To Essie’s relief, Nina did as instructed.
“Good. Now, I want you to listen to me carefully. Vaughn is in the room. Don’t panic—we’re not going to let anything happen to you. Just act normal and do what I say. You’re going to be fine.”
To her credit, Nina didn’t freak out, though she clearly looked uncomfortable.
“Relax, Nina. You’re safe; I promise. Stick close to Austin and don’t leave his side. We’re going to stick with the plan, but we may have to tweak a detail or two depending on what Vaughn does. When the time comes for you to act sick, I’m going to send Vicky your way. Rub the side of your neck if you understand.”
Nina rubbed her neck.
Jackson’s voice came over Essie’s earpiece. “Target just left the bar with a tray full of drinks. After he left, he slipped an unidentified powder into one of the glasses. Should I intercept?”
It took Essie a few seconds to spot Vaughn in the crowd. He paused while an older woman in a pale-pink dress took one of the drinks from the tray. With a smile, he said something to the woman, winked, and went on his way.
“Negative,” Essie said. “Do not engage. Allow him to deliver the package.”
Vaughn wouldn’t go through the trouble of poisoning a drink if he didn’t intend to use it. And now that they knew his plan of attack, they could use it to their advantage.
Essie’s gaze returned to the table where Nina stood beside Austin. “Okay, Nina, Vaughn’s coming your way. He’s dressed as a waiter with short blond hair. I want you to take the glass he offers you, but do not drink from it. I repeat, do not drink from the glass. The contents have been compromised.”
Spend enough time in covert ops and you learned an awful lot about the fine art of poisoning. Russian operatives often employed nerve agents like polonium or Novichok. The North Koreans had an affinity for VX. But being a bit of a traditionalist, Vaughn preferred good old-fashioned cyanide. It was easily accessible, fast acting, and available in multiple forms. Symptoms included: nausea, headache, difficulty breathing, loss of consciousness, and cardiac arrest. By the time most people realized they’d been poisoned, it was too late to save their life.
Sure enough, Vaughn offered the drink to Nina, who thanked him as she lifted the glass from the tray. The cocky bastard walked away as though he didn’t have a care in the world, picking up empty glasses from tables as he wove a path toward the bar.
Nina stared down at the glass as though it might explode. “What do I do with it?” she whispered.
“Pretend to drink, but make sure to turn your body away from Vaughn so he can’t tell that you’re faking.”
Nina brought the glass to her mouth but came just short of allowing the liquid to touch her lips.
All the while, Essie kept tabs on Vaughn, who’d dropped the empty glasses off at the bar and picked up a fresh tray of drinks. Every so often, his gaze tracked back to Nina, no doubt watching and waiting for the drugs to take effect.
That was their cue to get things started. Eyes searching the room, Essie quickly found Vicky, and when she caught the actress’s eye, she gave the signal for her to do her thing.
With Ryan in tow, Vicky crossed to Nina and Austin, set her glass on the table next to Nina’s, and made a big production out of giving Nina a hug. They chatted for a short period of time, and when Vicky left to mingle with more guests, she picked up the glass with the poisoned drink. Smooth as can be, she stopped at the bar and swapped it for another, and Lola put the glass behind the bar so they could test the liquid later.
The only thing left was to see how well Nina could act. Searching the room, Essie found Jackson not far from the dance floor. His gaze met hers, held it for seconds that felt like hours, and gave the slightest of nods.
“Relax, you’ve got this.” The deep resonance of his voice filled her ear, smoother than a caress. “Now let’s get this show on the road.”
It was all she could do not to smile, because damn it, this was going to work even better than their original plan. “You heard the man, Nina. It’s time for you to die.”
A minute passed. Then another. And another. What the hell was Nina waiting for? If she didn’t act soon, Vaughn would start to wonder why the poison wasn’t working its gruesome magic.
At last, a look of discomfort crossed Nina’s face. She set her drink down to rub her temples, and when Austin asked if she was all right, she gave a forced smile and said, “I’m fine; just a little headache.” Another minute or so passed, and she began to breathe as if short of breath. Then her eyes rolled back, her head slumped to one side, and her legs gave out from under her.
“Nina!” Austin caught her mid-fall and gently lowered her to the floor. Eyes wide with panic, he used his open palm to gently tap her cheek. “Babe, what’s wrong? Come on, talk to me.” He checked her pulse and cursed. “Get the medics!”
A crowd formed as Austin began to administer CPR, some murmuring, others offering suggestions. Thankfully, nobody was ghoulish enough to record it on their phone.
While everyone else was fixated on Nina, Essie searched the crowd. Damn it, in all the excitement, she’d lost track of Vaughn. She switched her mic back on to talk to Jackson, who was on the other side of the room. “Do you have a visual on Vaughn?”
“Negative. Last time I saw him was right after Nina passed out. I think he might have used the disruption as cover to get the fuck out of Dodge.”
In a way, that would be a good thing, so long as he truly believed he’d succeeded in murdering Nina.
The ballroom’s double doors flew open, and two paramedics, a man and a woman, rushed into the room with a gurney. In reality, they weren’t actual paramedics, but Pinto and Hope had more than enough medical experience to play the parts convincingly. The crowd parted like the Red Sea, giving them plenty of space to get to Nina. The only person who didn’t budge was Austin, who was still performing CPR, the lines of his face etched with worry.
Pinto crouched beside him. “Sir, I need you to give us room so we can help her.”
