The Distance Between Us (MAC Security 3)
“What? You’d send me to be eaten?” I ask, my hands flying to my chest as my mouth hangs open in mock horror.
“Hell yeah, I would. You’d make me play stupid games like this and if you were keeping the zombies occupied then I’d have a little peace and quiet.”
“Hmph, fine! Send me to be eaten then.”
“Don’t worry,” Luke says, turning his face to mine. “I intend to.” He chuckles as he pulls the car to a stop at the side of the road opposite “Joey’s.”
He switches the engine off and leans back against the seat, his head lolling back and his eyes closing.
“Dude,” I say, pushing his arm when he starts to snore. “Wake the hell up!”
“I’m not asleep, I’m just resting my eyes.”
I’m about to give him a smartass reply when I spot movement coming from outside the restaurant.
Pulling my small camera out, I start snapping pictures. Jonny May is a tall man, probably about as tall as Luke with dark brown hair that almost verges on black. I can’t see his eyes from here but the file says they’re gray.
He walks across the lot and gets into his sports car. All the while I continue to snap pictures as Luke keeps his head leaned back against the headrest, but I can see his eyes open so I know he’s aware of what’s happening.
Jonny drives out of the lot and thirty seconds later another man follows, walking toward the only other car in the lot. I continue to snap pictures as he opens the passenger doo
r, allowing me to see inside. His hands wave about as he talks to a young girl and I grit my teeth.
I know exactly who he is. One of the top men in the cartel.
Fernando Reigns.
Luke sits up straighter as Fernando pulls the girl closer to him and grabs her face. I narrow my eyes at him, my teeth clenching and my muscles locking, ready to pounce. If it’s one thing I hate, it’s men thinking they can push a woman around.
He lets her go and walks around to the driver’s side, shouting as he slips into the driver’s seat before he speeds out of there.
Luke starts the car when Fernando has pulled out of the lot and is out of sight, then makes a U-turn and heads back toward the warehouse without another word said.
I don’t say anything either, it’s our thing. We’ve worked enough jobs together to know how each of us process the information when we’re on a job.
My mind wanders the whole way back and I determine that dear old Jonny is in deep. You don’t have someone like that as a friend unless you’re in serious business with them.
Looks like I’ve got that teeth-sinking job that I was looking for after all.
“You’re going in tonight?” Ty asks once we have filled him in on what we found, or rather, what we didn’t find.
“Yeah,” I say, plugging the lead into the camera and then into my laptop. “No time like the present, eh?”
I download the photos off the camera and then wipe them from it. Always cover your back. That’s one of the first things that I was taught. If I get found with a camera, it’s not the actual device that could blow any cover I have, it’s what is on the device that will. If I didn’t delete the photographs off it I’d end up with thousands of them on here and that wouldn’t bode well for anybody, least of all me.
“What’s the plan?” Kay asks, sitting on the sofa opposite the desk that I’m sitting at. “It’s a strip club, right?”
“Yep.” I nod and pull the lead out of the camera then lean back on the chair. “They have job openings.”
I let that sink in.
That’s my plan anyway. I need to get close to him, I need to know what he does, how he behaves and not from a parked car. I need an in and this, this is my in.
“You’re going undercover?” Luke asks. Ah yeah, I forgot to tell him my plan. Oops.
“Yeah, why not?” I shrug. “We need to get close to him and this is the best option we have.”
My eyes rove over the three of them, the looks on their faces all saying the same thing; that I shouldn’t be doing this, but I don’t care. If we want to get information on any of them, then this is the only way we can get it. Besides, it’s not like they would suspect an innocent woman. Especially if I get the act just right.