Page 162 of The Slayer
“Don’t—” Nova cut in from behind them as he came into the room, looking down at the Russian he had to step over. “Holy shit. Another fucking dead Russian.” He glanced over to Junior. “Don’t kill this one. I need him alive. Can he talk?”
“Talk, motherfucker.” Junior shoved his gun at the Russian, who was just sitting there, silently watching the exchange. “He can talk. He’s being difficult.”
Nova walked over and looked at the Russian. “Is he just shot in the leg?”
“Yeah, the gringa’s aim sucks.”
“Motherfucker,” Chuito started with a bark of furious laughter.
“Junior,” Marcos warned him. “My cousin’s had a bad fucking day. Save your shit.”
“He can kiss my ass,” Junior shot back. “I protected his chica and—”
“She’s naked,” Chuito reminded him. “You should die just for seeing it.”
“This is so much fun,” Nova said sarcastically in Spanish. “This makes my day, and I haven’t even had my coffee yet. Look, Chuito, you want to maim and torture some motherfuckers, that works for me. I got a Russian down there with a bullet in his kneecap whostillisn’t talking. I got this motherfucker who’s clammed up too. Go crazy, but leave this kid alone. I like to keep my allies healthy.”
Junior turned and looked at Nova in surprise. “You sound Boricua.”
“Yeah, I’m awesome like that,” Nova agreed.
Chuito finally lifted his gun off Junior, because Nova had a point. He had other motherfuckers to deal with. He turned Alaine in his arms and asked, “Are you okay, mami?”
“I just shot someone,” she whispered, her voice quivering. “But I’m not hurt. Areyouokay? I heard the gunshots downstairs, and I thought—” She swallowed hard. “Junior told me to wait, but—” She shook her head as tears rolled down her cheeks. “I thought you were dead. No, I don’t think I’m okay. I’m definitelynotokay.”
He hugged, her because she was shaking and in shock, but he was too, and he didn’t trust himself to be around her just yet. “Get dressed.” He pulled back and looked down at her bare legs, though the hoodie hung almost to her knees. “Where are your shorts?”
“He’s bleeding on them,” Alaine said as she pointed to the dead Russian behind them. “I could only save the hoodie and—”
“Fuck it.” Chuito turned back to Marcos and said in Spanish, “Take her to my mother. Don’t let her see what happened downstairs.”
“I can’t leave you,” Marcos argued. “I’ve got Luis, Miguel, and Neto with me. Let them take her and—”
Chuito raised his eyebrows pointedly. “I want you to leave.”
“But—”
“Leave, Marc,” Chuito cut him off as he continued to speak in Spanish, because he didn’t want Alaine to hear. “Protect her. You’re the only one I’d trust to get her home. Please do this for me. I protected your chica. Now it’s your turn. Get her out of this house.”
“Let me take Junior,” Marcos argued.
“I don’t want him in the car with her,” Chuito said as he shook his head. “No. Junior stays.”
“I need to talk to Junior,” Nova agreed. “Preferably after he gets dressed. I’ll make sure Chuito doesn’t hurt him.”
“And why the fuck should I trust you?” Marcos countered. “You’re not my favorite person, cabrón.”
“Wow, that’s some shit.” Nova snorted. “I’m the one who got you out, motherfucker.”
“Yeah, I’m feeling reallyoutright now.”
Chuito put his gun into the back of his jeans and swept up Alaine in his arms, because he didn’t want her standing in this room with arguing gangsters and dead and maimed Russians for one more second.
There had been a lot of gunfire.
A lot of fucking screaming.
He didn’t rule out the heat pulling up at any second, and he wanted Alaine gone.
