Sideswiped by Kim Harrison Read Free Book Online

and one by one they filed out before him. Silas shut the door behind him and set the biometrics lock. It felt more final than it should.
    From there, it was a quick jog across the night-darkened campus to the registrar’s office. The noise of partying students was obvious, and they skirted a drunken crowd at the fountain, slowing to a halt in the quiet of the deserted office building. It was designated low-security, but there’d be someone on site, and Silas held his breath as Allen hugged the building and gave the door camera a spritz of camera fog. Nodding, he stepped back, and Summer typed in the students’ access code. The light over the door made her into an angel.
    â€œThis is the coolest thing,” Allen said as he rubbed the excess camera fog from his fingers. “How come we don’t have this?”
    â€œIt’s still in development,” Silas said, not surprised Allen had never seen it. The science geeks were still tweaking it, but Silas thought it was perfect as it was, evaporating in thirty seconds and designed to block detail without attracting the attention of whoever was watching the monitors.
    â€œDrone is up,” Peri said, the faint glow of her phone lighting her face as she stood outside the camera’s range with her back to the building. “And . . . we’ve got connection. No reason to think it won’t hold once we’re inside.”
    Frowning, Summer again typed the access code. From the reader, a dismal beep sounded. “Uh, guys?”
    Allen slumped. “Great,” he said, looking behind him. “This is going to look fabulous on my résumé. We can’t even get in. You think there’s an open window or something?”
    Peri looked up from landing the drone on the roof, her angular face going into shadow when the phone went dormant. Leaning forward, she peered at the code. “It’s the right code. I used the same one this morning. I bet they have an after-hours approval.”
    Sure enough, the intercom on the door crackled. “Yes? Who is it?”
    As one, they all dropped back out of the camera’s range. It was a night guard. Brow furrowed, Allen hit the RESPOND button, scraping his finger across the mic to simulate a bad connection.
    â€œHang on. I’ll be right up. Intercom is fuzzy,” a masculine voice said, then nothing.
    Peri’s eyes went to Summer. “Someone is going to have to distract him.”
    â€œI’ll do it,” Summer said immediately.
    Starting, Silas pulled Summer deeper into the shadows. “No. You have no reason to be here. Peri was here this morning and can pretend to be looking for her phone. Peri can do it.”
    â€œMe?” Peri’s lips parted in surprise. “Maybe you haven’t noticed, but I’m not a tall, sexy bombshell.”
    Silas took the phone out of Peri’s hand and handed it to Summer. “No, you are petite, dark, and sexy as all hell. Don’t sell yourself short. Summer can work the drone.”
    No one said anything, and he realized Summer and Allen were staring at him. “What?” he said, feeling his neck warm. “You don’t think she’s sexy enough to distract a night guard?”
    â€œWell, yeah,” Allen said. “We’re just surprised you noticed.”
    Flustered, Silas took Summer’s phone and gave it to Peri. “Tell him you forgot your phone this afternoon,” he said, using the DNA wipes to get the smut from her face. Her features were tiny, her small nose turned up at the end, and her dark lashes long and heavy. Nothing like ­Summer’s strong cheekbones and wispy lashes. “Jam the door when he opens it if nothing else. If he lets you in, I’ll text you when we’ve finished, and we’ll wait for you outside. Go. You’ve got this, and we’ve got you.”
    Peri hesitated, and a tingle spread from Silas’s fingers through his entire body. He