I looked different.
Collins had shown me the outfit beforehand to gain my approval, but the image of myself wearing it along with the mask Scotty made, and the makeup I applied had not formed fully in my mind.
Almost sheer midnight-black fell loosely from skinny straps, daring to plunge down my chest area where the dress synched in. The rest draped down, the slit exposing a leg freshly tanned from a day in the sun. Gold accented the outfit in the form of glitter delicately dusted down the straps and bodice of the dress, and twisting metal around my upper arm that matched the necklace and brought to life the evening's theme: mythical creatures.
My own, it seemed, was a dragon of black and gold, and its body coiled itself around my neck, the open-mouthed head resting against my collarbone, ready to spit fire.
That fire resided in the pale orange and gold around my eyes, lined in black. I gulped at the sight of it, and the long earrings hanging behind my curled hair twirled.
"Amber, do you have the—masks?" Derek closed the door behind him, not taking his eyes off me.
We had all chosen a room stable enough to get ready in – one that wasn't destroyed by time – and I had nabbed one of the only mirrors. Derek had finished dressing, donning a tuxedo as dark as my own, but the shoulders and collar had been brushed in gold, and the matching dragon located itself at the folding buckle of his belt.
He whistled. "Oh my god, just look at you!"
I glanced down at myself. "It's not that bad!"
"You think this is the face of someone disgusted? Darling, you're stunning."
I exhaled a relieved laugh. I had worried it had been too much, but surely those already at the ball had spared no expense. Unfortunately for me, I had no other women accompanying us to converse with. "Thank you."
He blinked and tore his eyes away. "Now. Masks?"
"Scotty has them," I replied, slipping on another gold ring. "I think he has to test the connection to the cameras or something. I didn't really listen."
He nodded, then pursed his lip that tugged into a smile. "Have you told him yet?"
I had avoided him all day. If my best friend was not so busy trying to frantically tie up the final pieces of our plan, he would have noticed. "No," I admitted. "I don't know how to word it. Besides, he's been busy all day."
"Amber."
"He has!"
He glanced at the door then back at me. "You can't keep this from him."
"I know."
"After the mission?"
I nodded, but the knot in my stomach made me grimace. "He'll be angry."
"Why?"
"It's just Scotty, isn't it? It's not a personal thing with you. I could be marrying anyone and he would be upset."
He grinned. "Glad to know I'm special to him."
"You know what I mean."
"I do. He's protective, maybe a little possessive, but after what you told me about your ex, I don't blame him. And he's your best friend. I know him well enough to say that he'll support whatever makes you happy."
He knew how I felt about Derek, so perhaps he was right. The two of them still argued, of course, and threatened to kill each other every other day but it had reached the point where I know longer debated if I believed them on the matter.
"Yeah." I nodded, expelling a sigh. "You could be right."
"Not 'could be' – I am."
I rolled my eyes.
We joined Collins and Davis at the base of the stairs, the former smiling quietly with the other grinning. Collins looked radiant dressed in bright white, his tan kissed by the sun to match the threads of gold seamed into his blazer and bow, the colour sparkling in his blue eyes. Various sleek, white feathers had been sewn into the shoulders to offer the illusion of his mythical being for the night: the Pegasus. Davis, on the other hand, wielded bolder colours in a suit of deep purple accented in crimson red in the form of sequins threaded in a swirling pattern of flames – a phoenix.
Davis whistled. "Looking good you two! Though I have to say, Knight, you are looking absolutely—"
Derek cleared his throat. "Careful, Davis."
"What?" Davis's mouth turned croaked and I held back a laugh. "I'm just saying: I would."
Derek groaned and swung lazily for Davis's, who ducked beneath his loosely-closed fist. "Chill out, Barnes. It's not like you're married." He winked.
Derek swung faster this time, and Davis staggered back with a cackle. It looked bad, but the two of them laughed together.
Collins sighed at the fighting and turned to me. "You look beautiful, Agent."
I smiled. "Thanks Collins. I'm loving this suit too."
"I surprised myself with it." He held out his arms, admiring the patterned sleeves. "I often stick with blue but I thought it was the perfect opportunity for change—"
"This is furry."
