Henri’s standing to the side looking lost. “Oh, for fuck’s sake,” I grumble as I grab her and give her a hard hug. “Now get inside both of you.”
Lexie herds them towards the door.
“Eight!” Red snaps. “This isn’t on.”
“I know, Red. I’ll make it up to you.”
I get in the car and see Henri and Oscar staring after me, betrayal on their faces. It doesn’t matter. I gotta keep them safe and I gotta find Selkie before she gets hurt or worse.
Chapter Twenty
Selkie
Kozlov offers me some vodka and I accept, thinking how cliche it is for a Russian to drink vodka. Or maybe I’m being unfair. Maybe he likes vodka.
The tension in the room is palpable as we sit across from each other sipping our drinks and watching the time.
“Are you really going to break my arm?” I ask him.
“Yes,” he replies as he looks at his watch. “In one hour and 46 minutes.”
“I hate honesty,” I tell him.
He taps his fingers on the arms of his chair. “It’s a fault of mine.”
We’re alone in the room. All the henchmen have left. It’s stupid of Kozlov to underestimate me especially after he saw what I did to Igor. Sure he’s got a gun and I have nothing but some ice cubes to slide down the back of his shirt, but it could work – it makes Henri scream and jump around.
“Are we going to sit here for the full two hours?” I ask him.
“Yes,” he says.
I sigh. “Do you think I could have a magazine to read while we wait.”
He tilts his head. “We don’t have magazines that women like.”
I tilt my head back. “Naked Women, Guns Are Us?”
“Something like that.”
“Can I get up and look out the window?”
“No.”
I take another sip of my vodka. “If you have to break my arm, could you start with the left. I need my right arm for capturing criminals.”
He drains his glass. “If that’s what you want.”
“Are you going to break my toes, too?”
“Yes. Every bone in your body if I don’t get my money.”
“Then why don’t you start with my toes?”
He shrugs. “Not the way we do things in Russia.”
Chapter Twenty-One
Jonny Fry
