Page 15 of Assassin's Game
“You’ll do that anyway, Red. Unless you’ve got a dart gun on you and another friend hiding around the corner with a van. But,” I said, forestalling the threats I could see stacking themselves up behind his tight lips, “I’d be happy to tell you what I know about X.”
The four of them waited, not relaxing an inch. If I’d had any doubt that they were professionals, they would be gone in that moment.
“I know exactly one thing besides what he calls himself.” My hand twitched in my pocket again, snapping pics. “He has a lot of knowledge he shouldn’t have for an average joe.”
The words left my mouth before I truly registered the meaning behind them. My gaze sharpened on the four people surrounding me. Was that our connection? Had they been blackmailed into something by X as well?
Which meant they had something to hide, something I needed to find.
None of their expressions showed surprise—they’d already known what I told them. Definitely hiding something.
“How do you know that?” Beautiful asked.
I shook my head. “I gave you my piece; now you give me yours. Your names.”
She squared her shoulders. “Not gonna happen.”
I shrugged. “Impasse.”
Man Bun reached for the small of his back. “Dart gun it is.”
Theclick-clackof high heels on the sidewalk registered in my ears. From the corner of my eye I saw a couple, the man stepping up to the window of their taxi to pay the driver. The woman, a blonde in a tight black dress, turned and smiled in my direction. I sent her a sexy smirk. A blush swept across her cheeks as her eyes dropped their focus to the concrete.
What can I say? A soldier used whatever weapons he had on hand, and sexuality was the best weapon I carried.
Beautiful sniffed, telling me she’d noticed the reaction too. Redhead moved a step closer to me, almost within grabbing distance. Man Bun’s hand gripped whatever was behind his back and began to pull it around.
I counted the clicking of steps as the couple approached. Four. Three. Two. One.
My eyes met the woman, discreetly raised. I winked. Her rough inhale was audible to every ear in our group.
And then she stumbled.
One heel dug into a crack in the sidewalk, and she pitched, arms out to break her fall, straight toward Redhead. Her date gasped and reached for her, only succeeding in pushing her into Red faster. I stepped in and pulled, sending him after her toward the group of mercenaries determined to take me with them.
It took a split second for Redhead to falter, then right himself, but the ripple effect shattered the group’s concentration. The woman clutched Red’s suit jacket in her fists, struggling to find her footing with one heel stuck between slabs of the sidewalk. It was all the distraction I needed.
Spinning around, I sprinted back in the direction we’d come. A quick streak through the valet area allowed me to grab a couple of hapless victims and throw them in my pursuers’ paths like balls aimed at bowling pins. The few seconds I gained got me around the corner and, thanks to hours of parkour with Remi and a strategically placed rope, up a straight wall to the second floor of the parking garage behind the restaurant. I was well away from the area by the time they realized I was gone.
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Chapter Eight
Abby—
I stumbled down the stairs, rubbing bleary eyes. It didn’t seem to matter how much sleep I got, I was still exhausted. I hadn’t woken last night when Levi came home—whenever that was—slept straight through my alarm this morning, and this afternoon’s nap had gone from half an hour to two. Thank goodness I was between classes right now.
As I walked through the doorway into the kitchen, the smell of raw meat hit me like a slap in the face. I could literally feel the blood drain from my cheeks, it happened so fast.
“I know that look,” Leah said where she stood at the island, cutting chicken into slices for stir-fry, it looked like. “Go sit over at the table and let me get you something for your stomach.”
Relief eased the weight on my chest as I crossed the room, partly because the smell of the meat receded, partly because Leah was here. The only person who knew my secret. At least she had experience with this stuff; otherwise I’d be completely in the dark.
“Here.” A glass of light amber liquid, tiny bubbles lining the sides, appeared in front of me. I took a small sip. Ginger ale. “It’ll settle your stomach some.”
I watched as she went back to the island, but she didn’t stop this time. She moved to the bread near the toaster, pulled a couple of slices, and popped them inside. Taking care of me.
The way Levi should be doing.
