Taken by the Con

by C. J. Miller

  Lucia frowned. “Hurry up. I’ll be bored without you.” She kissed him, a slow, open-mouthed kiss, and then ran her hand down the front of his pants.

  He’d been turned on, but her little maneuver dialed his libido higher.

  Cash strolled away and followed the man to the VIP room. The room was locked, the door requiring a badge and a passcode to gain entrance. When the door opened, Cash expected to see Clifton Anderson.

  His heart fell when his eyes landed on a familiar and unexpected face. Wyatt Stone, his long-lost father.

  Chapter 6

  “What are you doing here?” Cash asked his father.

  Wyatt Stone stood and strolled over to him, drink in hand. Though the surprise had shaken him, Cash controlled his anger and outward reaction. At least, he hoped he did. This wasn’t a joyful reunion. His relationship with his father was difficult on a good day and it was an unwelcome surprise tonight.

  “I have the same question for you. You get out of jail and you don’t call me?”

  Was his father serious? After what they had been through, he expected a call? “You made it clear you didn’t want to see me,” Cash said. Why was his father mixed up with Anderson again? Though they were longtime friends, his father wasn’t into big cons. Unless Anderson had flipped him. Cash didn’t like anything about this meeting.

  The room had a wall of video monitors, each trained on a different section of the room and areas outside the casino.

  “Of course I want to see you. You’re my son. When did you get out?” he asked.

  “Little while ago. Work release program,” Cash said. His father looked relaxed and happy, and that somehow worried Cash even more. His father was always scrambling for money or working an angle.

  “Who’s the lady?” his father asked.

  His father had been watching him on the cameras. “My girlfriend, Lucy.”

  “She’s pretty.”

  That was an understatement. Lucia had the kind of beauty that was almost hard to look at for too long. Because she also kept to herself in social situations, and because of her family’s wealth, people took it to mean she was snobby or full of herself. Cash knew that interpretation was erroneous. “She’s beautiful and she’s been good for me.” Not a lie. Lucia had been incredible to him. Too incredible.

  “Can I meet her?”

  He didn’t want his father involved with this con or the problems at Holmes and White. He didn’t want his father involved with Lucia. “No,” Cash said.

  His father took a swig of his drink. “Don’t be like that. I know you’re mad that I didn’t help you in prison, but I explained about that.”

  Cash considered his response. If his father was working with Anderson, Cash needed to stay on his father’s good side. But it was hard to balance that against his personal feelings. “I don’t want to mess things up with her.”

  “I won’t mess anything up,” his father said.

  Sure he would. He would lie to her. He lied to everyone. “Next time.”

  “You’re planning on gambling often?” his father asked, less fatherly concern and more curiosity.

  “I need cash,” Cash said.

  “For Adrian.”

  Defensiveness rose up inside Cash. He didn’t want his father or Anderson or anyone from this world near Adrian. “For a new life.”

  His father nodded. “I heard from Boots you were looking for work.”

  “That’s true.”

  “I heard you were working for the FBI.”

  Cash snorted. He lifted the leg of his pants. “They have me on the box.”

  His father swore. “They’ll follow you here.”

  “Give me more credit. They monitor that I stay in the city. That’s it,” he said, a lie. Though he’d known undercover work would require lies, he resented his father forcing yet another lie from him.

  “Then you can’t work any side jobs,” his father said.

  “Working for the FBI means I have to work side jobs. Do you know what they pay me? Next to nothing. I’m living in a dump. No car. Nothing.”

  His father clapped him on the shoulder. “Your position gives you a unique strength, if you’re willing to use it.”

  His father was an opportunist. Cash was glad he’d seen the angle. It prevented Cash from speaking the treasonous words and suggesting Anderson use him to spy on the FBI. “I’m willing to do what I need to.”

  “That’s my boy.”

