Little Bird (Caged #1)

by M Dauphin

  Holy hell. This game of cat and mouse that I thought would end in her devouring me and giving me everything I want has turned into so much more. She wants me gone, which makes me want to stay so much more.

  “I can assure you I understand completely, Ms. Porter.” I inch closer and breathe in her scent of jasmine and honey. I turn to walk away but not before leaving her with one final piece to think on. Dropping the nasally bullshit tone, I tell her, “But I’m not saying I’m promising to agree to your terms.”

  I don’t wait to see her reaction, but I can only bet it’s one of utter rage.

  A hand grabs my arm and tugs me until we’re face to face. Her chest rising and falling with anger and there’s a burn in her eyes that I’d love to see while I fuck her.

  “I rented to your aunt and uncle, not you, Mr. Milkey. If you don’t leave my property, and yes, I own all fifteen hundred acres and every house sitting on every inch of land I posses, I own them too. You will not tell me you aren’t agreeing to my terms. A week and if you’re not gone, I will have you escorted off the property and I will make sure you never step foot back on it.”

  I almost laugh because I know she’s threatening me with what Jasper will do for her, granted she doesn’t know I understand what she’s talking about, but she also doesn’t know her threat is null and void because of who I really am.

  “Megan.” An old man touches her arm and the rage burning in my direction is suddenly melted, gone in a split second before she turns to face him.

  I stand idly by, waiting for their nonsense conversation to be over. The whole time playing through my head how this conversation could go.

  She doesn’t know who I am. I have to keep low key about that and it’s proving to be hard to keep the dominance down when she’s being so fucking hot headed, but I have to.

  He walks away a minute later.

  “I understand you have a business to uphold, Ms. Porter.” I nod at a couple passing by who I recognize from my block. “I’m just a little thrown off still by the sudden death of the only family I’ve ever known. My aunt and uncle practically raised me. I feel so bad I wasn’t better to them after they moved in here, but college life and jobs… everything just got in the way. Now they… they’re gone…” I shake my head. “I’d like to make it up to you, Ms. Porter. Let me take you out to eat. Have drinks with me. Something. Just give me a chance to prove to you that I’m not an asshole.” I give her my saddest, most pitiful face I think I can conjure. It feels so unnatural to be so… weak, but that’s what she’s looking for so that’s what I’m going to do.

  Softly clearing her throat, she paints that fake smile back onto her face. “No need, Mr. Milkey. I understand at times our emotions get away from us. Please enjoy the party and unwind a little.”

  I can’t believe she shot me down after that pathetic display, and she’s walking away!

  “Right.” I chuckle. “Sorry about that.” It’s so fucking hard playing this nervous kid! “My offer still stands, Ms. Porter. Any time. In the next week, I guess…” I give her a sideways grin and enjoy the glare she’s giving me way too much.

  Apparently she’s tougher than I thought though, because the grin she gives me has me backing up a few steps.

  “A young, fit man like yourself shouldn’t have any problems clearing out that place in a week. My offer to hire the moving company still stands. I have to put the house on the market, Mr. Milkey, and they don’t usually sit long. You understand?” It sounds more like she’s telling me than asking and she’s most definitely avoiding my offer to take her out.

  “I absolutely do,” I say giving her the end. “I’ll still be here all week though.”

  “We established that.” That fake smile appears again as she gives me a nod like I’m getting on her last nerve. “I’ve allowed you to take the week so I imagine you’ll be here all seven days.” She nonchalantly steps closer and glances around. “I’m not much into the dating scene, Mr. Milkey. And a man like you wouldn’t know what to do with a woman like me. Trust me when I say I’m letting you off easy here.”

  “We’ll see, Ms. Porter.” I lean in and brush my lips to her cheek before backing away.

  I’d say that’s enough for tonight. I’ve seen her hands starting to tremble ever so slightly the longer I take up her time. I think it’s time to back off and see just what she’s doing here tonight from a safe distance.

  After grabbing a drink from the open bar, I find a seat in the corner near the piano player. He’s good too, because when I walked in I swear I thought it was a recorded track. Sitting here, watching people, I see her every now and then but she’s like a bird, all over the room as quick as can be, only staying in one spot for a short period of time. There were a few times I wish I could have heard her conversation just from the look on her face, but nothing tonight tells me she’s doing anything illegal outside of Jasper’s realm. There have been a few trips to the bathroom with other women. There were a few times she had to go to the back area, but she always seemed to go alone. I know she’s up to something, but whatever it is, she’s good at covering her tracks.

  It’s midnight before I head home to a dark house and pass out for the night.

  ***

  By the next week, I’ve spent every fucking day learning more and more about this woman and I can honestly say she’s one of the most boring people I’ve ever thought about fucking, and if she’s planning on stealing from the empire, she’ll be fucking up any minute. Her approach to life is weak.

