Page 4 of The B-Team

“Shh,” Elle hissed. “You’re going to get kicked out.”

“No, I’m not.” These people had sat vigil at his bedside for months on end; they wouldn’t turf him out for being a little raucous.

“Megan,” Lake said. “When I first met you, you were a teenager who dyed sheep pink, tormented your cousin with pet rats, and drove your police officer brother mad. The town of Invertary never knew what trouble you’d cause next. I didn’t pick you because I assumed you’d end up in jail.”

There was more laughter as Megan tossed her long blonde hair and looked perversely proud.

“But,” Lake continued, getting silence on his first word—the man had a gift, “you were a star of my Invertary self-defense class, you have a natural instinct for the business, and you have proven to be a valued asset to our team.”

“So, you’d pick me now.” Megan held up a hand. “It’s okay. No need to say it out loud. We all know that’s what you’re thinking.” She turned and beamed at her husband and partner. “I’m a valued asset.”

“Yes, you are,” Dimitri Raast said indulgently.

“Lake’s doing that lip-quirk thing again,” Elle whispered to Ryan. “Where he’s too cool to smile but still wants to show amusement. Why does that make my lady parts tingle?”

“That’s just wrong. Now I feel nauseous. I don’t need to hear about your lady parts. You’re practically my sister. And Lake… Lake’s like a really cool uncle. It’s all family, and it’s deeply disturbing.”

She gestured to the room. “At least half the people in here are related. They’re either married to each other, are siblings, or are connected through siblings. You must get disturbed a lot.”

“You’ve no idea.”

“Before we begin our first session,” Lake said, “let me introduce our new American team. Guys, please stand up.”

There was a shuffle of feet, but before Lake could say anything more, the basement door slammed open, and Isobel McKay ran in. With her curly brown hair wild around her face, she aimed straight for her husband, Callum.

“I tried to stop them,” she gasped, clearly agitated. “But they have official paperwork.”

Everybody in the room turned toward the stairs leading up to the first-floor office and the reception desk Isobel manned—badly.

As they watched, a team of police officers streamed from the stairwell.

CHAPTER TWO

The basement was deadly silent, the air thick with tension and expectation. Fight-or-flight had been triggered. And Ryan knew the choice would fall heavily on the side of fight if the atmosphere ignited.

The officers spread out around the room, blocking exits and ensuring they corralled everyone present. There was a murmur at the stairwell, and the sea of police uniforms parted to allow a man to emerge. He was average height, thin and pinched, with that air of entitlement you only ever find in rich, white guys. The insignia on his uniform, along with his attitude, signaled he was in charge. He scanned the room before settling on Lake Benson with smug satisfaction.

“Garry.” Lake gave him a chin lift. “Been a long time.”

The man’s eyes narrowed. “It’s Commander Garrison Fitzwater of the Metropolitan Police’s Special and Organized Crimes Division.”

“Tessa’s replacement?” Callum’s brow furrowed.

Beside Ryan, Elle tensed, and he put a hand on her shoulder to comfort her. During their investigation into Elle’s estranged family, the James Gang, they’d discovered the former special crimes commander was taking bribes to look the other way.It’d caused a scandal and bad press for the police—most of it generated by Rachel, who’d made it her mission to destroy Tessa’s life. Now, it appeared the cops had been holding a grudge.

“What’s going on?” Lake sounded reasonable.

A cold facsimile of a smile curved the commander’s lips. “You and yourstaffare being taken in for questioning, pending charges.” He pointed upward to the offices above. “Your files and computers are being seized as we speak. Your empire has come to an end. Benson Security is finished.”

Elle shifted slightly, and Ryan glanced down to see she’d pulled her phone out of her pocket. She texted, one-handed, out of sight of the cops. A second later, his phone pinged as similar noises sounded around the room. Moving slowly to avoid attracting attention, he read her message:Put your phones into liquid. NOW!

A ripple of movement ran through the Benson Security team as, one by one, they quietly dunked their phones into the nearest drink. Their actions didn’t go unnoticed.

“Get their phones,” Commander Fitzwater snapped. “Quick!”

The cop nearest Ryan lunged at him but wasn’t fast enough. Ryan dumped his phone into the full glass of water beside his empty pastry plate. Elle’s joined it a second later. He watched as Isobel calmly took Callum’s phone from him and tossed both of theirs to Megan, who dunked them into the jug of water on her table. Lake, meanwhile, slipped his phone out of his pocket, dropped it to the floor, and crushed it with the heel of his boot.

That left Rachel.