Page 8 of Sapphire's Gem
“Keep an eye on that situation,” I said to Cyber, who nodded.
“Heart’s three hotels and the motel are fine, all booked up and rave reviews. The ski resort is slightly down, but that’s to be expected as we transition into spring. Reviewing future bookings, in two weeks, we’re near enough booked solid, which is great.”
“I fired a bartender from the main bar; he was giving potential pickups free drinks to court them. I’m looking for a replacement,” Belladonna said with a scowl.
The resort was her baby. She’d bought a small ski resort at Wolfboro, which in the non-snowy months became an outdoors resort with a world-class spa.
“I bet he had a bad stomach,” Lantern quipped, and Belladonna grinned.
My sister was into witchy stuff and knew herbs and plants like the back of her hand. She told Vengeance what she wanted, and Vengeance grew it. They’d made a business out of that, too.
“The restaurant is making money again now that we sacked the sous chef and the food prepper. They’ve also been taught a lesson in ripping the Royal Harlots off,” Fortune continued.
“Did we recover any of the money or stock?” I asked Candle.
“Yup. About two-thirds of it, when I shocked their balls enough times. I think they’re both infertile now, but who gives a shit?” Candle said softly with a wicked grin. Her power was electrokinesis, and she loved using it.
“The garage is still booked four weeks up front despite Clangers down the road trying to take Harlot’s business. They’ve also learnt a harsh lesson,” Fortune stated.
Birdie grinned. She was one of the few Harlots who didn’t have powers, and she didn’t need them. Her lust for pain and blood was unmatched by almost anyone here. You could almost say that it was her special skill. She unerringly knew where to hit people where it hurt the most. The garage was her baby; I could imagine what she’d done to the owner of Clangers.
“Sales in the garden centre are rising as they do in the spring,” Fortune said with a nod at Vengeance. “And the psychic shop is also booked solid. The bad press from the country club women had the opposite effect, and they drove people into it.”
Twilight smiled. That was her domain, although she had a prospect, Fume, now apprenticing with her.
“Seems the bible bashers disappear when I spill a few secrets their dead relatives would rather be kept quiet.” Twilight smirked.
“Blackmail material?” I asked, and Twilight’s grin grew wider. Nice!
“Jazz is still running in the red, but we can see where inroads have been made in the start-up costs. The dance studio is gaining popularity,” Fortune said.
Jazz wasn’t here as she was a prospect. I was still dubious about the dance studio; none of us were dancers, and if Jazz didn’t win the vote, we’d be screwed. But I’d been outvoted on opening it, and while I could see where it would make us money, it still made me uneasy.
“The boat tours are operating as normal and the tourists are booking ahead,” Fortune said with a nod at Rose. Rose dipped her chin in agreement.
“We done?” I asked, and Fortune agreed. That was it for the legal businesses. Now for our not-so-legitimate.
“Thanks to Nun, the sex club and male escorts are doing great. We’ve caught some powerful people in compromising positions with the escorts. Such as our esteemed mayor,” Fortune said.
My eyebrows rose, and Nun nodded with a giggle. “Damn, really? Mr Squeaky Clean family guy?”
“Mr Squeaky Clean likes to peg a guy as much as me,” Nun stated, and we rolled our eyes.
“Last month’s casino broke the record for our takings. Storm ran an amazing event last month, and this month’s looks even better,” Fortune praised, and Storm nodded.
“The new identities have fallen a little, but that’s through no fault of our own. Cyber is watching the intake at the domestic violence shelters.”
“Any immediate concern?”
“One. Her name is Geri Danvers. Her husband, Liam Danvers, is a real piece of work. He’s broken so many bones in her body that, luckily, she’s not made of titanium. I’m going to approach her this week and get her moved to a Harlot safe house. Danvers already knows where she is, but we’ve got someone watching the shelter. If he moves on it, they’ll get her out,” Cyber said.
“Keep me informed,” I ordered. I hated domestic violence with a passion.
“India has doubled its order of sex toys for this month. And Riyadh, in Saudi Arabia, has requested extra,” Sparrow informed us. Nice. They certainly brought the money in.
The smuggling using container ships hadn’t gone down as we planned. Instead, as mentioned, Sparrow now moved things with her mind, and the warehouse was used for boat hire and tours.
“Blade and Dagger?” Fortune asked, turning to them.
