Page 51 of Whiskers on Kittens

“This one is closer to the two hundred million mark—or would be if it wasn’t going up on auction as a part of the mafia’s breakdown. We’ll snag it for closer to fifty million as my husband will be attending the auction dressed up like the naughty evildoer he is.”

Right. If the Devil showed up at an auction, I’d only test my luck a little before deciding maybe the Devil should buy the property. “Fifty million is a little steep.”

“The lives you are saving are worth far more than fifty million, and the view is on par with this. It will become your wolf’s favorite space, especially when you turn it into his salon with his own collection of liquor bottles he may never open because they bear the weight of happy memories.”

Just like that, she won the battle and the war. “Maybe one of the trafficking victims can be a live-in maid or something.”

“We will be buying the condominiums directly beneath your unit, and we will make it the home of the victims who will not do well if separated. They would clean their savior’s home for free but you will pay them because the thought of anyone working for you without fair compensation would leave you rather ill.”

“How are they going to afford the places?”

“They will become Lucifer’s minions so don’t worry about that. One or two will work for me. I usually take the ones who want to help in the dungeons as their souls need vengeance even more than justice. I’ll probably convert them to succubi once He has need of a few angels. Then they’ll get all the vengeance they need along with natural inclinations that match well with how they were nurtured and their general nature.”

A doorbell rang, and Darlene said, “I’ll bring her to the salon. That’s the best place for the meeting.”

I expected we’d both need a hard drink by the time we finished discussing business, and I went to the salon as told, headed to the bar, and eyed up the Devil’s assortment of alcoholic beverages.

If he hadn’t wanted me going after his fancy wine, he wouldn’t have left it out to be consumed, standing upright, as the vintage came with a hefty share of sediment, part of what made the red so desirable among many.

Darlene brought Carrie into the room, wished us well on our negotiations, and teleported away.

Showtime.

I made sure both glasses were poured to an equal level, picked both up, and offered her one. “Good morning, Carrie. Thank you for coming to see me. The subject is hefty, so we’re going to participate in some day drinking on the Devil’s dime. If you don’t like red, I’ll mix you up whatever you like. I’ve a bar at home, and it’s one of my hobbies.”

Carrie reminded me of a Hollywood beach star, blonde, tanned, and flawless, and she took the glass from me and lifted it up in a toast. “Kelsie, I presume?”

“I’m Kelsie.” I led her to one of the tables for two nearby, sat, and tried the wine, pleased the vintage matched the hype and price tag associated with it. “I’ll cut right to the chase. I’m after a group of ill-bred mobsters who stole a litter of lycanthrope kittens in order to traffic them. I’m working on His behalf to make a Christmas miracle. I want these kittens at my home by Christmas Eve, and I want your help making it happen.”

“We’ve already received your… gifts.”

“I cleaned house, and it happens that those ‘gifts’ were found during the process. I’m going to be particularly blunt as I’d rather not waste any time with unnecessary niceties. We want to clean up New York City. Any and all groups involved with the trafficking of humans and any sentients, gorgons included, are to be eradicated. Those who purchase humans or sentients will likewise find themselves facing the consequences for their actions. The trafficking in New York ends, and it ends now. As things stand, your group is not associated with any trafficking, which is why you’re being given the offer. I’ll be extra blunt with you: I am currently working with the FBI, and it’s entirely probable I’ll be the liaison for your group. My primary job is bringing ruin to corporations who step out of line with their employees and abuse the little fish. I’m not here to stop you from existing and participating in your general crime rings. I am here to change the nature of the conversation between the groups here and the NYPD. The endgame is simple: everyone will be cordial with everybody else. If the NYPD busts your group, they played the game better. If you get away with crimes on their turf, you played the game better. No shootouts with cops. Stakeouts and busts will continue to happen, but the goal will be non-lethal interactions.”

Carrie arched a brow and took a sip of her wine. “That is not what I was expecting.”

“I trust you know who that succubus is.”

“She’s the Queen of Hell. We’ve met. That you’re hosting the meeting here means we’re going to have a Devil of a time if we don’t play the game. If we do play the game, we’ll quite possibly gain in power and wealth.”

“Just not through trafficking.”

“Correct. Our boss hates trafficking, and it’s a death sentence if he catches anyone participating, so this will please him—and his wife. His wife was trafficked, and he bought her from a ring. He set her free, but she ended up taking over so he wouldn’t keep trying to send her off. She now rules the roost as much as he does.”

That explained a great deal. “Good. Frankly, I don’t care what you do after the other groups are cleared out, but I have two general requests. If your group turns to trafficking, you’ll get the same exact treatment as the traffickers we’re taking out. It’s not happening on my watch.”

Carrie nodded. “That’s absolutely fair and reasonable. Your second request?”

“Play nice with the cops. Lucifer has family in the NYPD, and the fastest way you bring ruin to yourself is to ruin something Lucifer loves. You’ve been warned, so if you court the forces of hell against your group, that’s your problem. Consider that a present if you want, but if you behave with the cops, you’re more likely to survive to tell the tale. Lucifer doesn’t play around.”

As the woman’s expression turned rather troubled, I believed she would make certain the message was forwarded—and the group would play a nicer game with law enforcement in the future. “How do you want us to help?”

“I want to clean house. I know they have a warehouse. If there are any trafficking victims, we’ll rescue them through sending them off to the Devil for a while. He’ll take care of rehabilitation. It’s a catch and release program for trafficking victims. Last round, I played as one of the traffickers with marching orders for the women to entertain incubi and succubi. Lucifer handled it from there. Since that tactic worked once, I’ll call in the sex demons again to teleport them away that way. Alternatively, I have a pocket portal to hell, and if they don’t cooperate, I’ll shove them through after a scuffle. The traffickers are to come to bloody and miserable ends. Then we have to clean up after ourselves, which is where the cleaning house portion of the plan comes into play.”

“That’s going to leave a lot of evidence.”

I shook my head. “Not when we have angels and archangels willing to abuse their holy fire to erase the evidence. He has been asked for a Christmas miracle, and He is using us to accomplish it. The angels and archangels are irritated enough with the situation they’re offering a little more help than normal for something like this. As long as your people keep their mouths shut about the raids, all that will be found are pristinely empty buildings. You’ll get your cut of the cleaning for the work. The rest goes to the victims.”

“We can forgo our share of the loot if it’s going to the victims. The bosses will like that. And anyway, Darlene said you’re paying our hourly rate for the work.”