by Ali Parker
*
I finished scoping out the perfect spot for the hit and pulled out my phone. D was in the lounge drinking himself into a stupor, which was probably for the better. We had to get through a night of being in the same room and not ripping each other's clothes off. It was going to be more of a battle than fighting the wind to get the perfect shot on Billy later that night.
I pulled out my phone and dialed the number Marcus had given me at our meeting the weekend before, and waited until he picked up.
"Marcus," he barked into the phone.
"Marcus. It's Izzy." I made sure to use my bedroom voice. Men behaved much better when there was the promise of sex. He wasn't getting near me, but he would beckon to my antics like most of the other men in my life did. It was just part of the game.
"Hey. You here?" Marcus' voice softened just a little.
"Yeah. I'm stationed at the hotel across the street. You're going to need to take the target up to the top of the building. There is a great opening to the roof that would give me perfect access to the guy. That, or I'll just come to the party as your date, and kill him in the elevator."
Marcus chuckled. "I think I'm going to like you."
"Everyone does. It would be a shame to be odd-man out." I purred my words. "I gotta get ready. I'll be around the edges of the night watching you guys. Text me later with what the hit's wearing. I've seen him before, but let’s make sure we're on the same page with who's not waking up tomorrow morning."
"Will do, and Izzy... thank you." Marcus dropped the call.
I pressed my hands to the railing at the top of the Hilton and leaned forward. The streets below were filling up with people dressed in big ball gowns and masks.
"How fun," I murmured and let my eyes move up to the sunset. It was beautiful. It was the type of sunset that deserved a happy couple to enjoy it. Too bad I didn't know of any.
I moved back and got into position again, testing the wind. I would have to work fast to take out Billy and anyone else that needed to die, but it was doable. D wanted it done to help out Marcus and I wasn't going to say no to him. Not ever.
*
"I'm watching right beside you. Both the hotel across the street and your back, okay?" D's voice was steady as if he were talking to a teenage driver, trying like hell to instill confidence and courage into her.
I chuckled and glanced up from the ground where I lay on my belly with my sniper rifle.
"This isn't my first rodeo, D." I turned back to look through my scope. The roof across the street at the Marriott was empty, but it wouldn't be for much longer.
"I know." He knelt beside me. "About earlier..."
"Don't. Not now." I glanced up at him. "Seriously."
"Alright." He stood up and let out a long sigh before pacing the rooftop.
"Stay still, please. You're going to break my concentration," I barked, not meaning to sound nearly as bitchy as I did. I was hurt by his denial of my request. I needed him to make love to me, but he wouldn't. He wasn't the kind of man to outright say it, but him ignoring me when I asked was answer enough."
"There." D knelt beside me again as he lifted his binoculars to his face. "The guy standing beside the woman in the blue dress is Billy. I'd know that bastard from anywhere."
"Who's the woman?" I squinted and moved the gun around to check out the situation as Marcus and another guy walked out onto the roof.
"I'm assuming that's Marcus's girl, but maybe not. Just get ready for whatever comes our way."
"Am I killing Billy and the dark-haired guy?" I focused my gun on Billy as the group started to move around, each other. A fight was starting up, but I couldn't necessarily tell who was on who's side.
Billy pulled a gun on Marcus, and I pulled the trigger hitting the asshole in the back about the same time the dark haired guy beside him pulled the trigger. The door behind them opened and another guy walked out, shooting three times as I fired twice, getting the thugs that joined the party late.
"Billy is down, the two guys shooting at Marcus are down and the dark-haired guy is done. I'm out." I moved back, packed up and jogged behind D toward the doorway that would lead us back down into our hotel. The job was simple. Kill Billy to help Marcus free himself. Done.
"Great job." D touched my lower back and took the bag from my shoulder. "Let's go back to the room and you can take a hot bath and chill out."
"I'm starving," I mumbled as I tried to ignore the racing of my heart, the nervous excitement that pumped through me. I was a trained killer and would be for the rest of my life. There would be no white wedding dress for me, or screams in an operating room as I pushed out a child. My life wasn't going to allow for that. Some part of me was good with it, another... not so much.
D unlocked the door and moved back as I walked in and moved to open the curtains at the far end of the room.
"You want me to run you bath and order something for us to eat?"
"You run the water." I glanced over my shoulder. "I'll order food."
He nodded and sat down on the edge of the king-sized bed to pull his shoes off. "I want a burger or whatever if you see something better."
"The last time I was in a hotel, I was putting a bullet in between someone's eyes." I forced the curtains fully open. "He was young and handsome with so much life in front of him. Why did he have to die, D?"
"Parker?"
"Yeah." I turned and pressed my back against the window. The chilliness of it caused my stomach to contract.
"He stole from your father, Izzy."
"So did you." I reached up and pulled at the strap on my blouse. "It might not have been money, but Drake was a pretty valuable asset to the family."
He nodded. "And you were right there with me. Why did you help me?"
"You know why." I pulled at the other strap and pushed the silky material over my breasts and down my thighs before working on my jeans. "And what if I asked for your help now?"