The rest of us whirred around with astonished gasps at Scotty's outfit. He descended the steps, glowering at the white-shirt sleeves he struggled to fasten the silver crescent-moon cufflinks of, unaware of everyone's reactions to seeing him so formal in his charcoal-black suit of which the edges had been decorated with strips of brown faux wolf fur.
I whistled as Davis did. "Look at you!"
He glanced up at me with near-yellow eyes in the setting sun pouring in through the windows. "I look like an idiot."
"You always look like an idiot," Derek replied, getting a scowl. "But at least you look decent tonight, Scotty-boy. Good job."
"Oh." He blinked. "Thanks, Barnes."
"We are a fit group, aren't we?" said Davis, looking around at each of us.
Collins nodded at Scotty. "We should cover the plan once more."
"Right!" he replied.
He scrambled down the steps, headed for where he left the plans in the right wing, but stopped beside me, looking me up and down.
"Okay, who made Amber look like such a snack?"
The force Derek whacked him with over the back of the scalp with was enough to create an echo.
***
We gathered around the chipped, uneven table of pale oak, each of us pondering the map of the Fleur D'or. The compliments had ceased, and the joking stopped. For now, we had a job to complete.
"The car park is situated on the right-hand side of the building, where we will arrive," said Collins. Our hired cars had been dropped off a mile south of the chateaux to avoid unwarranted questioning, and now waited for us to depart beside Stacey. "If we walk to the back of the car park and around the perimeter of the Fleur D'or, led by Agent Williams, we will eventually arrive at the west-side window near the security room."
Scotty waved his tablet. "I've marked the view of the cameras and will disable them before we're in sight. However, since security's so tight, I can only do so for just over a minute before the issue is clocked and investigated. If that happens, we can kiss goodbye to getting Sienna out undetected."
"Once inside?" Derek beckoned them on. He knew the plan off by heart at this point, but had to be sure of any missing details.
"You guys get me to the security room," Scotty said. "Get rid of anyone in there, I set up shop and check the status of the ballroom to allow you all in without security noticing. Collins stays with me for protection."
"Once inside, we each have our own jobs," I continued. "The first step is to get Davis in proximity of Sienna by getting him into the VIP lounge where the higher-stakes games are played."
"And how do we get in there?" Davis quizzed.
I turned my lips in a subtle smile. "I'll get you in. Don't worry."
Derek leaned over the table, tracing our path with his finger. "With Sienna in sights, Amber and I will head back the way we came, luring Veronica to follow. She'll make a break for the vault while I keep crazy-blondie busy."
Scotty nodded. "You kill Veronica, Amber gets the case, Davis gets Sienna, then we all scram to the cars and get the hell back here. Bippity-boppity-back in the game! He clicked his fingers excitedly. "Checkmate, Marcus!"
"Don't get excited. We have not got Sienna yet," Collins warned.
Davis rolled his eyes. "Cheer up, Arthur. This is a solid plan."
"And we actually have backup assurances," Derek said with a slight chuckle. "Scotty, have you got the—"
Scotty tapped an aluminium briefcase. "Of course I have."
"And the masks?" I said. "All sorted?"
"Are they functional?" Collins added.
Scotty's face fell, a noise of shock croaking from his throat. "Are they... are they functional? Do you even know who I am? Of course they're bloody—!"
I snapped, "Scotty."
"Sorry!" He rolled his shoulders back, annunciating the angles of fur on his jacket. "I don't know what came over me there. But yes, they are functional."
He whipped open his laptop and, with a melody of typing, proved the masks' functionality, displaying bars of signal and five usernames.
Moi
My One, True Bitch-Queen
Blondie-locks
Mr. Collins
The Enemy
Collins blinked. "I have questions."
"More like concerns," Davis added, scowling at Scotty.
"Am I—" Derek squinted, leaned forward to read the screen again. "Am I the enemy?"
I grinned. "I'm completely fine with this."
Scotty snickered as Derek tapped me playfully in the ribs. "Of course you would be because you're the favourite."
"At least you got a name," Davis whined. His eyes shone like a sad puppy's. "I mean, Arthur's on there twice for god's sake and I didn't even get one! It's like you just forgot about me."
