Page 71 of Revenge & Truth

“What the fuck does that mean?”

She was now yelling to be heard over the screeching sound of the safe. I could only imagine the noise she was dealing with when from here, it was making my ears bleed at the pitch. Furiously, my fingers flew over the keyboard, trying to figure out what the hell was going on. Then I found out what we might be dealing with and had to take a moment to digest the information before telling Astin we were under the gun.

“Luna, I’m going to help you cut the sound. Once you’ve done that, then we can tackle the rest, okay?” I told her, talking as loud as I dared in this damn van.

“Yes, fine. Whatever we need to do, just help me make it stop,” she ordered.

As calmly and quickly as I could, I relayed the instructions one by one until the shrill sound stopped. We were far from out of trouble, but at least that ridiculous noise wasn’t making our brains melt.

“Was that it? Are we good?” she questioned.

Rubbing my forehead, I tried to figure out the best way to explain this. “If what I found is right, which by evidence of getting the sound to stop, I am, we have roughly ten to twelve minutes for you to figure out the combination lock and turn the keys before an alert gets sent to the judge’s phone.”

“Very funny, Hound. This is not the time to joke about shit like that,” Astin muttered.

“Astin, I’m not,” I stated, my tone as serious as I could make it. “You need to get that beautiful brain of yours in gear and start working on that combination… right now.”

Her head swiveled to look up at the camera. “Swear on my life you’re telling the truth.”

“Now, Astin. Right the fuck now!” I barked in a tone I don’t think I’ve ever used on someone I cared about.

I didn’t need to zoom in on her face to know panic had set in. “Oh fuck, we’re done for. There’s no way I c—”

“None of that,” I cut in. “Listen to me… focus on my voice and not the panic that’s swirling around in your head. Put your hands on the safe.”

Begrudgingly she did as instructed.

“Good girl, now take three deep breaths,” I continued.

“Hound, we—”

“Ah… did I say you could speak?” I snapped. “No talking, more breathing.”

I watched as her shoulders rose and fell three times. On the third breath, she actually started to relax, relieving some of the tension in her body.

“That’s it, Moonflower. It’s just you and me here hanging out in the garage at home prepping for a job like you always do. Now place your hand on the dial and trust your instincts, no second-guesses, just feel the pin fall and catch. You have the talent to do this, and I’ll be right here with you,” I assured her, hoping my efforts to get her in that meditative state worked.

She hesitated for a second before lifting her hand and putting it on the dial. Holding my breath, I watched as Astin used every ounce of her brilliance and skill to pull off what she deemed impossible. I glanced down at my watch, where I’d started a timer since the text was sent fifteen minutes after the alarm was triggered to the owner. It tried to send one to the security company at the five-minute mark, but I blocked that. Because it was unable to reach the security company, the system was set up to send a text to the owner just in case.

With roughly three minutes left, I had all the faith in the world that my girl could do this, but she had to get out of her own head for it to work. I now understood firsthand the emotion they were trying to pull from people in suspense movies. It was equal parts panic to the point I wanted to throw up and rage that I didn’t think to look up something like this being a possibility. My pulse pounded in my ears as my eyes were locked on Astin. Then with two and a half minutes to spare, she stood, turned both keys, gripped the handle, pulled it up, and the thunk of the safe unlocking was music to my ears.

“Hell yeah,” I shouted, leaping up from my chair, punching the ceiling of the van by accident. In my excitement, I forgot I was in Astin’s ear, making her glare at me, but I was too pumped to care. “You fucking did it, Luna! Holy shit, I’m so fucking proud of you.”

She didn’t say anything right away, just placed the gun and jump drive in the safe before shutting the door. There was another thunk as the safe locked once more. That’s when Astin’s legs gave out, and she collapsed in front of the damn thing.

“Astin,” I called, unsure if she was okay with how her shoulders moved.

Laughter filled my ears, telling me she wasn’t crying, so I’d take it. Stress, as she’d just experienced, needs an outlet, and crying or laughing was the best way to deal with it quickly.

“Can we not do that again, at least for a little while?” Astin requested once she’d calmed herself. “I think that took ten years off my life and gave me gray hair, neither of which I’m happy about.”

“Don’t worry. I’ll love you even if you’re now older and grayer than me. I kind of like the idea of having a sugar mama, or is the better term a cougar?” I teased.

“Oddly, I think I’d be okay being considered a cougar,” Astin commented before letting out a deep sigh. “Okay, now to get everything back in its place and head to the gala where I can get a fucking drink.”

“Now you’re talking. Wrap it up, you sexy cougar. I want to see how you move on the dance floor after a few drinks. Oh, and if you’re lucky, I might let you seduce me into coming home with you.”

Astin cackled as she put everything back together with the safe and jogged back upstairs to put the key back. A few minutes later, she was yanking open the van door and hopping in. Instantly, I grabbed and pulled her onto my lap so she was straddling me as I devoured her mouth. I was so fucking turned on and hot for this woman twenty-four-seven, but after going through this with her, the mere touch of her skin had me almost busting a nut.