Total pages in book: 88
Estimated words: 82439 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 412(@200wpm)___ 330(@250wpm)___ 275(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 82439 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 412(@200wpm)___ 330(@250wpm)___ 275(@300wpm)
I can’t get ahead, no matter how hard I try.
So, I think Eva would be perfect for the job. She could get things I never could.
Sure, last month nabbing Bane Delgado and Mayor Thornberg once and for all was a huge boost for morale at the department, but still doesn’t mean I get to go home.
I’m an undercover agent, been at this for seven whole months, and am no closer to finding out how the whole Delgado trafficking ring works than I was when we first started.
I know there’s men who are a part of it. I know Lazarus Delgado took over when Bane went away, but I don’t know how to infiltrate.
Vin Mills, point man on the case, said being at the church would be perfect for men who like to confess. Problem is, no one has taken the bait yet. Not one single Delgado has even entered my booth.
I’ve gotten tidbits here and there, and last month helping Posey Dixon escape her wedding was a huge win for our case. I finally thought we were going to learn a lot, but Bane’s not talking, and Mayor Thornberg had a heart attack before we could even question him. Mother fucker didn’t kick the bucket though, god willing, but now he sits in a hospital bed, hooked up to more machines than the space station.
So with Eva’s help I can finally get to where I can’t go. She could learn more in five minutes than I probably could in a year. And sure, maybe this is so wrong to ask for her help. I should honestly call Vin and tell him I’ve hit a wall and to send somebody else in. Someone who could dance for these men and learn things. Unlike me.
But I can’t.
There’s this pull to Eva to be close to her. I don’t want her to leave. I want to work with her somehow.
But she sees me as a priest, and as a man who’s taken a vow, and I can’t break that image she has of me.
“What all would it entail?” Eva asks me.
“Ever heard of the Delgados?”
She shakes her pretty little head. “No.”
“They’re one of Saint Pierce’s most corrupt crime families, and they run a trafficking ring, and I need more information on this ring.”
“Why?”
“Because. They’re selling young girls into slavery. Sex slavery. I was put on this Earth to do God’s work, and bringing down a trafficking ring is part of that.”
She studies me with wide eyes. “I thought priests just listened to confessions and led Bible studies.”
I smirk at her, stuffing both hands in the pockets of my slacks. “I like to get my hands dirty.”
“I can see that. So, where do I come in?”
I step closer to her, just needing to be closer to her for some reason. She really is quite pretty. “You could be their entertainment…”
I can’t even get the rest of my words out before she’s stopping me to say, “I will not have sex with these men for you.”
I raise a hand, wanting to calm her down. “Whoa, I never said anything about you sleeping with them.” For some reason the thought of these men touching her pisses me off.
If I can’t sleep with her, nobody will goddammit.
“What exactly would I have to do?”
“When they have their meetings they sometimes invite a Greedy Girl into the room with them. These women dance for the men. They provide the men with drinks, and anything really. Nothing’s off the table, but you get to call the shots.”
“I’m not a Greedy Girl,” she says quietly.
“I can change that easily,” I tell her, knowing all I would need to do is ask Devereaux Huxley to promote Lina to Greedy Girl for the sake of the cause, and he’d help. He knows what I’m after.
He just doesn’t know that it’s my actual job to catch these criminals.
Nobody does.
And nobody ever will.
“Can I think about it?”
I nod, and then I do something I will regret. I smooth my hand over her wig. “You look hot in the wig, but you’re so much more beautiful without it.”
Her eyes pour into mine, and my heart beat kicks up. “Thank you, Father,” she whispers, reminding me exactly what the fuck she views me as. “How much does this assignment pay?”
I know Eva needs money, and every part of me wants to help her with that. “How much do you need?”
She laughs quickly, then snaps her mouth shut, her expression softening. “I need more than money can buy,” she whispers, eyes cast downward, her vulnerability laid bare.
I gently place my finger under her chin, lifting her gaze back to mine. “You help me, and I swear, I’ll do everything in my power to help you.”
Her smile blooms slowly, like the first break of sunlight after a storm, and it nearly knocks me off my feet. “Okay,” she says, her voice steady. “I’m in.”