His lips quirked.
“Jesus,” Mace muttered.
“Enough out of you,” I demanded, pointing at Mace. I swung my eyes through the crew and finished, “Now let’s go.”
And with that, we went.
*
We pulled up to the last house on our list, Mace driving one of Lee’s black company Explorers, me in the passenger seat, Ren behind me.
I stared at the house, sheets covering the windows, weak light coming from nearly every window in the house. There were people moving behind the sheets, and not a few.
Den o’ Tweakers having a late night party.
Shit.
“This is it,” I whispered.
“Fuck yeah, it is,” Mace agreed.
I turned to him, leaning forward and pulling out my phone. “I’m calling Hector. We don’t go in until they’re here. You’re lead. You go to the front, Ren the back. I’m on you. You got an extra gun for Ren?”
“Glove compartment,” Mace grunted.
I hit go on Hector, put my phone to my ear and opened the glove compartment to get the gun for Ren. I undid my seatbelt and leaned around the seat to hand it to him. I heard gun noises as Ren got familiar with it, and it didn’t surprise me he was familiar with guns.
I didn’t let my mind go there, and couldn’t as I engaged with Hector. I told him where we were and to get to us. I also told him their positions. He confirmed and I disconnected, shoving the phone back in my jeans pocket.
“Hector and Tex will take the sides.” I looked around the seat to Ren. “Shit goes down, baby, you disappear,” I ordered gently.
I saw his mouth get tight and the muscle jump in his jaw. This was silent badass for Want you to disappear instead of me, and I belatedly rethought Ren’s ride along.
It should be noted, though, that I loved him like crazy, but I loved him more when he kept his mouth shut and just jerked up his chin.
“The feel of that house, this operation just became mine,” Mace declared, and I looked at him. “You steer clear unless you get my signal, yeah?”
“Gotcha,” I replied immediately, and he did a slow blink.
He thought I’d argue.
He’d learn.
And what he’d learn was that I was a badass. But not a stupid one.
“Stun gun at the ready, Ally,” Mace kept ordering.
I nodded.
We saw the headlights of a Yukon coming our way, the lights going out before it parked.
Hector’s ride.
“Move out,” Mace muttered and we moved.
Ren disappeared quickly. I saw Hector waste no time crossing the yard and vanishing around the side of the house. Tex was lumbering, but his position was closer. He also wasted no time and took it.
I turned on my stun gun as Mace walked right up to the front door.
I stood, back to the house at the side of the door.
He looked at me and gave me a head jerk which I had to interpret on the fly.
I made an educated guess, turned my head the other way, leaned forward and looked into the window at my side.
Mace knocked loud.
All the shadows behind the sheets dropped.
I looked back at Mace and shook my head.
Without delay, he lifted a long leg and put a boot to the door, shouting, “Bond enforcement!”
Interesting.
We had no warrants for anyone inside, but that didn’t mean someone inside didn’t have a warrant on them. So that was a good call. And smart.
I stopped noting that for future reference because the rest happened fast.
Mace went in.
There were noises, thuds, shouts, running feet.
Someone came out the front. I put my foot out, tripped them and they went flying, landing on their front on the cement walk. I moved in quickly, stunned them and they went lax. I grabbed a wrist and started to haul them off the walk so they wouldn’t be trampled if anyone else tried to escape out front. As I did this, I saw Hector running in the front door.
That was when I heard Mace’s whistle.
I took that as his sign.
I got in, Tex coming in behind me, and it appeared Mace had had all the fun, what with the bodies littering the floor and some tweakers cowering in a corner.
But Ren was having fun, too. Across the room, he had hands on a guy—arm and back of the neck. He slammed him face first into the wall, let him go and the guy dropped straight to his back, o-u-t, out.
My man.
Totally hot.
After allowing myself a quiver in my happy place, I took in the space. There was a lot of mess, some not so great furniture, and three car stereos sitting on a filthy, battered coffee table.
That night’s take.
And last, little baggies of meth crystals and drug paraphernalia everywhere.
No weapons.
I looked at Mace. “You hogged all the fun.”