Page 108 of Kings Against the World

I clench my jaw. There’s no stopping her. Not Zoe Strauss. Not when she’s already made up her mind.

It’s the truth I’ve got to accept. My girl wants to be a part of the action.

So I grab a rifle and move to back her up.

Out on the club floor, Mudd and Flanagan are crouched behind an overturned table, returning fire as bullets tear through the room. The front door’s been kicked in, and I recognize some familiar faces approaching.

Not Rollins and the Road Rebels.

Boone and his men. Hawke and Moe, and a few others.

Zoe and I copy Mudd and Flanagan. We slide behind a different knocked over table, breathing hard. I glance at her, feeling the determination roll off her in waves.

“You ready, Special Agent?” I ask.

“Been ready! Let’s go!”

“Fuck… you’re so hot. Sit on my face?”

“Later!” she exclaims as we catch each other’s gazes and then confirm what we’ve got to do. We pop up and return fire.

Zoe’s shot lands first, nailing Moe in the shoulder and sending him crashing to the ground in a pained howl. She ducks back down, lips spread in a wide smile.

I grin back at her. “You’re fucking amazing.”

“Glad you finally noticed!”

There’s a teasing twinkle in her eye as we edge closer for another round. We’re about to shoot back when deep laughter fills the air. The sound is thick and gruff, like rolling over gravel. It’s a sound more than a little familiar to us after our time in Vegas.

Boone steps through the doorway, his grin wide and his dark shades hiding his eyes. He’s convinced he has the upper hand since we’re outnumbered three to one. There’s four of us and twelve of them, making us severely disadvantaged as more guns are pointed in our direction.

We keep shooting and we’re done for.

“Betcha weren’t expecting me to drop by!” he cackles. “Ozzie Oz, come out, come out wherever you are! I know you’re here!”

I grit my teeth and edge toward the corner of the table. “I should’ve known you’d be back, Ace. Don’t they say cockroaches live forever?”

“Jokes aren’t going to get you anywhere, Oz. I’ve come to collect once and for all.”

“Too bad I don’t owe you shit! The club knows about you. Nothing else you can blackmail me on.”

“You’re outnumbered three to one. Seems like you owe me what I tell you… if you want to make it out alive.”

“And what’s that?”

“You know what… or rather,who.”

“Go fuck yourself!” I growl, clutching my rifle tighter. My stomach twists as I glance at Zoe beside me. Boone isn’t talking about money. He’s talking abouther.

Zoe gets it too. Yet she looks more determined than ever.

“I have an idea,” she whispers.

I shake my head. “Whatever you’re thinking, it’s too damn risky.”

Her eyes flick to mine, sharp with fearlessness. “Which means it’ll probably work.”

Before I can stop her, she kicks her rifle out from behind the table. The metal clatters as it slides out into the open, clear for Boone and his men to see.

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