Page 74 of Deadly Target
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Olivia screamed and jumped up, the duct tape around her wrists falling away. She’d managed to work at the binding on one of the chair’s rough sides until it broke free while Victor had been antagonizing Alfie.
Damn man. If he’d just played along and let her convince Alfie she believed him…
The first shot had gone right past her into the wall, blowing a hole in it.
Boom!Another rang out, the bullet hitting the plastered ceiling overhead and raining chunks down over the table. She ducked and scrambled around the edge of the big wooden thing. The antique wood smelled like a thrift shop or maybe someone’s attic.
Victor and Alfie had fallen to the floor on the other side and she could hear them tussling, see the shadows of flailing limbs. The sound of fists hitting flesh, grunts, and fervent swearing echoed on the heels of the gunshots.
She ducked under the table, searching the floor at the other end. The two men were locked in a fight over the gun. She started to crawl down the length of the table to get to them, but suddenly, there was a set of familiar legs rushing past and then someone grabbed her ankles, hauling her out.
“Olivia!” her dad said, lifting her off the ground. “We gotta get outta here!”
Oh, for heaven’s sake. How did he keep turning up in the most unlikely places and times? She fought against his grasp. “I can’t leave! I have to help Victor!”
He fought to grab hold of her again. “He’s got it under control. Let’s go!”
Under control, huh? Chairs crashed to the floor, Taz barked somewhere in the background, the box of Victor’s files crashed nearby, sending papers flying everywhere.
Another gunshot exploded, making her flinch and throw her hands over her head even though it was still under the protection of the table. She heard a grunt of pain from one of them. Her dad had a hold of her leg and she kicked at him to make him let go.
“Victor!” she screamed as she flipped over and started crawling.Please don’t let him be hurt.
Her father came after her, grabbing her ankles and jerking her backward. “I have to get you out of here.”
Once more, her foot connected with her father and he let go with a curse. “Goddamnit, Olivia! Why won’t you listen to me?”
Ignoring him, she lunged for the opposite end where Victor and Alfie were fighting. Victor had Alfie on the ground, trying to make him let go of the gun. Alfie bucked his hips up, nearly unseating Victor. The mobster jerked his hand away from Victor’s grasp. As she was about to launch herself at Alfie, he smacked Victor on the side of the head with the butt of the gun.
Victor, still fighting to regain his balance on top of Alfie, fell to the side. Alfie swung the gun around to point it at Victor, and Olivia dove at him.
Thanks to her unfocused vision, she missed the gun, but managed to snag Alfie’s shirtsleeve. He was in the process of rolling to his knees and pulled her with him, her lower back smacking on the edge of the table as Alfie scrambled to his feet.
Victor jumped up, eyes darting from her to Alfie and the gun. “Olivia, stay out of this. Get back!”
She hung on to Alfie for dear life, keeping his gun hand from pointing at Victor. She wrapped her free hand around Alfie’s waist, trying to shove him to the floor, but he was stronger and elbowed her in the collarbone. The blow knocked the wind out of her and sent her back on her ass.
Now it wasn’t just her head pounding and her eyesight blurry, she felt like she couldn’t breathe. Alfie moved, and through the fog and dizziness, she saw him raise the gun to aim at Victor. She screamed, and in her peripheral vision, which wasn’t much better, she saw a figure move from under the table to tackle Alfie.
Alfie must have seen her dad coming. He pivoted, and the gun went off.
“No!” Olivia screamed as her father fell to the floor, blood gushing from his chest.
Before she could reach him, the dining room window shattered and the next thing she knew, Victor dropped to the floor. He’d been shot as well, the bullet going all the way through and splattering the wall behind him with blood.
It was a surreal nightmare. She kept hearing screaming as she crawled to her father, and realized it was her own voice. “You bastard,” she cried at Alfie. “You fucking bastard!”
Her father’s eyes were closed, his breathing ragged. She wanted to help him, get to Victor, and stop Alfie all at the same time. Yet, it seemed like the only thing her body would do was cry as she stripped off her shirt and pressed it against her father’s wound.
Suddenly, Alfie squatted beside her. He brushed a strand of hair from her face. “Shh. It’s going to be all right. I’ll call an ambulance.”
Was he completely insane?
Something dangerous took hold of her. Something feral and uncontrolled. Through her tears, she raised her face and looked at him. “How could you do this to me? I didn’t have a chance to make amends with him, and now I’ll never be able to.”
He reached for her and brought her in close to hug her against his chest. “It’s not a fatal wound. I made sure to miss his heart. I promise you, doll, we’re going to be a strong, loyal family. All of us, including your dad.”
