The Smuggler's Gambit Read online

  I’m skeptical of his explanation. Why would a wealthy man like him hire a newb PI? He could have the best and most experienced working for him. There are hundreds of private investigators in New New York who are more established. I have to find out more about the case. And more about him. Time to call this guy’s bluff.

  “As I recall, Officer Mitchell told me I was lucky to find those clues. Not skilled. Then he told me to apply to the academy. So that part of your story checks out. But it feels like there’s more to this.” I narrow my eyes at him. “Tell me the real reason you want to hire me. I think you’re leaving out an important detail.”

  He chuckles. “Grant’s right, you are a smart woman. Oh, and the answer is thirty-two.”

  “What?”

  “My age, you asked how old I am.”

  “Stop stalling.”

  “Fine. I think the case you stumbled upon may be related to the disappearance of my girlfriend.”

  His statement startles me. It’s the last thing I expected him to say. “How so?”

  “I can’t tell you yet. I don’t want to influence your investigation. It’s important to me that you do this without any preconceived notions about me or her.”

  I have to pace again, stopping at the wall behind my desk to pick at the peeling wallpaper. My gut tells me not to trust what Lucien is telling me. There is something fishy about his story, but I can’t figure out what. Trust the CEO of a major corporation? That goes against my instincts. I’ll give this a few days before I decide about him. In the meantime, I need some rent money in the form of a healthy deposit.

  “Can you at least tell me the name of the murder victim? Do you know any details of the case?”

  Lucien thinks for a moment before answering me.

  “You’ll need to get that information from Grant. He made me promise to have you ask him any questions about the case. Like I said, you made a huge impression on him.”

  I stop pacing to look at Lucien. Again with the smirk. I’m trying to determine just how much I might regret this. This coming with me business is just not going to fly.

  “It would be a very bad idea if you come along,” I say finally. “I’m the private investigator, and you’re the client. We can’t cross those lines. You could put me or yourself in danger, and I don’t want to be responsible for that. In addition, my focus would be split between you and Jennifer Spion.”

  Lucien leans toward my desk. “I’ve been doing a lot of reading and know all about investigating crimes. I won’t be a problem, I promise. I must insist. Either I go or I hire someone else. That would be a pity for both of us, wouldn’t it?”

  Damn it, he is pissing me off. He knows I have no choice. But I can still argue with him.

  “What part of no don’t you understand? Doesn’t anyone ever turn you down?”

  The answer is apparent, but I want him to say it.

  “Actually, no. I never take no for an answer. Not in my professional life and definitely not in my personal life. So what’s your answer, lovely Lily? Do I go on the stakeout or do you look for another way to pay your rent? Makes no difference to me.”

  Well, it turns out he’s not the rarest of all males. He may be good looking, but he’s not nice. I’ll keep searching for that elusive beast.

  “You’re infuriating, you know that?”

  The door to my office opens, and Judy pokes her head in. “Is everything okay in here?”

  Judy doesn’t like Lucien and informs him of this with a rude look. He doesn’t appear to notice. Either that or he’s ignoring her. Not a good move to ignore Judy.

  “I’m fine, Judy. It’s just that we can’t seem to agree on something. Come in here a second. Maybe you can help. Would you please explain to this man why he can’t come along on the stakeout? He won’t listen to me.”

  Judy steps into the room, closes the door behind her, then walks over and leans in so her face is an inch from Lucien’s. She stares into his eyes for a full minute before speaking. Even I start feeling awkward. What is she doing?

  “Sir, you are not allowed to go with Lily. She has never had a client accompany her on a stakeout, and she’s not about to start now, understand? Now shut up and listen to her. She’s an excellent PI. She’ll solve your case if you give her a chance.”

  Judy stands up, smooths her skirt, and starts to walk out of the room. She hesitates for a moment before she turns to me.

  “Anything else, boss?”

  I shake my head.

  “She is rather persuasive,” says Lucien, “but I’m still coming along.”

