Ding.
“Rose is going to sing 112’s ‘Anywhere.’ Why is she singing these songs? She’s eighty years old. Did someone give her a list of the raunchiest songs of all time?”
Ding.
“There’s a pole in the restaurant. She’s going to sing and pole dance like in the video. Someone shoot me now. Gage . . .”
Ding.
“Chloe said the guard’s wife was cheating with the other guard. He says he loves her and the other guy can’t give her what she needs.”
Ding.
“Rose’s arthritis is acting up so she couldn’t finish the pole dance. She’s going to sing The Weeknd’s ‘What You Need’ instead. Just what they don’t need to hear. A dirty song about infidelity right before the wedding.”
Ding.
“The guards are fighting right beside the van. One of them slammed the other into the door. The dogs are there. They’re sniffing at the van.”
Ding.
Ding.
Ding.
“Someone do something,” I pleaded. “My brain is going to explode.”
“Got it!” Jack grabbed the handle of the safe and we all rushed over as he pulled open the door.
“It’s empty.” My heart sank in my chest. “Why is it empty? Who has an empty safe in their bedroom? Is there a false bottom?” I ran my hand over the carpeted shelf. “Is it an illusion? What about their passports? Mrs. Angelini was wearing a diamond necklace the other day and a diamond tennis bracelet. Where are they?” I ran over to the dresser and pulled open a drawer. “Did we miss something?”
“I already checked the drawers,” Gage said from his chair. “Also, the nightstands when you were marathon training in the hallway. Three vibrators on her side. No wonder she needed a ‘life coach.’？”
“There must be another safe,” Anil said. “This one must be a diversion in case the police or FBI show up. That’s why it was so easy to find.”
“Are you kidding me?” My voice rose in pitch. “We don’t have time to look for another safe. Rose is planning to sing 50 Cent’s ‘Candy Shop’ next and then Salt-n-Pepa’s ‘Push It.’ She’ll get thrown out of the restaurant and we’ll be going to jail for nothing.”
“If she can buy us ten minutes with another trivia game, we can get Chloe to shut down the system again,” Jack said. “She has to do it anyway for us to get out. It just means a longer delay before the system goes back on. At the very least, we should be able to locate the real safe, and then we can make a new plan.”
His calm demeanor set my teeth on edge. This was a total disaster. There was a serious risk Chloe might go to jail. If ever there was a time for screaming and shouting and pounding fists on the walls, this was it.
“I can’t make a new plan,” I snapped. “The wedding is in two days. Do you know how much work I have to do? I wasn’t planning to sleep, and that was before we botched this heist.”
“You got us this far,” Jack said. “Don’t give up just yet.”
“Fine.” I kicked the wall and instantly regretted it when pain shot through my foot. “Ten minutes. Not a second more.”
I quickly mobilized my crew. Rose initiated a new trivia game. Chloe jammed the system. Anil went to search the ground floor areas Jack had missed. Gage ran down to the walkout basement so he could get outside quickly if the guards caused any problems. That left Jack and me to search the upper floor again.
“I’m surprised you didn’t run away as soon as you saw the safe was empty.” I opened one dresser drawer and then another, sweeping my hands through piles of socks, underwear, and shirts. “You seem to have a strong sense of self-preservation and little ability to be part of a team.”
“I told you who had the necklace,” Jack said with a huff. “I brought Gage to keep you all safe. I set you up to get the wedding planning gig, and I gave you six orgasms in four hours.” He lay on the floor and peered under the bed.
“Don’t flatter yourself. I’ve had more orgasms in less time.” By myself. But he didn’t need to know that.
Nine minutes and no safe later, a gunshot cracked the silence. My breath caught in my lungs and I prayed it was Gage shooting and not the other way around.
Ding.
Through sheer force of will, I managed to lift my phone and read the message from Rose.
“We have to go.” I shook myself, forcing my body into action. “Mr. Angelini lost his patience and abruptly ended the rehearsal dinner. They’re already in the limo and on their way home. Emma’s going to take a detour, but she won’t be able to stall for long.”
We met Anil in the front hallway. “I have good news and bad news,” he said. “The good news is that I found the safe. It was in Mr. Angelini’s office behind a false bookshelf just like I saw on YouTube. If I hadn’t seen the video, I—”
“We don’t have time.” I yanked open the front door. “They’re already on their way home. Tell me the bad news later.”
Gage was waiting by the van. “I fired a shot over the water to distract the guards. They’re both on their way to the beach, and they took the dogs with them.” He opened his jacket to show his holstered weapon. “It’s been a good night.”
“What are you talking about?” I climbed into the van. “We failed. There’s nothing good about that. All the work, all the planning, all the stress. It was all for nothing.”
“We’ll get $250,000 for the wedding.” Chloe shifted in her seat to make room for Gage, Anil, and Jack. “And you texted that you’d figured out how to help Bella escape. That’s not nothing.”
“$41,666.66 each plus good karma,” Anil said. “If he pays us under the table and we don’t have to pay tax, it’s worth even more. Ask for cash, preferably unmarked bills.”
“The system is back on,” Chloe said when we were all safely inside. “I’m sure he’ll send the guards to check the house. Two jam alerts would worry anyone.”
We lay on the floor of the van side by side in silence. Gage beside Chloe, Jack beside me, and Anil at the end.
“I’m sorry.” My throat tightened, disappointment welling up in my chest. “I thought I’d anticipated all the possible outcomes.”
“It’s not your fault,” Chloe said. “You couldn’t have known Cristian would bail on us, or that Rose wouldn’t be able to keep them entertained, or that Mr. Angelini would insist on leaving early, or that he would have a decoy safe. We did our best. And if I have to go to prison—”
“You will never go to prison,” I told her. I would confess to the theft if I had to, although I couldn’t tell her because she’d never agree.
Jack’s hand slipped around my waist, and he hugged me from behind, as if he knew what I was thinking. I should have been annoyed since I still hadn’t forgiven him, but we were lying on the floor of a van with two security guards running around outside, a Mafia family on the way home, no necklace, and a failed heist under our belts. Sometimes you just have to be gentle with yourself.