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"What do the powers that be want this time?" Dresden rolls his eyes.
Sarcastic ass.
"Lose the attitude, Agent Scholl," Hyde says.
Jax gives Dresden the death glare. I chuckle, catching Dres' eye. He smiles wickedly and winks. Shaking my head, I turn my attention back to Hyde.
"Two days ago, a Baltimore businessman received several threats from different trafficking cartels."
"You'd like us to track the cartels?” Jax sits forward.
"No, Agent. We need your team to act as his personal security."
"Excuse me?" I sit up straighter. "Do we look like security to you?"
"You look like eight Interpol employees to me, Agent Williams."
"You have specialized units for things like this. Use them."
"Save that attitude for someone else. This team has enough intelligence on human traffickers to keep this man alive. Blake Mason works very closely with Interpol's rescue units, and my boss believes his safety is of utmost importance."
"Tell your boss to fuck-off," Dresden snarls. "We don't babysit rich boys."
I gesture toward Dres in silent agreement.
"Dresden, Lily— enough." Jax's voice is low and full of authority.
I stare down at my hands.
Dresden forcefully taps his fingers on the tabletop.
"What are the details of the assignment, Monroe?" Jax leans back in his chair.
"You'll still be outside protocol. Mr. Mason is less than accepting of this idea, but his friends here at Interpol talked him into it."
"So, he'll probably be a complete asshole on top of everything else?" Dresden glares at Hyde.
"Let me explain something to you, Agent Scholl. Blake Mason is one of the most successful entrepreneurs in the United States. I don't give a damn how he treats you. Do your damn job." Hyde stands and walks around the table, handing a manila folder to Jax. "Here's the information you need. Mason will be meeting with you, Williams, Scholl, and myself in an hour. He’s rented a local park for today back in Baltimore for a family affair, so we'll head there afterwards."
"Wonderful," I mutter.
Jax gives me an agitated stare, and I avert my eyes.
"I'm not sure if this set up is a good idea," Jax says, scanning a paper in the manila folder.
"Too bad. We're trying to make Mason more accepting. You have free reign in almost everything else, but the setup can't be altered." Hyde’s tone leaves no room for argument.
"What's the setup?" Vlad, another one of my teammates, says.
Vlad looks more like a hitman than an Interpol agent. He has a shaved head with little to no facial hair, usually, and he wears a thick, gold chain around his neck. A shark tooth earring hangs from his right ear, and on his right wrist, he wears this god-awful bracelet. It's a black leather cuff with dangling bits of bone and metal. Some crackpot, witch doctor gave it to him while we were working in Zimbabwe. It rattles as he taps his thumb on the table.
"Lily will act as point for his personal security team with you and Dresden as co-guards. Everyone else is undercover security."
"What does that entail exactly?" I sit up straighter as my stomach tightens. Just the look on Jax’s face tells me I’m not going to enjoy this shit.
"You’ll be with Mr. Mason at all times. In overly public places, the others will go with you. For large events, such as some of the charity functions he attends, you all go," Hyde says, turning toward the door.
I stare, wide-eyed and open mouthed as the door closes behind him, shaking my head trying to process what he just said.