Bluff (Stacked Deck Book 6)

by Emilia Finn

  Then, for the next half an hour, he opens his door every few minutes, only to close it and try again.

  During one of those periods, he got dressed.

  Finally, I come out in search of my paper, and he just so happens to open his door at the same time.

  Sneaky, sneaky man.

  I find it annoyingly charming that he worked so hard to be in the hall at the same time as me.

  Shaking my head, I unfold my own damn paper, and sip my cold coffee while I snicker and scan the headlines.

  “Oh, hey there, Agent 99. You look fresh today.” Jay Bishop is Kane’s younger brother. The genes are strong in the Bishop family, because he looks much like his oldest brother; they share the same eyes, the same shape to their jaw, the same wicked grin and quick wit.

  Kane is a tiny bit taller than Jay, a bit broader. But though Kane is fast with his snark and comebacks, no one quite stacks up to Jay’s silliness when he has the freedom to relax. At work, when he needs to be serious, he’s quite possibly the scariest man I know – except Kane, of course.

  His marksmanship is almost always perfect, but his ability to teach… not so much. It’s not that he can’t teach, it’s just that he lacks the patience. He doesn’t accept panic, he refuses to fold under tears. Over the years, he’s placed a gun in my hands thousands of times, and the first few were messy. He expects spine and guts, and all I gave him was a panic attack and an inability to stand on my own two feet.

  Jay does not accept weakness. He considers it a waste of time. So on those days when I could barely function, Kane would teach me. Because though he doesn’t accept excuses either, he has a little more patience for them. He walks me through the messy tears and breakdowns, talks me through hyperventilation, coaches me through sweaty palms and shaking hands.

  He picks up where his brother lacks, and in exchange, Jay does the same for Kane.

  But after years of knowing these men, of knowing their personalities, and gaining the confidence that they will never, ever hurt me, I’ve begun to consider them my older, over-the-top-protective big brothers.

  And though I kind of hate Jay when it’s time to be serious, I adore him when he’s being silly.

  “What’s on your plate for today?” He throws his arm over my shoulder and walks with me and Galileo as we move through Checkmate Security – a business in town that is as its name suggests.

  The Bishop brothers own and run a security firm a few blocks from my apartment building. They install security systems in homes much like the one that monitors my apartment. They run background checks on people that need them, they search for and find missing persons… or hiding criminals. They train people how to shoot, how to defend themselves, how to defend others.

  And when requested, they collect information – credit, finances, data, communications – on people that are interesting to other people who are willing to pay.

  Despite the fact that Kane’s wife is basically sister to the town’s not-at-all-dirty chief of police, the activities that take place under the umbrella labeled Bishop aren’t always… legal.

  Semantics.

  “I’m still working on Craigson’s file. Why? What’s on yours?”

  He shrugs, “Sweet fuck-all, to be honest.”

  He leads me into the main office, where half a dozen desks line the walls. Kane has his own separate office with walls and a door to keep people out, but he rarely uses it. Instead, he sits at a spare desk now with a grin, his feet propped on top of the desk. His thighs – muscular and thick like tree trunks – hold a couple guns, another sits on his hip, and another rests in a holster he wears over his shoulder.

  Because you can take a guy out of his job in law enforcement, but you can’t take the law enforcement out of the guy.

  “He’s got work to do,” Kane grumbles. “He’s just being a lazy fuck about it.”

  “It’s kinda cool that I’m my own boss,” Jay shoots back. “Means I don’t have a bitch-ass boss to answer to. I’m gonna go to the dance studio and watch my girl for a bit.”

  “Hell you are.” Kane was once a man stoned out of his brain, grabbing my hair, forcing me into a room, while his brother – Jay – was having sex with someone else. I was sixteen, and that was how I met these men. But despite that insane dysfunction, I love them like family. He looks to me now and lifts a brow. “Rough night?”

  “People gossiping about me?”

  He chuckles. “I heard rumors that there was an altercation last night, so I checked the security feed. Your big scary neighbor bothering you?”

