Hustlers by Claire Chilton
First published in the Great Britain by Claire Chilton 2014
This edition published by Claire Chilton
Copyright © 2014 by Claire Chilton
The moral right of the author has been asserted.
All characters in this publication are fictitious and any resemblance to real persons, living or dead is purely coincidental.
All rights reserved.
Except as permitted under the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, and the United Kingdom Copyright Act of 1956 and 1988. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system without the prior written permission of the publisher, nor be otherwise circulated in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without a similar condition including this condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser.
Published in the United States by Claire Chilton
Illustration by Claire Chilton
DEDICATIONS
I'd like the dedicate this story to the five wonderful authors who also won the So You Think You Can Write competition from Harlequin and Wattpad. Working with them and Harlequin has been amazing adventure so far. Thanks to Avril Tremayne, Melinda Di Lorenzo, Amber Lindley, Jo Watson and Sarah L. White for being amazing people to go on this journey with.
“We need to talk about you being more responsible.” Ellie Phillips widened her eyes when she heard her father’s voice echo through the Bluetooth device in her ear.
“Is now really the best time to discuss my future?” she asked as she scrambled through the tight space of an air vent. The silver shaft felt claustrophobic as she crawled through it, and every movement caused a metallic thunk to echo down it.
“It’s as good a time as any,” her father said.
She shook her head as she reached the grill at the end of the tunnel. “I really do think this could be a conversation for another day,” she muttered as she reached into the pocket of her black jeans and pulled out a small, electric screwdriver. She began unscrewing the vent.
“You’re eighteen now. It’s time you started thinking about taking on some responsibility. You can’t keep doing cons forever.”
“Why not? You did,” she muttered as she dropped the grill into the office below and then lowered herself out of the crawlspace in the roof and into the room beneath her.
“What?”
“Nothing,” she mumbled as she dropped through the hole and landed in the middle of an open-plan office. She ducked down, crouching in the dark as she scanned the office with her pulse racing. The room was empty.
“I’d like you to start thinking about your future. I’d like you to start taking on a bit more responsibility.” Her father continued as she narrowed her eyes, checking for shadows moving on the walls. Nothing moved. She breathed a sigh. The alarms in the office were disabled, but she needed to make sure there weren’t any guards wandering around.
“I think you need to stay out of trouble and go to college.”
“What?” She widened her eyes again before lowering her voice to a whisper. “Are you getting senile dementia or something?”
“It’s a perfectly reasonable expectation that a father should have for his daughter.”
She shook her head as she stood up and hurried over to the nearest computer terminal. “Given the current situation, I don’t think it’s a realistic expectation. Is Jimmy ready?”
“I’m ever-ready, sweetheart.” Jimmy’s voice echoed through the Bluetooth.
“You’re up,” she said as she switched on the computer and plugged in the USB. She brushed back a wisp of ebony hair that had escaped her ponytail and was tickling her cheek.
“You need to stop being a little criminal and start thinking about your future,” her father said.
“I have a future.” She frowned at the shadows near the door then quickly crouched behind the desk when one of them moved. There was someone else here.
“You can’t con your way through life.”
“Why not? You did,” she whispered, staring at the door.
“Damnit, Ellie! I’m serious.”
“So am I. If you want me to be more responsible, let me manage this job.” She paused for a moment, unsure of why she’d said that. She didn’t really want to manage anything. It was about time she did, but she was reluctant to take on that kind of responsibility. Since she’d turned eighteen her father had been nagging her to think about the future, and the only future she could envision was one as a hustler, just like her father.
She frowned at the shadows, and her pulse raced as she watched a large guard heading toward the open doorway. Crap, maybe I should learn to manage breaking and entering first.
She closed her eyes for a second, mentally kicking herself. If he came into the office, he’d find the grate from the air vent on the floor. It wouldn’t take him long to work out she was in here.
“What’s going on?” her father asked.
“I might be busted,” she muttered out of the side of her mouth as the guard stepped into the room. She hitched her breath when he reached for the light switch.
He paused for a moment and then turned on his heel and left the room.
She frowned, quickly standing up and reaching for the USB. “You done here, Jimmy?” she asked.
“Yeah, I got everything we need.”
She unplugged the USB drive and slipped it into her jeans pocket. Next, she hurried over to the open doorway, peering around it. She knew it was risky, but she wanted to know what had made the guard turn around.
She sighed when she saw the guard talking to a dark-haired man in the foyer. “Dad, what the hell are you doing?” she whispered into the Bluetooth.
“Son, have you ever considered the enlightened path of the Lord?” her dad asked the guard.
Ellie shook her head as she hurried back toward the vent, snatching the grill off the floor on the way. She quickly climbed up onto the nearest desk, and jumped up to grab hold of the side of the vent. She gritted her teeth as she pulled herself up, scrambling back into the crawlspace.
“No, and I’m afraid you can’t be here at this time of night.” She heard the guard through her father’s Bluetooth.
