I set them beside me on the bar and instantly, a waitress Hawk primed slid by, hand out. She covered the apparatus, walked behind me and it was gone.

I put my fingers to the slim, gold watch at my wrist, flipped a tiny switch on the side and the microphone engaged. Hawk had given me that watch. It had a microphone and GPS.

They’d pat me down, definitely. I had to go in unwired, no communications but I had Creed as a tail and the watch Hawk gave me. They could hear what was happening with me and they would know where I was at all times. I could not hear what they were up to nor know where they were.

I impatiently started to tap the toe of the foot hanging from my crossed leg and studied the watch.

Two minutes later, I heard, “Collette?”

My head turned and my eyes hit the man who acted as a middle man to sell humans.

Motherfucker.

I buried my sneer, smiled a small smile and extended my hand.

It was go time.

* * * * *

The minute I hit the warehouse, I knew I was f**ked.

This was because I was meeting the principals and amongst them was Nick Fucking Sebring.

Shit, shit, f**k.

His eyes came to me and they widened momentarily as I braced, mentally preparing to run and about to scan the environs for a makeshift weapon or cover I could use until I could get my lips to my watch and alert Creed and Hawk to the situation.

But as I thought this, I saw his face go blank. He didn’t call attention to me and stared at me like he’d never met me before when he had, numerous times. I’d been working for Knight for years and Nick used to work for him too so our paths had crossed.

Fuck, how had Creed and I not clocked this?

Fuck, f**k.

Creed said Nick didn’t keep good company but seriously, these were nasty motherfuckers and we’d been all over his ass, Creed for over a month.

Seriously. How had we not clocked this?

“I take it you’re Collette?” one of the other dudes said to me on his approach.

I took a step back, surveying him, cold shoulder. There was no rule saying I had to be a friendly flesh peddler. I also did a quick head count. With the middle man, the leader of the gang who was approaching and Nick, there were three other men.

Too many.

Fuck.

When I didn’t offer mine, he dropped his hand, my mind scrambled for some code to tell Creed and Hawk there was a possibility I’d be made and my eyes went to Nick.

“How many people need to be here for us to make this deal?” I asked, giving Creed and Hawk the information that the bad guys were fully staffed.

“That gentleman is a new recruit, he’s in training,” the dude answered and my eyes cut to him.

“If you were using this transaction for training purposes, I should have been informed.”

“From the background check we did on you, you’re aware we’re exceedingly cautious. We’ve done an equally exhaustive check on him. You have nothing to be concerned about,” he replied.

“I’m exceedingly cautious as well and I don’t like surprises,” I fired back.

He inclined his head. “That’s understandable. Would you like to terminate now?”

Shit, shit, f**k.

If I didn’t see those girls, Hawk’s entire operation was a bust or he had to follow through, maybe not get his girl but definitely get a lot of shit from the Feds and possibly f**k their operation.

I decided to call his bluff, held his eyes, lifted my chin slightly in an affirmative and replied, “Thank you for your time.”

I turned, again lifted my chin to the middle man and began to make my departure, hoping like all f**k they needed a buyer and bad. I didn’t know the market for human trafficking. It could be a buyer’s market. If my luck was bad, it could be a seller’s.

“Collette,” he called.

Thank God.

I turned and leveled my eyes on him.

“Would you be more comfortable if Mr. Cardinal wasn’t here?” he asked, indicating Nick.

Mr. Cardinal?

What the f**k?

“Or,” the man went on, “would you be more comfortable, considering we’re aware that Mr. Cardinal is a confidential informant for the FBI, that we dispatch him in your presence rather than after our deal is done as we’d planned to do?”

Terrific.

My eyes moved to Nick who had gone pale, which probably partially had to do with his obviously having been made but mostly it had to do with the man standing behind him with a gun held to the back of his head.

Shit.

Shit.

Fuck!

God, please, please, God, let Creed and Hawk have heard that in the microphone.

“I’m not fond of mess,” I told the man.

He inclined his head again. “Then we’ll take him away while we see to business.”

To that, hurriedly but trying not to sound hurried, I stated, “I’m also not fond of something happening I can’t see nor being involved even remotely in felonies that have nothing to do with me. I have a business. I’m seeing to business. We conduct our business, we’re done. I don’t want to be dragged into your mess. When I’m not here, do what you wish. That’s your business but I’ll ask you to put a hold on it while we complete our transaction.”

He inclined his head yet again and that was beginning to grate on my nerves but I couldn’t concentrate on that.

I had to buy Nick time and I had to hope that first, Hawk, Creed and the boys were adjusting the operation not only to recover the girl but to extract Nick. And second, that Nick was somehow wired so whoever he was working with knew he was in jeopardy because he sure as f**k needed the cavalry.

“So you’d like him to witness the transaction?” the man asked and I arched my brows.

“I’d like to stop talking about your problems, complete the transaction and be on my way,” I answered.

“As you wish,” he muttered and his whole gentlemanly act when selling humans made my gut clench which was no good since it was already in knots because this shit was f**ked. There were more of them than I expected, I had no weapon and I had no way to communicate to Nick that I would have his back.

Instead, I gave him a blank look as I followed the head honcho speaker of the group deeper into the warehouse.

“It’s surprising you’d come here alone, Collette,” the man remarked as we walked and I felt the others following us.

“Perhaps you can also refrain from commenting on how I conduct my business,” I suggested, not liking the darkness we were moving into.