Read Online Shoot 'Em Up by Janey Mack - Free Book Online Page B

little slow off the mark today.
    â€œWhat are you looking for?” he asked casually.
    â€œI’ll know it when I see it.”
    He made the clicking sound again.
    I winced. What price this favor?
    â€œOkay,” he said. “Lemme see what I can do.”
    He hung up.
    â€œHuh.” I clicked my phone off and pulled in to the Walgreens parking lot.
    Go figure.
    I drifted around the store, sipping a sugar-free Red Bull, wondering when the price of drugstore mascara made the leap to department store exorbitant and where they kept the Mini Chewy Sweetarts.
    I scored the candy and a copy of Car and Driver and headed back to the pharmacy to wait for Cash’s script.
    I spent the next ten minutes next to an old guy who was more than happy to share his Nips Caramel for a debate on the merits of crossbow versus composite bow hunting.
    My phone buzzed.
    A text. From Lee.
    Bae, I’ll show you how heavy it was in person.
    I laughed in spite of myself, and scrolled down. Attached were two pictures of the handgun and a single macro.
    Lava filled my lungs.
    Inset into the safety was a black diamond.
    * * *
    By the time I got in the car, I was in full alertness mode, breathing in through my nose and out my mouth. The shooter was one of Carlos Grieco’s.
    It was personal now.
    I dug Special Agent Nyx’s business card out of my wallet and dialed.
    â€œNyx.”
    â€œEr . . . This is Sawyer’s field agent, sir.” I said, carefully avoiding mentioning my name. “I met you at the Sentinel .”
    â€œSure.” I heard him lean back in his office chair. “Walt’s pet.”
    Aww, you remember. “Sir, I’d like to be reconsidered for the assignment.”
    â€œOh? You seemed reluctant at the meeting.”
    â€œI didn’t feel comfortable talking about career advancement in another branch in front of my current boss.”
    â€œThat was over two weeks ago.”
    â€œI wanted to be back to one hundred percent before calling, sir.”
    â€œI see.”
    Hank’s Law Number Ten: Keep your mouth shut.
    I waited.
    C’mon, you sonuvagun.
    â€œI appreciate ambition in my agents, but Sawyer’s caution had merit,” Nyx said. “Your only connection to the Grieco cartel was the Srpska Mafija. You have no legitimate backer. And I have neither the time nor the resources to establish that for an untested rookie.”
    Ouch.
    â€œBut, hey”—he gave a scoffing chuckle—“you find someone to vouch for you, and I’ll set you up like a fatted calf at the county fair.”
    Aren’t you just a lil’ ray of sunshine? I bet all the girls are lining up to work for you.
    * * *
    Cash was lounging on the couch playing Battlefield Hardline on Xbox when I got home. Feet on the coffee table, an open Coors at his side, and a dead soldier on the floor.
    Cripes.
    I dropped my purse and the Walgreens bag next to him, then picked up the empty bottle and took it into the kitchen. “A little early in the day to be hitting it, don’tcha think, Captain Oxy?”
    â€œNah,” he said, firing away. “Got anything to eat around here?”
    The counter Post-it to Wilhelm was gone, as expected. I opened the fridge. Inside were two Saran-Wrapped plates of triangular-cut turkey club sandwiches complete with fringed toothpicks, dill pickles, and fruit salad.
    â€œWilhelm. You are a prince among men,” I muttered. I took the plates out, snagged a bag of Tim’s Jalapeño Chips and brought them over to the coffee table.
    â€œThat was fast,” Cash said.
    â€œDon’t ask.” I went back to the fridge for a couple more beers.
    He set the remote down and pulled off the plastic. “I’m asking.”
    â€œHousekeeper.”
    Cash took a giant bite of sandwich before asking, “Is she hot?”
    â€œHe.”
    â€œNever mind.”
    I sat down carefully next to him. “You call Mom and Da