“You too. You have Rook, right?"
“Yeah. He seems smart. One hell of a hacker from what I hear. Hopefully he won’t disappoint."
I was led into the Bubble Bar and Cafe. During the day, it was primarily a cafe. You could get a glass of wine after lunch time. It was an upscale place that working creative professionals liked to frequent. A Rogues member owned it, so whenever we needed it, one of us could fill in for a shift while undercover. My role, as I liked to play it, was called Ron.
Ron was short. Squat. Bit of a gut. Liked to believe he was a lady's man, but Ron wasn't particularly tall. And while I was five-eight and that worked for me, Ron at five-eight would have a bit of a Napoleon complex to him. And that's what we were going with.
Once I was situated behind the bar, all I had to do was wait. I knew that Lock would be given my coordinates, and it was his job to find me in the bar. The real question was, would he watch for me to come in or be looking for somone who was already there? Thus far, I had done maybe three or four of these training missions. Only one recruit actually found me, but sadly, he didn't make it to the end. Lock was made of sterner stuff.
For the next hour, I served drinks, kept to myself, and followed protocol. The chime of the door dinged, and the hairs at the back of my neck stood at attention. Lock was here. I couldn't explain it. Hell, I wasn't even sure I wanted to examine it, but I was well aware that he was in the room. His gaze scanned the bar, and I could tell he'd easily dismissed me. He was looking for a woman. A woman with long braids.
Thanks to the costuming, my braids were pulled back. I had on a fedora, because the way I figured it, Ron would love playing a character, and I’d concealed my braids behind my back. I'd had to put on more layers and a flesh suit to bulk up my figure, and the braids had helped achieve that. I just hoped the silicone of the mask would hold at my neck.
Lock sat at the bar and called over one of the bartenders, asking if anyone had seen me. He flashed a picture, and the waitress gave him a warm smile, shaking her head. I also saw the way she eyed him up and down.
Oh, fabulous. She was hitting on him. Awesome. The low simmering rage hit me tight in the gut, and I wasn't even sure what to do with that emotion.
Focus, Saff. He's not yours. He doesn't remember you. And this is a fucking mission.
The ever so helpful Katy, the waitress, called me over. "Ron, do you have any idea where this woman is? Have you seen her?"
I glanced at the photo and then deliberately lifted my gaze to meet Lock's. "Nah, mate, sorry." I was using a voice modulator, giving me a nice deep baritone.
Lock frowned at me. "Are you sure? She's supposed to be here."
I almost smirked to myself. He was going to lose. It's not that I wanted him to lose exactly. Hell, I hadn't had any time to even do any real training with him. I just liked the idea that he couldn't find me. That was the game. At the same time, I needed him to find me, to be as good as Gabe thought he was.
When Katy left and I was making another patron's drink, Lock seemed to kick back and take a sip of his. Then he called me over. “You ever have a woman you couldn't figure out, Ron? But she was like well fit, you know? And you would swear that there was something between you, but just when you thought the two of you were going to hit it off, she ghosted you."
I coughed. “It happens to the best of us."
“Yeah, but this woman… I don't even know her, you know what I mean? But every time I'm near her and get a whiff of her scent, I can feel it. It's amazing. It sets her apart from everyone. It's a distraction, because sometimes I just need to fucking focus on something else, and there she is with her fucking scent, you know?"
I nodded absently, meanwhile taking a step back. Fuck. That was how he’d found me in the woods.
It was at that moment that Lock smiled at me. “I give it ten-to-one odds Tottenham beats the Man U."
I scowled at the code phrase. How the hell had he known? "Meet me out back."
Lock grinned at me and winked. Then I turned to Katy. “I'm taking a break."
She sighed because she knew break meant I wasn't coming back.
I went around the back, and sure enough, when I shoved open the door, Lock was standing there. "That was a damn good disguise, but I can tell you your first mistake if you're open to the critique."
I lifted my brows. "Oh, you think I'm looking for a critique here?"
"Well, I figure we're all looking to get better at what we do, right? It's your eyes. They're distinctive. Oh, and that perfume of yours. I'd know it anywhere."
I frowned at that. "Anything else?"
He shook his head. "Otherwise, it's a damn good disguise."
I turnedthe voice modulator off.
"Right. You are good,” he said. “I can tell you're used to being the best."
"We don't have to talk about this right now. We just need to get moving."