subtle degrees. I’d gained almost two feet when Conner swung the flashlight and belted me across the face, knocking me to the ground. I snarled and cupped a hand against the blood streaming from the corner of my mouth. Fuck, that hurt. Tasted awful, too. Like sucking salt from a hot nail.
“Don’t even think it, Donatti. Next time, it’ll be a bullet. Get up and empty your pockets.”
Coughing out a mouthful of wet warmth, I struggled to myfeet and sent a glare at Jazz. She looked away fast. I faced the cop—or whatever he was—and spoke slowly in deference to my throbbing jaw. “I’m not armed. Trevor’s brute squad took care of that earlier tonight.”
Conner’s gun stayed steady on me. “Jazz. Take his jacket off and hand it to me.”
“Don’t touch me.” I spat blood on the ground at her feet. The gesture lost some of its effect in the dark, but she’d get the point. I shrugged free of the jacket, yanked my arms out, and tossed it in Conner’s general direction. “Happy now?”
The cop kicked the jacket into the weeds. “Turn out your pockets.”
I complied in silence. Nothing in the right. The left held a small folded wad of hundreds. With a one-sided smirk, I held it toward Conner and said, “Here you go. Buy yourself some balls with it.”
Conner grinned a nasty promise. He spun the flashlight, stepped forward, and rammed the butt end into my crotch.
Every muscle in my body liquefied. The cash fell from limp fingers and hit the ground some time after me, as far as I could tell through the dazzle curtain bursting over my vision. Somewhere outside the high-pitched whine filling my ears, Jazz shouted. I didn’t care. Wished her dead. Wished myself dead, if it would stop the agony flooding my groin. Gradually, the pain eased enough to let the world emerge through the fog.
“Thanks. But why bother buying some, when I can just take yours away?” A shoe prodded my shoulder. “On your feet. We’re going for a ride.”
It took longer to get up this time. I leaned back against the van, panting, and watched Conner slam the flashlight into abelt holster, then detach a set of standard-issue handcuffs and hand them to Jazz.
She snatched them. “Bastard. You didn’t have to do that.”
“No, I didn’t. But it was fun.” Conner fished in a pocket and produced a single key. “Put them on. Your right, his left.”
Jazz fumbled with the cuffs and after a minute managed to bind us together. I didn’t resist. I’d have to try to escape from Trevor before the bastard killed me—which put my odds of survival somewhere around the chances that a bolt of lightning from the now cloudless, star-strewn sky above would strike Conner dead in the next five minutes.
Conner extended the hand without the gun. Jazz thrust the key into it. The cop pulled another set of cuffs from a pocket, this one with a longer chain. “Turn around and face the van.”
With a sorrowful glance, Jazz started around me to achieve the directed position. I failed to return her pity. “You wanna stick another knife in while you’re back there?” I said.
She kept going without a word. The minute my back was turned, Conner’s gun dug into my spine. “Your left.”
I extended my free hand. The bracelet snapped around my wrist. Conner tightened it one-handed, pulled my arm toward Jazz, and fastened the other cuff to her right wrist.
The cop ordered us to face him. He moved toward the van’s side door. “Let’s see what you’ve got in here.” Popping the handle, he slid the door open, retrieved the flashlight, and shone the beam inside. “Well, look at that. Tall guy in a trench coat. Heard a little something about him.” Conner turned a sickly grin in my direction. “Doesn’t look dangerous to me. Looks dead. Let’s just make sure of that, shall we?”
My eyes closed against helpless fury. Two shots soundedin solemn progression. I managed to keep my legs under me. If Ian wasn’t dead before, he sure as hell was
“Don’t even think it, Donatti. Next time, it’ll be a bullet. Get up and empty your pockets.”
Coughing out a mouthful of wet warmth, I struggled to myfeet and sent a glare at Jazz. She looked away fast. I faced the cop—or whatever he was—and spoke slowly in deference to my throbbing jaw. “I’m not armed. Trevor’s brute squad took care of that earlier tonight.”
Conner’s gun stayed steady on me. “Jazz. Take his jacket off and hand it to me.”
“Don’t touch me.” I spat blood on the ground at her feet. The gesture lost some of its effect in the dark, but she’d get the point. I shrugged free of the jacket, yanked my arms out, and tossed it in Conner’s general direction. “Happy now?”
The cop kicked the jacket into the weeds. “Turn out your pockets.”
I complied in silence. Nothing in the right. The left held a small folded wad of hundreds. With a one-sided smirk, I held it toward Conner and said, “Here you go. Buy yourself some balls with it.”
Conner grinned a nasty promise. He spun the flashlight, stepped forward, and rammed the butt end into my crotch.
Every muscle in my body liquefied. The cash fell from limp fingers and hit the ground some time after me, as far as I could tell through the dazzle curtain bursting over my vision. Somewhere outside the high-pitched whine filling my ears, Jazz shouted. I didn’t care. Wished her dead. Wished myself dead, if it would stop the agony flooding my groin. Gradually, the pain eased enough to let the world emerge through the fog.
“Thanks. But why bother buying some, when I can just take yours away?” A shoe prodded my shoulder. “On your feet. We’re going for a ride.”
It took longer to get up this time. I leaned back against the van, panting, and watched Conner slam the flashlight into abelt holster, then detach a set of standard-issue handcuffs and hand them to Jazz.
She snatched them. “Bastard. You didn’t have to do that.”
“No, I didn’t. But it was fun.” Conner fished in a pocket and produced a single key. “Put them on. Your right, his left.”
Jazz fumbled with the cuffs and after a minute managed to bind us together. I didn’t resist. I’d have to try to escape from Trevor before the bastard killed me—which put my odds of survival somewhere around the chances that a bolt of lightning from the now cloudless, star-strewn sky above would strike Conner dead in the next five minutes.
Conner extended the hand without the gun. Jazz thrust the key into it. The cop pulled another set of cuffs from a pocket, this one with a longer chain. “Turn around and face the van.”
With a sorrowful glance, Jazz started around me to achieve the directed position. I failed to return her pity. “You wanna stick another knife in while you’re back there?” I said.
She kept going without a word. The minute my back was turned, Conner’s gun dug into my spine. “Your left.”
I extended my free hand. The bracelet snapped around my wrist. Conner tightened it one-handed, pulled my arm toward Jazz, and fastened the other cuff to her right wrist.
The cop ordered us to face him. He moved toward the van’s side door. “Let’s see what you’ve got in here.” Popping the handle, he slid the door open, retrieved the flashlight, and shone the beam inside. “Well, look at that. Tall guy in a trench coat. Heard a little something about him.” Conner turned a sickly grin in my direction. “Doesn’t look dangerous to me. Looks dead. Let’s just make sure of that, shall we?”
My eyes closed against helpless fury. Two shots soundedin solemn progression. I managed to keep my legs under me. If Ian wasn’t dead before, he sure as hell was
Similar Books
