Page 84 of Their Reckless Thief
The women here were beautiful and moved with a practiced grace, their bodies an effortless blend of allure and temptation. They chose their clients with care and were always in control of the exchange. That was the deal in my clubs. Women had the power, the choice. I protected that.
So, how and why were they disappearing?
The bartenders moved behind the long, sleek bar, mixing drinks with quick, efficient hands. The bouncers stood at their posts, scanning the crowd, their sharp eyes missing nothing.
I tapped my fingers against the table, frustration growing. There was no sign of struggle, no trace left behind. The women were just gone. I knew, deep down, that this was The Shadow’s doing. It had his stench all over it. What did he want with them? Was he killing them? Or was it something else, something darker? What if I was wrong? What if it wasn’t The Shadow?
I had suspicions, theories I didn’t want to entertain. The contaminated Phantomine and the abductions were connected. Why? Was it a power play? Did The Shadow want to make me look weak, so he could steal my territory out from under me? Or was it something more sinister?
A woman approached my table, hips swaying, a flirtatious glint in her eye. She was tall, with dark hair and a body thatwould’ve turned heads in any room. She smiled as she leaned against the edge of the booth.
“Vincenzo,” she purred, her voice dripping with seduction. “I didn’t expect to see you here tonight.”
I glanced up at her, but I couldn’t muster a hint of interest. She was beautiful, but my obsession with Celeste had not waned after I’d had my mouth on her—as much as I might have wished it so. My life would have been simpler if it had.
“Not tonight.”
She blinked in surprise, but recovered quickly, giving me a knowing smile. “Another time then.”
I rolled my jaw to keep my anger at bay. There were too many unanswered questions, too many variables. The Shadow was playing a dangerous game, one I was determined to win. He could try to make me look weak, try to take what was mine, but I refused to let that happen. I had to find the upper hand.
The Shadow would slip up, and when he did, I’d be ready to strike, ready to make him pay.
I let the noise fade into the background as I pulled an envelope from my pocket and started reading the autopsy report on the woman that had been dropped at my front door. I’d had it expedited because every second could make a difference between getting ahead of this problem or letting it spiral out of control even more.
The results were inconclusive, which did nothing but fuel my frustration. The woman, a fae sex worker, had died under circumstances that couldn’t be determined. No magic involved, no clear signs of a struggle, no internal bleeding. And yet her blood supply had been dangerously low, almost depleted. A single puncture wound on her arm was the only physical clue, but that led nowhere. Vampires? Not with only one puncture wound. Illegal blood trade? Possibly, but it didn’t feel right.
I closed the report and placed it on the table, tapping my fingers against the surface as I tried to piece it together. I swirled the blood in my goblet, watching the liquid coat the glass.
The woman had been employed here. She was a singleton, with little family, no ties that would raise any flags if she disappeared. It fit the profile of the other missing women. Unless The Shadow was fucking with me by replicating the previous crimes, this was him admitting he was the culprit.
Wasn’t it?
I glanced around the club again. The neon lights strobed over the crowd. The dancers were still working the poles as the men in the audience leered over them. Beneath it, I could feel an undercurrent of tension. The women who worked here knew something was wrong. They weren’t oblivious to the shadow of danger hanging over them, threatening to strike at any moment.
I needed to talk to them and let them know I was looking out for them. I rose from the booth, adjusting my jacket. As I strode toward the dancers, I scanned the room for any familiar faces. The women respected me, or at least respected what I represented. I made sure they were protected and could work safely without worrying about the dangers that lurked in the shadows of The Below, but now that security had been compromised, I needed to fix it. Fast.
Jasmine caught my eye among a group of women at the bar. She was one of the fae women who knew how to work the room. Her long, dark hair flowed over her shoulders, and she carried herself with the kind of confidence that came from knowing exactly how much power she held. Tonight, though, there was a hint of unease in her posture. She knew why I was here.
“Jasmine.” I nodded at her. “I need a word.”
She set down her drink, her eyes glimmering with curiosity as she stepped away from the group. “What’s this about,Vincenzo?” she asked in a low voice. She wasn’t afraid, but she wasn’t at ease, either.
I led her to my corner booth. I leaned in slightly, keeping my voice low enough so only she could hear. “A woman turned up dead in my territory. Blonde, fae. She worked here, didn’t she?”
Jasmine’s expression tightened, and for a moment, I thought she might brush me off. Then she sighed, her shoulders sagging a little. “Yeah. She was one of us.”
“She was a friend of yours?”
Jasmine nodded, her gaze drifting to the floor as she spoke. “We weren’t close, but we looked out for each other, you know? She didn’t have much, no family to speak of. But she was good at her job, kept her head down.”
“Did you notice anything unusual about her? Anything that might have made her a target?”
Jasmine bit her lip as if debating whether or not to say something. Finally, she spoke. “She was highly addicted to Phantomine, but that’s not out of the norm. I mean, we all dabble, but she was deep in it. She started using it a lot more in the last few months. Said it helped her forget.”
“Forget what?”
“She wouldn’t say. I think… I think she was scared of something. She never talked about it, but I could see it in her eyes, you know? Like she was running from something, but she didn’t know how to stop.”
