There was absolutely no lie in the words, and he could sense it, but I had to make sure. Had to convince him this was a good idea, and he wasn’t stupid if he allowed it.
I placed a hand delicately on his bare chest, leaned in, and pressed my mouth to his. It was the first time I’d kissed him by choice, and—oh, how he liked that.
His lips moved against mine, patient at first, and then eager to be in charge. He kissed me like he might actually love me, and for one fleeting moment, I almost felt sorry for him. But then the intensity of the kiss grew, driving his hand up my side. It slid over my chest, and he gripped me through my dress. I inhaled sharply through my nose but didn’t dare break the kiss.
I used the power of it to curl my fingers around his wrist and pin it to the bedpost.
“All right,” he whispered against my lips.
Thank fuck. He continued to mouth irritating kisses against the side of my neck as I focused on getting his wrist secured with another tie. I slipped the knot closed so tightly, he grunted with discomfort, and the sound was deeply satisfying.
I sat upright on him, staring down at the man who had taken so much from me.
“Do you feel in control?” he asked.
“Yes.” I pulled the gun from the nightstand, warming the cold metal with the palm of my hand.
There wasn’t a hint of danger in his voice. “What are you doing?”
“I’m making myself feel safe.”
“I’m tied up, I can’t do anything to you.”
“No. You can’t.” The bed didn’t make a sound as I climbed off him and doublechecked the knots, pulling them tighter. “There’s that word you don’t like, Frey.No.”
He jolted with surprise, then his expression turned dark. “I don’t need my hands to be in control, Lau?—”
“Shut up.” I grabbed more ties, wadded one up, and shoved it in his mouth, taking more satisfaction from the gagging noise he made. I looped another over his mouth and secured it behind his head to keep the gag in place.
My heart pounded, making blood whoosh loudly in my ears as I stepped back and raised the gun. I didn’t know anything about them, which I’d proved that night I’d been in the van. This was why I’d wanted to tie him up first. If I’d reached for his gun before then, I was sure something would go wrong. He’d overpower me, or disarm me, or I wouldn’t be able to get it to fire in time.
Plus, as much as I hated him and he deserved it, I wasn’t sure I was ready to become a murderer.
I stared down the barrel at the man tethered to the bed, who didn’t scream or move. His eyes mocked me, silently daring me to do it.
But I couldn’t. I physicallycouldn’t.
The gun was a million pounds in my hands. Was it more of Dr. Vorbusch’s work?
“Stay,” I uttered, even though I’d done everything to make sure he had no other choice. I had to get to Jason.
I burst out into the hallway, only to find I wasn’t alone. Plavko was there, running toward me, and I acted on instinct. The gun in my hand came up, no longer weighing more than it should.
“Take me to Dunn,” I demanded, pointing the gun as menacingly as I could.
My feelings for him were conflicted. He’d helped me so many times, but then I remembered the times he’d punched Jason. Plavko pulled up short at the sight of my gun but said nothing.
He disarmed me in one precise move that was so swift it left me breathless. I stumbled backward, horrified.
“Stop,” he said, extending the gun back to me, his hand wrapped around the barrel. “I’ll help you, but I need to know where Juric is first.”
The gesture was wildly disorienting, but not half as much as his voice. Not Croatian. Distinctly American.
I hesitantly took the gun back, my mind struggling. “I... tied him to the bed.”
He stepped around me, peered into the room, and issued a half-laugh at the sight of a nearly naked Frey struggling against his ties.
“Well, good for you.” But then he scowled. “The marshal made this a real mess for me, you know that?”
