Page 84 of Sinner's Secret

“The clinic is just across the bridge.”

“There isn’t anything like that across the bridge. There’s a ginormous rail yard and...” She let her voice trail off as she looked ahead at the river. “...and a dock.”

When she turned back, Thomas had a gun in his hand, pointed at her.

Betrayal stabbed her in the gut and lit a cold rage that spread through her. The adrenaline rush would keep her sharp, but she was too tired for it to last long.

Baz, you’d better come through.

“What are you doing?” she asked, carefully controlling her tone so her anger didn’t show. She really wanted to hurt the jackass.

“I’m sorry, Nika.”

She’d been expecting it, but the confirmation of his treachery still hurt, still cut deep. “You’re the leak?” she asked. “Why?”

“I owe a lot of money to the wrong people,” he said too fast. “This isn’t personal Nika, I like you, but if I don’t deliver you, they’ll destroy my whole life.”

“You selfish bastard,” she hissed. “What about my life?”

“Shut up,” he suddenly screamed at her. “Don’t open your mouth again.”

“Or what, you’ll shoot? How will your delivery go if you kill me first?”

“I’ll shoot you in the foot,” he said so fast the words ran together. “They said I could if you try to run.”

They came up to another red light and he stopped, continuing to hold the gun on her.

The car behind them smashed into the back of Thomas’s car.

He twisted around to see what happened and she shoved the gun up and opened the door.

She let herself fall to the ground.

Thomas screamed something and the gun went off. A hot streak ran across her left leg, but it didn’t stop her from skittering away toward the car that just hit them.

Thomas got out, but Yvgeny was right there yelling about how the light was still green. As soon as Yvgeny saw what Thomas had in his hand, he yelled, “Gun!”

A half-dozen people on the sidewalk either ran or pulled out their cell phones to record the incident. Some did both.

Where was Baz?

A hand snagged her shirt, and she was lifted and shoved behind a male body.

Oh, here he is.

Yvgeny was yelling at Thomas to put the gun down.

Thomas was yelling at Yvgeny and Baz to get down on the ground with their hands up. Then he realized he couldn’t see her and started screaming her name. Demanding she show herself and get in the car.

Yvgeny shut up.

Baz hadn’t said a word, just stayed where he was in front of her.

Silence stretched out, broken only by Thomas’s heavy breathing. He jerked his gun between Yvgeny and Baz, back and forth.

“Nika!” he shouted. His voice quavered and broke. “Nika, you come out right now.”

The faint sound of sirens grew closer and closer.

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