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CHAPTERSEVENTEEN

August

Anna mappedout the perfect escape for me. I have to ditch Nico. There’s no other way. Two blocks from the art gallery in Nice is the flat of a friend of mine, Luc. Anna may have talked him into having a massive house party. Unbeknownst to him, I’m going to sneak in his room and change into a suit Anna had hidden a few days ago. Then, I’ll use a back balcony to leave undetected.

Yep, that’s right. Call me August, August Alexander.

I’m not sure why I’m doing this. The entire thing is crazy. But if Anna can chase a killer halfway around the world to rescue a prince, then I should be able to hold my own at one illegal auction. Shit, I’ve done worse things…well…maybe.

All is going as planned. I arrive at Luc’s. He’s already fucked up beyond belief as is half the people at the party. I mingle and Nico parks himself in a corner as he usually does when I attend such parties. Luc has his own security, but Anna has hacked his surveillance cameras.

About thirty minutes into the party, I excuse myself from a conversation with two models to use the bathroom. Luc’s flat is big enough that I can easily be gone for an hour or so without anyone noticing. I walk by Nico and lean into him.

“I’m gonna use the bathroom and then make a call in Luc’s room,” I say to him. I give him the thumbs sideways which means I want privacy and he nods. He scoots closer to the back hall but doesn’t follow me into Luc’s room. I close the door.

I’m alone, and it’s showtime. I find the suit and change. Once I have my earpiece in, which is only for backup if needed, I check it. I’m expecting Anna’s voice, but it’s not.

“Testing…one, two,” I say to myself as I look in the mirror in Luc’s bathroom.

“Hey there,” Kate’s voice says.

“Kate?” I say my jaw dropping open.

She giggles. “Surprise!”

“How? I mean, why? I mean…” I trail off.

“Let’s just say, I spoke to Anna. She has a video pin on your lapel, and she can also talk to you.”

“Auggie, get your ass moving,” my sister chimes in.

“Anna?”

I can practically hear her roll her eyes.

I shake my head. Of course, my girl got herself involved against my wishes. Kate is stubborn, I’ll give her that.

“Just do as we say,” Anna’s voice commands through my earpiece.

I roll my eyes at my little sister’s direction.

“I saw that.” Fucking camera.

I glance toward the balcony.

“I have the hallway bugged. You should be good for two hours. The auctions don’t typically last longer than that. These people like to get in, get their shit, and get the fuck out,” Anna says.

I head toward the balcony. There’s a trellis with vines in it.

“Just climb down,” my sister says.

“You have got to be fucking kidding me. You want me to scale a damn wall? You do know that I’m not James Bond, right?”

“Just do it!” both Anna and Kate yell into my ear.

I curse under my breath as I reach out and check the trellis. It’s secure to the wall, so I climb out on it after looking around to check for security.

“Don’t worry about security. They are trying to fix the surveillance video,” my sister instructs as she snickers. Fucking Anna. She loves hacking into things.