“Of course,” Cassidy said.
“This is serious, guys. If any of you shoot Bob before I give the word, I will charge you myself. I don’t care which one of you it is. This is my operation. Are we clear on that?”
We all nodded, but every one of us knew the truth. If we got fired on, we’d shoot back. It wouldn’t matter if it was Bob or Frank.
She knew it, too. I could see it on her face. She stared at us for a beat longer, then turned and walked toward the chopper.
Mitch shouldered the pack and looked at me. “She’s good.”
“Yeah.” I grinned. “She is.”
Cassidy shot me that side-eye she got when she was plotting.
We walked to the chopper together and climbed in. I took the pilot’s seat. Cassidy slid in beside me. Sapphire and Mitch climbed in the back.
We all put on our headsets, and I started the engine.
Cassidy handed out the breakfast packs in brown paper bags. “Bella made these. She’s testing them out for the dinosaur fossicking and gourmet meals tours.”
“Tours?” Sapphire’s voice crackled through the headset.
“Remember how Charlie’s dinosaur bones got washed away in the flash flood?” Cassidy said. “Well, she’s been planning mini tours to find those ancient fossils again. Xavier has financed some proper safari tents that we’ve set up at the site, and Bella is making gourmet meals to make it even better.”
“Charlie has made arrangements with the University of Queensland to have student field trips out here.” Mitch’s voice had pride all over it.
“Yeah. It’s a win-win for everyone,” Cassidy said. “Charlie’s dinosaur bones get discovered again. The students get real fieldwork. Bella cooks her amazing meals. And Koolaroo charges extra for the privilege.”
“We’re already taking bookings, and we have our first glamping group coming in next week,” Mitch added.
“That’s brilliant,” Sapphire said.
“Sure is. I just hope we have all this Bob bullshit sorted by then,” Mitch said.
I lifted the chopper off clean and brought her up steady into the pre-dawn air. The sky was still dark overhead, but the eastern horizon glowed amber. We’d have sunrise within the hour. Below us, Koolaroo’s massive herd was barely visible in the darkness.
Once we reached cruising altitude, I leveled out and reached for my breakfast pack. The foil was still warm as I peeled it back to a bacon and egg roll. Damn, we were lucky Bella hadn’t quit after all that bullshit she’d been through.
My mind went to that diamond mine. The two dead assassins who’d come after her and Declan were still inside that mine. My brother and Charlie had just done what they’d had to do to walk out alive. Two more bodies, buried on Koolaroo. More secrets Sapphire didn’t know about.
I’d promised her the truth. All of it. When the time was right, I’d get Declan to tell her about that, too. She deserved to know everything, even the ugly parts.
“So,” Cassidy said, turning in her seat so she could see both Sapphire and me. “How do you two know each other?”
I groaned. “Cass.”
“What? I’m just asking.”
“We were together about ten years ago,” Sapphire said. “It lasted four years.”
“Four years?” Cassidy’s eyes went wide. “And you never told us?” She slapped my leg. “Jeez, bro, I thought we didn’t have secrets.”
“Fuck off, says the woman who had the biggest secret of all.”
“Hey, that’s not fair. I had to keep mine. But you and Sapphire ...” She gave me a look. “So, what happened?”
“We broke up,” I said. “Obviously.”
“And whose fault was that?” Her eyes were on me.
