“You don’t want to know,” said Jack, with an air of confidence that earned him a grin of approval from Boris and an eye roll from Carla.
“Yeah, real scary, buddy. I bet you got a gun, too.”
“Dunno,” said Jack, palms facing outward as he shrugged.
“It’s right there in your pocket. You’re not sneaky.”
“Oh, he’s sneaky, alright,” said Carla, free hand on her hip. “Sneakier than you wanna know. Alright, Enzo, you got four guns on you. You wanna cooperate, or you want me to blast you full of holes? It’s no skin off my back whether or not you die.”
“Cut the head off the snake,” said Boris, so quietly that only Jack heard him.
“What makes you think you have the upper hand?”
“Basic math,” Carla said, flipping her hair over her shoulder. “C’mon, Enzo. Ronnie’s not coming to save you. Not right now.”
The yellow-eyed man remained silent. At his side, his hand twisted, fingers forming the sorts of signs that Jack’s middle school would’ve banned. His lips moved, but no words escaped.
Enzo dropped like a load of cement, twitched once, then lay unmoving, eyes open to reveal only the whites, lips parted to expose yellowed teeth.
CHAPTER
FORTY-FOUR
Carla let out a horrified cry.
“Enough of that,” the yellow-eyed man rumbled. “Help me move him.”
Bewildered, Jack grasped Enzos ankles, helped the yellow-eyed man haul him toward a stiff white rug. Jack’s pulse quickened as he realized it wasnailedto the floor. Someone had scrawled on it with marker, setting symbols around a circle large enough to hold a man. Maybe two. Jack only vaguely recognized some of the marks from his research and fought back a shiver.
They arranged Enzo in a fetal position, keeping his limbs firmly inside the circle. The yellow-eyed man patted him down, then dug through his pockets until he emerged with a pistol, black and polished. Then he took a step back to observe their work, gave a hum of approval, gestured for Jack to move out of the way, and snapped his fingers. At once, the smell of smoke and rotten eggs filled the room. It took all of Jack’s strength not to gag.
In the doorway, Carla covered her mouth. Boris pinched his nostrils shut just as the rug caught fire.
Jack leapt away, choking on a yelp.
“Relax,” the yellow-eyed man said, just this side of amused. The flames disappeared as quickly as they arrived, leavingbehind singed marks where the outline of the circle had been. “He’s not going anywhere now.”
“What the fuck?” mumbled Boris, wide-eyed, hands balled into tight fists at his sides.
“What did you do to him?” Carla demanded, storming to Jack’s side.
“He’s just going to answer some questions,” said the yellow-eyed man. “It may come as a surprise to you, but Enzo here has covered his tracks surprisingly well. I’ve discovered little about his methods.”
“His primary residence is in the city,” said Carla. “If you were looking for anything incriminating, that’s where it would be.”
“Wait, so he’s actually guilty?” asked Jack, glancing between them.
“We don’t have time for this,” said the yellow-eyed man, shaking his head. “I want the three of you to keep clear of the circle. If you step inside, I can’t guarantee your safety.”
“Right,” said Boris, beckoning them to stand beside him in the doorway. That awful stench filled the room again as Jack hurried away. It burned at his nostrils.
On the rug, Enzo began to stir. The yellow-eyed man crossed his arms, leaned against the wall like a bored cowboy.
“What the…”
“Don’t bother trying to escape,” said the yellow-eyed man. “We’ve got questions. And you will answer them.”
“Like hell I will,” said Enzo, sitting up slowly, glaring around the room. He slapped at his chest, glanced down in bewilderment when he realized his pistol was missing. “Where’s my gun? Is this a fucking blanket?”
