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it had been oiled. “They’re going to spring things on us. It’s cool.”
    “Ask the driver what’s going on.” She pinched him. “Dustin. This is boring.”
    Dustin raised his hands in submission and walked toward Kyle. “Hey, man, thought your team was supposed to be waiting for us here. What’s going on?”
    Kyle looked up, sheepish behind his sunglasses. “Coordinating with HQ.” He frowned again at his phone. “It’s just …” His lips, full and red, had constricted. He looked baffled.
    Autumn crossed her arms. “Where are the other game runners?”
    Ritter raised his hands, a mollifying gesture. “Guys, I’m as new to this as you. Let’s just ride it and see what happens.”
    “New?” Autumn said.
    He smiled, greasy and uncertain, trying to play it. “I’m Edge’s most recent addition to the team.”
    “You’re brand-new on the gig?” Dustin said.
    “First time for everybody, man. It’s no biggie. And I’m sure this delay is just a glitch.” Kyle gave one more beseeching glance at his silent cell phone.
    “Are you telling us we came to the wrong place?” Dustin looked around, weaving.
    Autumn’s voice rose. “This has been planned for months. And you came in at the last minute?”
    The others stopped horsing around and walked over. Noah said, “What’s going on?”
    Autumn pointed at Kyle. “Did you screw up? Because if you did, my dad will have your ass on a skewer.”
    Kyle’s expression dried, like a chunk of Sheetrock. “I did not screw up. We changed plans at the last second, thanks to a specific request by your father for Edge to provide this limo. My boss called me at seven A.M. We had to scramble to get this Hummer and pick you all up,” he said. “So no offense, Miss Reiniger, but if there’s a problem, it’s your dad …”
    Autumn stiffened, but Kyle caught himself.
    “Let’s all cool down.” He forced a smile. “It’s just a hiccup. I’m sure the rest of the team will be right along.”
    Peyton grabbed the champagne bottle from Dustin. She took Grier’s hand and pulled him toward the Hummer.
    “Knock on the window if anybody shows up,” she said.
    Autumn swallowed. The hot pellet in her stomach had returned. How could this turn bad, so quick? It was her day.
    Lark looked around: at the empty, wind-bitten park, the flying saucer stadium, the bay. Then she stood straighter. “Oh. Look.”
    Dustin’s gaze swerved around. “Whoa.”
    Lark jogged toward the bay. Noah ran after her. “All right.”
    Autumn blinked, fighting the sting in her eyes. On the water, arcing around the abandoned cranes at Hunters Point, was a white speedboat.
    Kyle let out a breath, half laugh, half sigh. “There you go.”
    “That’s them?”
    He waved her forward. “Let’s hit it.” He banged on the window of the Hummer. “Peyton. Grier. Out. We got bogeys incoming.”
    Autumn’s anger let go and a bright stripe of excitement painted the view. She grabbed Dustin’s hand and pulled him toward the beach.

5
    T he speedboat razored through the chop past the cranes at Hunters Point and skipped across the bay toward Candlestick Point. Dane Haugen held the throttle wide open.
    “Masks on,” he said.
    Von Nordlinger pulled a black ski mask over his face. Haugen did likewise. Over the mask he put on the wraparound sunglasses he had purchased that morning. His hands were already covered by black calfskin gloves.
    He picked up his walkie-talkie and clicked Transmit. “This is Viking. We are three hundred meters from the beach and closing.”
    The boat bounced on the whitecapped water. Over the walkie-talkie, a woman’s voice scratched at him.
    “This is Ran. We are thirty seconds from the rec area parking lot.”
    Haugen smirked. Ran. How apropos of Sabine to employ a Norse goddess as a cover name, one that meant theft. “Masks on. Hold position.”
    “Roger,” she said.
    He had to wear the mask. He was fair, tall, well built, and so handsome that a Hollywood producer had