Hard to Get (Killer of Kings Book 4)(7)
“Nope. Tonight, I’m really tired. I want some food and relaxation. Besides, I got to know your name. Have a nice night, Shadow.” She waved her hand, and left him alone.
Shadow didn’t linger, even though he found her voice soothing. Instead, he made his way inside his home, and found Boss already waiting for him.
“You took your time getting home,” Boss said. He was sitting in the corner, reading a magazine.
“I got waylaid.”
Boss nodded. “She going to be a problem?” He pointed behind him, clearly at Riley’s home.
“No. She’s not.” Talking with her had been the most fun he’d experienced in a long time. She was cute, different. He didn’t want Boss to kill her. “That file you got on her didn’t have everything that was important. You need to tell Maurice to do better.”
“He got everything that was legal.”
“What do you mean everything that was legal?” Shadow asked. He cared a little too much about this woman. What he needed to do was get his damn head back in the game and fast.
“Everyone has two different lives. There’s only so much you can find out online. Medical records, stuff like that. I give out the information that people ask for, and let them know that they should make their own judgments, and that includes you as well. The file only has half the truth about her. You’ve got to dig deeper to find the real shit.”
Shadow nodded. “I’ll keep that in mind.” She’d gone from being a boring bakery owner with a rough past, to something a hell of a lot more interesting.
The fact she had the nerve to pull a blade on him made getting to know her worth his time. Of course, he’d never been in danger. But it was cute that she’d tried to threaten him. He loved this neighborhood, even all the fake assholes that lived around him. In between his work, he could see himself enjoying the distraction of unraveling Riley.
“Tell me again why you couldn’t give me this file in an email?” Shadow asked, pointing at the folder on Boss’s lap.
“This guy has been in hiding for years. No one has ever gotten a shot at him. The thing is, he likes to take on new identities, new faces, which is what makes it harder for him to be caught. He’s got a few body doubles on top of that. From what I’ve been told, he knows when someone is onto him, and it makes him scarper. I don’t want to risk that. Handle this one with extreme care. No mistakes, no big clean-ups. What I need from you is to be one hundred percent certain you know it’s the right guy. I don’t care how long it takes, but do it as if it was a hobby. Be certain, be thorough.”
“I get it. Take my time, no mess, no clean-ups. I get it, Boss.”
“Good.” Boss got up, and left without another word.
Shadow stared down at the file. This was his life. He was the one that kept to the shadows and found people who didn’t want to be found. Killian could handle the job, but he always came with a lot of noise. Shadow kept quiet, and he knew Boss appreciated that.
He walked down into his basement after disarming the security measures. After flicking on the light, he turned on all the computer screens, and watched Riley sitting at her table.
While she’d been at work that morning, he’d gone in and wired her entire house. She couldn’t make a move without him knowing about it, and he didn’t feel any remorse about that either.
Chapter Three
“I’m not paid enough for this shit,” Riley muttered under her breath. The woman from down the street didn’t have time to pick up her cake and pastry order for her party, so she’d called Riley and begged her to drop everything off at her house. Riley was supposed to be coming to the anniversary party as a guest, but she had no plans of actually showing up.
Now she had to juggle the huge cake box and several smaller boxes as she tried to fit them in her cramped Toyota Corolla. She didn’t do deliveries because her car barely made it to work and back. The parking lot was usually close to empty when she left every night, but today it was bustling as the new tenant was busy setting up the bar for its grand opening tomorrow.
Once finally settled in the driver’s seat, she carefully drove out of the plaza, heading to her client’s house. She was terrified the cake would shift in the box or get damaged before she arrived. It was a lot of pressure baking for a bunch of neighbors that already saw her as the black sheep of the suburb.
The street was lined with parked cars for the party so she just settled in her own driveway, making her trek with all the cake boxes precarious at best. By the time she reached the house, she was out of breath. Music flooded out onto the sidewalk. Luckily there were some smokers on the front porch, so they opened the door for her. She found the nearest counter and set down her load, her arms grateful for the break.
“Oh, Carol, thank you,” said Amanda, appearing through the throngs of guests.
“It’s Riley,” she corrected.
“Right…” Amanda put her hands on her hips and gave her a less than discreet once over. Everyone wore their evening best, and Riley had her flour-stained scrubs on. She looked and felt completely out of place, and she hated that all-too-familiar feeling of being belittled. Her entire life had been a struggle. As an adult she’d put up barriers, convincing herself she didn’t give a shit about anyone else’s opinion. Reality wasn’t always so simple.