Chapter 79: The Heist

Cindy

We hurried across the lawn, jeeping as silent as possible. I swept the area. Nothing seems out of place. So far, so good. Before I knew it, I was standing in front of the steps that led to the home.

I placed one step forward.

“Wait!”

Antonio stopped us. He lowered his sunglasses and looked up at the house. “There is a shield around the house. If you activate it, I can’t tell what kind of reaction it will have.”

“Can you disable it?” Reiss asked.

Antonio nodded. He lowered his glasses to the ground and aimed his arms towards the house. The focus in his eyes showed that he was zoned in. I could see something circling his hands, resembling ripples in the water. I felt a strong wind coming from behind me and turned to look.

Something was being torn into. It’s as if a highly saturated filter was shifted to reveal aspects of the original photo. The rest of the house was just as we had seen it, but there was a semi-circular opening that showed us a home with richer layers of paint. It became clear then that what we witnessed before was simply the cost of using this “shield”.

“The person who created this is a strong witch,” Antonio said. “I can keep the rip open for an hour at most. Whatever you do, don’t touch it. Only travel through the rip.”

“Thank you.” Reiss patted his shoulder, then he went in. Allister went in after him after a respectful nod.

I was ready to follow them until I saw Glen’s solemn face. He changed it to a happier one the moment he saw me watching him.

I walked over and whispered, “Thank you for giving him a chance.” And kissed him on the cheek. Then I lowered my head and hurried up the steps, not daring to look back.

The living room was just as luxurious as we thought it would be, and bland. The entire interior was white with a few differences here or there in either gold or black. This was more like an office sitting room than a home.

“So far, no cameras,” Allister commented. His frame towered over me as he spoke to his Alpha. “But we should still be careful.”

“You take the kitchen and I’ll go upstairs. Meet me there when you’re done. And Cindy-”

“I know, I know.” I rolled my eyes. “I’ll stay here and keep watch. Don’t worry, I know how to keep my promises. Plus, I’m well protected.” I showed him the gloves and twirled in the outfit that Antonio placed a spell on to hide our scents, something that he did for the men as well. “So the rest is up to you two.”

Reiss sighed while Allister chuckled. He came up to me and planted a kiss on my head.

“Don’t give me a reason to worry.”

“I won’t, promise.”

He gingerly walked up the stairs. Allister soon departed as well, leaving me alone in the living room. I found a place and sat down, gazing out the window.

A few minutes went by. I took my job seriously, switching from one window to the other. My anxiety rises any time I see movement. Most of the time it turns out to be the wind shaking the tree branches. When it wasn’t that or a stray animal, it turns out to be Glen.

He walked up to Antonio and stood beside him. I couldn’t hear what they were talking about, but I noticed that he seemed more relaxed compared to how he was before. I smiled, resting my chin in my palms as I braced against the windowsill.

Time passed but it couldn’t have been more than thirty minutes. Allister walked past me to head upstairs. So far, so good. We might just be pulling this off.

A shiver wrong down my spine.

I pulled my gaze away from the men and swiftly scanned the area. Something was odd. I didn’t stop until I found out what it was.

There were two unknown men coming up the street. The trees obscured the view but I could see them between gaps.

There is nothing unnatural about a couple of people walking on a public street. It could be paranoia, but the feeling wouldn’t die down. They were each carrying a box of food from a fast food chain. They walked and chatted heartily. As far as I knew the nearest fast food place was a couple miles away. And they’re walking. How could they get the food and come back to this area with the box perfectly intact, and not a single sign of exhaustion? Not to mention, they weren’t in running clothes.

I knocked on the window. “Glen! Look!”

I wasn’t sure how well those strangers could hear so I didn’t knock as hard as I should’ve in case I alerted them. Luckily Glen heard me.

He followed the direction I pointed in and saw the men coming, but he didn’t seem to think something was out of place or that there was anything to be worried about. Sure, We didn’t know yet if they were the guards in charge of protecting this place, but I couldn’t shake the sinking feeling. I never felt this even when I came to the Mountain pack for the first time.

I mouthed the words to him, “Watch carefully.”

It took a while however, he finally noticed how odd it was. They were getting closer, passing by a road to their right.

I didn’t wait. I hopped off the couch and ran up the stairs like my life was on the line. At first I didn’t know where to go, so I checked each door until I found the right one.

Allister and Reiss were digging through files in the councilman’s study. They stopped when they heard me approaching.

“There are some guys coming this way and they might be shifters,” I said it all in one breath.

Allister slammed a folder shut.

“Alpha Reiss, take out your phone,” he said. “I have an idea.”