So he made himself smile at her. The mission closed in around him like a vise.
“Let’s go, then,” he replied.
19
Dead End
Winter and Penelope were gone for a good thirty minutes.
Sydney found herself restlessly wandering the party space, checking constantly for messages from Winter, monitoring his location to make sure he was still here. She had to be an attentive bodyguard, after all. Maybe she was starting to believe in her cover so much that her anxiety over his absence was real. She found herself loitering near the tables, picking up a few of the gold spoons and tea light candles out of nervous habit before forcing herself to put them back. Now was not the time to get caught for stealing. Still, she found herself circling back to the tables and, when she was sure no one was watching, finally stashing several spoons in the hidden pocket of her pants. The habit soothed her nerves. Somewhat.
At last she saw them emerge again from the back of the stairs. Sydney caught Winter giving her a single, meaningful glance.
He was leaving the venue alone with Penelope, she gathered as he walked toward her to wave a quick farewell.
“Don’t wait up,” he told her as Penelope stood behind him.
“Have fun,” she replied, drawing close enough to give him a pat on the arm. In one fluid movement, she dropped the pen she’d gotten in the parcel into his pants pocket. “For your protection,” she whispered as she brushed past his ear, “since you’ll be on your own.”
He must have felt the pen drop into his pocket, but he didn’t say anything. Instead, he gave her a sidelong wink before turning away. “See you in the morning,” he said.
Then he headed back to Penelope and walked to the exit.
Sydney caught sight of his hand and noticed that the snake ring was gone.
Maybe he’d made contact with Connor Doherty already.
Well. He was halfway competent, after all. Surreptitiously, she tapped one of the diamonds on her bracelet and felt her phone buzz in her hidden pocket. The snake ring was recording now.
Winter looked at ease, his head close to Penelope’s as they shared a laugh about something on their way up the winding stairs. Sydney watched in approval, then sent Claire a brief message.HU, Winter leaving party w P. Don’t thk I’m invited. He’s on his own.
A reply came back before Sydney was even sure she had sent her message.Where? For how long?
dk. They’ll b fine.
Claire didn’t answer for several seconds. Finally, she responded withI’ll tell his driver. Just make sure he’s back by morning.
Sydney answered with a quickK, then headed up the stairs behind them.
Above the tunnel’s shaft, the cobblestone streets were slick with rain, their gleaming surfaces reflecting a carousel of color. A car was already waiting out here for Winter and Penelope’s emergence. Sydney caught sight of a group of fans loitering some distance away, behind a barricade set up around the shaft’s entrance by Morrison’s men. Somehow privy, as always, to Winter’s location. They screamed and waved as he went by. He gave them a terse nod, then climbed into the sedan behind Penelope.
To the average onlooker, he must have appeared carefree, with a slight smile on his face and the wind blowing wisps of his hair across hisface. But Sydney recognized the slight hints of his discomfort. There was a tightening of his jaw, an extra crease in between his brows.
He was headed into the mission alone now, and she wouldn’t be there to protect him.
She wanted to frown at herself for worrying. This was what they wanted. What could happen to Winter anyway, when Penelope was with him? Certainly nothing bad, not with Eli’s daughter there to witness everything. She had invited him here; he was an international superstar.
Besides. Sydney had another reason to stay behind tonight.
A fresh wind followed a pair of double-decker buses that roared down the street, and she winced against the gust. The smell of rain and the faint tang of the Thames nearby hung heavy on the air, musty and cold and damp, dripping from every balcony and tree branch. The cold air sent an unpleasant twinge through her lungs, but she still relished the crispness of it. She sank herself into the shadows near the entrance until she was entirely unnoticeable, then pulled a folded black jacket out of her purse, throwing it over her silken top. She slipped quickly out of her billowing pants and immediately into a pair of jeans, unclipping the antler band from her head and breaking it into several smaller segments, folding it neatly into her bag. Seconds later, she returned her attention to the sprinkle of guests entering and leaving the venue.
She’d seen Eli and his crew head into the party, but had yet to see them leave. The murmur she’d overheard from Connor Doherty replayed in her mind.
Tonight.
Eli’s cargo shipment would be heading out soon. If she could just find a way to get close enough to them, if she could just record evidence in their conversation, she would be set. But Winter hadn’t crossed paths with Eli all evening, either.
Another half hour passed after Winter and Penelope left before Sydney finally saw her targets emerge from the entrance.
