Free Secrets of the Lynx by Aimée Thurlo Page B

street.
    “There goes a regular. Am I gonna have to pay you to get lost, dude?”
    “I’m looking for Annie Crenshaw. Seen her around this evening?”
    “She ain’t one of mine—too flat and skinny for my players. I saw her coming out of the Excelsior Drugstore about ten minutes ago, two blocks down on Fourth. If she didn’t pick up someone along the way, she’s probably at the far end of this alley by now.”
    Paul gave Bobby a curt nod and smiled at the women. “Take care, ladies.”
    “Come by anytime,” Brandy said.
    Paul and Kendra walked side by side down the sidewalk, circling the block instead of going up the alley. Despite their easy strides, Kendra stayed alert for trouble.
    As the shadows deepened and darkness took over, the wind intensified. Cold gusts chilled their faces as they walked. Kendra pulled the zipper on the jacket all the way up to her neck. Remembering the scanty clothing Brandy, Kat and the other women had been wearing, she wondered how they could stand the cold. Maybe that was one of the reasons they remained around the corner, near the building.
    As soon as they reached the far corner, they saw a slender blonde in a furry jacket, high heels and short skirt walking away from them down the sidewalk, her eyes on passing cars.
    “I think that’s Annie,” Kendra said, “but we need to get close without spooking her. If she thinks we’re cops, she’ll probably ditch the heels and run for it.”
    “Why don’t you cross the street and I’ll hang back? Once you’re past her, you’ll be in position to cut her off if she decides to make a race out of it. Just don’t make eye contact. Keep looking at your watch and pretend you’re late for an appointment.”
    “Good plan. Let’s do it.”
    Kendra crossed the street and then glanced back at him. Some men stood above the rest effortlessly. She hadn’t known Paul Grayhorse for long, but something told her she’d never forget him.

Chapter Seven
    While Kendra walked down the sidewalk on the opposite side of the street, Paul stood on the corner, pretending to text someone on his cell phone. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Annie stop beside a lamppost.
    She turned in his direction, but he deliberately avoided her gaze, and she shifted her attention back to the street. Hopefully she wouldn’t hook up with a customer or a dealer before they moved in.
    Their luck held. Once Paul saw Kendra reach the end of the block and cross back to his side of the street, he made his move.
    Paul walked toward Annie slowly, pretending to be focused on text messaging and looking up only sporadically to see where he was going.
    By the time he got within twenty feet, she was waiting for him, assuming a sexy stance, with her hands on her hips, her chest out, her jacket open.
    He put the cell phone back into his pocket and gave her an interested onceover as he approached.
    She gave him a weary smile. “Hi, handsome. You finally done texting, huh? How’d you like to party with a real live woman?”
    “You read my mind,” Paul said, smiling back at her.
    Behind Annie, Kendra was closing in from the opposite direction. All they needed was five more seconds, and Annie would be trapped.
    Suddenly someone in a passing car honked the horn. “Naughty, naughty,” two or three teenage boys yelled in unison.
    Annie turned, armed with an obscene gesture, and saw Kendra. As she looked back at Paul, her eyes grew wide.
    “You’re cops!” she yelled, spinning around.
    Paul reached for her arm, but Annie slipped past him and shot down the alley. He sprinted after her, but the woman kicked off her heels, barely losing a step as she ran faster than a spooked jackrabbit.
    He was closing in when she suddenly veered to one side, grabbed the chest-high end of a fire escape ladder and pulled herself up.
    By the time Paul reached the ladder, Annie was already at the second story of the old brick apartment building.
    Paul looked back. Where was Kendra? Ignoring the sudden