28
I
t felt odd returning to the club for my shift after planting the camera. As far as I was concerned, my job was done, and I should leave and transfer to another university on the other side of the country, but Bitchtective alerted me that it had only begun. She ordered me back in there to plant more devices and remove and replace them when needed. According to her, there was no one else to do it.
This put me in a dangerous position, but the way Gunner fucked me in his Mustang earlier today, I suspect they or at least him was still none the wiser. Even though he acted strangely, a little stand-offish, and had an accusing tone, his attitude changed after we had sex. Whatever was bothering him vanished after his tension was released inside of me. I put it down to him being annoyed at discovering Ronan and me together, but refused to admit it. That Kaiser stubborn pride never failed to weaken.
I was more nervous than ever, arriving for my shift ten minutes early and walking into the empty locker room with time to spare. My hands won’t stop shaking, but once I start work, I’ll be fine. I had the second device in my pant pocket to plant in Ronan’s office, but because he was so keen to help me, he often greeted me at his door, so I didn’t have to carry the tray.
He was a gentleman, but that didn’t help my situation. I needed to enter his office, sit at his desk, fake a scene, and sneakily stick the device under the wood.
As I approached my locker, I heard voices quietly conversing around the corner and in the room. The word “rats” caught my attention, as there was a rumor spreading in the club that we had been closed last week because of a rat problem. I assumed they were joking, but the Kaisers would want to keep it quiet from their wealthy paying clients if it were real rats.
I crept to the end of the row of lockers to listen to what they’re saying, curious to see if they’d admit the rumor was true. One voice sounded like Betty, although I wasn’t one hundred percent sure, but the second voice was a mystery to me. There were many staff here that I had absolutely nothing to do with because they worked in the bar or on the casino tables while I was caged in the kitchen.
However, the subject of rats was interesting as nothing could destroy the reputation of a food business more than finding a rodent in your soup.
“They paid off the health inspector,” one voice stated, and that didn’t surprise me. I called the press, but they refused to talk, and everyone involved is too scared to speak out against the Kaisers.” Another fact that didn’t surprise me was that someone found a rat, the health inspector was called, the press was called, and how did the Kaisers deal with it? Money. Greenbacks. They gagged the witnesses with money and threats.
Then a thought occurred to me. This person, who was a staff member, admitted to calling the media about the rats. Not only was she confident that there were rats and it wasn’t just a rumor, but she also saw the opportunity to betray the Kaisers. I had my reason for betraying them, but she had another. The downside to being a criminal movement was that you attracted enemies, so no one should be surprised, least of all me.
“It hasn’t gone to plan,” the voice that sounded like Betty stated . The message I received was that they were the schemers behind the plan. They were the ones who organized the rats. Vladimir is not happy.”
One of the chefs walked into the locker room and said, in his typically booming voice, “Afternoon, Riley.” The two people I was spying on fell quiet.
I shrank down, embarrassed that I’d been caught out, and said hello back, then I opened my locker to place my bag inside while Chris made small talk as usual. Unfortunately, Chris blocked my view when two figures quickly passed, so I couldn’t see who they were.
After quickly stashing my stuff in my locker and putting on my apron, Chris continued to chat away. His voice chiming orders was a constant in the kitchen that had become a comfort. When I had shifts when he wasn’t working, I missed that background noise, adding to the sizzling grill and tinkling plates.
“I just have to grab something,” I told Chris as I stepped away and slammed my locker door shut.
I walked to the hallway and gazed down, looking left and right, but couldn’t see anyone. The right led to the front desk, passing by storage rooms and a bathroom, and the left led past the kitchen and then on to the stairs. Across the hall were the swing doors that opened onto the club floor, so which direction should I choose?
Overhearing this conversation, though, gave me the upper hand and created an opportunity. If I passed this information on to Ronan, declaring my loyalty to them, it would strengthen their trust in me.
I had time before starting my shift, so I walked briskly to the end of the hall, then trotted up the stairs to Ronan’s office.