“It’s always the right time to leave our sins behind and follow the good book, son.” She rolled her eyes as she listened to her dad get into full preach mode.
“Look, I’m sorry, no. You’ll have to leave.”
Ellie quickly hauled herself into the vent. Then she reached over to put the grill back over the opening.
“I don’t want to get you in trouble at work, but here.” There was a rustling sound of paper through the earpiece. “Take this pamphlet. The lord is always watching over you.”
“Okay, fine. Whatever,” the guard muttered.
“And son, next time you have a joint, try some Febreeze. It cleans up the smell better than cheap aftershave does.”
Ellie smirked as she heard the guard gasp as her father left the building. She quickly screwed the grill back on and then shuffled through the crawlspace toward the roof.
After climbing out of the air vent, she inhaled the fresh evening air. Her tensed muscles relaxed in an instant. She smiled before climbing down the rusty ladder of the fire escape.
“You’re not responsible enough to manage this job. Anyway, I don’t want you doing cons. I want you to live a nice, honest life and go to college.” Her father’s voice caused her to narrow her eyes, and she felt the muscles in her shoulders tense at his words.
She jumped down from the ladder into the dark alley, turning to face her father with her hands on her hips. “We’re breaking and entering for a living. In what situation does that lead to a nice, honest life?”
“Exactly!” her father said as he dropped a pile of religious pamphlets into a nearby garbage can and then fastened his black wool coat.
She scowled as he brushed back his dark hair, smoothing out the peppered gray streaks at his temples.
“What’s your angle?” she asked.
He held out his hands and displayed an innocent expression. “Why would I need an angle to convince my own daughter to choose a better life?”
“He definitely has an angle.” Jimmy’s voice echoed through their conference call.
“Whatever it is, I’m not doing it.” Ellie studied her father for a moment before turning and walking down the alley.
“Jimmy, remind me to demote you to being an extra,” her father muttered as he hurried after her.
“Hey, what did I do?” Jimmy cried. “I didn’t tell her about the admissions thing.”
“Jesus!” her father cried.
Ellie spun around to see her father shake his head. “What admissions thing?”
“It’s just a day trip, nothing to worry about.”
She scowled.
“Fine, I got you a meeting with the head of history at Oxford University. There’s no need to freak out. It’s just a meeti—”
“No way in hell!” Ellie cried. “I am not going to some toffee-nosed university. What the hell, dad? How did you even get me a meeting? I don’t even have any a-levels!”
“You do now.” Jimmy’s voice echoed through the Bluetooth.
“You forged my qualifications? Of all the fuc—”
“You know the subject. It doesn’t matter if you have a piece of paper to prove it.” Her father interrupted. “And, they’re really looking forward to meeting you.”
“What, did you leverage a meeting out of them?” She narrowed her eyes.
Her father glanced down at his stylish Italian shoes.
“You fucking did. You dug up some dirt and blackmailed them.”
“Blackmail is such a dirty word. They wanted you to join the course” Her father shook his head.
“I bet they did after you’d finished with them. Newsflash, I don’t want to go to university.”
Her father narrowed his dark eyes, studying her for a moment. “Make me an offer.”
“I will not.” She frowned. Making a deal with her father was always a bad idea.
“Come on. You want to be the manager. You want to run things. Then make me an offer I can’t refuse.” He tilted his head to the side. There was bright spark of mischief in his eyes.
“Okay,” she muttered. I can do this. I just need to think it through. “Here’s the deal. You let me run this job, totally run this job without interference. If I do a good job, then we become partners. No more kiddie shit. I get to take the lead on half the jobs.”
“And if you fail dismally?” her father asked.
She narrowed her eyed. “If I fail—without you interfering in any way—I’ll go to college and give up the life.”
“Deal.” Her father held out his hand to shake on it.
She shook his hand, but couldn’t shake off the feeling that she’d just walked into his trap. “I’m calling the shots on the job though. Any interference from you and the deal’s off.”
“Sure thing.” He nodded.
She narrowed her eyes. “And no getting Jimmy to do your dirty work.”
“Hey! What am I, some little bitch?” Jimmy cried down the phone. “Since when do I do dirty work for anyone?”
“You just hacked into an employment agency to forge me a job. Now, be a good little minion and keep quiet.” She grinned when she heard Jimmy’s expletives in response. Even for a fifteen year old kid, he had a mouth on him that would make a sailor blush.
Her father rolled his eyes. “Time to behave kids.”
“We need to behave? Do I need to point out that you just gave me a lecture about responsibility while we were breaking and entering?” She shot her father a dirty look as she opened the passenger door his S-Type Jag. She climbed in and folded her arms as she sank into the leather interior.
Her father just winked at her as he climbed into the driver’s seat.
Ellie tied up her dark hair into a ponytail and then checked herself in the mirror. The chambermaid’s uniform looked awful. The black dress had a frilly white apron attached to the front of it. She peered down at her black sensible shoes, which were also part of the uniform. Great, I look like someone’s grandmother.
