PULSE [H.S]

098

"You have to let go of who you were to become who you will be." —Candace Bushnell

Elias is making me do another job.

He told me about it yesterday, and the difference this time is that the job is tonight, meaning he barely gave me a day's notice. Everyone's pissed, but there's nothing any of us can do about it.

"It's a simple drug deal," Harry explains as all of us sit on Harry's couches. They all came over this morning to make sure I was ready for tonight. He says, "You'll have to get them to agree to a price for the amount of drugs they're buying."

I say, "Am I bringing the drugs to them?"

"A team will be with you, and they'll have a truck loaded with the drugs. After you reach a deal, they'll distribute the packages to them," Harry says. "But your job is over when you get the money."

I feel like I should be more nervous about this than I am. I'm surprisingly feeling pretty calm about it. I don't have to hurt anyone, and a team will be with me.

I ask, "Will any of you be there?"

Harry says, "Niall and I will be dropping you off and then we'll wait outside until you get the money so we can pick you back up."

It makes me feel better knowing that they'll both be there. Even if I have to go in alone, they will both be right outside if anything happens.

Niall says, "We'll have your back, Kiz. Don't worry."

I smile at him, knowing that he will always be there to protect me. If there's one person I trust to always be there for me, it's Niall.

I ask, "How much am I supposed to be asking for?"

"$600k," Harry says. "If you have to go down to $500k, that's fine, but you can't leave with any less than that."

My eyes widen. That's so much money, which means this is going to involve a shit ton of drugs. It dawns on me that I'll be doing something extremely illegal.

"What do I say when I get there?" I ask. "I don't know how to negotiate a drug deal. Why would Elias even have me do this?"

They all glance at each other, worried expressions clear on their faces. I look at all of them, waiting for them to tell me whatever it is they're silently communicating about.

I put my hands up and say, "What is it?"

"Marcello, the man you'll be meeting with, he's a little particular when it comes to who he meets with at these deals," Clove explains. She says, "He's given pictures of a bunch of different women, and he picks the one he wants to meet with."

I blink. "He hand-picked me for this?"

"Yeah, it's fucking gross," Clove says, frowning, "but he won't hurt you. He won't touch you even. His relationship with Bloodstone relies on it."

Harry grumbles, "Elias never should've presented you as an option."

I start to feel nauseous. This guy picked me, based solely on my appearance, for this. It's disgusting, and now I'm starting to feel nervous about this.

Zayn says, "He likes pretty things. You have to play the part for the night, and nothing will happen to you."

"So I have to flirt with him?" I ask, and he nods. I shake my head, saying, "What if I can't do it? What if I can't secure a deal with him, then what?"

"You have to," Harry says. The seriousness in his voice sends a shiver up my spine. He says, "Marcello has never made the price an issue before. You shouldn't have anything to worry about."