Page 24 of Property of Player

“He’s a regular. Sometimes they try to find out where I live.”

“Need me to take care of that?”

I shake my head. “He pays my rent every month with the amount he tips me. He’s just been overstepping.”

“He know where you live?”

“I’m not that stupid.”

Duck drops his cigarette and grinds it under his boot. “Things aren’t going the way we’d hoped.”

“No shit,” I whisper. “I heard they found Jimmy Jacks beat to death.”

“We want that property. He wasn’t helping. Kept taking the money and stringing us along.”

“That’s surprising.”

Duck folds his arms. “The club’s ready to take another avenue.”

I blow out a breath. It’s not the first time they’ve pushed me to assist them. “I don’t know what I can do.”

“Sure you do. He’s got a daughter. Get close to her. Make her trust you.”

“And?”

“And we’ll let you know when we’re ready to make our move.”

“You’re going to take her?”

He steps forward, slips a hand around my throat, and backs me to the side of my car, his grip tight. I can feel the cold metal against my spine as my breath is slowly being cut off.

Duck’s eyes are empty, and I know he’d snap my neck without a second thought. He’d drop me on the pavement, climb on his bike, and ride away with no regret.

“Don’t ask questions and don’t fuck this up like you did the last time. Only thing that saved you then was the fact Prez liked you. Been years now, and he’s moved on. You fuck up again I’ll make you pay, and he won’t care.”

It doesn’t matter that I didn’t actually fuck up. It wasn’t my fault they missed their target. But I don’t dare point that out to Duck.

“Understand?” he shakes me.

I nod.

He releases me, and I slump against my car, sucking in air.

Duck climbs on his Harley. “I’ll be in touch. Have something to report by next weekend.”

He fires his bike up and roars off.

My heart pounds in my chest as I slip behind the wheel of my car and lock the doors.

I think about leaving the state; maybe Vegas would work out for me. But Duck knows where my sister lives, and I can’t put her in danger.

My forehead presses to the steering wheel.

I’m so screwed.

Chapter eight

Taylor