[MAX]
"But how do you know that he'll get the message?"
Danny was the one who asked the question. He was seated across from me, one ankle propped up on the opposite knee, his head canted as he watched me.
Phoenix had hooked us up with a remarkable jet — private, fancy, and fast. It was fortuitous that Alexei knew how to fly it. Dylan, Danny, Phoenix, and I were all in the cabin. Phoenix had excused herself not long after take-off to make a few calls. Danny was seated across from me, Dylan beside me.
Dylan triple-checked his handgun while I gave them a run-down on the situation with Winston, and he glanced sideways at me once Danny posed his question.
"Because we've done this before," I shrugged. "I pulled a quote from The Fast and the Furious to get him to go to Los Angeles."
"And it worked?" Danny asked, his tone incredulous.
"What do you think?" I arched a brow at him.
Phoenix returned from the back of the plane then and reclaimed her seat beside Danny. She crossed one leg over the other and carefully smoothed out her skirt once she was settled. "All right, love," she said, honey-green eyes focused on me. "I've called in all the favors I can. We're set to land in Paris, and the jet will be taken care of until we're ready to take off again."
"This is good news." Alexei emerged from the cockpit and leaned a shoulder against the doorframe. "I hate playing defense with a grounded jet involved."
"Perfect timing, Lexi," I said with a brief smile.
"I did not wish to miss your briefing," he retorted. "Besides, when you are done, Feniks is supposed to tell me the landing coordinates."
Phoenix nodded her agreement. "Which means we're all ready for whatever new insanity you're going to bestow upon us. As ready as we can be, of course," she said with a tired yet resilient smile.
"It's hardly that bad," I scoffed. My eyes betrayed me though when I glanced toward the nearest window. "I just need to get arrested by Interpol."
"Uh, no," Dylan said, voice flat. "We're not doing that again."
"It's the only way," I said with a one-shouldered shrug. "Listen, it's not like I want to get arrested again—"
"It's great to hear you're not a masochist, Maxy," Danny muttered, sarcasm heavy in his words.
I shot him an unamused glare, "—but we don't have a lot of options. We need the FBI and Interpol in on this if we're going to get Sebastian. The FBI doesn't have jurisdiction in Europe, so we need Interpol to tag-team with them. And we need them in active pursuit, with legitimate agents who aren't corrupted or otherwise acting independently.
"So while Winston is a necessary player in this game now, I cannot afford to ostracize him from the FBI. His occupation is the only reason he's helpful."
I could hear Alexei's heavy sigh. His dark blue eyes were guarded as he watched me with a frown. "I do not like it."
"None of us like it," Phoenix said before her lips pursed.
"I don't expect you to."
"Last time you were arrested — which was not so long ago — you escaped by the skin of your teeth," Alexei pointed out.
"Yeah, it's not like you're in top physical condition right now, Maxy," Danny said. "I know you feel better, having rested, but you are still recovering from a concussion."
"I'm not going to need to fight my way out of this one," I said. "This isn't an impromptu arrest — I know it's coming. Reznor's already aware of what's going on; he'll turn off the cameras and lock me into the interrogation room so I can have a frank conversation with Winston. From there, I walk out. Whether Winston wants me to or not."