I tapped on his door, then turned the handle, opening a crack. Ronan’s frown smoothed out once he realized I had invited myself in.
“I need to talk to you,” I mouthed, then sat down at his desk before he got a chance to move. Mission accomplished. I could plant the device while I spoke to him.
“What’s going on?” his frown returned because I behaved strangely.
“I overheard a conversation,” I whispered.
“You don’t have to whisper,” he informed me. “No one can hear.”
“Sorry,” I breathed, patting my chest to calm my racing heart. I was stressed and nervous because of what I was about to do, not what I was about to say, but my apparent nervousness added to the vibe. “I’m a little panicky.”
“It’s okay,” he said evenly. “What’s happened, Riley?”
I exhaled and paused several beats until my heart and breath slowed. “I overheard a conversation,” I whispered again.
He leaned forward and spoke in that leveled soothing voice, “Riley, you don’t need to whisper. What did they say?”
“Um, rats,” I blurted, and he nodded in understanding.
“What about rats?” he asked, testing my knowledge while acting like it wasn’t an issue.
“I overheard two people, although I didn’t see them talking in the locker room, and one person said they called the press about the rats,” I explained as my breath kept hitching, making breathing difficult. Then, I cupped my hands together to stop them from shaking. I needed a steady hand to plant the device without him knowing.
“Really? And what was their role in the rat situation?” he asked casually as his finger tapped irritably on the desk. He was trying to minimize the topic, so I didn’t view it as a big deal or try to convince me that there was nothing in it.
“It sounded as though they were involved in it,” I told him as I unclasped my hands, slid my right hand into my pant pocket, and fingered the small camera. “What was the rat situation anyway?”
He shook his head dismissively. “Oh, it was nothing. A rumor. And you didn’t see who they were?”
“I’m sorry, no.” I was about to tell him that one of the voices sounded like Betty, but I didn’t want to get into trouble if it wasn’t her. “I know it’s not much, but I can confidently say that people not on your side are working for you.”
“Okay, is that all you’ve got?” he asked as I took the device out of my pocket, nestled inside my fist.
“Um,” I moved my fist under the desk, but my fist refused to open. It was impossible for me to betray Ronan Byrne, the man, my Simmering Summer. The feelings I had for him were becoming harder to ignore, and if I did this one thing, choose the Bitchtective over him, I wouldn’t forgive myself. “No. Sorry, it wasn’t much. But at least you know you’re on the right track.”
“Yeah. Good work, anyway, Riley. But listening in to staff conversations,” he championed me. “We need to get an identity on them.”
I slid my hand back into my pant pocket and released the device before standing to leave. Like the gentleman he was, he followed me to the door so he could open it for me. “I know this is unprofessional,” I said in a hushed voice, “but,” I stood on the tips of my toes to kiss his cheek, but he knew what I was doing and turned his head, slamming his lips against mine. His hands ran down to the small of my back as his tongue tussled with mine, longingly, achingly.
He broke the kiss first, then apologized, shaking his head in dismay at his naughty behavior. “I shouldn’t have done that here.”
“Don’t worry,” I smirked, “it’s my little secret.” I squeezed his hand before opening the door, glancing back at his gorgeous chuffed face one more time, then I remembered. “Oh. They said a name.”
Anticipation washed across his face as he licked the taste of me off his lip.
“Vlad…ah, um, what was it?”
A black scowl cast across his face, changing his entire demeanor. “Not, Vladimir?”
“Yes, that’s it, Vladimir.” I smiled, but he had grown distant, then swore under his breath. “Is everything okay, Ronan?”
“Yeah,” he lied. “Everything is fine. Head back to work and we’ll talk later.”
As I walked away, he stepped out of his office, went to Mr. Kaiser’s office next door, and knocked solidly. A shiver slid down my spine at his reaction as my stomach turned. Maybe I did the wrong thing by snitching because I felt like I just kicked the lid off a wasp’s nest, and the worst was yet to come.