Lawyer Trap

48





DAY EIGHT–SEPTEMBER 12

MONDAY AFTERNOON


On the way back to Denver, Draven swung by the stripper’s apartment. She scrunched her face as she looked at the Granada and almost didn’t get in, but changed her mind when he handed her the remaining eight hundred dollars.

“Nice ride,” she said, sliding over on the bench seat until she was next to him.

“My Porsche is in the shop.”

Her face brightened.

“You have a Porsche?”

“A 911 Turbo,” he said, which was true. That, his house on the beach, and his whole other existence was in Malibu, all under his real name, Jack Brentwood.

“Red, I hope.”

“That’s the only color,” he said. “If it ain’t red, it’s dead.”

She rubbed her hand on his thigh. “Do you want to know what I have in store for you, for paying me so well?”

He pulled into traffic.

“Sure, why not?”

She moved her hand to his cock.

“Okay,” she said. “But don’t come before we get there.”

He drugged her on the way to the cabin, then carried her into the second bedroom, stripped her down to her thong, and secured her spread-eagled to the bed, double-checking the knots to be absolutely sure there was no way she could escape.

Then he walked into Mia Avila’s room, carrying the logbook that he’d gotten from her tattoo shop, and bitch-slapped her across the face before she could make a sound.

“You screwed with me,” he said. “That was a very wrong career move.”

She mumbled something through the gag.

He could pry the safe combination out of her, but he really didn’t care about it anymore. He already had the logbook, which was the main thing. Without that, the police wouldn’t be smart enough to tie him to the other woman getting the tattoo, Isella Ramirez. And without her, they wouldn’t get a description of him.

Plus he’d had enough of that stupid town.

It stunk.

It stunk with biker heat.

It stunk with cop heat.

Better to just stay away.

His phone rang, and Swofford’s voice came through.

“How you coming on that stripper?”

“Done deal,” he said. “She’s already at the destination.”

“Good. What’d you decide to do with the other woman?”

“She ended up pissing me off, so I’ve got something special planned for her. Something slow.”

“As long as she doesn’t turn into a problem.”

“She won’t,” he said.