  I sigh. “I don—”

  “If you disagree,” he says, “the job is canceled, it’s as simple as that. No more playing around: I need an answer from you. This is an urgent matter.”

  He’s won this time.

  “Let’s make a compromise about this. You come along and observe. But you have to listen to whatever I say. If I say stay, you stay. We need to make sure you understand who’s in charge here.”

  He holds his hand out for a shake. I keep my hands on my lap. He’ll have to work for my respect. He takes it back and smiles.

  “Agreed, lovely lady. I’m at your command.”

  Chapter Five

  The beginning of tonight’s stakeout is not going smoothly. I tell Lucien watching Jennifer’s apartment is a waste of time. If she really disappeared, we should look elsewhere. He is persistent and claims we have to start here. Despite our agreement, I keep insisting I should do the preliminary work alone, but Lucien won’t agree to that. He may be the first person I’ve met who’s just as stubborn as me. I told him I was going to go to her residence as a concierge, although I didn’t mention I’d done that for my previous case. He said no. He wants to be by my side as I observe Jennifer. I keep reminding myself he’s paying me a hundred uni-chits an hour, so I swallow my biting remarks and put up with more than usual.

  Lucien still hasn’t told me who was murdered, and I haven’t called Officer Mitchell yet. I’m not sure why he keeps trying to get me to call him when Lucien could just tell me everything. So here we sit in Lucien’s car, since I don’t own one, waiting for Jennifer to show up. Lucien is curious about how I go on stakeouts without a car.

  “If you’re a private investigator—”

  “If?” I snap. “Do you have doubts about my abilities?”

  “No, I apologize,” he says hastily. “I’m sure you perform your job with skill. My question is, since a large part of your job is sitting around spying on people, why don’t you have a car?”

  The interior of the limo is starting to feel too small. His question makes me feel embarrassed by my circumstances. I want to change the subject, but he’s bound to ask me the same question again.

  “Yes, it is, but I can do it from the street. I walk by them or stand around pretending to be reading my tablet. There are a lot of ways to observe without sitting in a vehicle. Plus, as I’m sure you’ve gathered, I can’t afford a car, but it hasn’t hindered me from doing my job.”

  He gazes at me skeptically and then gives me a smile. I need to stop looking at him; that smile takes away my power. It’s curious that he drives his own limo. I thought rich people had chauffeurs. Now’s the perfect time to ask, since he’s been doing his own game of Twenty Nosy and Annoying Questions.

  “So, are you trying to save some money?” I ask.

  “What do you mean?”

  “Why do you drive your own limo? Aren’t you supposed to have some lackey that follows you around, doing your bidding? Shouldn’t your lackeys have lackeys?”

  “Oh, you mean why don’t I have a chauffeur? I normally do, but for tonight I wanted it to just be the two of us.” He chuckles. “It was hard enough to get you to allow me to come with you. Fighting with you to let my chauffeur come along isn’t something I wanted to do. Plus I wouldn’t want your assistant, Judy, to blow a gasket.”

  After waiting for an uncomfortable hour, where he stares at me and I stare at Jennifer’s place, she fi
nally shows up, and I sit up straight with interest. We didn’t know if she’d ever appear, since Lucien told me Jennifer was missing, but he convinced me to stake out her place anyway, just in case. When she appears, I’m not surprised to see her with another man. This one looks like he comes from the same planet as Jupzi. They walk arm in arm, looking quite cozy. One change in her appearance, though—this time she has a red scarf wrapped around her neck. Something tingles at the back of my mind. I might be paranoid, but that could be the same type of scarf as the dead woman’s. I turn to Lucien to ask him about it.

  “Have you seen her wear that scarf before?”

  “No, but I’m not an expert on her entire wardrobe. Plus I usually see her naked.”

  I roll my eyes.

  “Why do you ask?”

  I wonder if I should keep the information from him out of spite, but that might slow down the investigation. Plus, I’m starting to get worried. “The murdered woman was strangled with a red scarf that looks a lot like the one she’s wearing now. I could be wrong, but it’s worth noting.”

