What She Thought She Knew (Rachel Moore Mystery Book 1), стр. 17

I nodded at him. "I'm listening."

"The concert starts in twenty five minutes. From what I've heard, Mr. Hill likes to show off his newly gained wealth, especially to young, attractive women such as yourself."

I felt a small blush creep on my face, and was thankful for my mask. I had a feeling of what he wanted me to do.

"Luckily you're here. I was thinking that you could go in and see what he's up to?"

A nerve went off in my head as I recalled my earlier conversation with the Guardian.

"I can't believe I have to do this," I said miserably.

Delta sighed lightly. "This is just one possibility. I'm not saying to jump right in, but if it's an easier way of confronting Martin Hill, then you should do so."

"Did I mention that I hate this plan?" I asked sarcastically.

"Yeah, about four times," Delta replied. "Anyways, whatever method you pick, you have to confront Hill before the concert starts. If you don't, there's a high chance he'll sneak out during the performance."

I raised an eyebrow at him. "And what'll you be doing?"

"I'll be securing the parameter, making sure that no unwanted guests are around. When you've got Hill comfortable, and preferably alone with you, I'll make my move."

I sighed. "I'm tempted to just threaten to shoot his daddy bags unless he comes with us."

An amused expression formed on Delta's face. "That would properly make our jobs much easier."

I involuntarily sighed, but quickly caught myself.

The masked man simply gave me an amused expression.

I took the time to observe his face closely. He looked familiar.

Abruptly, he pulled away from me. I hadn't even realized that we were right by the doors that led to the private rooms. The Tracker must have slowly led us here during our dance.

"We have to act fast, Agent Moore. It's vital that we execute this perfectly, which is why you'll be going in now."

I nodded grimly, displeased with the fact that I couldn't confront Hill by another means. "It's now or never." I said.

The Tracker pointed to one of the doors. "Martin Hill is in there. You've got to go in, and act like you are interested in him. He won't be able to resist you. Mind you, I can certainly see why." He chuckled as he visibly gave me a look over.

I was proud of myself for not ducking my head from the attention. If the Tracker considered me as attractive, then surely seducing Hill would be a piece of cake.

Inconspicuously, I took a deep breath, and slowly made my way to the double doors. I really dreaded what I had to do.

I felt a hand on my shoulder, and turned around to see the Tracker. "I know that you don't like this plan. Believe me, I hate it just as much as you do, however, this is our only chance at catching Hill." His voice was calm, but his eyes gave away his discomfort of the plan.

My own eyes narrowed as warning bells in the back of my mind kept telling me that I knew the man. The Tracker only met me less than fifteen minutes ago, yet he acted like we were close partners. His eyes were so familiar, yet I couldn't place the answer.

The double doors collided with my back as they opened. A woman in a questionable cocktail dress came out looking like she could barely stand on her own.

I raised an eyebrow as I took in her appearance. This was an orchestra performance lady, not a strip club.

I shook my head, and looked behind me only to see that the Tracker was gone. I looked around in confusion. Where did he go?

The doors opened again, letting out a bald man who appeared to be in his late thirties. He was dressed in a very expensive suit, and had a thick gold ring on his right middle finger.

My eyes narrowed in on my prey: he was the one.

He caught me looking at him, and then gave me a really creepy smile. "Hello there gorgeous, want to come in? I've got a lot of cash." He smiled crookedly.

Even his voice annoyed me.

Inwardly, I rolled my eyes at his cockiness. I almost said a rude remark, but the urge vanished as the Tracker's plan attacked my mind like vultures.

I inconspicuously took a deep breath before I smiled sweetly at me. "Why, I'd love to go in with you." I replied as seductively as I could. I even gave him a look that I assumed was "sexy".

Apparently it worked because Martin Hill automatically wrapped his arm around me.

I had to suppress the urge to slap it off, and boy was it hard.

Absently listening to him, I allowed myself to be led into the private rooms. I remembered going in hoping that whatever would have happened with Martin Hill, my bad luck wouldn't come out.

Chapter 13: Seducing the Masquerade King

The room inside certainly took my breath away as it made the lounge décor look like child's play. The colors were arranged in gorgeous shades of blue and silver: the rich colors of aristocracy.

I found myself staring at the walls as there were plenty of Renaissance-themed paintings with painstaking details that would have made Picasso make a run for his money.

Martin Hill led me towards a sitting area, his grip on my hand got increasingly tighter as if he didn't want me to "escape".

I understood why he did it: if it wasn't for his money, no woman would have even looked at him.

There were little to no people inside the room. The few that were occupied the bar on the far side of the room.

Grudgingly, I allowed myself to be led to a sitting area where there were several leather couches