  “He’s not that scary.” I step out from under Jay’s arm and make my way to my desk. Galileo ducks under first, folds into his little bed, and makes it impossible for me to pull me chair all the way in. “I thought he was a little scary for a minute there. But turns out he knows you guys, I know you guys, you guys would never have allowed him to move in if he was a problem, so…”

  “So we guys rock?” Kane grins. “Chuck is cool. He works with Ang, and Ang is trusted.”

  “Ang is a fuckin’ bitch,” Jay grumbles. “It’s time we disposed of him.”

  “Hush.” Kane snatches up a yellow hacky sack from his desk and pegs it at his brother. Then he looks back to me. “Chuck is cool,” he repeats. “He’s got too many ties with too many people in this town to fuck it all up by being a dick to you.”

  “He’s friend’s with Benny and Mac.”

  He nods. “Mostly Mac, I think, because of the garage.”

  “Mac would take care of it if he was bad,” Eric, my colleague and the Checkmate ‘father figure,’ sits at his desk and lifts his chin. It’s just coincidence that Mac also happens to be Eric’s stepson. “No way would he tolerate nonsense.”

  “Same with Ang,” Kane says. “You know he takes that shit seriously. He’s not employing an asshole.”

  “He’s buddies with some of the fighters too,” Jay adds. “Way too many connections.”

  “That’s a lot of character references.” I pull my chair out and drop down with a huff. “You don’t have to worry about it. We argued, but I think we’ve reached a truce now. He promises to be considerate. And I said sorry for reacting too quickly.”

  “He stole your newspaper,” Kane inserts with a twitching lip.

  I switch my computer on and laugh. I hate that Tucker’s theft is somehow charming. “Yes, he did. I saw that when I checked my feed. I guess he wanted an excuse to talk to me in the hall. I got my paper back, no harm no foul, and now I don’t scowl when I think his name.”

  “But you sure do grin.” Jay stops on the other side of my desk, and leans into my space with a smile. “Everybody see that grin on her face?”

  “Shut up.” I try to push him back, but all I manage to do is push my own chair back. “Stop looking at me.”

  “She’s blushing. Kane, Kane, Kane! She’s blushing!”

  “I am not!” I try my best to stop blushing, and instead focus on my computer. “You need to mind your own business.”

  “I like this smile.” Kane studies the side of my face. He’s not teasing. Mostly, he’s intrigued. “Blush or not, I like this smile. I like that you’re happy, and not freaking out over the fact you have a dude neighbor. He’s bigger than you, stronger, faster, and buddies with a lot of people. He could hurt you and get away with it.”

  “Bish!” I swing around and glare. “Not helpful.”

  He laughs, victorious that he got my attention. “Kidding. He wouldn’t get away with shit, because we all know who to ask if you go missing.”

  “I’m so excited for bedtime tonight.” I roll my eyes. “My dreams will be so sweet knowing this fast, strong, murderous dude is so close. Thanks for that.”

  “You’ll be fine. I actually think this is a moment of growth for you. You seem like you’re dealing pretty well.”

  “Ya know what?” I press my hands to my desk and meet his eyes. Then Jay’s, then Eric’s, since he’s not done eavesdropping. “Can we drop it? I don’t know about you,
but I don’t actually enjoy people knowing about my mental instability. I especially don’t want to discuss it like my every decision is up for committee voting. I don’t like being the topic of secret phone calls.”

  I exhale when Galileo pushes up and rests his chin on my lap. “You think you’re protecting me, but sometimes I think maybe the discussions about my progress send me backwards. So can we…” I shake my head and go back to studying my blank computer screen. “Drop it.”

  “That’s growth, too.” Jay pushes away from my desk and nods. “Our little mouse is standing up to us all. That’s a big deal.”

  “And you didn’t hear a damn thing I said.” I shake my head. “Jesus. I probably need to get a new job or something.”

  “No you don’t.” Kane drops his feet and catches the hacky sack Jay tosses. “You’re here for life, because you’re Stockholm, and we’re your adorable syndrome. Finish up the Craigson file, then I need you to hook up with Soph and Griffin. They’re working on something for Stacked Deck, and asked that I spare you when you’ve got time.”

