Page 29 of Dusty and Dented
“I don’t know.He didn’t say.Just that he wanted her.”‘
“And you don’t have a name?”
Shadow shook his head.Dagger watched him a moment.The man knew but some bit of loyalty kept him from saying.Dagger would find out, no matter what it took.They only needed one of these guys to carry their message back to the Crows, and he didn’t even have to be alive, if they did it right.And if Dagger had his way, that wouldn’t be Shadow.
Dagger looked up and met Shotgun’s gaze.The other man nodded.It was as if they knew what the other was thinking without having to say anything.Not that surprising since they’d both been Angels for more than five years.They knew each other well and knew they could rely on each other.Shotgun would make sure the other guy, the kid who Hawkeye hadn’t recognized, didn’t know the name of the guy the Crows had been working for, if Dagger couldn’t get it out of Shadow.
“Last chance, Shadow.Tell me who hired you or I’ll have to do this the hard way.”
Shadow shook his head.
“You’re going to do this the hard way, anyway—just get on with it.”
Dagger looked up and met Bear’s gaze, then Shotgun’s.Neither made any move to stop him as he balled his fist and hit Shadow in the face.The crunch of bone, along with the blood streaming down his face told Dagger he’d broken the other man’s nose.But hitting people in the head hurt.There wasn’t much skin and you often ended up cutting up your hands on teeth.That wasn’t what he was after today, though he had to admit the crunch of his nose had been satisfying.
“Let’s string him up.I want to make him hurt, a lot, before this is over.”Bear stepped forward and helped Dagger move Shadow from bound in the chair to arms above him, chained to the ceiling as his feet reached the ground, barely.Once he was secured, Bear stepped back and Dagger went to work.He used Shadow like he was a heavy bag, scoring hit after hit to his torso until he was sure that the Crow’s entire abdomen would look much like Andy’s back, minus the boot tread print.
Dagger kept going until he was breathing heavy and his muscles started to ache, then he backed up and stared at Shadow for a couple of seconds.
“Are you ready to tell me?”
“Tell you what?”
“The name of the man who hired you to take my woman.”
“Your woman?”Shadow looked surprised.Since other than that first blow to the face, Dagger had avoided the head, it wasn’t hard to read his expression, despite the swelling that had set in.“No one told me she’s your woman or that she belonged to anyone with the Angels.”
“And that makes it okay for you or any of the Crows to show up in Craven’s Creek, snatch a woman and haul her off to fuck knows where to endure fuck knows what?”
Shadow didn’t say anything.He seemed to know that there was nothing to say that wouldn’t earn him more of what he’d already endured.
“Who hired you?”Dagger asked again, jaw clenched as he was getting close to losing what little control he had left on his temper.
Shadow shook his head again.
Dagger turned to where Shotgun still stood against one wall.
“Lift him up.Let’s make him really hurt for a while.Maybe he’ll be ready to talk after he hangs here for a bit.”
“No problem.”The enforcer hit the button for the wench they’d hooked Shadow’s chains to and lifted him several inches, so if he stretched, his feet would just brush the floor, but he couldn’t get any support from them.
“Have a good night.Maybe tomorrow you’ll feel more like answering my questions.”Dagger turned and left without a look back.In the hall, he stopped, braced a forearm against the wall and leaned his head against it as he tried to wrap his head around what Shadow had told them.This hadn’t been Angels business raining all over her, but someone had sent them there for her.
Who?And just as importantly, why?
