Page 4 of Illicit

I don’t like his tone. My curiosity has taken a big fucking leap off the skyscraper. It’s replaced with an almost undeniable desire to turn around.

I’m plagued with it.

Her voice creeps under my skin as every desperate word pleads with the asshole sitting behind me. “Please, Mr. Robichaux. My grandfather isn’t young or healthy. I have a feeling whatever he did, he did it for me. I can’t handle the guilt if something happens to him. I had no idea what he was doing. He acted before I could stop him.”

“Hayes was desperate. Nothin’ you coulda done woulda stopped that old man.” Jules does nothing to make her feel better, but he does throw her a bone. “But I can look into it for you.”

“You will?” A tinge of hope hangs in the woman’s voice.

Hope with a hint of sincerity.

And…

Familiarity.

“I’ll do anything.” The words rush from her mouth with desperation. “Anything.”

Fuck me. I can’t take it another moment.

I put my fingers to the screen of my phone.

Me – Send me a pic of the woman. I want to see her.

Taylor – You looking for a last-minute New Orleans hookup on your way out of town?

“Anything,” Jules echoes as if he’s tasting the meaning of that word on his tongue. “I might be able to help you for … anything.”

Me – Just fucking do it. Now.

“I’m desperate,” the woman confirms. The tone of her voice causes my skin to defy science as a chill ripples down my spine in the heat of NOLA. “Please.”

Please.

That word slithers into my soul like a ghost at the same time a picture appears on my screen.

A snapshot of the monitor.

The man behind me who just became my number one target for no other reason than he’s leering at the woman sitting across from him. I want to carve his eyes out and throw him into a swamp as the next meal for some lucky gator.

Because what in the actual fuck?

This can’t be happening.

Taylor – What’s wrong?

Me – I’m going in.

Taylor – You’re what?

Me – I don’t know how this is going to go. Be prepared to have my back.

Taylor – We don’t have an op plan. This wasn’t approved. You can’t do this.

Me – Watch me.

I take a gulp of water to calm my nerves, though I’m not sure anything can cool my red-hot anger until I drag her out of this place and maybe tan her ass for even thinking about meeting up with a guy like Robichaux. Hell, I don’t know how she knows of his existence.

But I’m about to find out.

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