Lev (Shot Callers 1)

The wallet was heavy. I opened it with shaking fingers. My curse hung in the air then I laughed to myself as I pulled out the stack of hundred dollar bills. I didn’t count them all, but I was sure there was close to seven hundred dollars there. Dropping the wallet on the floor, I shoved the money into my pocket and moved to unlock the stall. Just as my fingers touched the cool metal, my conscience glared at me.

Why was the man carrying so much money? I wondered. Perhaps that withdrawal, that specific amount, was for something important. And I was taking it from him. He likely worked hard for that money, and here I was, stealing it.

I pulled the money out of my pocket, a frown marring my brow. I didn’t need all this money. I only needed enough to get by for a little while.

Removing two of the hundred dollar bills, I placed the others back into the wallet. But my conscience still wasn’t happy. Sighing, I took another hundred and put it back into the wallet, leaving me with only one.

A hundred dollars was nothing to sneeze at. I could make that hundred go a long way. It would feed me for two weeks, three at most. I’d come by something else by then.

Satisfied with my haul, I held onto the wallet, opened the stall door, and froze.

I hadn’t heard the door open, but the tall man leaning against the wall had clearly been there a while. His light brown eyes on me, arms crossed over his chest, he looked down at the evidence in my hand and said one word.

“Explain.”

Chapter Four

Lev

Although I didn’t understand other people’s emotions, I understood my own quite well. And right now, I was disappointed.

“Explain,” I ordered.

Her hair still covered most of her face, but I could see one wide green eye peeping out at me. She looked frightened.

No. From the way her hands shook and her chest heaved, it hit me that she wasn’t frightened. She was terrified.

Nodding toward the wallet in her hand, I spoke softer this time. “That belongs to my brother.”

Her shoulders slumped. She uttered a quiet but remorseful, “I’m sorry.”

Taking a step forward, I took the wallet from her hand and held out the other. She reluctantly placed a hundred dollar bill into it and stepped away from me. I opened Sasha’s wallet and stilled.

I looked up at the girl. She had dipped her chin to avoid looking at me. “There’s a lot of money in here.” She nodded. I asked, “Why didn’t you take it all?”

When she looked up at me, she blinked away tears and whispered a trembling, “I just wanted something to eat.”

A wave of emotion ran through me. First, anger, then sadness, then something I couldn’t quite explain. Protectiveness, perhaps. “You’re hungry.” A statement, not a question.

She nodded once more and it was done.

The girl had unexpectedly become my responsibility.

***

Mina

Gentle fingers under my chin lifted my face until I couldn’t avoid him anymore.

He spoke in perfect calm. “You have a choice.” I stared, confused. I hadn’t realized I’d be given a selection. “I can call the cops and have you arrested.” I almost bunched my nose, but stopped myself in the nick of time. I didn’t like that choice. “Or you can work for the club, make good money, set yourself up.” He added, “Never go without a meal again.”

Was this guy nuts? My mind gaped. Like I even had to think about which option I preferred.

Then he added a third option, taking the hundred-dollar note I’d nabbed and he held it up high. “Or I can give you this. You can leave and disappear into the night.” His eyes trained on me, he theorized, “A hundred dollars will get you more than one hot meal.”

My head swam. I was sure this was a trick.

A hundred dollars was enough to get me by for a little while but a job, a place to stay and food. How could I pass that up?

Oh, God, food was important to me.

I swallowed hard. “Option-B sounds good.”

He seemed pleased. “I thought so.” He extended a hand. “Come along.”

Pulling my sleeves down over my hands, I leaned away from him. “Wait. What kind of work? I—” My train of thought went elsewhere and I blushed. “Dancing? Like those girls out there?”

A single brow rose. “You think I want you to strip?”

My blush turned into a full-blown flush and I felt my neck heat.

Of course he doesn’t want you to strip. You’re not exactly Jennifer Lopez.

“I don’t want you to strip. I want you to stay clothed.” He looked disgusted that I would even make the suggestion. “Fully clothed,” he added testily, and mortification turned my stomach. “You’ll tend the bar with the others.”

“I don’t know how.”

His stare was blunt. “You’ll learn.”