  Lucien looks surprised, and he looks back at Jennifer in alarm. This is the first time he seems to lose his cool. “If that’s true, then we could be in a lot of danger.”

  I turn to him, confused. “We? What do you mean we might be in danger? If you think we’re going to be harmed, then you need to tell me. We should leave immediately and call the cops.”

  Lucien nods his head and pulls out his communicator, going through his contacts until he finds the number for Officer Mitchell.

  “I’m going to give Grant a call. Tell him what you suspect,” he says.

  “I was just making an observation,” I say, suddenly hoping I haven’t caused unnecessary trouble. “I mean, I don’t want to get the police involved if it means nothing. Why are you so freaked out anyway? Why would a connection between the dead woman and your girlfriend matter?”

  He ignores me. Mitchell isn’t answering.

  “And are you ever going to tell me the real reason we’re following her? Obviously you can get whoever you want. I mean, she’s beautiful, sure, but there are tons of beautiful women out there. If she’s not into you, then I say move on and forget about her.”

  I think he still feels something for his girlfriend, and I don’t know why, but it really bothers me. What the hell is wrong with me?

  “Believe me,” he says, “I don’t care about Jennifer anymore.”

  “Well, if you don’t care about her, then why are we sitting here?” I slump back in my chair, pouting. “It doesn’t make any sense.”

  Lucien gives up on his call, then looks at the apartment before answering. “I have to know if she’s okay and what’s going on in her life. Look at me.”

  I turn and am startled to find Lucien is leaning over, right in my face, his eyes lingering on mine for just a moment. “No emotional connection to her anymore,” he says, then he leans back.

  I want to make sure my feelings are clear to him. “And hopefully no feelings for me, either,” I mutter under my breath, my heart pounding.

  I have to get out of here. I can’t be around him any longer, and I can’t face my own emotions. I’m so conflicted. I enjoyed being close to him more than I’d like to admit, but I also know that I don’t want a man like Lucien in my life. My life was much simpler before he stepped through my doorway and hired me.

  “You know what? I’m outta here,” I say.

  “No, we can’t leave,” he says. “If there is a connection, we need to find it. These people are dangerous.”

  “Hold on,” I say, putting up a hand to stop him. “I follow cheating spouses. I’m not a murder investigator! If you know or even think there is a connection between your girlfriend and the murdered woman, that is important enough to call the police.”

  “Are you in or out?” he snaps, losing his cool again. “You said you’d take my case. Well, this is my case, like it or not. I thought you were a professional, Lily. You want to leave, then leave. I don’t have time for amateurs.”

  That stung. I look at Jennifer’s building and then at Lucien. My business is important to me, and I hate being called an amateur. His manipulation is working, damn it. I was on the periphery of a murder investigation when I stumbled on that dead woman six months ago, and I haven’t been that close to one since. Maybe I should consider adding murder investigations to my repertoire.

  I sigh. “I’m in. Give me Grant’s number, and I’ll tell him what’s going on.”

  Lucien looks at me with a twinkle in his eye. “Oh, so you’re calling him Grant now? He’ll be pleased.”

  The charmer is back.

  “I’m going inside before I call him. My friend Sarah works in that building.”

  “Connections and a great ass. I’m impressed.”

  I can’t let him fluster me, so I scoff at him in disgust, but I still secretly appreciate the compliment. What a lunatic, though. Who finds time to flirt with their hired PI while staking out their girlfriend? There’s got to be more to the story. If he keeps flip-flopping, I’m going to force him to tell me what’s really happening. But for now, I’ll go along with it.

  “As I was saying before you so rudely interrupted me…” I give him my best stink eye, and he thankfully shuts up. “I’m going inside to ask around,” I say. “Maybe that guy’s been here before.”

  Lucien begins to open his door.

  “Wait here,” I tell him. “This won’t work if you’re hanging around. Chill out. I’ll be back in a few minutes.”

