Page 103 of Bourbon and Secrets

Holding her against his chest, he whispers something in her ear as she screams out. Her face squints up as if whatever he said to her is causing her physical pain.

That’s when I see his wrist flick forward.

“No!” I shout as he twists that knife slowly into her side. It’s thrust all the way to the handle, right where a kidney would be.

She groans out, “Fuck. You.”

“Maggie, why would you want to bite the hands feeding you?” he croons and looks down the side of her face. “Unless you were you there that night...” he snivels into her ear, and my stomach clenches. “Did you see something you weren’t supposed to, girlie?”

I feel helpless. Her face is crunched up and streaked in tears. I know she’s fighting like hell not to give in to it. She heaves in audible breaths, and on each inhale, she winces.

“That hurts, doesn’t it? Someone toying with you? Your mama and my brother just needed to fall in line. Tullis couldn’t keep Shelby under control, so I had to step in.” Sneering, he licks up the side of her face. “I have no problem doing the hard things. Just like you, Maggie. We do the hard things.”

He rubs his groin against her, pulling a sob from her chest, just before she says, “Let go of me, you sick fuck.”

I rack my mind about what the hell I can do to stop this. I try to think of what I have on me. I didn’t have my karambit knife. My stun gun was charging.Goddamnit.I look around the space and nothing that could be used as a weapon is within an arm’s reach.

He pulls her tighter, his forearm against her chest, and runs his nose along her cheek as her chest heaves up and down. “There’s a little spot...” He pulls out the knife from her back slowly.

The guttural scream that tears from her throat has anger overpowering the fear of him hurting her any more than he already has.

Waz uses the tip of the now blood-painted knife to point just below her ear. “This is the sweet spot right around here that if you catch it just right, with something nice and sharp, a horse, a human, anyone who might not be doing as they’re told, will bleed so beautifully. It comes out fast at first, like drinking water from a garden hose, and then it runs steady with the beat of your heart.” He lets out a low whistle, just before he says, “It makes for a nice show.”

“That’s enough,” I seethe, blood boiling as my heart pounds in my ears.

He hums in response. “Is that so? You think I’ll listen to you just because you dance that tight little cunt around?”

She squints as he rubs his cheek against hers, her eyes searching mine for a way out of this. When I look down, I notice her jeans are turning darker, wetter as they saturate with her blood as he holds her. It has my heart sinking to my feet.

So I make a quick decision and say, “You jealous, Waz?”

His eyes flick over to mine. But I don’t let him answer. “Want something you can’t have?”

He shifts Maggie forward so fast, his boot meets the center of her back, shoving her off of him and to the ground just a few feetaway. In the commotion of it, I try to reach her, but he gets to me before I can make up the distance.

I hear a voice calling my name, but I don’t get a chance to listen for it again, because pain explodes in my stomach and vibrates throughout my back.

Waz punches me again before I can recover, harder this time, knocking the wind out of me. He shouts in my face, but I can’t make out the words as I try to catch my breath. He grabs my jaw, pinching it so hard that pain radiates across my face. With a second of clarity and desperation, I feel behind me, trying to reach for my pocket. My fingers brush over the rock I’d put there before we left. One side smooth, while the other is craggy and purple. Its jagged edges won’t do much, but if I hit him right, it’ll startle him enough to let me go.

He spits in my face as he says, “Shoulda killed your mama that night too. Had my way with her like I kept promising. Then woulda come for Maggie next. Saving you for last. I think you’ll be the most fun to watch bleed.”

I try to move with all my strength, but his hold grows tighter every time I push against it, shouting and panting.

He glances at my sister, but I can’t see her from where he’s holding me. “Maggie,” he calls out. “I’m going to have fun with you fir—” But his words die off as I swing my arm out wide and with as much strength as I can find. I slam my fist against the side of his head, using the rock as weight and leverage.

And everything that happens next happens so fast that I can barely register it.

Lincoln screams my name.

Waz’s hands release me.

My body stutters away, barely staying on my feet as Waz laughs. “This isn’t going to matter,” Waz says as he holds the side of his head and spits out the wad of chew. “I’ve got a lot of friends in far higher places. I’m not going to just go awa?—”

Finally, that’s where his words die off. If I had blinked, I would have missed the quickness of Lincoln’s moves. Fast and precise, he swipes Waz’s knife from the ground, and with no hesitation, grips it tight and slashes the blade across Waz’s neck. My breath catches as his skin flays open as if a zipper had been pulled. Blood pours down his neck, his hand flying to the wound, just as Lincoln turns and rushes to me.

Maggie grits into her phone, mumbling her words. “Cortez. Get here now,” she says, just as Waz drops to both knees, and then face plants onto the pavement.

My hand covers my mouth on a sob, tears streaking down my cheeks.

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