Free False Finder by Mia Hoddell Page A

decided to bide her time.
    “You know why I won’t do that. Just like your mother, you’re never wrong. You see a lie one hundred percent of the time. Machines are fallible, they can get it wrong. Besides, it makes my life easier having you around—less hassle.”
    Cora swore under her breath at the mention of her mother. If it wasn’t for her then Cora wouldn’t be pinned in a room with the one man she loathed more than anything and fighting for her freedom.
    “Just because she worked for you, it doesn’t mean I have to. You can’t control me.” Cora bit the inside of her lip, trying to stop at least some of the retorts from spilling out in anger.
    “Wrong again. I can do whatever I want, and no one can stop me.”
    It was true, Rogan could get away with murder—he already had. He was the leader of his cartel and no one else would interfere. They may have kept in contact but full control of the area lay with Rogan. “One year. Give me one year and I’ll pay you whatever you want. Just name your price,” Cora said, thinking on her feet as she saw the stubbornness in the tight line of his jaw. She knew when to give in—or at least appear to. There was nothing she could hold over his head this time.
    “Money isn’t an incentive. It was never a factor in my thinking.” He leaned back against his desk, arms folded across his chest defiantly.
    “One year, the money and Nick works for you,” she blurted out without thinking it through. However, as soon as the words left her lips she saw an opportunity. There was a spark of intrigue in Rogan’s eyes at the offer but he concealed it quickly.
    “What would make you think I would want your friend as a replacement when he isn’t of any use to me like you are?”
    “He is. He’s just like me. Why do you think we’re such good friends? He’s the only one I can confide in.” Cora lied, hoping he believed the false sincerity in her voice. Having been able to detect liars from the age of four, it definitely gave her a few pointers on what to do when needing to lie herself. There were three rules she kept to:
    1) Keep eye contact. People assumed liars always looked away. It wasn’t a fact that was true, but if the majority of people believed it, then you went with it to protect yourself.
    2) Keep it simple and to the point. Don’t add too much detail or you will get tripped up. Don’t add too little or you will appear suspicious because of your vagueness.
    3) Be confident because hesitation will get you found out.
    She hated herself for what she was doing but Cora pushed the thought out of her mind. The time to think about the consequences would be when her plan had actually worked and not before.
    “Really? Well that changes things. Okay, you get one year and your friend belongs to me indefinitely.” Pulling out one of his many contracts, he handed Cora a pen and not giving herself time to doubt her actions, she signed her name and in doing so signed away her best friend’s life.
     
    * * *
     
    Rogan smiled at the memory. He knew she had been lying from the beginning. If there had been another False Finder living in his territory he would have known about it. Cora thought she had been clever and outsmarted him, but it was all part of his bigger plan. The idea of tracking Cora down and catching her again was exciting for him. It was obvious she planned to disappear with her year—or at least that’s what he would have done in her situation. What she didn’t know was that the next time she would be left with nothing to offer him and no friends. He had played her, and in his opinion, he got the better end of the deal. It may have taken him a few years to find her but it wasn’t of drastic importance. In her absence, he had found torturing worked just as well as a False Finder, so his business had never been compromised.
    What he didn’t know though was whether Cora would take the bait like some helpless animal walking into a snare. It didn’t matter as