Welcome to the Family

39

Longest chapter yet. Enjoy.

TW: violence.
***

I leaned on the brick, yawning. "Are you sure everything will go okay?" I asked my oldest brother, giving him another duffle bag.

"You don't need to worry, Maisie," he said, and turned to grab a few more tasers from the shelf. I watched him add flexi-cuffs to the front pouch. "For the security guards."

"How many are there?"

"Security guards? Two, with one on rotation for breaks," he said, zipping the bag and handing it to me. I took it, placing it with the others in front of the door.

"Do they have guns?" I asked, glancing down at my pointer finger, at the hangnail I had picked until it bleed. "What if they shoot one of you?"

"Then we'll shoot back."

"What if someone gets hurt?"

"Cameron, Milo, and Sebastian will be there.  They're trained in medicine," he said, and turned, opening a cupboard. "Besides, a requirement to be an employee at Titan all employees be certified in first aid training."

His words didn't really help. "What if someone sees and calls the police? What if you get arrested?"

Jaime smirked. "We've got connections with LAPD," he declared, "and Eden covers our asses by hacking into the security system. We've planned this, you don't need to worry."

"But-"

He reached up, brushing his thumb against my temple. "I promise we will be careful. At any point something goes wrong, we'll get out. Okay?" I nodded, but my stomach twisted with an anxiousness that I couldn't push down. "Denver's arriving in a few hours. He'll stay with you and Ashton tonight while we do the job... and Evie, if we can find her."

"Evie's missing?"

"Isobel can't get ahold of her. We tried to track her, but she turned off her phone." His eyes blazed with irritation. Jaime studied me, shifting his feet. "She hasn't said anything to you, right? Hasn't called or texted?"

I shook my head, my chest tightening. "How long?"

"Yesterday morning. Izzy and her got into an argument."

"Let me guess. Colin?"

He sighed. "I know I seem like an ass, not liking him - but I've got a gut feeling he's not good for Evie."

"Or any of us," I mumbled and Jaime paused.

"What do you mean by that, or any of us?"

"Nothing ..." he narrowed his eyes, and I knew he wouldn't let it go. "Colin asked me ... he asked me where Autumn and Calliope were."

"Son of a bitch."

"He asked me if ... if I was afraid." I shuddered, the feeling of unease twisting in my stomach. "I don't know, maybe he didn't mean anything by it, maybe he's just socially awkward or something."

Jaime snorted. "That little punk is anything but socially awkward. He seems innocent, but he's two-faced, trying to pull Evie away from us, her family."

I raised an eyebrow. "He can't be that bad," I said, smirking when my brother shot me a glare, "I mean you offered him a job."

"Yeah and I regret it," he muttered. "Maisie, please, if a stranger asks or talks to you about anything other than directions or the weather, tell me."