I check my watch and head to the server room, knowing the sedative-laced alcohol that was served tonight should be starting to take effect by now. Thanks to the layout of the building we received from one of our inside sources and the minimal security detail—because these bastards are nothing if not cocky—finding my way there is uneventful. Getting past the locked door, on the other hand, might prove trickier. I fish the multitool out of my pocket and get to work picking the lock. Thirty seconds later, I hear theclickof the bolt, quickly pushing my way in and closing the door behind me.
The distinct hum of machines and several blinking lights greet me, the temperature several degrees warmer in the tight space. I pull the discreet device out of my breast pocket, squinting my eyes to see better in the dark. “What am I looking for here, Benji?”
“The main rack server. Should be labeled as primary or main.” Ben’s the smartest guy I know; a tech prodigy that escaped the Brotherhood’s early recruitment when he was only fourteen.
I find the server I need and plug it in, hearing the clicking of Benji’s keyboard in my ear. “Done.”
More rapid clicking follows until he huffs in disbelief. “Holy shit. I’m in.”
Benji designed the device himself, allowing him remote access to the Brotherhood’s entire network. He should be able to download any valuable information directly onto his computer, giving us an inside look into our enemies’ future plans. “You good?”
“Yeah,” he answers absentmindedly, no doubt navigating through as much information as he can as quickly as possible.
I exit the server room, blinking as my eyes readjust to the light in the hallway. I retrace my steps back toward the ballroom, knowing that was the easiest part of the evening.
A quick look around the corner tells me our plan is proceeding swimmingly; several people are slumped over, passed out on chairs or the floor, and others are too far gone to notice anything out of the ordinary. The music still thumps loudly in the semi-deserted room, and my eyes are immediately drawn to the woman I met earlier. Her prick of a husband is slumped on the table, fast asleep, as she shakes his shoulders in an effort to wake him.
My feet start toward her before my brain has even processed the movement until I’m standing right next to her.
“Gabriel, wake up, please.” Her eyes are glassy and her own movements are sluggish, but it’s not from the drugs. We didn’t bother lacing the champagne since the men only drink hard liquor, but I saw her down a few glasses earlier this evening.
“Perhaps I could be of assistance.”
She startles at the sound of my voice, but when she turns and realizes it’s me who spoke her expression hardens. “No, thank you.”
“Doesn’t look like he’ll be waking up anytime soon, darlin’.” I chuckle as Gabriel starts snoring, drool dripping from the corner of his mouth onto the tablecloth.
Her eyes snap up to mine, alight with anger, before she thinks better of whatever retort was on the tip of her tongue and drops her gaze again, her shoulders slumping with exhaustion. “I just need the key to our room so I can go to bed.”
I grab a fistful of Gabriel’s jacket at the collar, easily lifting his head off the table. I reach into his interior jacket pocket and find the key card before releasing my hold on the man, failing to hide my smirk as he slumps to the floor unceremoniously. I hold the card out to the woman, whose eyes are wide with shock.
“How dare you?” she screeches at me, ignoring the outstretched key and dropping to the floor instead to inspect her husband.
I can’t help but roll my eyes. “He’ll be fine.”
She smoothes Gabriel’s hair off his forehead as she checks him over, and it makes me sick to see her caring touch wasted on such a piece-of-shit guy. “He could’ve hit his head!”
“That’s the least of what he deserves,” I grumble under my breath, but she hears me anyway.
She stands, tilting her chin up defiantly, and for whatever reason it makes my chest swell with pride. “You are by far the most ignoble lord I’ve ever met.”
I bark a laugh. “Darlin’, you have no idea.” I jerk my chin toward the door, flipping the keycard through my fingers. “Come on. I’ll walk you to your room.” Do I actually plan on walking her to her room just so she can wake up to endure her husband’s wrath?Fuck no.But she doesn’t need to know that.
She crosses her arms. “I’m not going anywhere with you.”
I grin at her, loving that she’s feeling bolder. Though, this does put me in a compromising situation, seeing as I try not to take a woman’s choice away from her, whatever the circumstance. The female species has suffered enough over the last decade, and I refuse to be like the assholes we’re trying to overthrow. However, in this particular scenario, I’m actually saving her life, even if she won’t see it that way at first. “It’s cute that you think you have a choice.” Before she realizes what’s happening, I bend down and pick her up, hoisting her over my shoulder. She squeals in surprise.
“Who do you think you are? Put me down!” she yells and bangs her fists against my back, the blows pitifully weak.
I ignore her idle demands, heading toward the extraction point. The few people we pass don’t even think twice about another man carrying a woman against her will, which—unfortunately for her—happens to work in my favor.
At the freight entrance where our nondescript black van is parked, Bec—my number two—is there waiting for me, the back of the van already full of women. “Got room for one more?”
Her pierced brow quirks at the sight of me with the woman thrown over my shoulder. “She doesn’t exactly look like she wants to be here, Mav.”
“She doesn’t know what she wants,” I argue, hating how much I sound like the Brotherhood.
Bec’s face says it all, and I sigh. My most trusted partner examines the woman on my shoulder further, and her eyes immediately snap to mine when she realizes what I’ve done. “Are you slow in the head, Stetson?”
