MIRA INHALED. EVERY time she thought this night couldn’t contain any more twists and turns, it went topsy-turvy anew. “What?”
Naveen tensed, but he didn’t remove his hand from her lower back. She was grateful for that. At some point, she wouldn’t have his support anymore, but she’d enjoy it while she did. “Where is it?”
Sunil sneered. “Vassar sold it to a businessman by the name of Steve Wyatt. He has interests all over Vegas and the world.”
Mira regarded her uncle. It was growing easier to look at Sunil head-on, but it still stung. He reminded her so much of her dad and the life she’d left behind.
I wish I could make it to her wedding.
Her first reaction had been annoyance that her father had looked forward to her wedding more than he had her college graduation. Why should her getting married be a greater event than that?
And then for a brief, ridiculous moment, the sentimental part of her had softened to mush, imagining a fantasy universe where her father sat with her in the Mandap. She’d been focused on finding a groom for years, but she hadn’t dared to think far enough to a wedding. What a delightful life it would have been, to not worry about who would be with her at the altar.
Later, she’d access her emails on the burner phone and stare at her dad’s words. Not because she wanted to burn his apology into her eyeballs, but because she knew they must mean something else.
He loved you. First Rhea, now Sunil. Bullshit, he’d loved her.
Naveen’s thumb rubbed against her spine. “So Vassar stole this necklace from Cobra and sold it to someone else, and Cobra thinks he kept it? Why would he think that?”
“No idea, except Wyatt’s no stranger to stolen goods. You don’t parade them around. It wasn’t like either of them advertised the sale.”
For the first time, Mira saw a sliver of sunlight in this interminably dark night. “So we can tell this Cobra that this Wyatt guy bought the necklace, and they can duke it out, rich people style.”
Sunil eyed her with some pity. “Dear, do you think you can call Cobra up and tell him such a thing, and he will believe you and release your sister?”
She thought of that merciless computer-generated voice she’d spoken to as they’d raced away from the place they’d been held. No accent, no identifiable qualities, no pity.
Sunil sat back and crossed his ankle over his knee. “Lucky for you, I know where Wyatt keeps it and can tell you exactly how to get to it.” He gestured at his wall of monitors. “I helped him design his security. We used to be friends.”
Naveen narrowed his eyes. “Why aren’t you friends anymore?”
“Vassar was really the glue that kept us together. With him gone . . .” Sunil shrugged. “That’s how some friendships work, sadly.”
“Are you saying that you think Naveen and I should waltz into a rich man’s house and just take a diamond necklace worth millions of dollars?” Mira shook her head, confusion vibrating through her. “Sorry, I missed the part where we look like professional cat burglars.”
Sunil pointed his finger at her. “You’ve managed to escape from and evade one of the most scary underworld characters in recent history. This’ll be a piece of cake in comparison. I have blueprints, diagrams, alarm schematics.”
Mira looked at Naveen. He should have looked absurd, sitting in that chair in his too-tight pants and his bow tie, but his commanding nature made even that ridiculous costume work. This could have been a boardroom instead of her honorary uncle’s strip club office.
You’re biased, due to his belly and forearms.
Probably. “Naveen? Don’t you want to say something?” He would be the voice of reason, like he’d been during that poker game. He’d say no, they weren’t going to break into some millionaire’s mansion and steal—
“Yeah, let’s do it.”
The room went silent for a beat, but the silence was broken by Sunil’s peal of laughter. “The man has some huge steel balls on him.”
Mira wasn’t going to laugh, but she concurred.
“My balls are normal,” Naveen said bluntly. “But if it means protecting mine and Mira’s family, I’m game.”
Oh no. Naveen had lost it. “Yeah, I choose life, thanks.”
Sunil hummed, tapped something on his phone, and turned it around to show them. “Wyatt’s having a party tonight. A benefit, for heart disease. It would be easy for you two to sneak in.”
She skimmed the article. Drink and mingle with one of Las Vegas’s most eligible bachelors! “It’s late.”
“Not for this city,” Sunil scoffed. “I can even get you on the guest list with a call or two.”
“Where does he live?” Naveen took the phone from her and scanned the piece.
“In Billionaire’s Row.”
Only the richest of the rich in Vegas lived in the enclave, which boasted not even a dozen mansions on expansive grounds. Mira pulled her suit jacket tighter around her. “We definitely won’t look like we belong there. Even in the clothes we were wearing when we walked in here. I don’t even have makeup.”
“One thing strip clubs are rich in is makeup, with or without glitter. We also have costumes here.” Sunil took his phone back. “I can email you the information I have. I’ll go see what I can scrounge up in the way of disguises for you.” He got up from his seat and left the room.
Naveen removed his hand from her back and turned to face her. “We have to do this, Mira.”
“It’s not a good idea.”
“Sunil seems to think it is.”
“Sunil’s best friend was a criminal, so I don’t think his judgment is the best.” She shook her head. “This is extremely rash, and neither of us is a rash person.”
“Aren’t we? Seems like we both have hidden, rashy depths.”
That sounded disgusting.
“This isn’t the time to play it safe. We are so close to this necklace, I can almost taste it. Can’t you?”
“We can speak with Cobra—”
“It’ll take us longer to convince a crime lord that we’re telling them the truth, and that’s not a hundred percent. We get this necklace, we physically hand it over? It’s done.”
“And you don’t mind stealing from someone?”
“Stealing from someone who knowingly bought a stolen necklace?” Naveen raised a shoulder. “It’s a shade of gray I’m comfortable living in. Come on, Mira, we can do this.”
“Have you always had this huge amount of unearned confidence?”
“Yes. It comes with being a man. I want this to be over, Mira. So we can move on with our lives.”
Her breath caught. Move on with their lives alone, was what he meant. Not together.
What is wrong with you! Are you in high school?
She tried to shove all her emotions to the side, but that was almost impossible. They grew out of her heart like a venomous vine, sneaking out to her brain and taking it over. “If we get caught, we’re dead.”
“Objective number one: not dying.” He gave a faint smile, but it faded. “I meant what I said about us being a team, though. If you’re not on board, we can figure something else out.”