Page 5 of His Puppet

Still, I could use him. There is no one who could track down a person faster, and with it being a young, scared girl, there’s no one who would be more enthusiastic. I can see why my men would go to him.

Victor smirks, and my jaw clenches in response. “Would that be a problem?”

“Does Lorenzo know about my men’s fuckup or not?” I sneer.

He shakes his head. “No, sir. He does not.”

“Good. I’d like to be the one to inform him.”

Victor nods and pulls a toothpick from his pocket. “You bet, boss man.” He pinches the toothpick between his teeth and smiles. He’s too good to be reprimanded for this disrespectful shit, and he knows it.

“So,” he goes on. “Word on the street is, ol’ Polly Pickpocket is the girl in the photo. She’s in some kind of crew of thieves who all live together. I stopped by her place, but no one seemed to know where she was. And trust me...” He winks. “My interrogation was thorough.”

“Did they say where she might have gone?”

Victor moves the toothpick to the side of his mouth with his tongue and lets it dangle. “Nope. Said she would most likely be back in a day or two, though, once she thinks the coast is clear. Her shit was still there, so I think they’re right about that.”

I move my eyes just behind him while I consider what he’s telling me. I could easily wait until she shows back up at the house. If her friends were telling the truth, and I’m sure they were with Victor asking the questions, then it would just be a waiting game. We could pick her up, make sure she wasn’t working for anyone, and then dump her body and be done with it.

Only problem is, I’m an impatient man and can’t fucking stand the idea of some thief of the familia wandering around the city. She’s my responsibility, and if shedoesn’tgo back to the house…

Her getting away isn’t an option.

“So you want me to stake out the house or what?”

I meet Victor’s hungry eyes. “How motivated are you to find this girl?”

A wide grin breaks out on his face, and he wags his eyebrows. “You know I like a good chase.”

I nod. “Good. Find her and bring her to me… And take care of Hester and Tommy when you’re done. They’re useless.”

He plucks the toothpick from his mouth and shoves it back in his pocket. “You got it, boss man.”

He turns and practically skips toward the door.

“Victor.”

He glances at me over his shoulder.

“Tonight.”

3

Emily

“Heeere kitty kitty kitty.”

My heart thumps in my ears, and my muscles go rigid. The man’s sing-song voice sends spiders marching across my shoulder blades, and I shiver, despite the Vegas summer heat.

I thought I lost him. I haven’t seen him for six blocks, and I zigzagged through all of them, winding up in a vacant alley. I’ve been hiding here behind this dumpster with my shoulder pressed against the concrete wall and my hands wrapped snugly around my knees for no more than a minute.

I have no idea how he found me. Of all the alleys, bridges, homeless shelters, hotels, houses, and apartments in this city, he managed to track me down in an alley shared with ten other people. In terms of safety from these men, not going home was a precaution. Seeking refuge on a street that used to be my home was overkill.

I was in that state between consciousness and sleep when a light woke me up. I opened my eyes and tried not to panic, telling myself it wasn’t them. That it could’ve been anyone.

The man with the flashlight scanned the crowd of people with the beam, and he seemed to hesitate on me. He met my eyes, and then his lips lifted into a sinister grin. “Hey, Polly,” he said.

I fumbled with my feet getting up but then took off. It didn’t even seem like he was going to chase after me until I made it to the road.

---