“Merci,” Mimic said, crossing her arms and tugging at her necklace in a nervous tic that must have been birthed for this character. “He’s going to go get her.” She shot a glance at the clock sitting above a basket of freshly baked baguettes. “We’ve got about twenty-five minutes.”
The two swinging doors behind the counter opened, Amelia wiping her hands on her beige apron. There was a designer quality to it in the delicate embroidery that went up the sides, only seen under perfect lighting, the ivory strap around her neck appearing soft as silk and durable as cotton.
Her expression wasn’t nearly as soft, something clearly having upset her.
“Bonjour,” she said, walking around the counter and shaking both Bang Bang’s and Wyatt’s hands. “Laurent explained to me all about your wedding and how important this is to both of you. I do want to be honest with you, eh, today has not been the best. I’m a little all over the place, but considering the timeline—”
“So sorry about the inconvenience,” Mimic said, jumping in. “Truly, if we could rewind time a bit, we would. Unfortunately, we can’t.”
Amelia wrung her hands before sliding them into the pockets of her dress, some of the flour having made its way onto the light blue-and-yellow floral pattern. “I understand, and by no means do I want to be the reason for any delays. Come, let’s go to my office, and we can talk cake. Is that okay?”
“Yes, perfect,” Wyatt said, offering a smile that may have been a little too stretched. He leaned into Bang Bang, trying to sell the fantasy as best he could.
“Great, let me just go upstairs to grab my office keys.”
“Actually—” all three spoke at the same time, Bang Bang’s loud voice carrying over all of them. “We can talk about cakes out here. We really like vanilla and chocolate, especially chocolate. Right, Peter?”
Wyatt felt an instinctual push to ignore the question. His name wasn’t Peter, after all.
But his cover name certainly was. “Yup, chocolate and vanilla. We’re pretty basic.”
“Well, we can work with that. I have some really wonderful marble cakes that I can decorate any way you’d like. Let me just get the photo album inside my office, that way you can see what I have made before.”
“There’s really no need for that, Amelia,” Mimic said, reaching over a hand heavy with a brass ring holding a turquoise stone. “We’ve seen all your incredible work online already. Really very magical. My clients usually don’t have the budget for your skill, if I’m honest, but I’m glad Peter and Francisco can have your magic at their wedding.”
That seemed to soften her up some, a shaky smile forming on her face, cheekbones fragile and angular, highlighted by a natural blush that filled her cheeks. “That is very special to hear, thank you… Okay, let’s look at the cakes we have on display, then. That should give you an idea of what we can do.”
“Excellent,” Wyatt said, Bang Bang repeating him. They walked over to the assortment of cakes displayed behind a brightly lit glass, covered in smooth fondant and icing of all different colors and designs. There were flower-filled cakes and fruit-covered cakes and chocolate-drizzled cakes, strawberry and red velvet and orange.
“And how long have you two been together?”
“Three years,” Bang Bang said.
“Two years,” Wyatt said before catching himself and laughing. “I’m terrible with remembering that kind of stuff. Three years, that’s right.”
Amelia nodded, taking out a few plates and forks for tasting. Wyatt checked the time again, hoping to hear Phantom’s voice buzzing in through the earpiece at any moment, telling the team that he got what they came for.
“Okay, shall we start with the straw—sorry, that’s my alarm system buzzing.” She pulled out her phone, and Wyatt could feel his heart stop beating. Was there something they overlooked, a security system Wyatt hadn’t turned off before they got there? He’d been in charge of taking down the cameras and alarms, all of which was quite easy after connecting to her own computer through her Wi-Fi.
A heavy crash rattled the ceiling, coming from directly above them. Another crash and then a loud bang followed.
“What in the world?” Amelia craned her neck and looked upward, same as the rest of them.
Except for Bang Bang. He ran toward the door leading upstairs, leaping over the counter, causing a couple of browsing customers to gasp in shock. That was when Phantom’s voice echoed inside Wyatt’s skull, carrying with it devastating news, far from the fantasy Wyatt had whipped up earlier when he was imagining this all going as smooth as the icing on the cakes.
“I’ve been shot,” Phantom said, breathless. “I need help.”
Chapter 19
Roman Ashford
Roman didn’t need to wait for confirmation to know what he’d just heard was a gunshot. He jumped up from the chair, sending it falling to the floor as he dashed to the door. A couple sipping on their coffees looked at Roman like he was crazy, one even rolling their eyes as Roman disappeared into the bakery.