  Cash grinned, but inside he was mentally distancing himself from his father. He wasn’t anything like the man. He’d put that life behind him and it had taken his son’s life being at risk for him to run a con again. He wouldn’t go back. “You’ll put in a good word with Anderson?” he asked.

  “I don’t need to put in a good word. Anderson knows you’re an asset. Now clear out before you get on Anderson’s bad side. He likes for the house to win. Next time you come in here, we’ll talk business and I’ll meet this woman, your Lucy.”

  She wasn’t his Lucy. Cash hated that his father had strong-armed a meeting with her. His father didn’t do anything without compensation. If Cash wanted to work for Anderson, he’d have to introduce his father to Lucia.

  Cash shook his father’s hand and left the room. He found Lucia sitting at the bar, swirling a glass of wine. “How’d it go?” she asked, leaning up and kissing his cheek. This time, she spared his sanity by not touching him any other way.

  “My father is here.”

  Lucia set her wine glass on the bar. Cash would guess she had taken a few small swigs to stay in character. “You okay with that?”

  The bartender was lingering close, likely eavesdropping.

  “Sure. It will be nice to reconnect.” A real family reunion. Anderson, Cash and his father. If his mom, the woman who walked out when he was two weeks old, showed up, it’d be the stuff of childhood nightmares. “It’s been a long night. Let’s go home and get you out of that dress.”

  “You don’t want to play any more games?” she asked. “You were doing well.”

  “I’ll keep my money here on credit,” he said.

  Lucia slid her hand down his arm and to his thigh. She lightly touched his inner leg, close to where his erection sprang to life. “Come on. Bed awaits.”

  They strode toward the exit, almost home free. The first meeting wasn’t as bad as he’d expected and in a few minutes, he’d be alone with Lucia.

  One of the dealers stopped him. “Sir, don’t you want your chips?”

  “Put it on my house account,” Cash said, keeping his eyes on Lucia. If his money was in the casino, he’d have a reason to return. It would please both his father and Anderson.

  * * *

  Lucia poured them each a glass of wine. She and Cash had reviewed what had happened with his father at the casino, but she sensed more below the surface. He had been shaken by the encounter with his father. Though everything he’d reported had been innocuous enough, Lucia wondered if he was hiding something.

  “Do you want to talk about your father?” she asked, sliding her computer to the side. She would send her report detailing the evening to Benjamin later.

  “I’ve told you everything I can remember,” Cash said, sounding defensive.

  “I know you did, but I was asking about how you felt.”

  Cash watched her through emotionless eyes and Lucia knew he was holding back. He wasn’t telling her something. His facade was masking his hurt.

  “Felt about what?” Cash asked, sounding tired.

  “What was it like to see your father?”

  “Strange. I haven’t seen him in a long time. I didn’t know he was working for Anderson again.”

  “Were you angry to find out he was still living in DC and hadn’t come to see you?” If she asked enough qu
estions, he might admit the truth.

  “He didn’t know I was out of jail. I didn’t call him.”

  He hadn’t let his father know he’d been released from prison. “Did he seem happy to see you?”

  Cash folded his arms. “I guess. He seemed worried about my GPS tracker.”

  She tried not to think about how that would affect the case. The team could discuss it tomorrow. Right now, she wanted to focus on Cash. “Do you want to send someone else in undercover?” If he didn’t feel he could handle seeing his father, she wanted to give him an out.

  “If I’m off the case, I’m back in jail.”

  Lucia ran a hand through her hair. If he wanted off the case, she didn’t have the power to change that. “If you don’t want to deal with him, then we can find another place for you on the team.” Maybe. Did she have enough favors to call in to keep Cash working with the FBI and out of jail? Her time with violent crime hadn’t ended well and Lucia wasn’t sure any favors would be returned from them. But she’d made good friends at Quantico, and their current teammates liked Cash.

  “Getting close to Anderson won’t be easy for me, much less someone else. Without my history with him, I doubt I could have talked my way in.”

