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She let out a shrill laugh and moved toward the kitchenette that was the size of a closet She took soe and handed it to me The picture was a few years old, but there was noat the cairl

“What rich, powerful man do you know that keeps it in his pants? I’m the Hartmans’ dirty little secret, only no one kept it very well and Race cao just after I turned sixteen Different moms, different last names, same assle father If you can help Race, I’ll tell you anything you want to know, and if you can’t, I’ll find him on my own He’s the only family I have and I love him He saved my life”

I looked from the photo back to her face Race was a handsoirl was basic and ordinary, aside froreen eyes stared at aze that atching me like a hawk Race and the copper-top had the exact sa but fill me in Race is family to me too, which means I’ll do whatever I can to pull his ass out of the fire”

Hell, I had already done five years for the guy; going toe-to-toe with Novak would be a walk in the park

CHAPTER 2

Dovie

I HAD BEEN AROUND long enough in the worst parts of town to know the difference between a bad boy and a boy as just bad Bad was sta to do with the star tattooed on his face or the ominous and deliberate way he er to fill you with poison before you could blink His dark eyes were flat, like his eo been switched off and he had no interest in tapping back into therehere sometimes it was a luxury to just be poor because that meant at least you had a little bit of money So I had seen that look more than once, but I had never seen it worn in a face you just knew could destroy everything you loved and not even blink a ridiculously thick black eyelash This was a young man who had seen more—lived more—in his short years than most people did in a lifeti the best of the worst and there was no doubt in iven reassurance after reassurance that Bax was a good guy That once he was out, he would be able to help my brother fix the situation with Benny and Novak, that he was just a guy who had been handed a hard lot in life and did the best hat he had But looking at him inMy brother wasn’t fa to suffer without; he couldn’t see what I saw in the ness to do whatever it took to survive Five years in prison hadn’t beaten hier, er threat, and if I wasn’t mistaken, probably a better criminal I didn’t want him anywhere near me, but if he was ive him whatever he wanted Race was that important to me

Bax didn’t bother to ask if I cared if he sarette and put it between his lips The bottom of his mouth was puffy and cracked like he had s His dark eyes roved aroundstock I hated it I lived on what Imy ass off, and I kne to live and protect eHe was a convicted felon after all II did have I came by honestly

“What do you know?”

His voice was scratchy, rough, like he didn’t use it often He walked over to the crackedand pulled the sheers I had over it away so he could look at the diner across the way He was probably worried about his precious car

“Not roup home I was duht after you went away He told ave me the basic rundown on the Harthtmare as ave ood life for a brief ht ed and flopped down on uess”

I sent Cars were okay I had the entire neighborhood keeping an eye out for the elusive thief with the star tattoo for the last week It was alht breaking and entering was appropriate It bugged me that I had missed with the Taser I needed to spend a couple le girl in this kind of neighborhood could never be too safe or take too rew up in a town just like this, in a place just like this, but a state over Fro to Race when I shouldn’t have, Lord Hartet rid of me and disappear She didn’t Took the money and ran; only she didn’t want me so roup hoet placed in a notoriously bad horabby hands, mom was a drunk and didn’t care I wanted to take off, but Race talked me out of it; told me he would take care of hts so I wouldn’t be in the system anyether until I graduated He never told ot tired of asking And then a year ago soed, and he packed us up and moved us here like he was on some kind of mission Like he had a plan I felt like I owed it to hi without question He saved ether “I don’t knohat he had going on, but I liked this neighborhood, liked the coe, so I settled in He kept to hiht he was just waiting for you to get cut loose, but then the guy in the suit showed up He roughed me up a little, scared the hell out of me, and Race went off like a lunatic I’d never seen him that fired up I knoent to see Novak He said he was done being a puppet, that he was done letting other people call the shots He told ave himself for what happened to you, and that if you cao, and no one has seen or heard from him since”