Page 96 of Don’t Go Stealing My Heart

Jack increased his pace, but it wasn’t fast enough. A tribute artist blasted past him, and Jack gawked at Alistair’s back. His nemesis flew across the lawn, closing the gap to their mark. He was either a closet track star, or that gold record brought out his inner Captain America.

Ten strides later, Alistair launched himself at the burglar and latched his arms around the man’s shins, taking him down—face first, thankfully. But a blade flashed in the criminal’s hand. Alistair grabbed his forearm and tried to force it away. The man overpowered him, the knife jerking toward Alistair’s throat.

A deafening bang blasted from behind Jack, and he ducked.

Alistair gained the upper hand, forcing the burglar to drop the knife as Jack slammed to a stop. One of the Elvi stood with his legs apart, a gun aimed at the intruder. The multicolored sky made it look like a ridiculous movie scene.

By the time Jack made it over, Alistair had the gold record in his possession and the man flat on the grass, hands behind his back. Jack should be thrilled they’d thwarted his scheme and would prosecute this man within the full extent of the law—if the goddamn cops ever showed up—but he’d been foolish chasing him. His adrenaline had kicked in, sending him after the intruder when he should have sped to the estate.

He was about to jog away when something shiny sparkled in the grass. The chocolate diamond. The one Clementine had been wearing. Feeling ill, he picked it up only to see red streaks on the chain. Ruby red streaks. Blood. “Where is she?”

The bearded man twisted his head and spat out dirt and grass. “She’s where she deserves to be.”

Cryptic bullshit. He started running, but shouted over his shoulder, “If you hurt my family or Clementine, you’ll be wishing that bullet hit you.”

“Your family’s lucky they were out tonight,” he called back. “Clementine wasn’t so lucky. Her game should be up any second now.”

29

Jack sprinted, signaling to guys as he went. “Five of you stay with Alistair and keep that man contained. If you have a phone, call an ambulance. The operator will give you shit, but if enough of you make a fuss, they’ll have to comply. The rest come with me.”

Hearing his family was safe barely made a dent in Jack’s fear. Clementine’s game couldn’t be up. He didn’t know exactly what that meant, but there was blood on the necklace she’d been wearing, the possibilities revving his pulse. She could have been hurt before the burglar left, bleeding out while Jack had given the man chase. Sweat gathered under his polyester suit.

“Where to once we’re in?” The Elvis at his side had forty pounds on Jack, but he matched his pace.

“There’s a spiral staircase to the lower level. She might be down there.”

The Elvis nodded and pumped his arms. “No one messes with the David family on my watch.”

Jack silently thanked his granddad for launching the festival and giving him an Elvis army. He passed off the necklace and explained where the nanny’s quarters were, panting between instructions. Two would head there once inside.

All breathing hard, they piled into the estate. The two ran toward the kitchen and his father’s room. Jack led the rest down the stairs, motioning to keep quiet, but voices stopped him cold. Two people. Clementine and another man. Hearing her meant she was alive, but he hadn’t counted on another intruder.

He halted the guys and spoke low. “I’m going to check things out. If I yell Elvis, that means I need you.” Too much commotion could endanger Clementine more.

He crept down the steps toward the sound room, flattened his back against the wall and peeked down the hall. His heart lurched. Clementine didn’t look harmed, but an older man stood before her, his gun pointed at her chest.

“I homeschooled you because you needed to be educated,” he said. “Our cons involved high society. They required a level of book and street smarts. And, if you recall, you begged me not to send you to public school, which saved me from forbidding it.”

“Because I was terrified of being discovered and put back into the system. Another weakness of mine you exploited.” She let out a disgusted laugh. “Wow, Lucien. You really did a number on me.”

Jack reeled at the man’s name. Lucien had raised her, hadn’t he? He had clothed and fed her while training Clementine to steal. A fact that hadn’t sat well with Jack, but she’d only ever mentioned Lucien with fondness, no hint of bad blood.

She kept asking questions, his replies almost eager. The more he heard, the more it sounded like Lucien had been lying to Clementine, raising her under false pretenses. The conversation didn’t fully make sense, but there was no misunderstanding the weapon aimed at the woman he loved. A woman trained in combat. If he distracted Lucien and gave her an edge, she’d take it. She’d understand. Anything else, including an Elvis horde, could increase her danger.

* * *

Clementine pulled her right elbow back, just a smidge, ready to land a punch to Lucien’s kidneys. His weak spot. Over the years, landing a kick or punch there had always ended with them on the floor, sweaty and laughing. She’d never put her muscle into it back then.

She’d throw her entire body into it now.

“If I needed normalcy in my life,” she asked him, “what did Yevgen need? A puppy to mutilate?”

Lucien smirked, still happy to divulge his secrets, boast about his brilliance. Now was her chance, while he relived those glory days. She fisted her hand, but his pupils flared and his jaw hardened. His attention darted over her shoulder.

Oh, God.

She’d told Jack’s parents to stay put. Not to leave the room. She swiveled, dread rising with the move, and horror winched her chest. Why was Jack here? He couldn’t be here.