“You didn’t kill him? I was not aware you let anyone go.”
I scraped my teeth against my bottom lip and folded my arms. “Believe me, it wasn’t out of mercy. He got away, but maybe it’s for the better. If he thinks someone knows what he’s doing, maybe he’ll stop. Why don’t you just find out where he lives and burn the place to the ground?”
“He is well protected, and we must do this as discreetly as possible.”
“There’s nothing discreet about murder.”
Viktor shook his finger at me, still pacing. “We cannot make ourselves out to be terrorists. If you want fireworks and a parade, you are in the wrong place. We have been unable to track him since he has many homes, and if we break into the wrong one, it could set us back years. It is impossible to know where he sleeps, and he does not make many public appearances.”
Shepherd dropped his cigarette butt into a glass of water. “So what’s the plan? We’ve been gathering evidence against this piece of shit for months, but it’s not enough to turn him over to the authorities. We either need to catch him in the act or—”
“Cut his throat,” Christian murmured from his booth. “I vote for plan B.”
Viktor turned around, gazing up at the window when the room grew deceptively bright from thinning clouds. “I agree. He has too many friends in power, and without sufficient evidence, they would try to crush us.”
“What else did you hear them say?” Niko asked, his pale eyes centered on the table.
I turned my small plate in slow circles. “It sounded like extortion, targeting new business owners in the neighborhood and making them think they needed his protection. But he said something weird before he left.”
“Oh?” Viktor asked, turning around. He righted his chair and sat back down. “What did he say?”
I touched my lip, trying to recall the exact words. “He said that they have no right to be here. What did he mean by that?”
Gem waved her hand. “He was probably just making a general statement about humans.”
“Those were his exact words?” Viktor asked, his stormy eyes lowering in thought. “Shepherd, do me a favor. After this meeting, I want you to have Wyatt pull up the list of victims and pinpoint the location of their businesses, even if their death was elsewhere.”
Shepherd ran his hand over his bristly hair. “What are you looking for?”
“A connection. We’ve focused so much on the human aspect and the location of the murders that perhaps we’re not seeing the bigger picture. If this is related to their place of business, we might have something to go on. Tell Wyatt to pull up old land records as far back as he can. See if he can trace any of those buildings or land to Breed.”
“If you can’t figure out where he’s staying, then why don’t you just charm one of his buddies?” I suggested.
“Oh, we tried that,” Gem said. “Epic fail. Christian got staked, and Claude almost lost his pants chasing them down. Long story.”
“They wear sunglasses,” Shepherd said, his arms folded across the table, accenting muscles that made him look like a professional fighter. “They’re smart bastards, always on alert, even when they’re off the clock.”
“Have you tried other methods?” I asked.
Viktor rubbed his hands together. “Like what?”
My eyes skated about the room. “Really? You have two pretty girls and you can’t think of a single idea to get close enough to his men?”
“Absolutely not,” Niko said. “If something goes wrong, they’ll physically subdue them. It could be a death sentence if they don’t have backup, and I won’t have that on my conscience.”
I raised my hand. “Then I’ll be the guinea pig. That’s what I do best.”
Shepherd sat back, his arms draped over the back of his chair. “So you’re offended when Viktor says there’s no sex in the house, but you’ll fuck a guard for information?”
Blue threw back her head and slowly whispered, “Shut up.”
Now I knew what Viktor meant about Shepherd offending random people on the street. Shepherd had a crude way of speaking, even in polite conversation.
“First of all, Viktor didn’t say no sex in the house. He just said no sex with partners. Secondly, I never said I was going to have sex.” I laughed because the thought was too hilarious. “I just know how to lure them to—”
“Her spiderweb,” Christian finished with a mirthless laugh. “Then the black widow can sink her fangs into her prey and spin him inside a little cocoon. Maybe we should have called you Black Widow instead of the Shadow.”
Viktor regarded me for a moment. “I agree with Raven. Consider this a test.”
Christian chimed in. “Think carefully, Viktor. If they catch her or Darius finds out about us, all your hard work is ruined in one night. She’s too green to send in.”
“Let’s not be dramatic. She killed two men who were on our list. If she screws up, she’s out.”