Athena's Jewel (Aya Harris Collection 2)

So, this was the guy that lured the girls away from the safety of their friends and crowded bars? The thought made me want to scoot a few stools away. Glancing at him again, I realized it probably wasn’t that hard for him to do. He wasn’t exactly bad looking. Maybe a bit short for my taste, but most girls would go for a guy like him. All he had to do was get them someplace quieter and they were his – like a spider waiting for its prey to fall into its web.

He grimaced when he caught me side eyeing him and motioned for another shot. “Don’t judge me. The harpies made me get this job. It was either this, or spend the next decade in their secret prison, rotting away.”

I nodded, although it didn’t make me feel much better.

“I don’t suppose you’re one of them,” – he looked me up and down, frowning at my red painted fingernails – “one of them harpies? With the scary talons and stuff?”

Curling my fingernails into my palm, I ignored his question and swung around on my barstool to face the crowded dancefloor. A glimmer ran through the room, revealing a pack of werewolves grinding on one side of the dancefloor, and a few other creatures speckled in-between. I wondered if the dozen or so humans milling about the room had a clue they were surrounded by creatures that could snap them in half with a twitch of their paws. Probably not, judging by the way they danced with abandon, their hands reaching for the black painted ceiling.

“How does this work?” I asked Matt.

He shrugged, nudging a shot of tequila my way. The buzz from the first shot was already beginning to fade, so I downed the liquid courage in one gulp. Matt gave me a satisfied smile that revealed his crooked front teeth.

“Caro’s crew will be here in ten minutes for the pick-up. They’ll take you in a truck to their newest location. Can’t say where that is, as it changes every few hours.”

I bit my tongue and tasted the coppery blood in my mouth. “And then what happens?”

“Do I look like an encyclopedia?” he snapped. “I’m just an outside man. I pick up inventory, they do the rest. After tonight, I’m gone. I’ve done my job for the HQ. They can find someone else to do their dirty work.”

It looked like someone wasn’t too appreciative of the harpies and their favors. I couldn’t blame him. And I certainly didn’t want to ask him how many girls he’d sold to Robert Caro’s group before tonight, all in the hopes of getting a man inside Caro’s organization. Maybe the HQ didn’t mind playing it a little dirty sometimes, but this was messed up.

As if he could read my mind, Matt raised a dark eyebrow at me and swallowed his third shot of tequila for the night. “Hey, if I wasn’t around, someone else would still be doing the job. At least, that’s what I tell myself so I can sleep at night. Maybe you can stop them.”

Stopping Caro’s trafficking of supernatural creatures was on the bottom of my list. The only thing I cared about was finding my mother and getting her out. But, I wasn’t going to admit that to Matt. The way the dark bags hung under his eyes told me he needed to have a little hope. It wasn’t my job to dash them.

“Sure… maybe.” I spun back to the bar and drummed my nails on the shiny surface. Only three minutes to go. Any second now.

Turning to Matt, I felt the room spin in a circle that nearly tipped me out of my stool. Matt grabbed my arm to steady me and grinned when I looked up at him.

“Someone had too much to drink,” he said.

I furrowed my eyebrows. “No. Just two shots. I can’t…”

The room spun again and this time I spilled out of the stool completely, landing in Matt’s arms. He helped me stand up and directed me toward the backdoor.

“Here, let’s get you some air,” he said.

I nodded gratefully and allowed him to pull me along. Maybe the liquid courage had been a bad idea. Along with my nerves, I was starting to lose it. The plan didn’t sound so good at this point. Gideon should be here.

“I just need to make a call,” I said, pulling my cellphone out of my purse.

One call, and he’d be here. We’d take down Robert Caro together.

Matt yanked the phone out of my hand and shoved it in his jean pocket. “I don’t think you’ll be needing that.”

I tried to wrestle it back from him, but my arms were as weak as foam noodles. He pushed me through the back exit and into a darkened alley, next to an overflowing dumpster.

There was no way those two shots had affected me this way. Johnny had just taken me out to dollar shot night at Red’s Bar last week. I’d still managed to make it home on my own two feet. No, this was something else.

“You did this,” I sputtered. Dark clouds were beginning to cover my eyes. Any minute now, I’d give into their pull. “You drugged me.”

“Of course I did.” He waved at someone in the dark that I couldn’t see. “I have to make it look real. This is how I get everyone. Never take a drink from a stranger, FYI.”

A pair of headlights blinded me, lighting up the entire alley. The roar of an engine accompanied the light. I shielded my eyes to watch a truck roll our way, with the passenger door hanging open and a very large man leaning out. While distracted by the truck, I felt a metal collar being clasped around my neck, the ends clicking into place. In shock, I turned to Matt. He shrugged and frowned at me, offering no apologies.

“It gets rid of your supernatural abilities,” he said. “No gutting someone with those talons of yours. It’s a safeguard.”

Effectively declawed, I stared helplessly at the giant man that jumped out of the truck and ambled our way. My vision was blurry from the drugs, but what I could see of the giant’s doughy face was uneven and rough. He scowled at Matt and ran a metal wand over me, the kind they used at airports to search for metal.