  They were running on limited time. Anderson had scored big with the Holmes and White embezzlement and he’d cash out soon. If they lost Cash as part of their undercover team, Anderson could slip away before anyone had time to find the money. “If you catch Anderson and bring him down, his empire could collapse. That means people who work with him are in jeopardy.” Like Cash’s father.

  “I thought of that,” he said.

  “If it comes down to it, will you let your father be caught?” Lucia asked. Emotions could override logic, especially in the heat of the moment.

  “Are you asking if I would sabotage a sting if it meant my father would be caught? I’m in for a penny, in for a pound. I have a lot to prove.”

  Lucia stood. She wasn’t making any emotional progress with Cash. “I need to change. This dress is making me feel twitchy.” She could think more analytically if she wasn’t tugging the hem of her skirt down every fifteen seconds.

  “Feeling twitchy because the dress reminds you of the life you never wanted to lead?” he asked.

  It was her turn to be on the receiving end of a loaded question. If she wasn’t an FBI agent, if she had done as her family wanted and become a socialite or philanthropist, she’d be spending her days differently, likely wearing designer labels and gowns unaffordable on an FBI agent’s salary.

  “It’s shorter than I’m accustomed to wearing. I feel like when I sit, I’m risking flashing the room.”

  “It’s you and me here,” he said, gesturing around.

  “You know that’s an especially strong reason to change.”

  “I won’t revisit that conversation, but I haven’t shut the door on us.”

  “That’s good to know,” Lucia said, retreating for her bedroom. A change of clothes would be like armor, keeping Cash away.

  * * *

  Benjamin tossed a file onto Lucia’s desk. “The bomb that detonated inside the car was on a remote. Someone was watching and waiting for the right time.”

  Jonathan Wolfe had shared the information with her, but Lucia had agreed not to tell Benjamin she’d caught her tail. She hid her annoyance that Benjamin hadn’t told her about the tail or given her the bombing information sooner.

  “The bomb squad said the device used the car’s battery to draw a charge before it exploded. If the Bureau’s car wasn’t in such poor condition, it would have blown you and Cash to pieces before you had time to get away,” Benjamin said.

  Comforting to know. “Was the bomb maker an expert?”

  “Depends on what you mean by expert. Anyone can build a bomb by reading information online and then visiting their local hardware store for the materials. The remote detonator implies a level of skill, but it could have been a stronger bomb. To go through so much trouble and not make sure you were dead seems strange.”

  The stronger the bomb, the more people who would be hurt or killed. “I doubt whoever built the bomb was looking to take out an entire city block,” Lucia said. She’d worked with criminals who didn’t care about the fallout of their actions, but too much force and too many bodies resulted in a proportionally strong law enforcement response. No bomber wanted that.

  Lucia opened the file. Pictures of the remains of the bomb, a sketch of what the bomb expert believed the bomb looked like prior to the explosion and photos taken at the scene were laid out in order with descriptions accompanying each. “He’ll come after me again.”

  “He might be waiting for our leads in finding him to go cold.”

  “Do we have leads?” Lucia asked.

  Cash strolled in carrying a bag of pastries from a local bakery and a box of fresh coffee. She hadn’t seen him since the night before and she was struck by how good he looked in his crisp white shirt, blue tie and suit.

  He dropped the bakery bag on Lucia’s desk along with the coffee. The team converged on it. “I bring food, drinks and a lead.”

  He was showing off now.

  “What do you have?” Benjamin asked, opening the bag of pastries, grabbing a napkin and taking one out.

  “Kinsley, Hammer’s lover and former personal assistant, is Grace Tidings, well-known grifter, known at Holmes and White as Kinsley Adams. She is the fiancée of Matt Mitchell, a close colleague of Anderson. Mitchell has a diverse skill set—money laundering, bank fraud, computer fraud and bribery.”

