Page 117 of Silent Comrade
With a brush of her trembling lips overRed’s, she pushed off him and turned toward Lequire. He pointed thegun at her.
“You promise not to hurt him?” she asked,pushing up to her stand in front of Red so she blocked anybullet.
“Why would I lie?” His left eye and eyebrowtwitched.
She swayed on her feet. “That’s not ananswer.”
“Scout’s honor. I won’t kill him.”
“Or my family members?”
Heat made his eyes glow avid as his nostrilsflared. His face twitched. “I don’t need them dead, just silenced.If you’re with me, they won’t talk.” He held a hand out and made acome-hither motion. “End this madness now. Save this boy. Let’sgo.”
Another glance back at Red’s motionless formbroke her heart.
“All right.” One rib-jarring step, then two,had her gasping. Lequire clamped onto her wrist until the bonescreaked. Her knees buckled at the blinding pain.
“Oh, sorry, dear. Don’t know my ownstrength. Yet.” That nasty laugh turned her stomach. “I lookforward to finding out. Maybe you can help me experiment with allthe things I can do in this new and improved form?” He tugged herto his side, pinning her next to him with his iron-hard arm. Thegun remained in his other hand.
Britt didn’t move.
He dipped his head down and licked herearlobe then inhaled. She almost threw up.
“Oh fuck, but you smell a little like her.You look like her, too.”
A wave of nausea hit her. This guy wastalking about Kiera. He must be obsessed.
He inhaled deeply. “We are going to have somuch fun while I get what I want from you. Your sister will destroythe evidence and leave me be. Then I can concentrate on my importbusiness and foreign relations and making Daddy proud again. Butnot before you and I have some fun of our own.” His hot breathseared her skin. He lightly bit her upper cheek. “You might be thesweetest McNeill of them all. Mmm. Delicious.”
Couldn’t help it. A sob broke out of hermouth. Lequire laughed as he dragged her toward a side exit.
A roar, like that of an enraged bull, madeher ears ring.
Lequire spun around, turning Britt withhim.
Red barreled toward them at a screaming,dead run.
Lequire fired, hitting Red point blank inthe chest, not once, but two times. The impacts slowed him down,but Red’s momentum carried him forward, ripping Britt away fromLequire as Red fell. He pinned her under him.
Red had been hit. Oh God.
She couldn’t breathe with his heavy framesuffocating her.
The weight lifted as Lequire grabbed theback of Red’s jacket, flexing his torso backwards at his lowerspine. Red’s slack arms dropped down to Britt.
Red’s eyes snapped open, looking at Britt.He pressed his gun into her hand where Lequire couldn’t see.
A wide smile. “Get him, sweets,” hewhispered.
God help her, she laid on the ground, aimedpast Red’s shoulder, and did exactly that. First shot missed wide.Second shot caught Lequire in his chest.
Lequire dropped Red onto her, crunching theair out of her once more. Red’s arms and legs immediately camearound her like a giant cage of muscle. He palmed the gun and heldit away from her, then rolled multiple times, coming to rest withhim crouched over her.
Craning her neck, she spied Lequire as heheld his side. Red bloomed over the portion of white shirt visiblebetween the suit lapels. He backed toward the door, cursing andeyeing the rest of the room. “We’re not done here. I might not havea McNeill, but I’ve got my plan B and they are going to suffer. Youstill lose.” A gurgling cough, then he was gone.
What did he mean, plan B?
Silence. Britt craned her neck just in timeto see the flattop janitor guy and Pele dump the fourth limp figureon top of a pile of three other bodies.
