To Have and to Heist(100)

“Why didn’t you tell me?” We’d never kept secrets from each other. I wasn’t as shocked about the gun as I was about the fact that she hadn’t shared any of this with me.

Chloe gave an apologetic shrug. “I guess I didn’t know what you’d think. I’ve changed since we started this heist. I’ve done things I would never have imagined doing. I’m badass now, Simi. I don’t need to be protected by you or Gage or anyone, and I wasn’t sure if you’d still love the new me.”

“I can’t believe you’d even think that after everything we’ve been through together. You’ll always be my ride or die.” I patted her purse. “Now, how about you put that away so we can get to planning our kidnapping?”

As soon as she took her attention off me, I leaned over and whispered in Gage’s ear, “After we’ve kidnapped the boyfriend and recovered the necklace, we’re going to have words.”

Gage gave me a curt nod. “Noted.”

“I’m anti-violence,” Cristian said. “I can’t be an active participant in a violent crime. I can, however, watch the van and be ready to drive if we need to get out of here in a hurry.”

Emma shook her head and sighed. “Were you born anti-everything, or did the world make you that way?”

“There’s enough violence in the world,” Cristian said. “Someone has to take a stand.”

“Or in your case, hide while the rest of your crew puts their lives on the line.” Her voice was as bitter as I’d ever heard it. “At least you’re consistent. And this time you’re not running away, so yay to your personal growth.”

“We’re not putting our lives on the line,” I said. “It’s just a simple kidnapping for ransom. What could possibly go wrong?”

* * *

◆ ◆ ◆

?As it turned out, we didn’t need the tire iron. Gage knocked Ben out with the handle of his gun.

“What did you do?” I shrieked when he returned to the van with an unconscious Ben over his shoulders.

“What if it doesn’t go the way you planned?” Gage said, dumping Ben on the floor. “He’ll be able to identify us. Kidnapping is a felony. I thought you were trying to stay out of jail.”

“Okaaaay.” I sucked in a sharp breath. “Not how I thought the plan would go, but I can work with that. Everyone grab a weapon and let’s get going.”

“What should I do?” Cristian helped Gage lift Ben back onto his shoulders.

“You need to text Jack and Anil again and update them. Tell them we’ve kidnapped Ben for leverage and we’re going in. Then you should keep a lookout for suspicious activity. I’ve watched enough crime shows with Rose to know that nothing good happens in industrial parks at night.”

“This should be a quick in-and-out operation,” Gage said. “Once we control the exit, we control the room. We make the trade. And we’re gone.”

* * *

◆ ◆ ◆

?With Gage carrying an unconscious Ben over his shoulders, we walked into the warehouse. Bright fluorescent lights hung from the ceiling, casting shadows on the grease-stained cement floor. I could smell diesel and sawdust and the lingering scent of perfume. A woman’s laugh echoed through the cavernous space. A hush. Silence. The slide of a clip in a gun. By the time we had navigated the labyrinth of wooden crates, metal drums, and plastic barrels, we knew they knew we were in the building.

I don’t know why it hadn’t occurred to me that a mob boss’s daughter might be armed, but the way the day was going, I wasn’t surprised to be staring down the barrels of three guns when we reached the center of the warehouse.

“Simi?” Bella’s eyes widened. “What are you doing here? If my father sent you . . .”

“He doesn’t know I’m here.” I gestured to Gage to put Ben down. If things went bad, I wanted him to have both hands free.

“So you’ve come to solve another problem.” She tipped her head back and groaned. “You’re the most irritatingly efficient event coordinator I’ve ever known. I successfully got rid of five wedding planners before you. I’d finally put myself in a position where the wedding would never happen. But no. There is nothing you can’t do. Plan a wedding in a few weeks? Sure. Find an elephant? Sure. Six-foot ice sculpture of swans in flight? Sure. Alter a dress in two days to meet the demands of an insufferable monster? Sure.”

“I thought my aunt did a good job with the lace.”

“If I wanted to get married in the eighteenth century.” She got steely-eyed and glared at me. “I had to poison a priest because of you and not even that was enough. Somehow you managed to fix that, too.”

I struggled to process what was happening. “Why did you need to poison the priest? We had everything ready for your escape, and it all went according to plan.”

“Mario came to see me last night,” she spat out. “I don’t know if he knew about our plan, but he put a knife to my throat and told me that once we were legally married, there was nowhere on earth I could run that he wouldn’t find me. It was a matter of honor, and honor is everything for our families. I’d never really be free. And then it occurred to me: there would be no wedding if the priest was dead. It would be seen as a bad omen.”