  “Me?” I look around with a frown. “Uh… I can’t keep up with them. That’s way above my pay grade.”

  “They trained you!” Jay laughs. “What the fuck are you talking about? They trained you with the computers.”

  “Yeah, they trained me. Which means I’m dumber than them. I’m not a genius, Jay. I’m just… teachable. Like a puppy.”

  “You do just fine.” Kane shrugs. “Finish the file, then call Soph. She wants you.”

  “Heh.” Jay gives a dirty chuckle, and spins away to wander into the boardroom across from where I sit. “She said the same thing last night. But about me and my d—”

  “Dude!” I snatch my stapler and hurl it across the room. “I don’t need to hear about that.”

  “You ain’t a child anymore.” He spins back and lifts his shirt to show off a tattooed stomach. “Girls can’t resist what I’m packing.”

  “She’s your wife!” I’m trying for a serious shout, but my words mostly come out on a giggling squeal. “The mother of your children.”

  “Fuck knows how he got her to sign the certificate,” Eric grumbles.

  “Chloroform,” I volunteer. “That’s how. Because she’s smarter than that.”

  “Like I said; it’s the D.”

  “Disgusting.”

  I press my fingertips to the lock system on my file drawer, open it with a silent slide, and take out my current assignment. Dumping it on my desk, I reach under and give Galileo a quick scratch under his chin. Then I flip the file open and look into a pair of muddy gray eyes.

  Neville Craigson is a married man of seven years. Father of three, stepfather to two more. He’s forty-one years old, works for the local steel mill, drives a Toyota Corolla, and walked out on his family a little more than a week ago.

  No car, no wallet, no trace.

  My job is to find him, because his wife and kids are worried, and the local police can only do so much. The chief works within the parameters of the law. He follows the leads he’s given, questions coworkers, neighbors, family members, and tries to piece together the movements of the man that friends swear would never leave his family.

  Alex Turner – the chief – then happens to have a meal with his sister’s husband – Kane – and mentions this case that has him stymied, and voila, I have a new file sitting on my desk the next morning.

  It’s not quite following the law… but Alex didn’t ask Kane to assign someone to the case. He only mentioned it in passing.

  Well, that’s our story, anyway. And the source of the majority of work that keeps me busy on a daily basis.

  So, why, I might be tempted to ask myself, would Neville leave his wallet at home, his car, his life – and yet, his credit card has a new hit overnight at a dive motel two days’ drive away from here?

  Oh dear.

  “Nora?” Kane’s eyes meet mine when I look up. “We’re good?”

  “Yup. I’ve got something on Craigson already. I’ll shoot an email to the chief now, then I’ll head over to see Soph. Is she at the studio?”

  “Nah, they’re working on something over at Griffin. Which means Jay ain’t going to watch the dancing girls. Head on over and see what they’re up to.”

  Only ten minutes after first walking through my office doors, I stand from my desk, and drop my files back into the top drawer. Grabbing my keys and phone, I wait for Galileo to wander out from beneath my desk before I shove my chair back in.

  “I’m out. I’ll check in later.”

  “You get your car fixed?” Kane asks as I pass. “Is it still making the click noise?”

  “Yes, it’s still doing that. No, I haven’t had it checked, because that would mean I have to walk into Ang’s shop. And call me crazy, but I’m not about that life.”

  Kane’s chest bounces with quiet laughter. “Because your new neighbor is there?”

  “Uh huh. I’d rather drive it to the next town over and listen to a lecture on loyalty and spending locally. I would rather ride my dog to work every damn day, than walk into Ang’s shop and have to ask my pain-in-the-ass neighbor for help.”

  “You’re a stubborn ass.” He shakes his head. “Text Mac and have him take care of it. That’ll solve all of your problems. He can pick it up from here, and bring it back before you finish work for the day. Voila, you get to remain a coward, and Ang doesn’t lose out on income because of it.”

  “Not a coward,” I grumble on my way across the room. “We reached a truce, didn’t we? That’s progress.”

  “I said you were making progress already, and you told me to quit talking!”

