“Kind of their specialty,” Spencer smirked back. “They said he would be taking a meeting, though. So instead, we’re looking for suspicious behavior: handing off cash, weird meetings, receiving deliveries… anything that implies he’s not just here for the show. Anything we can use to tie him to the people running the ring.”
“Okay, that’s a bit easier…” I nodded, scanning the crowd up ahead. Most of them were already drunk or beelining to the first place they could find a drink. Very few lingered outside unless they were taking a smoke break. Almost all of them moved in packs, presumably heading down from their offices together.
But as I watched, another question nagged at me. “Why Boy Prince?”
“Excuse?” Leo raised a brow.
“Like, why is he so important? Why do they want him specifically?”
“They haven’t told us directly…”
“Shocker,” I rolled my eyes before Spencer cut in.
“From what we’ve gathered, they think he might be one of the hydra’s heads. Or close to one, at least. Tailing him might give us info on the other higher-ups so when we strike, we can be sure to get all of them.”
“But if I know anything about The Oracle, none of this is that simple,” Leo grumbled. “They’ve mentioned some sort of key once or twice: that he’s looking for one, or trying to break one.”
“A key? A key for what?”
“I have no fucking clue, honestly. But I’m guessing there’s some sort of tool they’ll want us to steal or protect once we get enough intel.”
“Hm…” I turned my attention back to the club as I tried to parse through the riddle.
If those birdbrains ever get tired of espionage, they’ll have a great career waiting in puzzle-making.
Just as I was starting to think the mission was about to begin outside of the strip club, a black Escalade pulled up out front, completely blocking our view.
“Come on, asshole.” I grumbled, “Drop off and move.”
But when the car finally went on its way, my heart nearly dropped through my stomach. The man they’d dropped off — with his dirty blond hair and weaselly face — it was Gabe.
“What the fuck?” I asked, looking to my angels to see if they had known.
But their faces were just as shocked as my own.
“Is he…?” Spencer scowled.
“Has to be,” Leo rumbled, taking out her phone to snag a photo as he posted up outside the club, waiting for someone.
Even with his face enhanced on Leo’s screen, I couldn’t believe what I was seeing.
Gabriel — my ex, the man my saviors had beat for me, the asshole putting a prize on my head and running a citizen spy network to hunt me down. He wasn’t just an abusive asshole, he was a sex trafficker.
No, he’s Boy Prince.
41
KIERA
The sightof him was enough to turn my stomach: my ex-boyfriend, the sex trafficker. Already strained from the argument with Dom, my nervous system was short-circuited by the revelation. My hands began to shake — my whole body, really — as my brain fought to reject what I was seeing.
I was with him for years. How could I not have known?
“Bunny, are you okay?” Spencer placed a hand on my back, trying to steady me.
But as Leo set down her phone and turned to face me, my logic kicked back into control. “Don’t worry about me. Focus on the mission. He… can’t get away with this.”
I can crash out about this all I want when we get home. But for now…