  Don’t get me wrong… I still want to fuck her. Hard. Just the thought of having her underneath me, screaming out has me hard as a fucking rock. I can’t do that though, until the time is right. The most important thing right now is to figure out just what she’s planning. If anything at all. So far I know she doesn’t do business out of her house and only leaves the neighborhood twice a week. That’s it. She spends her time holed up in her house on the corner, probably reading or some shit, just waiting for something to happen. She talks with a couple of the neighbors on a daily basis but that’s only for about three minutes at a time while she’s getting her mail. She doesn’t have any friends that I’ve noticed other than some chick that was at the party the other night with the kid, but even then they don’t ever go out and do anything.

  Megan isn’t like what I was expecting. I thought I’d be walking into a hot mess of lazy and find everything right out there, but so far she’s been good at keeping shit hidden and under the radar.

  Way too good.

  Tomorrow is one week since her practical eviction notice and I’ve got nothing on her other than a partial pity party because she really doesn’t have a life. She has a bird… that’s about all the insight to her life that I’ve been able to get because she keeps to herself so much. The trackers and cameras have done nothing to help with my search of intel.

  Walking outside to get the last of the mail, hoping that today brings something new, I notice a car driving into the neighborhood that I shouldn’t ever see near me when I’m on a job. Standing by the road, the black Rolls comes to a stop in front of me and when the window rolls down, I have the sudden urge to punch the face staring at me.

  “Way to put this entire mission on the line, man,” I grumble as he smiles at me.

  Smiles! What the hell is he doing here?

  “Lucas…” Jasper trails off and looks around the block then pulls into the Milkey driveway.

  Getting out, I notice he’s dressed just as any normal day, which means this is either a check in trip or a purely personal trip… Unfortunately, both make me uneasy being as that they both mean something’s wrong.

  “How’s the little issue going?” He’s still looking around as he gets out of the car, probably because he knows no one needs to see him here.

  “Let’s get inside,” I mumble letting him follow me into the house.

  After locking the door and closing the blinds, I’m almost past the initial rage over him just showing up here. He’s never don
e this before… but I’ve also never been on a case like this before. Typically I take care of issues quickly and efficiently, no questions asked. This is a little different, but that doesn’t mean it’s okay for him to just show up here. The second she sees him, my cover’s going to be blown and all of this will have been for nothing.

  Fuck.

  “What do you need, Jasper?” I hand him a glass of vodka and sit across the room from him.

  He swirls the alcohol in his glass before watching me take a drink of mine.

  “How’s it going with her?”

  “Megan? She’s fucking boring as shit, man. I don’t think there’s anything to worry about.”

  She is, too. She might be running this ring, but however she does it is beyond me.

  “I saw some of the young kids at the party last week and my only guess is that she does her business there and uses the party as a mask to get these people in, but I didn’t see anything out of the ordinary there so that’s just assumption. I’ve been watching her all week, and aside from having a motherfucking bird that talks to her, there’s nothing at all to be worried about with this one.”

  He sets the glass on the side table then sighs before turning his gaze on me. Cracking his knuckles, he grins at me then checks his phone for something. Watching him sometimes feels like looking in a mirror. He’s just an inch or two taller than me, and only five years older, but growing up with him, we’ve adapted the same characteristics. For the longest time he was all I knew. We took care of each other.

  He sighs and leans back in his chair. “We’ve been through a lot, right? You wouldn’t be pulling something behind my back, would you? You remember that night our parents died? You remember the way we sliced that man’s flesh off? We’re in this together, Ace.”

  My eyes narrow and I feel the memories start to come back but push them down where they belong. There’s no use reliving the past.

  “Stop.” I grind the word out, trying to ignore the look he’s giving me.

  He wasn’t wrong about them. He knew they wouldn’t make it long in the business at the rate they were going. He knew something else was up… it just ended a whole lot differently than either of us could have imagined at such a young age.

  “Just, don’t start ignoring leads because it’s taking longer than you’re used to.”

  “I’m not ignoring them, I just don’t like having to babysit a spoiled brat.” I roll my eyes at the thought of having to keep watching her mundane life play out like the worst soap opera.

  “She’s not spoiled, Lucas. How much do you know about her past and how she got to where she is?”

  “I guess I don’t. Again, assumptions. She’s been pretty cold to me. Why? Do you know more shit about her than you’re letting on?”

  He stands abruptly and is in my face within milliseconds, his fists tight on the arms of the chair I’m sitting in.

  “This shit isn’t going to work.” His breath is hot on my face but I don’t budge. “Lucas Acey,” he says coolly, standing up and pulling a knife from his pocket. “Let this be known as the time he couldn’t finish the job.” He chuckles lightly and narrows his eyes at me, knowing that was just enough to get a reaction from me.

  “I will finish the fucking job.”

  Fuck that noise. I’ll find out every little piece of dirt on this bitch then I’ll fuck her right before I kill her lying ass.

  Not once in my entire life has Jasper ever questioned my ability to perform my job. I won’t have it start with her.

  He stands and glances out the window. “I need to leave.”

  “Next time, how about you call before you just show up here? You could have just ruined everything, Jasper.” I walk him to the door, still confused as hell as to why he’s just randomly showed up here like that. Unsure where our lines crossed.

