Steal the Light (Thieves #1)(20)

“Mr. Quinn mentioned your somewhat unusual career.” I sensed a slight disapproval in Albert’s voice. I didn’t take it personally. “Thief” doesn’t exactly look good on a resume.

“Well, I have a job right now, and a rather demanding client who quite frankly scares the crap out of me.” I gave Albert a quick rundown of the story thus far. I didn’t usually open up to strangers, but I found Albert easy to talk to. It was also nice to tell the story and not get screamed at for my stupidity.

“Did you get the demon’s name?” Albert asked, leaning toward me.

“Only the one he chose to give me. He called himself Lucas Halfer.”

Albert nodded. “Typical. It would be helpful for you to know his true name. It would give you some measure of control. It would allow you to summon him, and it might give you some insight into his true motivations.”

“Yeah, that would be great. But unfortunately, he declined to be listed in the demon Yellow Pages, so I’m shit out of luck as far as I can see.” I sighed. No bars on my phone. I would have to ask the bartender.

Albert looked at me for a moment, and I sensed he was coming to a decision. “I have deep connections with that world. My mother is well placed. I could attempt to find out his name for you.”

“You would do that?” I was surprised. I had assumed he didn’t spend much time with demon kind.

“I would, but I need you to do me a small favor.” For the first time I saw a hint of calculation in his eyes.

I should have seen this coming. My search for a cab would have to wait. If there was any possibility that Albert could give me information about Lucas Halfer, I had to do whatever I could to make that happen. If that meant suffering through playoff hell, then so be it. “Fine, I’ll give Dev another chance, but I can’t promise you anything.”

“I’m not asking for anything but understanding.”

“All right. The first part of the date was great, so I guess I can stay a little longer. It will give me time to talk to you about how crappy your security is.”

Albert’s eyes widened and a frown turned his mouth down, his fangs peeking out. “It isn’t bad. It can’t be. We paid top dollar to a security firm.”

I made note of the slapdash way the security cameras were installed. There were far too many blind spots. A nasty little thought struck me. “How long has this club been open, Albert?”

“It will be six months next week.”

Nightclubs aren’t the richest hit in the human world. Most humans had given up carrying huge wads of cash, but our world was different, and human law didn’t govern this club. I was betting there were a few differences between Ether and other more mundane clubs.

“Do you have a poker room?”

Albert nodded a bit sheepishly, if a seven-foot demon can ever resemble a sheep. “Yes, Master Dev insisted it would be a good draw. There is a room for poker and several other games. It is very popular.”

“And the house takes a cut, cash only, I assume.”

“Most of our business is cash.”

“Oh, Albert, you’re such a lucky little demon,” I said with a smile. “I’m about to save your boss a ton of money.”





If you want to rob an establishment, the best, easiest way to do it is to install the security system yourself. No muss, no fuss, you can just walk in, get what you came for, and make it look like anything you want on the way out. Break a few locks, mess up a few cameras, and the cops never think it’s an inside job. You would be surprised at just how much trust people place in security professionals. Get a good ad in the Yellow Pages, establish a few legitimate clients, and let the suckers walk right through the door. I didn’t know the whole story behind Dev’s security firm, but I would bet they had been in business for less than five years, had good but not amazing recommendations, and placed the lowest bid.

I could feel Albert’s eyes on me as I walked back to the VIP room. I knew he was hoping I would fail in our little bet, but I had a feeling he was out of luck. I pulled the gold hoop out of my right ear and slipped it into my bag before smoothing down my dress. I walked up to the sofa and smiled my brightest smile. Dev looked up and smiled back.

I wasn’t privy to the same insider knowledge the security company would have, so I had to use whatever assets I had at my disposal. I was going to do this the old-fashioned way. My first and most important asset was Dev himself. The safe would be located in his office on the second floor. I noted that the place seemed to be using keycards on all their private doors. Keycards are better than everyday keys but not by much. I prefer systems that require something personal from the user, whether it be a retinal scan or thumb print. Nothing is foolproof, but at least that requires some planning. All one needs to break into a room guarded by a keycard is sticky fingers.

“Hey, Zoey.” Dev looked slightly chagrined, and I knew he was about to apologize, but I really didn’t have time for that.

I sat down on the couch next to Dev and draped my arm around him. I did this for two reasons. I needed to put him at ease. I needed him happy and thinking about how nice it was to be close to female body parts. It also put me in the perfect position for what I was about to do.

I looked up at the basketball game with what I hoped was interested eagerness on my face. “Who’s up?”