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Archer jerked back in surprise. “Mr. King is Marshal’s competition?”
“No, he’s my new boss”—Genevieve hesitated—“or at least he was. I guess I can’t ever go back now. Mr. King said he likes me, but he said that before he found out I was the ex-girlfriend of a powerful criminal.”
“Ex-girlfriend?”
“I meant fiancée,” Genevieve said loudly, probably not fooling Jed’s men, but she needed them to believe she was on board. Cupping her hands, she motioned her head for Archer to lean down. “I’ll never give in to Marshal,” she whispered. “Never. Just the thought of being controlled for the rest of my life—I just can’t, Arch. Not to mention, he’s a corrupt creep—people’s lives are at stake. That means I have to cut off the head of the snake.”
With a stunned expression, Archer whispered, “What does that mean?”
“I need to take him down. I’ll do whatever it takes to put him in jail. When the time is right, can I count on you?”
Archer blinked and nodded through the mirror. “Of course,” he mouthed. “Besties for life.”
“Besties for life,” she returned. “Let’s get my hair fixed and then go get some drinks out by the pool. Do you still like strawberry mojitos?”
“Like?” Archer raised his brows as if the answer was obvious. “Love ‘em. Strawberry, peach, pineapple, mango…who cares? Bring ‘em on.”
“Perfect, they’ll just think we’re shooting the breeze if we’re drinking,” she whispered. “And they shouldn’t be able to listen to our conversation if we’re outside.” I hope anyway, and then maybe we can come up with a plan.
Eleven
BRENDAN
Brendan navigated his used granite-crystal Dodge Challenger Hellcat through the streets of Reno, less than a mile from The Outlaw Hotel and Casino. The less expensive car blended in but still accelerated like a bullet should he need to get away.
Quill’s name popped up as an incoming call.
“Whatcha got, Quill?”
“Manning Cole.”
“Who’s Manning Cole?”
“A man who despises Jed Marshall. I’ve been poking around, calling random casinos in Reno, saying we need a conference set up. Got as chatty as I could with the event planners. Anyhoo, Manning Cole owns over half the casinos in Reno, and he does his business legit—at least if you can consider the casino business legit. Those I could get to talk weren’t too reserved about saying how they would never set foot in The Outlaw. Well-versed townies know Jed Marshall’s shady. His network’s getting more transparent and cutthroat. Tourists and average townies don’t know, of course, so there’s plenty of everyday traffic in the place.”
“So you think Manning Cole is interested in taking Jed Marshall down? Why? What would be in it for him?”
“Word is, Jed Marshall wants to acquire more casino real estate. He’s made enough of a nest egg off his drug network that he wants to expand, and his casino dealings draw in more clients. Marshall, apparently known as Marshal with one “l” on the end because he considers himself the law, like a US Marshal around Reno or something?—”
Brendan scoffed.
“I know, right? Definitely a douche. Anyway, the fact that Marshal is looking to gobble up casinos has Cole on edge. The man doesn’t want to slowly lose out to where he can’t compete with Marshal. One source told me Cole turned him down years ago when Marshal asked to join his real-estate network, and Marshal takes out those who don’t follow him even if it takes years to do it.”
“Shit, what have I gotten myself into?”
“What have you gotten us into, bro…us! Gigi better be worth it.”
“She is. There’s something about her. She stirs feelings inside me that have been dormant. I was beginning to think I wasn’t going to fall for anyone ever, and fortunately, she seems to fancy me, too.”
“She fancies you. Like the British say, huh?” A snort blew through the receiver. “So she says anyway. What exactly does she fancy?”
“Stop giving me hell. I don’t deserve it right now.”
“Sure you don’t.” Quill chuckled. “So? Spill.”
“If you must know, Genevieve likes my bolder side. She thinks I’m sexy when I’m cocky.”
Quill’s boisterous laughter crackled through the car speakers. “She said that. Really? When have you ever been cocky?”
