Pretty Sinner (The Oligarchs)

I stretched my legs and looked back at Skinny Jim. He looked at the ceiling, apparently very interested in a water stain.

“Would you mind getting me some tea?”

He looked startled, glanced over his shoulder, then stared at me. “Tea?”

“You know, hot water, bag with dried leaves? Usually turns brown after a bit.”

“I know what tea is. I don’t work for you.”

“No, but you work for the man that’s obsessed with me, so I think it’d be smart to be kind.”

He hesitated then rolled his eyes. “Michaels,” he barked, shouting toward the back. “I need you on duty.”

Cards came stomping out into the front room, glaring. “I was up three hands.”

“The girl wants tea.” Skinny Jim sneered at me. “Watch her for me.”

“Steep it for five minutes, please,” I called after him. “I hate when it’s weak!”

Cards grinned at me and adjusted his belt. He held a rifle under his arm and whistled softly to himself as I studied him for a few quiet moments.

He was rough around the edges. His clothes were rumpled and he needed a shave. He was older than the others by a decade at least, and he was in the worst shape. The other guards all treated him like an unwanted stepchild, but he still managed to keep a smile on his portly face.

“How long have you been working for Kaspar?” I asked, shifting to face him.

He stared at me and his grin didn’t falter. He must’ve been winning a lot today. “A few years.”

“Is he a good boss?”

He snorted. “Ask someone else.”

“That’s not a great answer, but I can’t really blame you.”

“Please stop talking to me.”

I sighed and tugged at my hair, frowning out the window again. “I’m not trying to get you in trouble. I didn’t want Kaspar to hurt Scott.”

“Scott was a fool.”

I tried not to smile and didn’t look back. “Why do you say that?”

I heard Cards shift from foot to foot. He was nervous now. He shouldn’t have said that. “Mind your own business and stop talking.”

“I’m only curious, is all. Scott was friendly, but I’m not so sure the rest of you will do your jobs to keep me alive when the time comes.”

“We’ll do our jobs.” He sounded angry.

I looked back at him and stood. He took a step back and ran into the wall as I approached. “You know who I am, don’t you? You know who my family are?”

“Of course. That’s why we’ll make sure nobody touches you.”

I nodded a little and tilted my head. “What if I paid you to make sure the opposite happened?”

His mouth opened then it snapped shut. Anger burned in his eyes. “You think I can be bought, little girl?”

“I think you need money. I’ve been watching you. Whenever you have the chance, you’re gambling, and the others indulge it, but they don’t respect you. I have a feeling Kaspar doesn’t respect you, either. I bet he pays you just enough to keep you around, but not enough to let you thrive. Am I right?”

Cards stared at me and my heart was racing. I looked back and tried to smile sweetly, but this moment was too important—my plan hung suspended in the air, dangling from the ceiling, ready to either smash to pieces on the simple wooden floor, or about to soar out into space.

“I think you’re playing a dangerous game, girl,” he said softly, eyes narrowed—but he didn’t deny anything.

“I can’t offer you respect, but I can offer you money. The Servant Family will pay anyone that brings me home handsomely, and I will personally make sure that my brother gives you a position at the manor. You’ll have a salary and you’ll be safe from Kaspar’s revenge. You won’t have to play cards anymore, unless you want to do it for fun.”

He licked his lips like I’d presented him with a beautiful chicken dinner.

“Go sit down,” he ordered.

And again, I noticed that he didn’t say no.

I smiled at him and walked away. I was shaking when I took my seat again and looked out the window. My hands trembled and I knew I was playing a dangerous game that could easily backfire and get someone killed, but I couldn’t help myself.

This was my life. If I rolled over and let Kaspar do whatever the hell he wanted with me, then I was finished. That would only prove everything I already thought about myself—that I was worthless, useless, rotten, and dumb.

Cards wasn’t going to turn right away, but I’d planted the seed.

He’d think about my offer. And if I was lucky, and I could engineer the perfect opportunity, he just might turn.

For now, that was all I could hope for.

Skinny Jim returned with tea on a tray. He dropped it on the coffee table with a snort and relieved Cards who returned to the back room without so much as a glance in my direction. That was good—he wanted to seem like everything was normal.