Page 18 of A Pawn in the Game
“Russians, Tommy?”
“They made me do it. I had no choice; they made me do it.” He shakes his head.
“Did they, now? And how did they do that?”
“They told me you guys are ruined.” Drops of sweat fall from his forehead. “And everyone who isn’t on their side will get caught in the crossfire.”
“That’s a shame, Tommy,” I sigh. “You obviously picked the wrong side. Who did they approach? You or Liz?”
He glances at Liz before responding, “They told me Liz is done. He’ll go down with you.”
I purse my lips, crossing my arms in front of my chest. “Here’s what we’re going to do, Tommy. I won’t kill you.”
“Thank you.” Spit splatters from his mouth. “Oh, thank you.”
“I wasn’t finished. I won’t kill you. But you will give them a message.”
“Anything, of course. I’ll tell them anything.”
I roll my eyes, disappointed by his pleading. It’s pathetic. They would kill him if he did that. Theywillkill him when he does that. “It’s not a verbal message. More of a poetic one. Ivan.” I motion my head again, and he ties the rope back around Tommy’s mouth.
I draw my knife from the sheath in my boot, Tommy’s muffled screams growing louder.
I haven’t used this little thing in a while.
“I’ll need a flat surface. A book, or a desk, maybe?”
Liz and his guys work quickly to bring a desk to Tommy’s chair, their nerves palpable. I instruct them where to place it. When they’re gone, Ivan approaches.
“Need help?” he asks.
“Sure, why not?” I shrug and he knows exactly what to do.
He forces Tommy’s right hand open on the desk, his fingers splayed out for me. Tommy’s muscles contract, but they’re no match for Ivan’s strength.
Perfect.
“Hold him still. I want our message to be clear.”
I pull up a chair to see what I’m doing better. With the sound of muted screams and cracking bones, I cut off Tommy’s fingers, one by one. All except the middle one. Blood splatters from the open stumps, spraying over my face. I spit it out to the side.
Disgusting.
“Liz, man,” I call out, making him squeak. “I’m going to need some gauze.”
He scatters in a second, bringing me the gauze, and Ivan and I work in tandem, carefully wrapping Tommy’s wounds. Leaving him to die of infection is no way to send a message.
When I’m certain the wrap is strong enough to keep the blood in, I huff a satisfied breath before rising back to my feet and repeating the process on the other hand.
“Y-you heard him,” Liz stutters once I finish. “It had nothing to do with me.”
“I know. Here’s what’s going to happen. You’ll send Tommy with the shipment, as planned. I’m certain he’ll deliver the message.” I lift Tommy’s hand, the middle finger staring straight at them. Ivan barks a laugh, and I can’t help but follow. Liz and his guys join in, clearly thrilled not to be next on the chopping block.
We head out of the warehouse, Liz walking swiftly behind us. “Thank you, Luka. I’m sorry. This wasn’t my fault, but I’m still sorry it happened. I wished I could have stopped it.”
I turn around suddenly, grabbing him by his shirt. “Youcouldhave stopped it. You’re responsible for your men. And just because I let you off this time, doesn’t mean that I’ll allow this to happen again. So be more careful. Russians are poaching, andwe’d rather burn the whole place down than lose our kingdom.” With that, I drop him and start for the car.
“How come you haven’t killed him?” Ivan asks, as he starts the car.
