Page 10 of Scarlett Thief (Criminal Underground 2)

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Scarlett

"My client wants something simple, but he's …cautious."

I could've laughed. Cautious was every criminal I'd ever crossed paths with, but there was something that separated those criminals and this mysterious Mr. Black—they hadn't uncovered everything about my past and weren't holding it over my head to do their bidding. I had to admit, though impressive, Mr. Black and I were not off to a good start.

Gaven continued. "He wants to ensure the success of this mission. Therefore, he has contracted the three of you for the same job."

“Mr. Black couldn’t have contracted us via our normal routes of communication for business?” I countered. “You would think since he’s being so cautious, he would rather keep as much anonymity as possible instead of using a proxy.”

Gaven’s smile was sharp. Deadly. “I can’t speak for him so intimately, but I can assume that he wanted to show the three of you the resources he has at his disposal should any of you attempt to double cross him. It’s an unfortunate side effect of working with our peers, don’t you think, Scarlett? No honor amongst thieves and all that.”

Cheap dig, I thought, and I wanted nothing more than to slap that smirk off his face. Instead, I bit my tongue and sat back as Garrett strode to the table. He carried a manila folder that he passed to Gaven before our host set it on the table before him. Flipping it open, he turned it around, and slid it to the middle of the table.

I leaned forward to take a look. At the top left corner of the first page was an image clipped into place depicting an older looking Italian man with graying hair on the sides of his dark head. It wasn’t the man, however, that caught my eye; it was what he was holding—a beautiful ornate box opened to reveal a stunning diamond necklace. He knelt next to a thin woman around the same age with fading blonde hair as he appeared to present it to her.

"Who is he?" Diablo asked after a long stretch of silence, redirecting the conversation back to the job.

"Vittorio Emanuele, the Prince of Naples," Gaven answered. "Once claimed to be the modern King of Italy."

"And what does the Prince have that this Mr. Black wants?" Wolf inquired. Out of the three of us, not including Gaven, he was the only one who hadn't leaned forward to look at the file. Instead, his eyes remained fixated on our host.

Gaven grinned. "Why don't you read and find out?" He arched a brow in challenge. Wolf glared at him, but Gaven merely laughed and sat back, turning his gaze to Diablo and me as he answered the question. "The diamond necklace the Prince is presenting to his wife in the picture attached is incredibly valuable. Mr. Black wants the diamond currently in the Prince of Naples' possession—don’t bother asking me why, he was unwilling to say.” Gaven tipped his head to the side as he continued. “I can tell you that the Prince of Naples purchased it last month as a gift for his wife. By all appearances, they're quite in love and he dotes on her. They’ll be celebrating several decades together at an anniversary party in Italy in the next few weeks."

“You truly have no idea why he wants the necklace?” I inquired. It seemed such a strange thing for someone as obviously powerful as Mr. Black to want. If he could find out all about my life and the lives of these other two men, then why did he need us to procure it?

Gaven's eyes settled on me and he smiled. "What Mr. Black wants with the necklace is his business."

"And yet he knows ours," I pointed out.

Gaven didn't respond.

"I agree." Diablo's fingers drummed against the table, a clear sign that his patience was running out. My gaze darted around. I knew nothing of these two men, except that they—like myself—were criminals, and criminals who routinely worked alone didn’t take well to working together.

Competition,I realized.So, that’s what this is about.

"He's challenging us," I snapped, turning my gaze between the three men before me. I pointed to Gaven. "Why else would he call in three people to get the job done when you could have simply called any of us individually and we would have accepted the job.” Gaven smiled and I narrowed my eyes on him. “So, what is this then?" I demanded. "You want to pit us against each other and see who can get it first?"

It was devious. There was no need to pay criminals when you could force them to do what you wanted, use their weaknesses against them. The issue now was if we failed. A criminal's reputation, after all, was what kept them safe in this business.

No one wanted to hire someone who onlysometimesgot the job done. Everyone wanted the best.

“It’s more complicated than that, I’m afraid, Ms. Scarlett.” Gaven’s eyes darkened as he settled his elbows on the edge of the table and steepled his fingers together. “No, this is not a competition. We have contracted each of you, but you will not be working against each other. No, instead, we will have you work together. Three of the best will ensure the success of this mission.”

I scoffed. “I can do this myself. I don’t need partners.”

“Yes, well...” Gaven started. “Your wants are duly noted, but they’re not important to my employer. He has chosen the three of you for the sole reason that you each have unparalleled skills and specialties that are necessary to complete the job. You will work together.” He said the words with such conviction that it made my whole body tighten. I didn’t like being told what I would and wouldn’t do.

“You can’t just force us to do your bidding,” Wolf snapped, slamming his fist down on the table.

My eyes darted to him for a moment before returning to Gaven. Not by even a blink did he react to Wolf’s anger.Of course not,I thought bitterly.Because he has the upper hand.

“I can assure you, Mr. Wolf,” Gaven said lightly as he leaned back in his chair. “I can do exactly that. Each of you has a weakness that my employer has seen fit to exploit. Perhaps it’s your freedom”—the bastard paused as he turned his gaze to me before moving to Diablo—"perhaps it’s your client list”—Gaven’s gaze landed on Wolf once more—"or perhaps it’s something else.” Gaven, like the shit he was, arched a brow.

Wolf began to growl. “You’re going to fucking regret this,” he snarled.

“No, I don’t think I am,” Gaven said casually with a shrug. “You can bluster and groan about it all you want, but the faster you get the job done, the faster you get your lives back—with, of course, the added interest of being financially compensated for your time and skills.”

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