"No, you're on there, Davis," Scotty corrected him. "You're—"
My eyes widened at the realisation, as did Scotty's. Collins was not on there twice, as Davis believed, and Davis himself did have a name.
But he most certainly did not have blonde hair.
It hit Collins. Then it hit Davis.
Derek was still frowning. "I don't get it."
I lifted my phone with a sigh and texted him the answer. The ping rattled through the silence and when he checked the contents of the message, Derek snorted and nodded his head.
"True."
Davis, however, did not find it amusing. Feeling his rage, Scotty said, "I... I put it as a joke and forgot to change the... the... I'll change it."
"Oh yes you will. Yours, too."
"But I'm managing the cameras. I only used it to test the—"
"Change it."
"Fine."
Davis's name was promptly adjusted to 'Future Director Davis' but Scotty's was a struggle for him to create.
"Any ideas?" he asked Derek and I.
"Try Dick," I replied.
"No, that's too simple."
I laughed with my lips glued shut and met Scotty's betrayed eyes. "Oh no it's not."
After so many years, Dick Williams made a comeback, as did my 'traitor' title on the laptop.
"You were my one, true bitch-queen," Scotty declared. "Now, you're a traitor."
Derek snickered. "Been there, done that." He pinched my cheek as I glared, and reached for his mask.
The rest of us followed, settling the surprisingly-heavy masks on our faces, concealing our identities and completing the costumes.
Davis grinned. "Again, I'll say it: we are a fit group."
***
We arrived in two ink-black BMW's, Collins's and Davis's parking parallel alongside the one Derek drove Scotty and I in. I clutched the skirt of my dress as I stepped outside, letting out a breath as I took in the balmy air.
Derek nodded towards the hedges lining the back of the car park. We walked in sync, heads high but eyes alert for any sign of security while Scotty, sandwiched between Collins and I, got to work on the tablet in his hands. Derek held his briefcase.
Five steps from the fence, Scotty nodded. "Collins, your watch."
Collins held out his wrist, ready to start timing. "Say when."
He tapped a button and whispered, "Now. Cameras are off. We have a minute and a half."
"Then we better get going," Derek replied.
We sped up, still cautious of those who may be watching, and squeezed through the gap in the latticed fence threaded in blushing roses. Getting through first, I led the charge, counting the windows until we arrived at the one leading to the storage room: the one most likely to be empty.
It was smaller than expected.
The boys cursed. "I barely got through that gap," Davis panicked. "I'm not gonna fit."
Derek snorted. "Heard that one before, Collins?"
"Not the time," I hissed. "Scotty, is there another room with a bigger window?"
"What about that one?" Collins gestured at the room two doors down. With the blackout windows, we could not see inside.
"Um..." Scotty swiftly pulled up the map on his tablet. "It's a staff room. There could be people inside."
"Then what do we do?" Derek asked. "This is the only room guaranteed to be—"
"Someone boost me up." The others turned to me. Davis frowned.
"Amber, we don't know what's—"
"We don't have the time to argue." Fifty-five seconds to be exact. "Now boost me or step aside."
Derek pushed forward. "I've got you, darling."
He bent down and helped me up, the light material of my dress swishing in his face as Davis slid open the window. I gripped the stone window sill and rolled inside, stepping onto the stone flooring.
"Check if the room's empty," Derek said. "If it's not—" He turned to Collins.
"We may need to backtrack," the commander warned us. "We cannot be careless with security."
I nodded and looked to the closed door of the cluttered storage room. "Right."
"Good luck, Knight," said Davis.
"But please be quick," Scotty added.
I opened the door and inch and examined the corridor: empty and narrow with grey, unpainted walls and floors. Guests were not supposed to see this area – this was just for staff.
With timid steps, mindful of my heels, I crept down the hall, mentally counting down the seconds.
Two doors down, I found the security room housing four guards: three men and a woman. I glanced ambitiously at the taser-bracelet – a past gift from Scotty – but there were too many to take on, I realised, so I had to be quiet, though I turned it on just in case. The four of them were too busy arguing over the disruption with the cameras, anyway.
Then they turned back on.
All at once the screens switched from black to colour.
I froze. It took only a few seconds for security to clock the boys standing outside the window of the storage room.
