Page 15 of His Puppet

Settimo steps up to us and pats me on the back. “There’s never a shortage of fuckups, is there? You vet ‘em and vet ‘em, and they still disappoint.”

I don’t respond. My jaw clenches when I think about the two worthless pieces of shit.

“Don’t let it bother you, Blade. I can see the perfectionist in you reeling.”

“It’s my responsibility to ensure this kind of thing doesn’t happen. It could’ve turned out much worse than it did.”

Settimo shrugs. “Look, the girl was caught, and I’m assuming she didn’t run off to the police or anything before we found her. Otherwise, you’d be a wreck right now. The two responsible for this shit are tiger food. If there’s anything else, I trust you to handle it.” He looks at Lorenzo. “Do you have anything to add?”

Lorenzo pushes away from the railing and stands straight, giving me his full attention. “Who is she?”

“Her name is Emily Granger. Not surprisingly, there’s no address, credit cards, or anything linking her to Las Vegas. I haven’t found anything about her at all from her legal name, but, as I’m sure Victor told you, she’s just a petty thief who was looking to make some extra cash. A couple of dealers paid her to lift our drugs so they could sell our stuff beneath our noses. They’ve already been dealt with.”

Lorenzo nods. “I heard that, too.”

My brow furrows. “You did? Who—”

With unreasonably perfect timing, Victor decides to shove through the door, pushing a metal cart with at least three heavy duty trash bags stacked on top. He pauses when he spots me, and a smirk flashes before his face hardens to stone.

“Am I interrupting something?” he asks, pushing the cart farther into the room, headed toward us.

I force my eyes away and flex my hands at my sides, keeping them out of fists. I glance at Settimo and spot his lips in a thin line. He puts up with Victor the same way I do, minus the disrespect, of course.

“I was just about to tell Blade about your busy morning.” Lorenzo looks at me and gestures to Victor. “I had him get an update from your guys last night, and he volunteered to help take care of the swine who hired Miss Emily. I hope you don’t mind. I have a hard time sleeping when I know what’s out there.”

“You went behind my back?” I ask, my voice steel.

Lorenzo is as expressionless as always, but I can tell I need to stand down by the way he tilts his head.

I take a breath and try to relax my expression. “What I mean is, my men are plenty capable of handling what is my responsibility.”

He stares at me a few seconds, dark eyes making me wonder if he’s contemplating murder, but then he sighs. “You’re right. In a way, I suppose I went over your head. It wasn’t my intention.” He glances at Victor, who’s standing tall with his hands on the cart, then turns back to me. “Victor was a tad upset with you last night for the miscommunication on who would be handling Emily.” Lorenzo glares at Victor. “He’s a bit of a child at times.” Another sigh, and he turns back to me. “But I wanted him on this, and I didn’t see the need to wake you to get your approval. I don’t understand why I would need it, but nonetheless, it’s done, and ourmutualproblem is taken care of.”

Lorenzo gestures to the cart. “I’m assuming that’s the swine?”

Victor nods, no sign of the joy I’m sure he had in killing the men. “Yes, sir.”

I eye the cart and the three trash bags. I wonder how many pieces there are of each guy.

“Why are theyhere?” Lorenzo asks.

Victor’s jaw tics, and he pauses as if to think through his answer. “Don’t you want—”

“They’re alreadyfed.” Lorenzo says it like he’s speaking to an underpaid, unskilled worker at a fast-food restaurant who hasn’t bothered to learn the menu. My lips raise into a smirk, and when Victor catches it, he glares.

“Take them to the incinerator …please.”

“Yes, sir,” Victor says in his faux military voice.

Victor wheels the cart around and begins pushing it to the exit.

“Actually, hold on a sec,” Lorenzo calls. He looks at me with a blank expression. “I’m guessing you don’t need Miss Emily anymore, correct?” he asks.

I shake my head. “I had planned on having her transported to a house today. Do you have one with an open space?”

There are thirteen houses total in Las Vegas that keep our whores. Eight of them are in Naked City, and three are a little more upscale. Only one is remote and reinforced for the more problematic girls. Force is rarely needed. Most of the prostitutes came to us either down on their luck, high, or somehow got involved in our business and chose the whore house over death. Emily falls into the third category, and thus, I’m guessing she’ll start out at the remote location.

Lorenzo curls his fingers at Victor to beckon him over. “Don’t bother,” he says to me.

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