and we can get started.” She gave me a stare sharper than a razor, and I had no choice but to agree.
“I swear,” I said with a nod, trying to hide my nerves and even more thankful I didn’t try to hug her.
“Good,” she said with her own nod. “Now, let’s begin.”
CHAPTER29
Alittle over twenty-four hours later, we were pulling up to the gala in Melanie’s SUV. The planning had been meticulous but efficient. Having flown solo for so many years, working with a team was both new and refreshing. Everyone had a job; the plan would take all of us to pull off. Perhaps most reassuring, if something went wrong, there’d be someone there to help. I’d never had a safety net before. At least not one in the form of three women who’d take a bullet for one another. I wasn’t entirely sure one of them wouldn’t use me as a shield from that bullet if it came to it, but at least they had one another’s backs, and because their success depended on my success, we were all in it together.
“Ready?” Melanie asked when she put the car in park. We’d slowly rolled along the drop-off line as we got closer and closer to the museum’s entrance. Fluttering banners advertising the gala draped the stone and glass building’s exterior, and spotlights shone up from the ground on either side of the arched entryway. Melanie had snagged us some last-minute tickets through one of the charity boards she sat on.
“Oh look, they rolled out the red carpet for you,” Jana said into the invisible bug in my ear. She’d arrived separately and was parked across the street, watching us from a car deckedout with the necessary equipment she’d need to orchestrate the remote parts of the plan. I could hear the eagerness in her voice. The dark thrill at what we were about to embark on. I’d quickly learned the moms were far more complex than their mostly innocent, suburban exteriors would suggest. These women knew what they were doing, and not only were they highly competent, they got off on breaking rules.
“Showtime,” Melanie said. She looked over at me like she was giving me one final evaluation. One final check to see if I’d crack.
I was not going to crack. The only thing between me and freedom was that rock. This was just another job to them, but to me, it was the last job. For real this time, because I wasn’t going to let anything get in the way. Nothing was going to stop me.
I nodded at Melanie and undid my seat belt. A cool rush of evening air swirled in the door when the valet opened it, fluttering my long skirt. Melanie had let me borrow a sky-blue gown suitable for a gala, since I didn’t have one on hand. The one-shouldered bodice hugged my chest and waist and draped loosely around my legs. Glamorous, but also suitable for running, if needed. My heels were strapped securely to my feet and met the same criteria.
Melanie stepped out of her side of the car in a similar outfit, except her gown was black velvet and held up by two elegant cap sleeves. Sandra climbed out of the back seat in a pale pink chiffon dress that specifically showcased her baby bump, an integral part of our plan.
“Good evening, ladies,” the valet on my side said. He held out a hand to me but quickly changed tack when he noticed Sandra hoisting herself from the back seat. “Oh, let me help you, ma’am,” he said, and hurried to her side.
“Like clockwork,” Jana said into our ears. “Everyone loves a pregnant lady.”
“Oh, you’re too sweet,” Sandra cooed and took his hand. She made sure to put her other hand on her belly.
Sandra is our ace in the hole, Melanie had said yesterday while we strategized in her office.People will bend over backward for a pregnant woman. If she needs any kind of help, no one will be looking at us.Sandra had fluttered her lashes and dramatically held the back of her hand to her forehead with a sigh, ready to play the part.
I hadn’tnotbelieved them, but I was happy to see it playing out in person.
“Of course, ma’am. You let any of the staff know tonight if you need anything special,” the valet said, and I wondered if he had any sway at all or was just looking for a bigger tip.
“Thank you,” Sandra said in a syrupy-sweet voice. In truth, she probably wanted to smack his hand away and tell her she didn’t need any help, but her playing the pregnant damsel was key to our plan.
Melanie joined us on the red carpet and the three of us gazed up at the museum entrance.
“Always feels a little like prom, doesn’t it?” Sandra said. “Getting dressed up and making a grand entrance.”
“I never went to prom,” I said. They both looked at me with a hint of pity.
Melanie looped her arm through my elbow. “Well then, let’s try to at least have a little fun tonight.” Her smile was genuine and laced with that same daring thrill I’d heard in Jana’s voice.
I smiled back. “This is my favorite kind of fun.”
Sandra looped her arm in my other elbow. “Ours too,” she said with a small smile. Her frosty exterior toward me seemed to have thawed, and I was grateful for it.
“Well, don’t have too much fun yet,” Jana said in our ears. “Security is coming up on the left. Bag check and metal detectors.”
We’d planned for as much. Turned out, Jana’s old contactdidstill work at the museum, and with a little innocent flirting on her part, he was willing to spill on what security would look like for the event.
Getting information out of men was embarrassingly easy sometimes.
We passed through security simply enough. As much as I wished I’d had a gun strapped to my thigh, or even a small dagger in my bra, I was empty-handed. Being unarmed put a jump in my pulse, but I’d dealt with it on enough jobs to know how to improvise. Nearly anything could be turned into a weapon in a pinch: a stem snapped off one of the champagne flutes being passed around, the heels on one of the many stilettos in sight, a necktie if things got really messy.