"You'd have it. Explicitly." He took a step toward me and paused. "What's going on with Freddy, Izzy? Where did you put him? What do you know?"
"Why would my father say that Freddy's father was dead? He told me that he killed the bastard, that he took care of the problem." I tilted my head to the side as I undid my pants and let them slide down my legs.
D's eyes moved down the length of my body as I stepped out of my pants and moved past him.
"Who did my father kill all those years ago, D? Was it Freddy's dad or someone else? Who's lying to who here?"
He reached out and gripped my arm tightly. "You and I can't fight against each other or we'll destroy everything your parents have built. Help me with Freddy and I'll look farther into who his father was. Bring him home, Izzy."
I glanced down at his hand as it gripped me tightly. Did he really think that I was willing or capable of tucking my brother away without saying anything to the family about it? That I was willing to stab my father in the back by being a part of whatever happened to my mother? Is that the woman he thought I was?
"I don't know where he is, but I plan on finding him."
"You're lying." He leaned down to kiss me as I jerked from his hold.
"Prove it," I mumbled and closed the door behind me. I'd run my own damn water and he could order his own dinner.
It was as it had been since he resurrected a wall between us six years ago. Each of us aching for the other and yet we would forever throw daggers at the other. It was easier that way. At least then we could hide the real reason we were bleeding to death.
Chapter 11
Audrey
Tonight was the night. Madam Gizelle, who I'd actually grown quite fond of even though she was knee deep in depravity scheduled me on a call at eight. It was supposed to be our guy, but no one was entirely for sure about it.
I'd spend the first part of the week since seeing Mike tucked away in my room alone. I told the other girl's that I lost my brother, which wasn't a lie. I just hadn't been forthcoming on the how I lost him.
A knock at the door had me getting up from my bed. "It's open."
"Hey." Edward stuck his head into the room. "You got a few minutes to talk through all of this?"
"Yeah. Come on in." I sat down on the edge of the bed and tugged at the short skirt I had on. Dressing the part should have been second nature after a year of doing it, but I was a jeans and t-shirt kind of girl. Short skirts and low blouses wasn't me in the slightest. The head of the FBI had given a speech to all of us in Chicago about a month before I took on this new assignment. The topic? Stepping out of your comfort zones. I was definitely living the initiative. In more ways than one.
"Here's the tracker pill. Take it about thirty minutes before the guy comes to get you. Make sure you stay calm around him and don't let him catch the vibe that you're anything other than the girl who's going to rock his world tonight. Alright?" He sat down next to me, the serious look on his handsome face almost funny.
Who hired this goof to help out with the syndicate? Was he sleeping with the infamous Izabella Castaletta? I knew they were childhood friends from all the work I'd done to dig into various parts of the large structure they'd constructed, but even friends had limits. Eddy, as everyone affectionately called him, didn't fit in with the other gangs and thugs that ran the organization.
"Rock his world?" I snorted and took the pill as he extended it to me.
"No? You don't like the term. What do you prefer?"
"And this thing is fully digestible?" I lifted my eyebrow at him, ignoring his silly playfulness.
"Yep. One hundred percent." He stood up. "Don't be a hero, Audrey. Okay?"
"Why are you here, Edward?"
"Because Joe wanted me to help out with the situation you guys are dealing with. It's a big damn deal to him when someone attacks his family."
I stood. "No, not why are you here helping with the situation, but why are you in the syndicate? You don't fit the profile."
"I'm tall and handsome, but it's the dark part, right?"
His energy was almost enough to cause me to chuckle, but I couldn't. They killed my brother, and I had no clue which of them did it. What if it was Edward? Doubtful, but stranger things had happened.
"Never mind." I walked to the door and opened it. "I'll take the pill at 7:30. You guys will be here watching and listening?"
"Yep." He walked through the door and paused, turning back to face me. "Izabella is my best friend, and even though I don't agree with everything her father does, I know that he's a good man and he takes care of his own. I'm down with that."
"Awesome." I closed the door and rolled my eyes before stripping down and getting ready for the night. Excitement raced through me at the thought of getting to drop the sweet girl appearance I was forced into within my role and just be me. I was going to kick this guy's ass all over the room he dragged me into. He had no clue what was coming for him.
I only hoped he wouldn't go down too fast.
*
"You look good." The dark-haired greaser turned and ran his eyes over me as I got into his 1980's powder-blue Buick. If he was trying to be inconspicuous, he was failing miserably, or maybe it was reverse psychology. If that was the case, he was a damn genius.
The wire under my skimpy clothes ran down the side of my chest, around my breasts and into my pants. Edward had Sandra help me get it on, which was a little more considerate than I'd expected him to be. The cynic in me assumed everyone involved with the Castaletta's were as vile as they were.
"Thanks, baby." I reached out and ran my fingers along his thigh. The plaid button down he wore with his jeans made him look like a young lumberjack. Too bad he had a face that only a mother could love. Most guys paying for sex did though. "Where we headed to?"
"Back to my place. I hope you don't mind if I invite a few friends over." He coughed into his hand and glanced over at me. He couldn't have been more than twenty-four. How did a kid get wrapped up in beating women for sport? Bad childhood? An abusive father?