With a sigh, she plucked the hat out of her locker, which was more like a white frilly napkin that had been shaped into a tiara. After battling to get it to stay on her head, she scowled at the uniform. Gosford Park, here I come.
She slipped an ear bud into her ear. “Jimmy, can you hear me?” she muttered in low voice while glancing around the locker room to ensure she wouldn’t be overheard.
“Yeah, I gotcha. How’s it going?”
She felt a moment of relief to hear Jimmy’s voice. Even though he was her younger, adopted brother, she always felt safe when he was around. “I look like Queen Victoria’s fucking maid.”
Jimmy chuckled down the ear bud. “Take a selfie. I need a good laugh.”
She grinned. “Bite me.”
“Are you sure you want to do this?” She heard her father’s voice. He sounded worried.
“I can handle it,” she muttered as she closed her locker. Her pulse was racing, but that was to be expected. She was running her first con on her own. In the past, she’d always been an extra with her father leading the con. This time she was going in on her own. Luckily, adrenaline was pumping through her veins, which seemed to be overpowering any nervousness.
“If you get in trouble, just let us know. You’re not on your own.” He sounded concerned.
“It’ll be fine,” she said as she hurried out of the staff room and headed toward the elevator.
She hurried into the elevator and pressed the button for the penthouse. There was only one resident in the penthouse, the owner of the Starling hotel chain, Jerry Starling. Starling owned hotels around the world, but he resided in this one, which was in his home town of Manchester. He’d built his empire off the back of organized crime, and it was time he paid his dues.
Starling was dirty enough to fall for a con, but he was also rich enough to avoid the simple ones. To get him to bite, they needed leverage.
After breaking into the employment agency that controlled his payroll, Ellie was now an employee of the Starling Hotel and perfectly placed to dig up some dirt.
She watched the numbers on the elevator panel go up as she pulled her ID card out of her pocket and gripped it in her sweaty palm. She tried to shake off her nerves, but her stomach felt as if it was in a vice. You’ve seen dad con his way into a bank vault before. Chill out. You can do this.
“This ID card better work,” she muttered to Jimmy.
“When have I ever forged something that didn’t work?” Jimmy said. He sounded offended.
“Okay, fair point.” Jimmy sucked at face-to-face cons, but when it came to hacking and forging, he never got it wrong.
The elevator doors opened, and she strolled out into the hall. She glanced down the corridor to check it was empty before hurrying toward the housekeeping closet. She swiped her card through the lock, and it flashed a green light. She opened the door and pulled out one of the trolleys, which was loaded up with clean sheets, towels and cleaning products.
Her heart hammered as she strolled down the corridor, pushing the cart in front of her. She forced herself not to glance up at the security cameras, which she knew were monitoring her every move. Ignoring her racing pulse, she tried to exude a calm demeanor.
She walked to the door of the penthouse. Then she knocked on it. “Housekeeping,” she called out.
After a moment of no response, she swiped her card through the lock. This is where Jimmy’s skills would be tested. There weren’t many things that would unlock this door. She held her breath, watching the red light flicker. She slowly exhaled
as the light turned green, and the door unlocked. “Score,” she muttered.
“Who’s the man?” Jimmy said.
“You don’t want me to answer that,” she muttered as she grabbed a couple of towels and hurried into the penthouse.
After scanning the room to ensure she was alone, she hurried inside and closed the door. This was the only room in the hotel that wasn’t monitored. She stared at the opulent hotel suite. It was a massive open plan suite with a living area, a kitchen, a library and a bar inside it. There were four doors leading off to other rooms, which she suspected were bedrooms.
“You know I’m the man. Go on, admit it,” Jimmy said.
She shook her head with a smile. “Fine, you’re the man, a fifteen year old, foul-mouthed man. Your first mission is to tell me what I’m looking for.”
“I don’t fucking know. That’s what surveillance is all about. You research the mark, find the skeletons in his closet, and then play on his weaknesses. Go forth and research.”
“Great,” she muttered as she hurried over to the large mahogany desk. She pulled open the drawers and checked inside them. She found some folders but nothing that looked confidential enough to be a hidden skeleton.
“You wanted to be in charge,” Jimmy said.
She narrowed her eyes. She didn’t really want to be in charge. She just didn’t want to go to college. She loved her life as a hustler. She had the coolest family in the world. Her father was the Stewart Phillips. His reputation was legendary. And her brother, Jimmy, was the best hacker in existence. She just wanted to stay in the family business, doing what she loved. Why does it have to change just because I grew up?
Shaking her head, she forced herself to concentrate on the task at hand. She realized that she needed to treat this just like any other job. Just because the stakes were higher, it didn’t mean the rules had changed.
She flipped open the laptop on the desk, about to turn it on when she heard a cough coming from one of the bedrooms. Shit!
She ducked down under the desk, closing her eyes as she heard a door open, followed by footsteps echoing on the marble floor.
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