Surrender

“Oh wait.” I hurried to the glittery clutch I had carried all night.

“Come on. Come on,” Vaughn urged.

I reached inside the purse and grabbed the piece of coral from the nightstand. It was the one thing I had meant to pack earlier.

“Ok. Got it.” I shoved it in my pocket.

We ran to the elevators. I chewed the inside of my cheek as we waited for the doors to open. If federal agents were standing on the other side, we were screwed. The game was over.

I was relieved when an empty elevator arrived. Vaughn tapped the button for the lobby.

We were headed into the lion’s den, but we didn’t have a choice. The stairwell exits would be the first thing they would block. Our best bet was to assume the agents believed we were hiding out in a room somewhere. I prayed they were preparing to search every floor. Every room.

“When the doors open, walk casually. Don’t race. Don’t fidget,” Vaughn instructed.

“Ok,” I whispered.

It was possibly five hundred feet from the elevators to the lobby exit. Never had five hundred feet felt like five thousand miles. I wanted to run. I wanted to use every ounce of energy I had to propel myself faster and farther, but Vaughn’s grip on my hand kept me from sprinting ahead of him.

The steps seemed small. Slow. Agonizing.

We passed the large arrangement of ornate orchids. We moved out of the way for a bellhop. We walked past the doors to the ballroom. The auction items had been packed away and were ready to be delivered to the winners.

I took another breath. Another step.

The coat check was just ahead of us.

The light was

turned off. Everyone was gone from the gala. My expensive fur was upstairs in our room with the gown. When Agent Kenneth discovered the room we had used, he would walk in on a scene that looked as if two people had vanished from inside their clothes. They were in perfect piles where we stepped out of them.

We glided past the counter. The next landmark was the door. Vaughn squeezed my hand. It was right there. Only a few feet away.

The sweat ran under my arms. My throat was locked. My stomach cinched in a vicious knot. Only a few feet. Just four more.

Three.

Two.

One.

Epilogue

It was dark. I couldn’t see. What was happening in there? Was everything all right? Had it been ruined? What if all that work was for nothing? I felt queasy. I didn’t know how I was going to face Vaughn if I had destroyed it.

I flipped on the light and sighed.

“Thank God.” I felt the tension ease from my shoulders and back.

“Everything ok?” Vaughn walked into the kitchen. He dropped a grape into his mouth.

I nodded, opening the oven door. “It’s perfect.”

“Let me get that.” He hustled me out of the way and snatched the oven mitts. I watched as he slid the golden turkey onto the counter. It was crispy in just the right spots.

I grinned.

“Now that’s a Thanksgiving turkey,” he praised the bird.