  I know she’s not stealing from him… I’ve been in this business long enough to know shady people and she’s not one of them. I can’t for certain tell if she’s planning something bigger than he and I together can see. There’s something off about her… something she’s hiding… but I don’t think it’s money or drugs. I’ll play this game though. Last time I ignored a lead on something it ended very badly. I don’t have time for that drama again.

  “Just don’t forget the grand scheme of things, Ace.” He winks then pats me on the shoulder and leaves me standing in the foyer dumbfounded that he just had balls to do that. The foyer where I killed the Milkeys less than a month ago just to get in to this old people community and get closer to Ms. Porter.

  Time to get through the walls that Miss Priss has set up and figure out what the fuck she’s really up to. I’m about done with this old folks’ community.

  As I smother peanut butter on the only bread I have, whole wheat and rosemary, I inwardly curse at the waste, because I know it won’t be eaten. Pretty Bird keeps squawking and calling out “Little Bird” over and over and I know she just wants me to save her, but she’ll live.

  “I can picture this as our future,” a voice says in my ear as a hand slides around my waist.

  I almost shove a butter knife through Jasper’s thigh because he effectively snuck up on me after apparently breaking into my locked house.

  “What the hell are you doing here? How’d you get in?” I quietly snap as his grip on my wrist that stopped the knife loosens.

  “I can show up where and when I want, Little Bird. And I’ve taught you everything, but you will forever be lesser than me and not understand what I’m capable of.” His mouth latches onto my neck and I quickly push him back, backing up against the cupboard.

  The rage on his face makes me prepare for a blow but Bronson runs out of the bedroom and to the living room chasing Pretty Bird and draws Jasper’s surprised attention. He may be stealthy and capable of slipping inside a locked home, but he’s an unobservant bastard if he didn’t realize the kid was here.

  “Whose child is that?” he asks as if I’m trying to convince him it’s his.

  “An employee’s. She’s working over a client around the block and she’ll be back to get him shortly.”

  I don’t fucking like it either but what was I supposed to do when she showed up in tears because her sister left the kid at school and refused to pick him up? She’s just over at Ron Clurik’s giving him a blowjob. I said the kid could play with Pretty Bird for forty minutes.

  “You’re a fucking babysitter now?” he seethes and I sigh going back to making this child a snack he insists he needs, wasting my food I know a child won’t eat.

  “Jasper, she’s the highest paid prostitute—”

  “I fucking loathe that side business,” he growls and I spin to face him.

  “But it brings you that much more money,” I sternly tell him for the thousandth time.

  In a quick move he grabs my face, biting his fingers into my flesh. “And how much of that do you keep without telling me?”

  My brows furrow and if he were any other man, he would be dead for accusing me of stealing.

  “None,” I snarl then notice Bronson standing by the island staring at us and I quickly push Jasper’s hand off my face turning my back.

  His hand grips my hair and he yanks my head back to get his lips to my ear. “I’ll be back in an hour, if the kid isn’t gone, I will permanently get rid of him.”

  When he walks around Bronson, the little boy says “Hi” four times but Jasper ignores him. I look over my shoulder and withhold my sigh but see Jasper snatch Pretty Bird by the neck and I gasp, almost taking off in a run to get to her because I know the outcome will be devastating. Opening the front door, Jasper throws her to the sky then walks to his car, cruel as ever, and drives away.

  “Pretty Bird!” I call out but she’s gone. Her wings are clipped so she can’t go far, but she went far enough I can’t see her bright blue feathers anywhere, and if I don’t find her, she’ll be dead unless someone grabs her. “Pretty Bird!” I scream again as the emotion filling me makes me want to break something.
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  Sadness is not an emotion I will allow to consume me.

  “Why’d that man do that?” Bronson repeats over and over from the porch.

  “Go into the house,” I snap at him while he helps me pointlessly look for her.

  “Lose something?”

  I spin around and see Luke Milkey jogging my way. I don’t need this right now.

  “My bird. Pretty Bird!” I yell and look up into the low trees.

  “You named your bird Pretty Bird?” He quirks his eyebrow and grins at me and I don’t even know why I gave him the satisfaction of a glance.

  “It’s a bird, it doesn’t need a name. She just responds to Pretty Bird.” My eyes peruse his bare chest too long and he swipes at the sweat, obviously noticing I was staring.

  “Just out for a run,” he says, then stretches enough to display cut hip bones from his shorts. “Need help looking for this bird of yours?”

  The sexy ones are always stupid and I want to slap sense into his head while screaming ‘obviously!’.

  “She’s blue. A big blue Macaw. You really can’t miss her. And her wings are clipped so she can’t fly far. But.” I sigh and take a minute as panic starts to guide my voice and actions. I need to pull my shit together. “But, I don’t know which way she went.”

  “Well there aren’t many big blue Macaws in this neighborhood. I’m sure you’ll find it.” He takes a breath and clears his throat. “Pretty Bird can’t have gone too far. With an owner as sexy as you, I wouldn’t go that far either.”

  I almost gasp at his idiotic comment. I’m used to men with more couth. A man that would at least act like he gives a shit about my missing pet before running his ignorant mouth.

  “I think you’ve helped enough,” I mutter walking around to the side of the house and Bronson starts crawling through the bushes. “Bronson, stop.”