Her Name Is Knight(Nena Knight #1)(7)
“Thanks.” She opened it to pull out a mirrored compact to assess herself. She removed wipes from the go bag containing her clothing and proceeded to clean the sweat from her face, glad to be rid of the mask. The air-conditioning felt glorious on her skin.
She had to get through the rest of the party. She had to focus and get back to her regular self, whichever self that was. Oftentimes, she found it hard to distinguish which was the real her, the socialite or the wudini. But she guessed, for now, she was the socialite, forced to attend this pretentious soiree because Elin was handling the Tribal Council’s business abroad. Plus, the party had served as a perfect alibi—be the face of her family and eliminate the Cuban on the same night. What luck.
Alpha watched X-ray maneuver the van onto the main road, increasing the speed to put more distance between them and the Cuban’s home. Through the mirror she saw him raise an eyebrow. “Maybe clue your team in the next time you decide to go off-roading?” he said.
She applied a few dots of lotion, then smoothed it into her skin. Lastly, her tinted lip gloss. “You’re right,” she said. “My fault.” She pulled her hair up so it sat in a lush mound atop her head, held in place by a gold hair band. She brushed her edges smooth.
“You know,” Sierra chimed in from beside Charlie. They were also in various stages of undress, exchanging their work gear for their normal attire to dispose of when they split up later. “We always got you, fam; just let us know what’s up.”
Nena offered Sierra an apologetic nod through the mirror, applying another coat of deodorant and then perfume. She stole a glance through the window, checking their location. Ten yards ahead was a set of security gates flanked by tall palm trees. “Drop me here, please.”
As the van door slid open, Sierra said, “Behave in there, boss.”
Nena gave a nod. “Always.”
Sierra grinned lasciviously, still talking as the door closed: “’Cause I sure wouldn’t.”
The team wouldn’t see each other again until they were assigned their next job. For now, they’d go back to their respective homes scattered along the eastern front. None knew the others’ real names, and none were exactly sure where the others lived, though Nena suspected Sierra lived somewhere in Florida, as she did.
In heels she despised, she carefully trudged up the drive toward the grandiose mansion in which the party was being held, its strobing white lights illuminating the night sky as if it were New Year’s Eve. She took in the high gates, swaying palms, perfectly cultivated bushes, and brightly lit windows. The sprawling, manicured lawn stretched out before her looked more like a football field.
She passed the valets, clad in crimson vests, who busily squeezed high-end cars into makeshift parking spaces as attendees arrived and left the party. She walked past a college-aged kid determined to be curbside before an approaching Bentley slowed to a complete stop.
“I’m in,” she murmured, knowing the high-tech comms embedded in the onyx earrings snaking around her ears would pick her up easily. She entered the mansion, confident that Network would make sure her entrance back into the party was as undetected by the security cameras as her earlier departure. She followed the saxophone riff from the live band to the ballroom.
“Copy. Channel closed,” Network answered.
“Nena, there you are. I’ve been looking for you for quite a while,” her handsome date said, taking her protectively by the elbow. “Are you all right?”
She slipped back into her delicately demure role as quickly as taking a breath, but not before her jaw tightened while she stared intently at her skin, the color of deep walnut with golden undertones, where David held her a bit too possessively for her taste.
She stayed in character. “I got lost,” she said breathily, as if relieved her misadventure had ended. She blinked up at the sea-green eyes of her date, the random with whom her sister had made her attend.
“For pretenses,” Elin had told her.
More like to torture her. Nena had wanted to attend this event solo.
“I needed a bit of air and decided to walk the grounds—which are huge, by the way. Then I got turned around. I’m glad you found me.”
David’s chest swelled, the happy hero. “Are you up for a dance? Or do you want to leave?”
She did want to leave. But she also didn’t want to hear Elin’s mouth about abandoning her familial obligations to cement relationships with potential business and political partners. Building wealth and power for the Tribe wasn’t Noble Knight’s only vision—building for his family, ensuring they remained powerful inside and outside the Tribe, no matter what happened, was equally important.
She gave in, allowing David to guide her to the middle of the throngs of guests dancing and laughing beneath a domed glass ceiling, from which they could see a black sky blanketed by innumerable twinkling stars.
“Do you mind having the bloke not whisper sweet nothings into your ear? He sounds loud as hell through the earrings,” her older sister’s voice suddenly cooed with syrupy sweetness through Nena’s earpiece. Nena didn’t buy the false sincerity for a minute. “You only have to bugger around with him a bit longer.”
She should have known Elin wouldn’t be gracious enough to leave her be the whole night. Now that the job was done, Elin wanted to crash in on a comms channel to toy with her, especially when she knew Nena couldn’t reply or turn her off just yet. She could rip the earrings off and toss them, but then she’d have no backup if something were to go down.