Christian reached forward and grabbed ahandful of my hair. “Where is she?”
Isnapped my head back and slammed it forward, my forehead smashing into his nose. Christian cried out and staggered back. He dropped his glass and it shattered against the floor as he clutched his hand to his nose. Blood dripped from between his fingers as he glared at me.
“You think that’sfunny?” he yelled, and Ilaughed harder. He spat something out in another language, his words coming quick and angry before he switched back to English. “Now Iwill make you watch.”
“Watch?” Ilaughed. “Watch what?”
Christian shook the blood from his hand, letting it drip slowly down his face. He gestured to one of the men next to him and they put ablack case on top of the counter and snapped the lid open.
Christian pulled out an iPad and powered it on before connecting up another device with some wires, and then he crouched down in front of me again. He placed the iPad on my lap and my gaze focused in on an image. For amoment Iwasn’tsure what Iwas looking at, but then it all became clear. It was the clubhouse. It was my clubhouse. The yard was mostly empty of bikes, and Iknew it was because they were all on their way to the safe house, but there were still some people there.
The trailer came into shot, with Silvie standing in the doorway, smoking. Isaw movement from the corner of the screen and she waved, and Irealized that someone was holding acamera. Someone she knew. The camera moved, scanning over the workshop where two men were working on acar. Footsteps could be heard as the camera moved to the doorway and the door pushed inwards. It took amoment before the camera readjusted to the dimness inside and then it moved around slowly. Icould hear talking, see girls working behind the bar. The church door was wide open and thankfully no one was inside, but the camera still moved toward it regardless.
Once inside, it came to rest upon the long table that filled the center of the room. Itook in the cuts of fallen brothers, the large emblem Casa had made for the wall years before, the overflowing ashtrays and the bottles of liquor on the shelves. And then footsteps could be heard moving away from the camera and Inoted the back of aman walking away. Isquinted, trying to work out who it was; he was familiar, but the picture was dark and grainy and all Ihad to work on was his back.
Ilooked at Christian, who was smiling at me.
He pushed something into my hand and my gaze slid to the item: alittle black box with abutton on top.
“Press it,” he said calmly.
“Fuck you,” Igrowled. My heart thumping in my chest. Ilooked at the black box and then to the screen, realizing with darkening horror what was about to happen.
“Press it and I’ll put you out of your misery right away. Don’tpress it and I’ll make the pain last—for you and for Jolie. Because Iwill find her and I’ll take every ounce of my anger and impatience out on her.”
Ilooked at the screen again, seeing people walk past the room, unaware of what was about to happen to them.
“Press it!” Christian yelled, spittle hitting my face.
My head snapped up and Ishook my head. “Isaid fuck you.”
Christian smiled, despite obviously being irritated by me, and then he reached down, clasped my hand, and squeezed it around the trigger.
The sound of the explosion was brief before the screen went dark.
