Chief by Lisa Lovell

Author:Lisa Lovell [Lovell, Lisa]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2020-07-08T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Seven

Danny

I pull my gun before the idiot’s fist lands. He freezes, stammers, then tries to back up.

“Don’t move,” I warn him. I’m not going to shoot him. My gun isn’t even loaded. He doesn’t need to know that, though.

Fear flashes in his eyes before he gives up. “I want a deal.”

“Are you offering anything?” I ask.

“What do you want?”

He must be the smartest of their lackeys which means he’s also the least trustworthy. I just need to make him think I can give him more than the cartel can.

“You know who she is.” I gesture to Ember.

“She’s the snitch.”

“That’s right. Guess what? She’s a very good snitch. People pay her insane amounts of money to do what she does.” Thankfully, Ember doesn’t correct me. “I know enough to put your entire operation behind bars for a very long time.”

“You don’t know me,” he scoffs. “I’m like a thief in the night. A shadow.”

“Gregory Marsden. Aged nineteen. High school dropout. One living relative in a retirement home,” Ember rattles off.

Gregory goes pale.

“Look kid,” I sigh. “You’re young. You’re supposed to be stupid when you’re young but there are limits.”

“Money makes it worth it. You going to give me money?” Gregory has the audacity to wink, the little bastard.

“Better,” I grin. “I have time. Your time, in fact. The more you talk, the smaller your sentence gets. I suggest you start talking now.”

“No way,” he shakes his head. “I ain’t a snitch like her.”

“I’m a private operative, but whatever,” Ember sighs. “Danny, why do you care about his life? This idiot made his own choices. If he ruins his life, what’s it to us?”

Ember never struck me as a callous or uncaring person. I’m shocked at her indifference until I see her give me the smallest of nods.

It’s a game. She wants me to play along.

“Ember, his brain isn’t even finished developing yet. If he goes away, his chances of working anything other than a minimum wage job for the rest of his life fly out the window.”

“Oh, he won’t be able to get a minimum wage job with the charges he’ll be tied to forever. When my people get involved, people go away for life.”

“Is she for real?” Gregory asks.

“Ember, it’s obvious that these people take advantage of vulnerable youths. They’re victims as well.” I thought I might be laying it on too thick, but Gregory doesn’t hesitate to chime in.

“Yeah, they manipulated me!” Gregory pleads.

“How?” Ember asks.

“They offer us a shit ton of money upfront,” he says. “We don’t have to sign nothing. Once we pay it off, we’re out if we want out. I’m almost done paying my debt. Once I do, I’m out.”

I need to make a shortlist of any low-income youth in the city. They’ll be easy targets.

“How much is that information worth, Em?” I ask.

“That little tidbit?” She scoffs. “That’ll knock two weeks of your twenty-year sentence. You gotta do better than that, kid.” I see her discreetly switch on her recording device. Smart woman.

“I know how you got caught,” the kid smirks.

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