Page 33 of Two Tricks

“What the hell was THAT!” I demanded, glaring down at her.

“If you weren’t being such an ass and just told me already, we wouldn’t be in this situation,” Dax retorted with her arms crossed and a cocked brow.

“Mujer loca,” I muttered, rubbing my chest. “Loba means wolf, and in this moment I wish I’d gone with something more vindictive.”

Dax flashed me a blinding smile and settled back into her seat. “Now, was that so hard?”

I humphed and starting us rolling again, but inside I couldn’t be more pleased with how tenacious she was. If there was ever a chance for a woman to handle all of us, it would be this woman right here.

“I approve of your choice in nickname,” Dax announced. “I’m glad you didn’t pick anything cute and sappy.”

Laughing, I shook my head. “Even if you didn’t like the name loba, I wasn’t going to stop using it. You don’t get a choice in what I call you, no matter how much you abuse me over it. I have a feeling that the others will feel the same about their chosen nicknames.”

“We’ll see about that. Picasso tried to call me ‘sweetpea.’ There is no way in hell I’m going to let that stand.”

“Picasso, for all of his artistic talent, does not have a way with words, so I’m not surprised,” I said absently as I spotted an anomaly in the fence up ahead.

Gunning the ATV, I pulled us up to the spot and got out, seeing the chain link gaping open where it’d been cut. I looked up and noted that the motion sensors to the left and right were still active, and there was no sign that they had been tampered with. Going back to the ATV, I pulled out the remote laptop that paired with the security system and got diagnostics of the past twenty-four hours. I glanced up, seeing Dax looking at the fence and surrounding area outside, looking at something on the ground.

“Did you find something?” I questioned as the computer booted up.

She squatted down as if to get a closer look, so I gave up waiting for her to tell me and walked over to check it out myself. Peering over her shoulder, I saw footprints in the dirt, but it looked like it was only one person. Spinning around, I looked on the inside of the fence and saw the tracks heading back towards the compound. Cursing, I ran over to the ATV and grabbed the radio to alert the others that someone had broken in, but I never got the chance as I was struck from behind.

Goddamnit! I should’ve known better than to turn my back on a loba who was waiting for the perfect time to strike.

“Weston!” I gasped as Cognac crumbled to the ground.

I couldn’t believe my eyes. Even though I’d only been gone for less than four days, so much had happened. Wes turned to me and scooped me up in his arms, clutching me tightly to his chest as he buried his face into my neck. Stunned, never having seen him act like this before, I didn’t fight his hold.

“I can’t believe I let them take you, shortcake,” Wes murmured into my neck.

Unsure of what else to do, I hugged him back just as tightly. “They didn’t hurt me. I’m okay, Westy.”

Setting me back down, he pulled zip ties out of his back pocket and secured Cognac’s hands and feet. Then he picked me up and set me on the bed of the ATV, kneeling down and pulling off my boot. His fingers brushed against my skin just above where the ankle monitor was, as if he was afraid to set it off.

“They’ve never used it,” I told him, giving him a small smile when he looked up at me. “Did you find a way to get it off of me?”

“Yes and no,” Wes sighed. “I can mask it long enough for us to get it off, but we need a magnetic key. Each key is custom to each ankle monitor so the person who is wearing it can’t just get ahold of any random key and use it. With the app, I can make you disappear long enough for us to figure something out. The trick was getting you and one of the leaders with the app out of here before anyone noticed, but it seems you did that for me.”

A lightbulb went off in my head. “You disabled the motion sensor!”

Wes nodded as he stood and went through Cognac’s pockets until he found his cell phone. Then he tested each of Cognac’s fingers until the right one unlocked the phone. Swiftly, he went through the apps until he found the one he needed as he pulled out a cord from the tactical vest he was wearing. Weston was never the one to be on the front lines—that was always my job—but we’d both trained to be ready for any situation, a requirement for Two Tricks. Grabbing the laptop, I watched as his fingers flew over the keyboard, bypassing the security and gaining access to their whole compound’s system.

“I’m going to cause a major diversion in the compound that should keep them busy long enough for us to get to a safehouse. I don’t want to risk taking you back home or to the shop because that will be the first place they’ll look,” Wes said, not looking up from his work.

I nodded. “We can’t go to any of Tricks’ warehouses either in case masking my signal doesn’t work. Guess you weren’t so crazy for making us have safehouses all over the state.”

A loud siren blared behind us, making me jump.

“Don’t worry, it’s just me,” Wes reassured as he plugged in the phone, hacking into that next. “Just a few more seconds and we should be good. Got it! Okay, you jump in the driver’s seat, and I’ll get him strapped in back here so we don’t lose him with your crazy-ass driving.”

“You’re always so mean to me, Wes.” I pouted, even though I could only hold it for a second before a smile bloomed on my lips.

Hopping down, I slipped my foot back in my boot and tied it back up before vaulting into the driver’s seat. I of course had to move the seat all the way up and lower the steering wheel, but none of that mattered as I turned the key and the engine rumbled to life. The back bed had three-foot sides, so I wasn’t too worried about him falling out once Wes got him strapped in.

“Oh, make sure to keep the cooler—it’s full of food and drinks,” I called over my shoulder.

Moments later, Wes was by the fence with a set of bolt cutters, making a big enough opening for me to drive though. It took longer than I wanted it to, knowing that we had limited time to get the fuck out of here before they noticed we were gone.