Working Stiff by Rachel Caine Read Free Book Online

formal about it with the customers
. Not that Mr. Fideli was shaping up to be a customer, after all.
    “I’m supposed to find out if Mr. Fairview and Fast Freddy are running drugs,” he said. “Prescription drugs. Stolen.”
    “
What?
Of course not!”
    “No offense, but you’re what, a day into this job? How would you know?”
    “This is a successful business. Why would they do something so stupid?” Then again, she’d met Freddy. And she wouldn’t put anything past him. “Unless—maybe it’s not Mr. Fairview? Just Freddy?”
    Fideli’s head came back upright, and there was a new tension in his body. “You know something about the guy?”
    “Not that much. Just … he’s a creep. You know the type.”
    “Explain it to me.”
    “He came on to me. Downstairs.”
    “Romantic.”
    “Exactly.” She cleared her throat. “Look, I’m not Wonder Woman—do you think you could put the gun down?”
    “What?” He seemed genuinely surprised, and then smiled. “Yeah. I already went through the drawers of your desk. Just in case you had a thirty-eight-caliber surprise in there. So I guess you’re safe enough.”
    She was startled. “When did you do that?”
    “While you were downstairs.” His gaze shifted, and the easy friendliness disappeared instantly. “Hold up. Don’t move.” She didn’t. He got up and went to the window, looking without moving the blinds. “You know of any reason why your boss and Freddy would come back here after hours tonight?”
    “No.”
    “Well, they’re parking cars right now.” Fideli backed up next to her, and the gun made an unpleasant reappearance. “Not a word, Miss Davis.”
    “You’re not going to kill me are you?”
    “Why would I do that?”
    “Because you’re the one with the gun?”
    He looked at it. “This old thing? Family heirloom. I hardly ever shoot anybody with it.” He was lying, but he was doing it with style and a sense of humor, and whether she wanted to or not, she felt a little bit better about being held hostage. “You’ll be quiet?”
    “Absolutely.”
    He sent her a sassy wink, which wasn’t nearly as creepy as when Fast Freddy did it. “Good girl.”
    Fideli moved to the closed door and listened with great concentration—but still keeping an eye on her; she was sure about that. Bryn didn’t move. Straining her ears, she heard the front door opening and the door chime faintly making the announcement. Then nothing. Soundproofing worked in bad ways, too.
    Fideli, however, had heard something she hadn’t. “They’re heading downstairs,” he said. “Okay, let’s get you out of here, miss.”
    “Excuse me?”
    “No place for bystanders right now. Up and out.”
    Not that waiting in the dark for the bus was going to be her favorite thing, either. “Can’t I just wait here? You know, until you‘re, ah, done?” Whatever that might mean.
    “No,” he said. “Get your stuff, Bryn.”
    The kinder Joe Fideli was gone again, replaced by one highly mission-focused. She got her purse and coat and followed him as he cat-footed it down the hall to the lobby door.
    She grabbed his arm. “The bell!” she whispered. “They’ll hear it!”
    “You’ve got reason to be here, and reason to be leaving,” he whispered back. “Play it cool, whatever they do. Just pretend like everything’s normal, and leave. Go catch your bus.”
    Then he opened the door, the bell dinged, and he disappeared into the shadows, moving so fast that Bryn was left standing there, openmouthed, with the door swinging back shut against her outstretched hand.
    Nowhere to go but out.
    Bryn didn’t get far. She was less than ten feet from the door when she heard the muffled chime of the bell again, and looked over her shoulder to see Mr. Fairview standing there.
    “Bryn,” he said, still using that soothing working-hours voice. “Well. This is a surprise. We thought you’d already left, especially after the day you’ve had.”
    “I got caught up in reading