Page 83 of Beware of Dog

“Hi,” Jamie said back. Her gaze shifted over Cass, from windswept hair to freshly painted black nails. “You look good.” She frowned. “You lookhappy.” The concept sounded foreign to her.

“I am. But you don’t look like you are. Are you doing okay?”

Jamie checked over her shoulder toward the bathroom, and shook her head when she turned back. “I don’t have a lot of time. Mom’s in the bathroom, and I—”

“Jamie.” Cass slid her hand across the table and Jamie pulled back. So far back she was pressed to the wall, cup clutched to her chest. “What’s wrong?”

“I’m not…” Jamie gulped in air, gasping as though she’d been running. “Cass, I’m so sorry, but I’m recanting my statement. I can’t testify against Sig.”

All her warm fuzzies from the morning evaporated, replaced by cold dread. Shep had warned her of this, had said weeks ago, in her dorm room, that Jamie would recant.

“Jamie, no.”

Jamie closed her eyes tight and shook her head so hard Cass thought she’d hurt herself. “I can’t, Cass, I’m sorry, but I just—” She gasped again, choking on a sob. “He threatened me. There was a note in my mailbox, and there’s these guys in a van outside the house. I can’t, Ican’t.”

“Jamie.Jamie, listen to me.” Cass stood, leaned across the table, and laid a hand on Jamie’s wrist. Jamie whimpered, andflinched, but at least she didn’t throw herself to the floor, so that was something.Jesus. “I know you’re scared, and I know the whole situation is scary, but I can help you.”

“No, no, you—”

“My family can help,” Cass insisted. “My sister, and my friend Ian, and my boyfriend. You remember Shep, right? Who came to our dorm?”

Jamie’s eyes popped wide. “Your boyfriend? Are youdatingthat guy? Thatold guy?”

Cass ignored that. “We can help keep you safe, we can—”

“What are you doing?” a woman’s voice snapped beside the table.

Cass had only met Jamie’s mother once, at orientation. She was a sturdy woman with graying red curls and a strong jaw. She’d been friendly and smiling at orientation, but now glared daggers at Cass.

“Mrs. Simpson,” Cass started.

“Get away from my daughter. You’re the whole reason she has to drop out of school.”

Cass whipped back toward Jamie. “You’re dropping out? No, Jamie, you can’t—”

Mrs. Simpson slammed a hand down on the table, the resultant smack drawing looks from other patrons. The woman’s face flushed red, jaw quivering with anger, with fear. “Leave my daughter alone! Biker slut!”

Cass wasn’t hurt by the words. She was hurt for Jamie, who shot her a furtive, terrified look as she stood, turned, and walked out of the shop.

~*~

Shep wouldn’t say helikedKatsuya Rydell, but appreciated the man’s quiet, direct approach to business. He didn’t like to chat. Shep, oddly enough, did like a good chat, butwith the right person. (He could now admit to himself that he could talk for hours with Cass, though most other people bugged the shit out of him with chitchat.)

He waited for Shep in the same corner booth at Hauser’s where Cass had attempted her little birthday seduction routine. He wore his usual uniform of hoodie, leather jacket, and black baseball cap, long black hair hanging down to his shoulders. He was nursing a vodka rocks, and nodded a greeting when Shep slid in across from him.

“Is this about the Russians?” Shep asked when he was settled.

Kat sent him an unreadable look from under the brim of his cap and said, “No.” He took a sip of vodka, and the back of Shep’s neck tingled. A premonition. This wasn’t, he suddenly realized, going to be a quick-and-easy business meeting. “I’m here as a personal favor.”

“To who?”

“You.” Kat lifted a folder from the booth beside him, but held onto it a moment, rapping its edge on the table.

“What the fuck?”

Kat said, “I’ve been taking on more PI jobs lately. Someone got in contact with Prince about contracting me, and I decided to take it just so no one else would wind up with the gig.”

Shep’s neck prickled some more. Gooseflesh broke out all down his back. “And I’m the target?”

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