  “I’m saying it again. Be quiet, mind your own business, or I might miss next time we’re working in the firing range.”

  “You would threaten my life?” he scoffs. “Fuckin’ loyalty, huh? Nobody knows what that means anymore.”

  “I didn’t threaten to kill you.” I give a little wave for Eric as I pass his desk. “I was thinking more along the lines of shooting you in the ass. Make you limp for a few weeks. Make it so you can’t sit down.” I stop at the doorway. “It sure would make me feel better.”

  “You’ve found your sass, young lady. Quit it.” And yet, he smiles. “You look pretty today, by the way.”

  “Ugh, shut up.” I walk out of the room with a huff, only to hide my blush and dash to my clicking SUV.

  I missed out on a lot of my teenage years after my sister was murdered. Before that night, we were a little silly. We’d sneak out, party, have a little fun. I was the shy one, so Lisa had to drag me out each time. But I still let her do it. I let her dress me up and take me places. I let her dare me to let loose, I let her introduce me to boys.

  I was on track to being a fairly normal introverted teenager, with a standard – albeit, short-lived – rebellion… before the night I found myself standing in a thug’s office with guns and drugs surrounding us. After that, I became a recluse. I didn’t leave my home except to see my therapist, and for the first year or so, I didn’t even leave the house for that.

  Thank you, house calls and FaceTime.

  I consider myself fairly ‘healed’ after that trauma. Sort of.

  Mostly.

  Okay, not completely.

  But I’ve dated men. I’ve had lovers. I’ve done all of the normal things a woman my age is supposed to do – minus the alcohol, the drugs, the craziness – but telling me I look pretty in front of other guys is just… nope. That’s something else my therapist can work on in her spare time.

  I open my car door and wait for Galileo to jump in. He circles his tall body around in the passenger seat, flops down with a loud groan, and when I only watch him, he lifts a brow as though to ask “You coming?”

  Laughing, I follow him in and stab my keys into the ignition. “You ready to go see Sophia, buddy? You wanna go see the pretty dancer?”

  He knows Soph, because his brother practically lives at the dance studio she owns. Deck gets to spend
his days between the garage and the studio; I’m not sure if, in his entire life with Bean, he’s ever had to spend a day at home alone.

  I close one eye – a quirk, I suppose, a defense mechanism – and start my car. The clicking sound is louder now than it was a week ago, and it was louder a week ago than it was a week before that. Which means my procrastination is costing me money. My refusal to take it to the garage is making the problem worse, so when I finally suck it up and go in, it’s going to be a more expensive fix.

  But that’s a problem for another day.

  Pulling away from Checkmate and into the street, I pass Spence’s Hummer as he rolls into the space I just left, smile when he winks – seven feet of muscle and ink is winking at me; my therapist would be proud – and head just a couple blocks up until I pull into a building that once used to be a doctor’s office.

  It’s just a house, really, a single-story home that was long ago turned into a business. When Theo Griffin came to town and decided he wanted to stay close to the Checkmate guys, he bought up the old homestead, added his own Griffin-branded security systems, renovated what needed updating, and now he has space for him and his employees to work on… stuff.

  The stuff is classified.

  Climbing out and waiting for Galileo, I close the car door and beep it locked. The sun is out, warm, but not hot. It’s one of those cloudless, perfect days preceding the winter months, the kind that helps me heal just as surely as my therapist helps, just as surely as hugs from my friends, or girl-time with Evie helps.

  The irony isn’t lost on me.

  I stop on the sidewalk for just a second, and look up at the sky to take the chance to be content in the perfection that is today. I stare at the blue, and wonder what it’s like after you’re gone from this world. My sister must be somewhere sweet and wonderful right now, somewhere the weather is always like today, where there is no hunger, no exhaustion, no hurt or sadness.

  I’ve pondered over the years, as the survivor of that night that changed everything, if I was the one that got the shitty deal. Was Lisa’s fast death the good deal, the easier outcome that guaranteed eternity somewhere special and pretty, while I was left here to deal with trauma, nightmares, and a deep-seated inability to trust anyone that I didn’t already know before I was sixteen?