Read Online Game On (The Bod Squad Series Book 1) by Gabra Zackman - Free Book Online
Authors: Gabra Zackman
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his exit. Once outside, he went to light a cigarette, only to realize he’d forgotten matches. Cursing, he was about to turn the corner to get some when a tall, chiseled blonde held out a lighter inscribed with a pair of red lips. “Need a light?” she asked in an Eastern European accent.
He smiled, eyeing her up and down, lit his cigarette, and took a deep drag. “Is it that obvious that I’m American, and in trouble?”
“Neither is obvious, Mr. Palmer, but I was trying to find you. My name is Tyka. I have been looking for you for some time.”
Chas raised an eyebrow. “Looking for me? Why, if I may ask?”
“We can’t talk here. It’s not safe. Will you walk with me?”
“Certainly. But can you give me a hint?”
She looked him straight in the eye, her light blue eyes gleaming. “Mr. Palmer—I knew your father. He left you a message, before he was killed. I am here to give it to you.”
Chas took a deep breath and another drag of his cigarette. Then, wordlessly, he followed her down the cobblestone street.
‡‡‡
SUSANNAH WAS MIDWAY through her fifth café au lait when the Boss called. “Well,” she answered, “it’s about time. I was about to go take a nap.”
His voice sounded remarkably clear as he responded, “You know that’s the worst thing you could do.”
She looked up to see the Boss standing in front of her, and saw Lisa Bee and Jackson over his left shoulder. “Oh, come on! Really? Why didn’t we all go together, for fuck’s sake!”
The Boss looked haggard, but smiled. “Frankly, Legs, we were gonna have you come on your own. We were in the midst of a quick search of Chas’s brownstone when we realized how dangerous it was.”
“More dangerous than we already thought?” she inquired.
“Differently so,” he said. “While Jackson was looking through Chas’s cabinets, Lisa Bee did a little digging through his email and found out who Chas is meeting with today. It’s rough stuff, Legs, the real stuff. Drugs. Murder. The mob. One of the Italian crime families is involved, and between them and the French they’ve got an international ring that could take on a small country. Maybe Chas Palmer isn’t quite as clean as we thought.”
“What do you mean by that?” She gulped.
“Well, we’re thinking that maybe he isn’t just a computer hacker. That might be the cover. He may be a trained killer, one of the best. Lisa Bee found something that connects him to the Bal du Bois murders that happened last year.”
Susannah choked down the rest of her coffee and stood on shaky legs. Twenty-three innocent people had been killed in the Virginia shoot-out, including a few she knew from high school. What had started as a simple robbery of the Bal du Bois debutante ball had turned into gunplay and resulted in a mass murder. If Chas was really involved with that, he was far more sinister than she’d realized.
FTP only investigated white-collar crime—clean, simple, easy. The nastier stuff they left to the big guns, the FBI itself or other outside agencies more skilled in working with high-profile criminals. If Chas had committed or condoned murder, or in any way contributed to the events that led to the Virginia shoot-out, then this was an entirely different playing field. She was knee-deep in a game, and suddenly the rules had changed. What was she thinking, dallying with this man, letting herself actually feel something for him, and chasing him to Europe? This wasn’t child’s play. He was a criminal, maybe a rougher criminal than they intially thought, and charm was his way of getting what he wanted.
This wasn’t the first time she had been wrong about a guy. She had dealt with this kind of man before. Heck, she had dated him countless times. When she was sixteen, she dated a man who said he went to school at Georgetown. It turned out he was a con artist trying to fleece her of her inheritance after her father’s death. When she was twenty, she lost her virginity to
He smiled, eyeing her up and down, lit his cigarette, and took a deep drag. “Is it that obvious that I’m American, and in trouble?”
“Neither is obvious, Mr. Palmer, but I was trying to find you. My name is Tyka. I have been looking for you for some time.”
Chas raised an eyebrow. “Looking for me? Why, if I may ask?”
“We can’t talk here. It’s not safe. Will you walk with me?”
“Certainly. But can you give me a hint?”
She looked him straight in the eye, her light blue eyes gleaming. “Mr. Palmer—I knew your father. He left you a message, before he was killed. I am here to give it to you.”
Chas took a deep breath and another drag of his cigarette. Then, wordlessly, he followed her down the cobblestone street.
‡‡‡
SUSANNAH WAS MIDWAY through her fifth café au lait when the Boss called. “Well,” she answered, “it’s about time. I was about to go take a nap.”
His voice sounded remarkably clear as he responded, “You know that’s the worst thing you could do.”
She looked up to see the Boss standing in front of her, and saw Lisa Bee and Jackson over his left shoulder. “Oh, come on! Really? Why didn’t we all go together, for fuck’s sake!”
The Boss looked haggard, but smiled. “Frankly, Legs, we were gonna have you come on your own. We were in the midst of a quick search of Chas’s brownstone when we realized how dangerous it was.”
“More dangerous than we already thought?” she inquired.
“Differently so,” he said. “While Jackson was looking through Chas’s cabinets, Lisa Bee did a little digging through his email and found out who Chas is meeting with today. It’s rough stuff, Legs, the real stuff. Drugs. Murder. The mob. One of the Italian crime families is involved, and between them and the French they’ve got an international ring that could take on a small country. Maybe Chas Palmer isn’t quite as clean as we thought.”
“What do you mean by that?” She gulped.
“Well, we’re thinking that maybe he isn’t just a computer hacker. That might be the cover. He may be a trained killer, one of the best. Lisa Bee found something that connects him to the Bal du Bois murders that happened last year.”
Susannah choked down the rest of her coffee and stood on shaky legs. Twenty-three innocent people had been killed in the Virginia shoot-out, including a few she knew from high school. What had started as a simple robbery of the Bal du Bois debutante ball had turned into gunplay and resulted in a mass murder. If Chas was really involved with that, he was far more sinister than she’d realized.
FTP only investigated white-collar crime—clean, simple, easy. The nastier stuff they left to the big guns, the FBI itself or other outside agencies more skilled in working with high-profile criminals. If Chas had committed or condoned murder, or in any way contributed to the events that led to the Virginia shoot-out, then this was an entirely different playing field. She was knee-deep in a game, and suddenly the rules had changed. What was she thinking, dallying with this man, letting herself actually feel something for him, and chasing him to Europe? This wasn’t child’s play. He was a criminal, maybe a rougher criminal than they intially thought, and charm was his way of getting what he wanted.
This wasn’t the first time she had been wrong about a guy. She had dealt with this kind of man before. Heck, she had dated him countless times. When she was sixteen, she dated a man who said he went to school at Georgetown. It turned out he was a con artist trying to fleece her of her inheritance after her father’s death. When she was twenty, she lost her virginity to
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