"I'm going to the window."
Oh no.
Without a second thought, I stormed for the security room.
"John!"
The men jolted while the woman only frowned. The smallest man, sitting at the chair in front of the monitors, stuttered, "J-John?"
"My husband," I hissed. "Or soon not to be."
The woman groaned and turned on the men. "What's John done now?"
Shit. Shit, shit, shit!
The tallest gulped. "He's—"
"Having an affair," I snapped, mentally apologising to the real John. "Where is he? I know he works here!"
"Ma'am," the third man approached me, holding out a gentle hand. "I'm afraid to say that you're right. He has been having an affair. He told us not to tell you, but—"
"But we don't know you," said the tallest. "Or, we didn't. We caught him in the storage room with one of the waitresses a few weeks ago. He said not to tell his wife."
I blinked, not expecting my lie to be the truth — or, at least, part of it. The real John was, in fact, an arsehole.
The woman sighed. "For god's sake, boys. Where are your damned morals?"
Their heads fell low in shame.
"Why don't you check the storage room again?" said the third man. "He might not be there but if he's not in the ballroom, he could be."
I nodded, doing my best to act hurt. To my own credit, I did that well. "Okay."
"You should go with her," said the one at the monitors. "Check out that disturbance while you're at it. The cameras are still—" He smacked the monitor as the image of the boys outside glitched. "—faulty."
The security guard escorted me to the storage room, apologising over and over for John's behaviour. As he opened the door, ready to face Derek, Scotty, Davis and Collins outside, I glanced over my shoulder to ensure the others were not following.
He opened the door, spying my friends. "HEY! Stay right there!"
I grabbed him by collar and slammed his head against the wall. He groaned, still conscious until I tasered him with the thick gold bracelet around my wrist.
Each of the boys' shoulders dropped in relief.
"That was close," Davis breathed.
Derek's eyes widened. "Behind you!"
I spun and bolted for the door as the tallest security guard scurried down the corridor, headed back towards the others – the coward wouldn't take me on himself despite being a foot taller. A smart move, really.
Hearing his cries, the other guards stepped out into the corridor, eyeing me up cautiously. The one that fled stood his ground, raising his fists. He had no ranged weapons – neither did the others.
"Miss... I don't want to hurt you."
I raised a brow. I'm not moving first.
I couldn't help but smile as he did.
He swung – I sidestepped and elbowed him in the back but he did not fall. Before he could turn, I yanked his arm forward and jabbed the taser in his neck.
The final man and the woman reached. I staggered back and flicked their arms away. The woman jabbed my ribs – I swatted her off me and tripped her with my foot. As she fell, I latched onto the flying uppercut of the man. His eyes widened, realising he was stuck, and a smile crept on my lips – a bad idea for him.
I pulled him down by the arm and kneed his crotch.
I cried as the woman grabbed my hair, and whirred around with renewed anger to sock her in the jaw, knocking her out instantly.
Stepping over the unconscious bodies, I made my way into the security room and glanced at the cameras.
The staff room was full of five waiters and waitresses on their break. There was no way the boys could get in unseen, leaving me alone – not the plan we had in mind.
Another monitor caught my eye: a camera pointed on the kitchen, left completely empty, polished clean apart from a slice of bread left in the toaster.
The idea was beyond stupid, but I headed back into the kitchen, turned the heat up to the max, and switched on the appliance before rushing back to the security room.
I winced at the shrill ringing of the fire alarm and watched as all five workers rushed from the room. With the staff room empty, I scrambled inside and opened up the window.
Derek's eyes widened. "Amber, what the hell did you—"
"It doesn't matter just get inside!"
I grabbed him by the jacket and pulled him inside, the two of us pulling Scotty up after. Collins pushed Davis up from behind, who smirked.
"Excited to be this close to me, Arthur?"
I groaned. "Shut up, Davis." When he tutted at me, I tugged him forward by the tie.
"What are you—"
"We are on a schedule," I hissed.
All of us inside, we scrambled to the security room, mindful of the staff lingering in the kitchen.
I closed the door behind us and looked to each of their smiling faces. Leaning against it, I let out a sigh.
"We're in."