  When I enter the lobby, some of my former coworkers greet me. I ask to see Sarah and am directed to the front desk. I go up to her and begin to ask questions.

  “Hi, Sarah,” I say, keeping my voice low. “I’m on another case. Think I can ask you a few questions?”

  “Of course you can, Lily.” She looks behind her. “Let me get someone to cover the desk first.”

  After someone takes over, we move over to a spot near the elevators to continue our conversation.

  “Who is it this time?” she asks. “Oh, and did you solve the case from last time? Jennifer Spion?”

  “Well, you’re not gonna believe this, but I’m on a new case, and yet I’m following the same person.”

  Sarah’s eyes go wide in surprise. “No way!” There’s a glimmer of hungry curiosity in her eyes. Nothing like a gossipy informant. “What’s she been up to this time?”

  “That’s why I’m here. The man she just walked in with. Have you seen him before?”

  “I think so. I have trouble telling those kind apart.” She grimaces. “Crap, I didn’t mean to sound racist, but you have to admit, the aliens from Jaxiolis all look alike. Twice this week, not counting tonight, he walked in with her. I think.”

  “Twice? That seems unusual for Jennifer. From what I saw last time, she likes variety, if you get my drift.”

  A resident walks up, interrupting our conversation. After Sarah helps him, she turns her attention back to me.

  “Anything else?”

  “Yes, and this question may seem a bit odd, but it’s very important. Have you ever seen her wearing the red scarf she had on tonight? Think hard.”

  Sarah scrunches up her face in concentration. She shakes her head. “No, never. Jennifer doesn’t wear scarves. She likes to display the goods, and a scarf would get in the way.”

  “Okay. I gotta go. Thanks!”

  I run to Lucien’s car, waving to get his attention.

  “Call Grant now!”

  He sits up straight with alarm. “Why?”

  “Just call, then hand me the comm. I think there’s going to be another murder if we don’t hurry.”

  Lucien fumbles with his comm, then finally dials. Grant answers this time, and Lucien hands it to me, leaning in so he can hear the conversation. To get him to move away, I put it on speaker.

  “Officer Mitchell, this is Lily Lovegrove. We met at a murder scene?”

  “Yes, I remember. What’s up? And why are you calli
ng from Lucien’s comm?”

  I look over at Lucien. He is staring at Jennifer’s building with his hand on the door handle. I lock the doors and continue talking.

  “I don’t have time to explain, but I think there’s going to be another murder tonight. Can you get over here right away? We’re at 66 Park Avenue, sitting in Lucien’s limo.”

  “Put Lucien on the communicator.”

  They have a brief conversation that ends with Lucien yelling, “Get your ass here now or I’m going in without you.” Then he hangs up.

  “He’ll be here in a couple of minutes,” he says to me. After a pause, he sighs. “That seems like a long time. Anything could be happening. Shouldn’t we go up there now?”

  I shake my head. “I don’t carry a gun. What would we do if she’s in danger? I’ve taken martial arts classes, but that’s not going to protect me or you from a gun or a knife-wielding maniac.”

  “You don’t carry a gun? I thought that was standard issue for private investigators? There might come a day when you wish you had one.”

  “It is what it is, Lucien. I don’t feel comfortable with guns, but maybe you’re right. Grant will be here soon, so hold on and try to relax.”

  “What if we just ring her apartment? Maybe that will be enough to stop him.” He slaps his hands on his knees in frustration. “I can’t sit here doing nothing. It doesn’t feel right.”

  “You really do love her, don’t you?”

  Lucien turns to me. “This has nothing to do with love.”

  There’s a knock on the car window. It’s Grant. Thank god.

  “You two better have a really good reason for calling me out for this.”

  “Hurry, we need to get up there,” says Lucien while opening the car door.

  “Yes, hurry, Grant,” I say. “She’s wearing a red scarf, just like the one the murdered woman wore. Jennifer never wears scarves. I asked the concierge in the building to confirm.”

  Grant looks at both of us with skepticism, then nods and starts to jog toward the building. We follow.