Page 103 of The Gentlemen's Club

He came back to the bedroom and made sure Dima was still out cold. That kick to his head might have caused serious damage.Good.Chris crouched down next to Jay and carefully wiped the blood. “How bad is it? No bullshit.”

“He almost killed me. Everything fucking hurts.” Jaycrackedhis eyes open. “Nice kick, but you took your sweet time.”

“You looked like you needed the exercise.”

Close by, Ethan attempted to sit, groaning in pain.

“We need to tie that bastard down,” Jay said.

“Okay. You think you might have a concussion?”

“More like five concussions, but I’ll deal with that later.”

Chris watched as Ethan managed to sit, still pale but his eyes more focused. He rubbed the back of his head and suddenly stopped, squinting at Chris.

“What is it, E?”

His eyes grew big with terror. “Behind you!”

Before Chris could turn around, the gun was pulled from his waistband. He stopped breathing at the feeling of the hard barrel pressed against his lower back.

“Twice.” Dima coughed and moved to sit. “Twice you knocked me out. My brain is hurting because of you. I think I’m going to shoot you now.”

“Don’t,” Ethan said.

“You be quiet. Sneaking through the window like a coward.” With the gun still pressed against Chris’s back, Dima moved closer and looked down at Jay. “You’re alive?”

“Bet your ass I am.”

Dima chuckled. “I enjoyed fighting you, like fighting a bear. Maybe I won’t shoot you.”

“You won’t shoot anyone without permission.”

“Yes, you’re right; the man who pays gets to decide.” He rose to his feet and roughly pulled Chris up. “I knew you wanted to play with me more.” He pressed the gun against Chris’s crotch. “If I shoot it off, you’ll become a pretty girl for real. My American sweetheart.”

Chris locked eyes with Jay. There was no secret plan for them to pull off. The sense of defeat felt overwhelming, crushing.

“Everyone up on your feet,” Dima said. “Let’s find out who I’m shooting.”

24

They walked clumsily downstairs with Jay and Ethan using the railing for support. Even Dima seemed unstable, but he still held the gun steadily against Chris’s back. When they reached the living room, Tobias jumped to his feet, his mouth hanging open. Oscar remained on the couch, rolling his eyes in disapproval.

“They came back,” Dima said.

Tobias turned off the music with a remote. “I can see that.” He said to Oscar, “I told you I heard something. You’re clearly going deaf.”

Oscar shrugged. “Clearly.”

Tobias told Dima, “Seems that they weren’t easy to take down.”

“They cheated.” Dima pointed the gun at Ethan. “This one got in through the balcony like a thief. Then the other two broke my door.” He aimed the gun at Jay. “This one fought well.” The gun moved to Chris. “This one cheated the most.”

Tobias sighed. “You couldn’t just let it go, could you? I can offer you more money, but I doubt it will solve anything.”

“Let him go,” Ethan said. He held the side of his body, his ribs clearly hurting. “We won’t leave without him.”

“Then you won’t leave at all.” There was a manic spark in Tobias’s eyes that tightened Chris’s stomach. “Wouldn’t that solve all my problems?”

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