Total pages in book: 116
Estimated words: 110550 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 553(@200wpm)___ 442(@250wpm)___ 369(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 110550 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 553(@200wpm)___ 442(@250wpm)___ 369(@300wpm)
“Whoa, Gen. The Closet was just our theory for how they’re getting their hands on clothes made by other designers. If it’s Jace, he can still tamper with Liam’s. Same for Zoe. We still have a chance—”
Genny threw my desk chair. “How are you not getting this?! We don’t have a chance. We don’t have time! We did it your way and now”—Genny shoved past me out the door—“we’re doing this my way.”
“Genny? No! Don’t—”
She punched the fire alarm. Ear-piercing rings chimed through the building, bringing the senior designers grumbling out of their offices.
“We’re getting this done,” she snapped. “Now.”
I didn’t know what that meant, but she wasn’t up for explaining. Genny pushed through the people heading downstairs, getting too far ahead of me too fast.
The building emptied out into the lobby. I spotted Lyla coming down the other staircase with Brielle, Madison, Skylar, Naomi, and Zoe. Lyla had her arm around Zoe—a sympathetic look on her face as she murmured to her.
The fucking nerve on that one. Damn Caddell House for refusing to put more security cameras! The higher-ups were so paranoid about leaks, they didn’t even trust the minimum-wage security guards they had watching the tapes. To be fair, eight years ago one of those minimum-wage security guards got paid an obscene amount by one of our rivals to do just that.
Clearing the way for another rival to fuck with me to her heart’s content. I snorted. What am I thinking? The dried-up husk in her chest cavity wasn’t a—
“That’s far enough.” Genny rang out through the lobby. “Stop! There is no fire. I brought you all down here for a chat.”
Heart thumping through my ribcage, I strained to see over the heads.
Genny stood between the crowd and the revolving doors. “Sit down!”
“Excuse me?” someone said. “Who the hell are you? Get out of the way.”
“I said sit. I won’t ask again.”
I shoved through bodies, moving as fast as I could.
“Listen, little girl.” I winced. That was the wrong thing to say to Genevieve Hunt. “Move aside or I’ll move you.”
The crowd surged forward, pushing in on Genny.
Bang! Bang!
“Ahhh!”
Screams shattered my eardrums—my own scream among them. The crowd surged again, and came straight at me.
“Don’t move! All of you, sit the fuck down!”
There was a time when I didn’t understand what made this beautiful, petite blonde so frightening that she ruled one of Cinco’s toughest boroughs. I would never wonder about that again.
Screaming, pushing, shoving, cursing, crying, and above it all, Genny bellowing for order and silence. Finally the designers and weaponless guards crouched on the floor—hands shaking above their heads. All of them except me.
I ran at Genny gasping, and it wasn’t from being winded. “What the fuck are you doing?!” My voice hit decibels I didn’t know about. “Are you insane?!”
“Sit down, Blaine!” She spun the gun on me. “Seriously,” Genny whispered under her breath. “Sit and keep your cover. They can’t think you’re in on this with me.”
It took a full five seconds for the words to penetrate. Genny wasn’t out of control. Her plan was to scare a confession out of the rat. When this was all over, she couldn’t step inside this building again, but I could as long as they think I’m another hostage.
Slowly, I backed away—hands raised. I crouched next to Zoe who immediately latched onto me, quietly sobbing into my shoulder. This was not her day.
“Now,” Genny began. “That’s much b— Dawson, take another fucking step and you’ll find out just how much I hate you.”
Lyla smacked the tile so hard, the sound reverberated through the lobby.
“What do you want?”
“Why are you doing this?”
“We don’t have money.”
“Shut up,” Genny barked, silencing a dozen sniffling pleas. “And I’ll tell you exactly why I’m doing this. You see, one of you here knows exactly who I am. You thought you could fuck with me, my family, and my gang, and get away with it. But we know, bitch.
“We know about the little presents you’ve been leaving in our clothes, so that trick isn’t going to work for you or your organization anymore.”
I scanned faces through my lashes. All shocked, angry, scared, or surprised. All what I’d expect to see if they were working with the Brotherhood, or if they were currently being threatened with a gun.
“I know all of you now.” Genny paced the length of the welcome mat, her muzzle sweeping the huddled crowd. “I know your names, your faces, and your addresses. No one leaves this building until the rat shows himself. If you do, you’ll be shown mercy. I’ll only kill you instead of your entire family and everyone you’ve ever met.”
I choked over Zoe’s sob. Barely an incentive, Genny!
“Show yourself!”
Vance rose up. “Miss Hunt, I assure you, none—”
“Ah, so it was you, Hollywell. You fucked with our clothes and turned us into walking targets.”