A huge part of me wanted to help him more than I wanted to beat him to a pulp, but the night would unfold based on his actions more than my own.
"It's a thousand dollars per participant."
"You'll do what I tell you do, and I'll pay what I pay." He gripped my hand and tugged it toward his cock, stroking himself with my fingers.
"Guess that's something you can take up with Sandra." I unbuckled and moved toward him to press myself against his thin shoulder. I stroked him harder and leaned forward to kiss the side of his face. He smelled like aftershave, thank God.
"Harder. I like my sex really rough." He turned and kissed me a few times before jerking the wheel and turning back to focus on the road.
I giggled and gripped his balls, tugging at them forcefully as I purred in his ear. "Rough sounds fun."
"Good. I'm gonna tie you up when we get to the house and we'll have a little bit of fun." He cupped his hand over mine, working himself fast and hard. I was surprised anyone would like it that rough.
There was rule around the office that no matter what we had to do undercover, only the evidence would be collected and documented. Everything to get it was off the record. I knew the agency didn't expect me to sleep with anyone, which was good. There was no way in hell I could and still like myself in the morning.
Not these kind of men, anyway.
A cute preppy boy like Edward? Yes, but these bottom feeders that paid for sex with women were a disgust to me. The car jerked, and I moved back as the guy pulled up to an old run-down trailer. I knew Edward and Daniel were watching me from the whore house, but having my gun would have made me feel a little bit more secure.
I didn't want to take the idiot beside me down to the ground before we knew if he was the one.
"You like to tie girls up?" I reached for my door and gave him a sexy smile.
"Yeah. I like to hit too. You alright with that."
"What? No. Rough is good, but if you're planning on smacking me around, find someone else." I shrugged and crossed my arms over my chest.
He chuckled darkly and got out of the car.
Perfect. It had to be him. None of the other girls had come back hurt from their calls, but this guy was one Edward and Daniel had pinpointed as the one most likely to be our guy.
He jerked the door open, his dark gaze menacing. "Get out here, whore. You stupid bitches think you can sell yourself to a man and then tell him what he can and can't do with you? That's almost funny."
"Let me go." I swatted at him softly, trying to feign fear as best I could.
He dragged me out of the car and gripped my hair tightly as he wrapped a thin arm around my waist just below my breasts. Pain raced through my scalp and I screamed loudly.
"That hurts." I tried to get my footing, but he had a good grip on me. I was at the right angle to do nothing more than kick and try to get free from him.
By the time he dropped me in a heap on the floor in the middle of the dilapidated trailer, I was pissed.
"You ain't seen nothing yet, baby doll." He spit on the floor beside me and pulled out his phone as he smiled down at me. "I got her. She's a pretty one too. We done beating them up? Yeah? Awesome."
I scrambled to my feet and moved back toward the stove, pressing my back against the counter. "Why would you beat up women?"
"Why would you sell your goods for money, whore?" He tucked his phone in his pocket and gripped his crotch. "Come here and suck me off before the boys get here. It's your last time to enjoy a good old fashion fucking before they tear you apart."
"Tear me apart?" I pushed at his chest, causing him to stumble back a little more than I meant to. I was strong from working so hard at the academy and keeping myself in shape in the wee-hours of the morning at the prostitution house. I could have taken the lanky bastard down in seconds if that was the goal.
Lucky him. It wasn't.
He pulled his limp dick from his pants and wagged it around in a circle as he chuckled. "Come on baby. Let's see what you got. Thirst
y?"
"What do you mean 'tear me apart'?" I reached out and gripped his cock tightly, pulling him toward me as he screeched in pain.
He gripped my throat tightly and got in my face. "We're done beating up on Joe's girls. It's time to send the real message."
"Which is?" I dug my nails into his flesh and tilted my head to the side.
"That we're gonna own this fucking city soon. You're just the first of many messages, baby. Stop playing with your claws and let's have some fun before you go light's out on me." He nipped at my face, catching the tip of my nose with his teeth.
That was it.
I reared back and punched him in the face with my free hand, causing him to fall backward onto the floor. He cupped his dick in his hands and rolled on the floor, screaming that I'd pulled it off.
The sound of a car door slamming out front had my heart racing. I had all the evidence I needed.
I jolted for the back door, grabbing a butcher knife from the counter on my way around the small kitchen table. He was screaming so damn loud that me opening and closing the door most likely wouldn't have been heard. I raced toward the woods near the edge of the property and ran until I couldn't feel my legs. I had to be five miles from the trailer, but fear forced me to keep running. I finally found a road and ran beside it as the twilight turned into complete darkness.
Where was Edward? Had he figured out who I was? Was that why they weren't coming after me?
I stopped and lifted my fingers toward my face. Blood. The guy’s blood was all over my fingers from digging my nails into his flesh. I pulled out a Q-tip from my shoe and ran it under my fingernails, collecting what I could and shoving the damn thing back into my shoe. Mike could take that little bit of blood and tell us right away who the hell the guy was and then we could find him and charge him with assault.
After that? The Castaletta's were next on the list.
