Jace pretended to be surprised. “Kara? Your cousin, the woman I used to date?”
Dylan hung his head. “It’s my fault Lance targeted her. He knew I worked for her, heard me talking about that diamond necklace. I don’t think he knows we’re related, though.”
Dylan rubbed his face. “I feel so bad. She’s been terrific, giving me a job, cutting me a break and now, I went and stole from her.”
“Keep your voice down,” Jace warned, glancing around. “I understand. You didn’t have much choice, Dylan.”
Dylan picked up his cell phone. “Kara’s more than my cousin. She’s a friend. She understands me. She knows I love video games and she plays them on her phone, too. I even gave her the link to one that Big Mike sent me. Kara loves movies about royalty and kings and queens.”
He showed Jace the game he’d downloaded about a prince trying to rescue a princess from a dragon and a burning tower.
“Kara’s cool. She’s always giving me a monthly bonus, trying to help.”
He handed Dylan back his cell. The kid looked miserable.
“I took photos of the inside of the store, told Lance about the layout of the shop. Lance said she’d be covered by insurance. It doesn’t matter. I still stole from her.”
A conscience was a welcome sign. Guilt. Dylan wasn’t like the other kids, who didn’t care about the consequences for the people they robbed.
“Something will work out. Believe me, it will.”
More than that, he couldn’t say.
Dylan didn’t answer, only stared at his boots, looking morose. Jace sighed. “Why don’t you join your friends? Sounds like they’re having fun.”
The teenager scoffed. “All they care about. They live for the thrill. They’re not my friends. I haven’t had a real friend since my best friend, Conner, died when we lived in the old neighborhood. Sometimes I think Kara hired me because of what happened to Conner.”
Interest pricking, Jace studied him. “Why would she care?”
But Dylan shook his head. “Long story. Jace, I have to get out of this. I have to find a way out. My mom doesn’t need to worry about me anymore. The stress can make the cancer worse.”
If Lance will let you go. A chill raced down his spine. “Worry about that tomorrow. Go have some fun.”
He shoved at Dylan. “Go on, kid.”
The tension in his chest eased a little as Dylan went into the other room. Dylan was right. He had to get out of this gang. But he was a material witness and Jace knew Big Mike and Lance wouldn’t let him go so easily. The gang was like a roach motel—once you checked in, there was no leaving.
And Lance is the head roach, who makes promises to a desperate teenager who only wants money so his mom can get chemo. Disgusted, Jace stood and went over to the window.
He went still.
Someone was outside, listening.
Jace slipped out the back door. With extreme stealth, he hugged the building, staying in the shadows until coming to the window over the sofa where he and Dylan had talked.
Though darkness shrouded the figure trying to peer past the partly closed curtains, he needed no light. He knew the slim curvature, every inch of the athletic frame he’d once held in his arms and made love to each night.
Kara.
Chapter 9
If blood could boil, hers was volcanic right now. Kara stood outside the white concrete, dilapidated building, trying to see inside. She’d gone to her shop, only to see four fast racing bikes speeding away on Cannon Avenue.
Inside the store, she found smashed glass display cases with missing watches and rings. But the safe yawned open, an empty cavity.
The Vandermeer jewels. All gone.
One of the bikes racing away was Dylan’s. The bike he adored and was paying off. He could pay it off a lot sooner now with the money he’d get from selling the stolen jewels.
She’d come here to the clubhouse, driven by fury, wanting to snatch Dylan away from here. Get him to confess what he’d done, get him away before the police nailed him.
This is what you get for trust. You felt bad for him, gave him a job and he stole from you.
She inched away from the window. How could Jace hang out with such a group of criminals? Kara partly understood Dylan’s reasons. He was desperate. How she wished she’d seen the signs earlier, had gotten him to open up to her. But she was too busy with her inventory, her sales.
You let your little brother down and now you are letting your cousin down.
As she headed toward the parking lot to call the police, two rough hands seized her by the waist, spun her around. Next thing, she was tossed to the ground, her cheek pressed against the cold, hard dirt.
She smelled spicy cologne, and it reminded her of those nights in Jace’s arms. Panic took hold and she struggled.
“Stop it,” a low voice hissed.
Jace. He grabbed her arms, immobilizing her as he pinned her, trapping her against his big, muscled body. Terror scrambled her thoughts. As she tried to scream, he clapped a hand over her mouth.
Then Jace spoke in a low, urgent whisper into her ear.
“I’m going to help you, Kara, but you have to trust I won’t hurt you. Please.”
