work on the coven, but it won’t work on Venus. If you tell her no, even if the entire coven backs you, she’ll break away and become a free agent again. She did it for years. She’ll start whispering in the ears of other witches until a few have defected. She’ll have her own gang and try again.”
Astrid tossed her blonde hair over her shoulders.
“I trust my witches. If Venus gets banished, she is dead to us. She can whisper, but we won’t listen. Let me deal with my witches. I’ll handle this. I can’t control Venus, but I can handle my coven.”
Astrid disappeared, but I didn’t feel much better about this after everything I’d learned about Venus. Venus wasn’t getting her hands on anything from my black market, but there was plenty of prison provided items she could turn into a weapon.
My thief came with a lot of danger, and I kind of dug it.
Chapter 14
Rei
N
o offense to Astrid. She seemed sweet, but if she thought she could control Venus, I had some property that wasn’t stolen to sell her. And I was pretty sure some of her witches were psycho enough to join Venus. There were always psychos wherever you went, and this was prison. Everyone was psycho here.
Dakarys seemed to think it was handled. I just shook my head.
“Venus is a thief, remember? She’ll either steal from the witches or figure out how your black market works and steal from you. She knows how to work a computer. She could easily order what she needs.”
Dakarys and Rajack just laughed.
“Not with us controlling the mailroom. We’ll steal from her and give it to Astrid. We have to get to work. Have you been assigned a job yet, Rei?”
“I asked Faust for the mailroom, and he informed me he owned me. He also said he’s behind on my paperwork and would eventually get to my commissary. I have a feeling he’s going to use that to his advantage.”
“What are you going to do with your day?”
I just shrugged.
“Probably use the computer in the library and stay away from some witches.”
We said our goodbyes, and I managed to find the library and computers. I meant to email Hauser, but apparently, all forms of email were blocked. They blocked everything except legal sites and sites on how to better yourself. Well, fuck. I guess if it was prison, you couldn’t expect to be able to email. I needed to talk to Hauser. Maybe he could help me with Faust. Where the fuck were the phones?
I managed to find a gym and a window leading out to a yard. No one was out there, but I got my own tour of the prison since Faust didn’t bother to give me one. I found the phones. Could I call him with my commissary not in? I tried to get him collect. Right when it was about to connect, a big, meaty hand hung up the phone. I looked up, and there was fucking Faust.
“Asshole!” I hissed.
“Time for work, inmate. I’ve figured out what your job is going to be.”
“The mailroom?” I asked, hopefully.
“Fuck no. Hurry up and follow me.”
Faust was huge and walking quickly. I had issues keeping up with him. He opened a door and let me into an office with papers stacked everywhere.
“What the fuck is this?”
Faust leaned back in his chair and stuck his hands behind his head.
“You’re going to help me with my paperwork. I told the warden you needed a job, and I needed some help. If you get to the file with your commissary, you can have a cookie. Literally. You’ll have your funds and can buy yourself some Oreos.”
“You’re such an asshole. I hate paperwork.”
“Deal with it, princess. I could always put you in laundry with the witches. I’m not putting you in the mailroom because I know you want it. I don’t trust you.”
“Says the man hunting me,” I grumbled. “You and the witches both want me dead.”
Faust just grunted, but he didn’t deny it.
“Start with the files by the window. Your commissary is in there somewhere.”
I glared at him, but I got to work. I could be bribed with cookies.
Chapter 15
Rajack
I
might not trust her yet, but I didn’t want Rei hurt. She was just so small. I had a feeling she could handle herself, but still. I couldn’t be in two places at once, and both Venus and Faust were after her. I could handle a powerless witch. I could handle a wolf too