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“A list of the worst crimes that’ve been reported in this city in the past few weeks,” he said. “We should figure out who committed those crimes and take them out. It’ll keep us busy for a while.”
As much as his use of “we” warmed me, I almost choked on my saliva at his declaration. Before, he’d only pointed out a couple of news stories that he thought we could apply our “justice delivery” skills to. Now he was scheduling the rest of our year?
“That’s… not really how we usually do things, remember?” I said carefully.
Carter waved off my objection. “Right, right, you wait until someone hires you. But no one hired you to destroy the Blood Hunter. Why shouldn’t we tackle other criminals in our free time?”
“Because we enjoyhavingsome free time?” Garrison said with an arch of his eyebrows. “Why should we do the cops’ jobs for them? They should get paid for something too.”
My brother ignored him. “Don’t we have the resources to go after these people?” he demanded, still focused on me.
“Of course we do,” Blaze answered for me. “But we’re not superheroes. We wouldn’t have those resources if we focused on pro bono cases.” He paused and then motioned to Carter. “Send me your list. I’ll have a look. We might be able to fit in one or two if the trail is warm enough and they’re a real menace to society.”
My brother beamed despite Blaze’s use of “might” and tapped on his phone. “I’ll shoot it over right now. I included links to the news articles and everything.”
“Excellent data gathering and organizational skills,” the hacker told him while Garrison hid a smirk behind his hand. “I’m sure that’ll come in handy no matter what path you end up taking from here.”
Pride lit my brother’s face even more. I nodded, smiling back at him. “You can always tell us about your ideas, even if we’re not necessarily going to go along with them.”
Carter let out a huff. “I guess that’s fair,” he allowed.
“Breakfast is ready!” Steffie called out, prompting Julius to emerge from his bedroom too. Before I could settle into a chair at the table, my phone vibrated in my pocket.
Frowning, I stepped off to the side. As far as I’d known, the only people who had this number were here in the room with me.
“Hello?” I said warily.
“This is Decima of the Chaos Crew, I trust?” said the woman on the other end of the line. She spoke in a crisp professional tone that I didn’t recognize at all, with a mild accent that sounded like a blend of English and German.
My posture tensed. “Who is this, and how did you get this number?”
“Oh, we have our ways. I’m a representative from the Devil’s Dozen, and I’m calling in regards to your inheritance.”
The Devil’s Dozen. That was the group the Blood Hunter had said he was a part of—the thirteen crime lords who controlled the entire world’s illicit underground activities, if he was to be believed.
What kind of “inheritance” would they have in store for me after I’d murdered one of their number?
“I’m not interested in any inheritance,” I said, “and if this is supposed to be a threat, you’ll be asking for just as much trouble as the Blood Hunter faced.”
The woman laughed, a cool tinkling sound. “I’m sorry, you must misunderstand. We’ve gathered that you’re the one who conquered the previous Blood Hunter fair and square. He left no heirs who can take over. That means the position at our table and all his holdings pass on to you. You’ve earned them fair and square.”
I blinked in surprise, momentarily lost for words. Was she serious? “I—I don’t know anything about that. I wasn’t looking to take over his job.”
“Well, it’s all yours if you want it. Before you decide, why don’t you join a couple of us for a little chat so we can go over the details face to face? I’m quite intrigued to meet the woman who brought about his end. You can choose the time and place and bring whatever defenses you like, but I promise, we simply want to talk.”
I wavered on my feet, part of me wanting to reject anything to do with the Blood Hunter and his colleagues outright, part of me tangled up with curiosity. If this elusive, exclusive organization really did rule over all crime in the world, wouldn’t it be to our benefit to at least find out more about it? Her terms would make it easy to keep myself safe during the meeting.
I wet my lips and decided. “All right. Let me talk about it with my crew, and I’ll get back to you with the details.”
* * *
The two figures who waited for me at the picnic table in the park—the very spot where I’d first told the Chaos Crew the truth about my upbringing—looked more like business professionals than master criminals. But then, the same could have been said for the Blood Hunter. Maybe thatwaswhat master criminals looked like. After all, they wouldn’t get very far wearing flashing signs proclaiming themselves mafia bosses on their foreheads.
The woman sat with rigid poise, her gaunt face topped by a swirl of silver hair. Her thin body was clothed in a sleek indigo dress suit that made her dark eyes shine starker over her hollowed cheeks. The man next to her looked maybe a decade younger, his hair still dark other than its speckling of gray, though he was already developing heavy jowls to go with his thickset frame. He wore a suit as well, fitted and pinstriped.
I approached them with caution but no real fear. We’d scoped out the entire park ahead of time and watched these two arrive. They hadn’t brought any backup with them that we’d been able to identify. If they intended me any harm, they’d have to contend with all four of my guys stationed in concealed positions around this glade, guns already trained on them. I had a pistol of my own in a holster under my arm and knives hidden by my hips.
I sat down at the table across from them, keeping my posture loose and ready to react. The woman’s lips curled into a subtle smile. “I’m glad you agreed to come, Decima.”
