Rudy had shown up at Perk today during Sasha’s shift, where he proceeded to order a cappuccino, plop his sketchy ass at the counter, and lurk.
For five fucking hours.
He’d peppered her with questions about her dating life, about Charley’s, about whether Charley’s so-called “new boyfriend” had ever been to their Park Avenue penthouse. He wanted to know if Sasha realized her sister was “whoring around” upstate this weekend, and if she’d heard from their “slut of a mother” lately. He told Sasha she was a stunning young woman—that their mother was a fool to toss a girl like her into the trash.
Sasha was so rattled, she didn’t even leave when her shift ended—she picked up a double, just so she wouldn’t have to exit the café until Rudy was long gone.
Now, hours later, Charley barreled out of the elevator that led to his apartment, damn near kicking down the door.
After a barrage of knocks and kicks, Rudy opened the door, his smile greasy and smug. “And the succubus returns. I wondered when I might hear from you.”
Beyond the entryway, Travis sat on the couch with a beer, shaking his head. “Not cool going off the radar like that, Charley.”
“I lost my phone,” she said.
“In Redthorne’s bed?”
Charley rolled her eyes. God, she wanted to throttle them both. After everything she’d witnessed this weekend, everything she’d learned from Dorian about the creatures that lurked in the shadows, Travis had been downgraded from a snake to a roach—an annoying pest who needed a good dose of Raid.
Rudy needed a dose too, but unfortunately, he was still the boss—one Charley had to appease, even when all she wanted to do was set him on fire and shoot his crusty ashes out of a canon.
“Come in, Charlotte.” Rudy’s smile fell away, his eyes dark and sinister. “I hope you have something worthwhile to share, for your sake and for Sasha’s. Did she mention we spent some time together today?”
Looking at him now, his hair slicked back, his calculating eyes, Charley wanted to claw his skin off, hold a knife to his throat, and give him a glimpse of the fear he’d instilled in Sasha.
But as furious as she was, she no longer wanted to tear him a new one.
That’s what he wanted—confirmation that his tactics worked. That he’d gotten to her.
Fuck that.
With a curious smile, she said, “Oh, really? I thought Sasha had to work today.”
Rudy’s jaw ticked. “I dropped by Perk to say hello.”
“Huh. I spoke to her earlier, but she didn’t mention it. She gets a lot of customers, though—hard to remember just one.”
Even if that one is a filthy, dickless scumbag who thinks preying on young girls makes him powerful…
He grunted out something that might’ve been a laugh or a warning or even indigestion, glaring at Charley with another silent threat. For a moment, she said nothing—just glared right back, wondering how such a human stain could hold so much sway over her life.
Her father may not have been up for any model citizen awards, but Charley was damn sure he’d never stand for his brother and former second-in-command treating his daughter and her sister this way.
But her dad was long gone, and unlike Dorian, Charley didn’t have super strength and immortality on her side. If she wanted to take back the reins of her wildly out-of-control life, she was going to have to do it herself—one small victory at a time.
Starting with taking charge at this meeting.
Ignoring her uncle’s menacing glare, she dropped her bag in the entryway and headed into the living room, taking the chair farthest from the cockroach. “Let’s make this quick—I’ve got things to do.”
Rudy joined them, settling in next to Travis. He wanted to lecture her. She could feel it simmering in the air, quickly moving to a boil. But right now, he wanted the intel more. That was her leverage. That would always be her leverage.
For now, she needed to play it smart. Let them think she was all in, as promised.
“It’s like you figured.” She glanced down at the papers spread across the coffee table—twice as many surveillance photos as they’d shown her last time. “The guy’s loaded.”
“Loaded and locked down,” Travis said. “Right?”
“Extremely locked down. The place is a vault.” Charley updated them on the security situation, leaving out certain details, embellishing others, giving them just enough to salivate over while still buying herself some wiggle room to figure out her next steps. “And right now, he’s got a bunch of family in town.”
She’d expected that bit of news to piss Rudy off, but he only sighed.
Weird.
“For how long?” he asked.
“I’m not sure. Apparently, there was a death in the family.”
Nodding as if this was no big deal, Rudy tapped the floor plans on the table. “Walk me through the house, room by room. I need to know what’s in there.”
Charley patiently pointed out each room—master bedroom, additional bedrooms, sitting room, living room, formal dining room, on and on—listing off some of the high-end pieces that had decorated each. She omitted the elevator, and glossed over the basement quickly, trying to keep their attention on the main floors.
“You sure you searched the basement completely?” Travis asked. “No poker room, media room, other places he might stash some art?”
Charley shook her head.
“I don’t buy it,” he said. “Rich jackoff like that? I bet he’s—”
“Look, guys,” Charley said, determined to keep control of the situation. “Dorian Redthorne isn’t some frat-boy stockbroker. He’s not even much of an entertainer—the fundraiser was apparently a once-in-a-lifetime event. He’s just a wealthy, somewhat reclusive businessman and collector—that’s it.”
And an immortal vampire who could tear your beating hearts out of your chests…
The image almost made her smile, but it wasn’t a serious option. For all his faults, Dorian wasn’t a murderer. He’d said it himself—vampires had laws against killing humans.
Besides, if Rudy died, where the hell would that leave Charley? She had no access to money, to the deed of her father’s condo. Rudy wasn’t just her uncle—he was her benefactor. Her sole source of income.
“What about the cars?” Travis asked. “Tell me he showed you the cars.”
Charley sighed. Being around these men always felt like a test, and she had a sneaking suspicion they still had people watching the property, which meant they might’ve seen her driving the Ferrari.
Again, she shared as little of the truth as possible.
“We took one of the cars out earlier,” she said. “Honestly, I don’t even know what kind it was. Cars aren’t my area of expertise, but yeah, there are a lot of them, and they look pretty.”
Not to mention, incredibly fun to drive. Despite the seriousness of the situation, it was hard for Charley not to smile at the memory of driving that Ferrari, the wind in her hair as she sped along the open road. She still couldn’t believe Dorian had let her drive it.
“Pretty, or expensive?” Travis asked.
“Both?” Charley shrugged. “I don’t really know. That’s your department.”