As much as I would like to think my hard work had earned me this chance, I knew better. All of his other couriers had been doing this much longer than me. They were also much more powerful than me and didn’t come with as much baggage.
“They’re otherwise engaged,” Jerry said.
“Ruth?”
“She’s on her way to Beijing.”
“Harry or Catriona?”
“Harry’s on bedrest after an encounter with a siren, and Catriona is out on a different delivery. Everyone is out.”
“So, it’s not that you think I’m qualified, it’s that I’m your only choice.”
His lips tightened as he dipped his head in a small nod.
I sat back. If Jerry was willing to risk his company’s reputation on me, this job must be important. That meant danger. And lots of it.
“How dangerous?”
“Your cut would be ten thousand.”
“So, life threatening then.”
Jerry grunted.
I’d never made more than five hundred on a job. I was lucky to get away with a few broken bones, and minor cuts and bruises up and down my entire right side on that job. I couldn’t even imagine how dangerous a ten-thousand-dollar job would be.
My brain couldn’t help tallying up the bills I could pay with that sum. I could even put a little away for a rainy day. Get some breathing room.
“Think I’ll pass.”
As welcome as that money would be, I couldn’t spend it if I was dead.
The two exchanged a look. The woman tilted her head at me and nodded. Jerry sighed and picked up a pen, twirling it between his fingers.
“Refusal isn’t really an option at this point,” he said.
I stiffened. “Since when?”
“The fact is that you weren’t hired under our normal methods,” the woman inserted, taking over for Jerry. “Our shielding you from detection could have extreme consequences for us.”
I looked from her to Jerry then leaned back, slinging an arm over the back of my chair. For all that he was the boss, Jerry looked trapped. His face said he wanted to be anywhere but here.
“Uh huh,” I said slowly. “And?”
“We need you to start bringing more revenue to the table,” she said crisply. “In essence, you’ll start by being assigned higher profile jobs. We expect you to complete those to satisfaction.”
Right. Higher profile jobs. I.e. more dangerous, life threatening jobs.
The slow burn of my temper kicked up a notch. I didn’t need the money or this job bad enough.
“Guess that means I’m fired then,” I said.
“No, no, that’s not what we’re saying,” Jerry hurried to insert.
“What are you saying then?”
There was another shared glance. Once again, the woman took the lead, “We would like you to take this job.”
