I straighten up in my seat and throw a nasty glare Frank's way. "I'm not going to say that I'm disappointed, but why am I here?"
He snorts, just a hint of amusement. "I wanted a drink and you're prettier than Frank, so given the option, I'd rather have one with you than with him.” This time his laugh is cruel. "It’s been a long day, and I feel like having something the Eagles do not. Right now, that includes you. It’s nothing personal. I would’ve left you to get blown up with everyone else, but so long as you’re here, let’s chat.”
“Just chat?”
“How forward. I suppose if you’re already slutting it up for the bikers you’d be interested in a better offer. I could pay you more than they do, and it might be interesting to see what the fuss is about." He virtually peels my clothes right off with his eyes.“But I don’t particularly feel like coming down with any of the hundreds of diseases they probably carry.”
"Boss, we need her for?—"
"Shut up, Frank. Zeke was scum, and not even smart about it. You're better off without him."
Maybe I can play off the tension between them. "Zeke cried when they shot him. I was right there. He was a wimp."
"What the fuck did you just say?" Frank lifts a hand to slap me, but pauses with a look towards Kozlov, who's just started laughing.
"She's trying to rile you up. Don't be a fucking idiot." Then he turns to me. "Do that again, and I'll just shoot you in the head and catapult your corpse into the Screaming Eagles compound. No pussy is worth the hassle of a smart mouth."
I retreat as far as the couch will let me. Kozlov's eyes are dead, like I'm looking at a freaking zombie. When I don't say anything, he relaxes. "Good girl." When Zero says it, it makes me want to strip off all my clothes and throw myself at him. When Kozlov says it, my skin crawls so hard I'm surprised it hasn't peeled right off and left the room.
Deliberately putting Kozlov and Frank out of my line of vision for a moment, I direct my attention out the window, at the pretty view over the city, with its rows of lit-up street lights, the ebb and flow of evening traffic on the highway that runs on ramps over South Side, and the animated neon company logos on the tops of the Blackworth skyscrapers. All of those people out there living their lives without knowing I’m here about to die, and somewhere out there are my guys, and I pray that they're all right.
Frank's phone rings. He fishes it out of his pocket, glances at the screen then taps it and puts it to his ear. "Yeah?" The way his face darkens, I don't think it's good news. At least for him. When he hangs up, he glares at me like I just pissed in his corn flakes. "Another of my boys is dead. Your fucking bikers again."
My mouth runs before I can stop it. "Good."
The side of my face lights up in a flash of pain as his backhand knocks me into the back of the couch. Like a fire crawling down my cheek, the ache spreads while I run my tongue over my teeth to make sure they're all still there. Seems okay, but ow, ow, ow. My eyes shut when Frank hit me, and when I open them back up, things haven't gotten any better. He's pointing his gun right at my face. Is it my smart mouth that finally ends it for me?
"Put it away. You're not getting blood all over my fucking living room." Kozlov's tone makes it obvious that it's not me he's worried about.
"Then shut her the hell up. It's my guys she's laughing at."
Kozlov scoffs. "They died from their own incompetence. Leave the bitch alone."
“What if I don’t want to?”
37
PISTON
Kozlov’s propertyis surrounded by tall walls, and has guards at the gates but the wall is poorly guarded. This isn't a fortress that we're trying to get into. After finding an unwatched spot at the back, Beast makes a step with his clasped hands and helps launch Zero high enough to pull himself up on top of the wall. Then he pulls me up as Beast gives me a hand the same way, and between the two of us, we manage to get Beast's bulk up with us after a couple of jumps. Like fucking ninjas.
We drop down into the yard on the other side, eyes open for danger. After a quick dash through the shadows, we press up against the side of the building. I'm not fucking built for stealth, but we don't have time to fight through every one of Kozlov's goons on the way.
Zero disappears around the corner, followed by a dull thump and a quiet grunt. When we catch up, there's a guard on the ground. He was guarding a door but the lock is a keypad and the guard didn't do us the favor of sharing the code before he was knocked out. With the guard down, the corner we're at is blind, though, giving us a little space to work.
"Up again, just like the wall." Zero points up at the balcony above us.
We go through the moves again, hauling Beast over the railing last. On this level, there's a hot tub, a couple of sun chairs and a large parasol that's closed. Glass doors lead into the main house. They're locked, but a quick chip into the frame with a knife, loosens it and we knock the glass loose.
The blare of an alarm tears through the air, an electronic shriek I'm sure they can hear at the fucking clubhouse.
"Well, fuck," Beast growls. Guess we should've expected it, but honestly, it makes me feel better. Sneaking around isn't my thing. Taking motherfuckers on head on, however? That's very much is.
I let go of the glass we detached, and it twists out of the frame to crash on the floor, shards scattering with a musical tinkle. "That's our doorbell. Let's go see if anyone's home." I jump through the opened door and lead the way into the house. From where we saw Sandra, it should be up this way.
The first guard we run into isn't ready. He comes around the corner and walks right into me. I grab his shirt with both hands and swing him into the wall. He barely gets a yelp out before the back of his head smacks into it hard, he goes glass-eyed and when I let go, he slides down to collapse on the floor.
"Up the stairs." Zero points.