  “How did you find this out?” Lucia asked, pouring some coffee and ignoring the tempting pastries. She had willpower and she’d proven it time and again with Cash.

  “Kinsley Adams’s personnel file was added to our case notes early this morning. I looked at her picture and recognized her,” Cash said.

  “Where is she now?” Benjamin asked.

  Cash shook his head. “I don’t know. I can ask around, but I’m guessing somewhere Matt Mitchell can find her.”

  Benjamin smiled and clapped Cash on the back. “That’s great work, Cash.”

  Lucia was impressed. Cash had gotten an early start to have reviewed new case notes before she had.

  “What about Anderson?” Lucia asked.

  “I haven’t heard from him, but I wasn’t expecting to,” Cash said. “It’s early in the game. He doesn’t need me to help him. He runs his empire fine without me. If I look too desperate, he’ll keep his distance.”

  “Then how will we get in?” Lucia asked.

  Cash seemed unconcerned. “My father will talk to him about me. We’ll keep showing up at the casino. They have my money on a house account. I have a good reason to visit it.”

  Benjamin took another pastry from the box. “We need something to make Anderson want you.”

  “Too bad Anderson isn’t a woman,” Lucia said. The thought popped from her mouth before she could censor it.

  The look on Cash’s face said he didn’t appreciate her comment. Benjamin let out a sharp bark of laughter. “Relax, Cash. It hasn’t escaped my notice the ladies enjoy you.”

  Cash poured himself some coffee. He didn’t appear to take pleasure in the statement. “I’m open to doing whatever you think will make Anderson more interested in me.”

  “Your father was nervous about your GPS tracker,” Lucia said.

  Cash looked down at his ankle.

  Benjamin looked between Lucia and Cash. “Are you suggesting I remove it?”

  They’d discussed it once. But if they wanted to close in on Anderson, they needed to be closer to him. “If Cash’s tracker is keeping Anderson from bringing him into the fold, it has to go.”

  Cash said nothing and Lucia sensed he didn’t want to appear too eager. Of course he’d want the tra
cker off. It would give him freedom from being monitored every moment of the day.

  “I could make nice with my father and win some points that way. Get him to take me back into the family business,” Cash said.

  Lucia heard the reluctance in his voice. “Could you invite him out and bond over beers?” The suggestion was both for the case and for Cash.

  “Something like that. Hang around him. He’s in Anderson’s circle and there’s a chance I’ll cross paths with him. If I do, I’ll alert you.”

  “Tracker stays on,” Benjamin said. “I’m not taking you off it and sending you out with a con man. I’m not even sure I like the idea of you meeting up with your father alone.”

  Lucia saw the fleeting look of hurt on Cash’s face. He’d been trying to change. Trust was easily lost and slowly won. All the doubts she’d harbored about Cash weren’t gone, but they were definitely in the margins. “I’ll stay on Cash,” she said. “I’ve already presented myself as his clingy girlfriend.” If she acted dim enough, she’d be dismissed as a threat.

  “You’re offering to watch Cash around the clock?” Benjamin said.

  Was she? They could close the case faster if Cash worked every angle he had. Lucia nodded and Cash appeared surprised.

  Lucia felt she had to explain her position. “It won’t be for long. Anderson is planning to move with the stolen money as soon as he can. Cash will get closer to his dad and I’ll stay close to Cash. With enough luck, we’ll have a shot at capturing Anderson and finding the missing money.”

  “I like it,” Benjamin said. “Get to work.”

  As the team took their treats and coffee and returned to their desks, Cash remained.

  “You didn’t have to volunteer to be my babysitter,” Cash said.

  “I’m not babysitting you. I’m doing what’s needed for the case,” Lucia said.

  “You look good this morning,” Cash said.

  Lucia glanced around. Had anyone overheard him? “Thank you. But we’re at work.”

  Cash let his gaze traverse her body. “What about yesterday? You were very in character at the casino. Almost too in character.”