JET II - Betrayal (JET #2) Read Online Free

was nothing more to see. Her next stop would have to be to get a disposable cell phone and then find a motel nearby. Twisting the wheel, she headed back the way she’d come, eyes darting back to the house as she passed it again. There were no obvious signs of life, but then again the blinds were closed on the front windows so it was hard to judge whether anyone was home.
    A few blocks down the road, Jet pulled into a Target parking lot. She shut off the engine and popped the trunk, then transferred her suitcase to where it would be out of sight. No point in begging any thieves, although, so far, Omaha looked like a postcard for suburban safety.
    Ten minutes later, she returned to the car and made a call on her new burner cell phone.
    “Realty World. This is Joanie!” an overly cheerful voice chirped.
    “Yes. Hello. This is Susan,” Jet lied. “I’m looking at homes, and I got your number off a sign in front of a house I liked…”
    “Oh, yes! A house! Well, you’ve come to the right place! Which one was it?”
    Jet told her the address.
    “Mmmm. Yes. I know the one. That’s a great deal. The bank owns it. Wants to unload it as soon as possible. You can probably steal it, and they’d lend you the money to do it!”
    “Well, that’s good to know. I’m looking all over, but that seems to be a nice, quiet neighborhood. Is there a time when I can get in to see the place?”
    “Of course. How about in an hour? Can you make it then?”
    “That would be perfect.”
    “Susan, right? What’s your last name?”
    “Jacobs.”
    “And will your husband be with you?”
    “No. The house is for me.”
    “Wonderful. And do you have financing in place so you can write an offer?”
    Jet was rapidly growing annoyed with the pre-qualifying.
    “Let’s not get ahead of ourselves. There are a lot of homes out there. I plan to pay cash whenever I buy and then get a mortgage once I’ve bought it.”
    “Oh, good. I like that. You know what you want, and you’re not going to waste any time.”
    Jet sighed. “I’ll see you at the house in an hour, right?”
    “Absolutely!”
    Jet wondered what assertiveness training course the auto-suggesting saleswoman had gone to, and disconnected with a shake of her head. She checked her watch and confirmed that she had time to find someplace to spend the night. Someplace quiet.
    Twenty minutes later, she had checked into a generic motel, two stories, with exterior room entrances and nobody watching the comings and goings of the occupants. She’d asked for the quietest spot they had, and the woman at the reception desk put her in the ground floor room at the far end of the complex. It turned out to be simple, clean and adequate, with an electronic in-room safe and wireless internet. She hastily unpacked her few possessions and locked her IDs in the safe along with most of the cash she was carrying. She’d have a better idea what she would need to source once she’d scoped out the neighbor’s house.
     
    Joanie turned out to be a mid-forties woman who precisely matched her voice. With a bouffant hairdo and an evangelical smile, she wore a pant-suit and sensible shoes and shook hands like a man, before launching into a non-stop barrage of information and questions.
    As they walked through the home, Jet pretended to care about the amount of space in the kitchen, the faux granite counters, the new appliances. There was no furniture, and the carpets had been recently changed, and the interior painted, so it smelled like chemicals and stagnant air.
    “Like I said. The bank is motivated. You know how that is,” Joanie enthused.
    “Well, it’s in reasonable shape. What can you tell me about the neighborhood? Is it safe?”
    “Oh, extremely. It’s one of the lowest crime rates in all of Omaha!”
    “That’s good to know. And what about a neighborhood watch?”
    “You know, I don’t think they have one. There hasn’t been a break-in for years. I mean, many, many years. That just