Page 78 of The Ice Queen in the Corner Office

He stalked down a short, dim hall and pointed to a door in the center of the wall. “Bathroom’s here.”

“Thank you,” I said, my tone clipped, confident.

I opened the door and stepped inside. I waited a moment, flushed the toilet and ran the water.

When I stepped out the door into the hall, liquor breath was still there, watching me.

I wasn’t brave enough to push any more, to attempt to snoop around the rest of the house. I wasn’t brave enough or I wasn’t stupid enough. I walked past liquor breath toward the front door, but another man stepped from a room on the right side of the house into the hall. A very familiar man.

“Hey, Jennings, where’s the big guy?” beady eyes, the same beady eyes who was pummeling Alex in his condo that morning, asked

“I’m here,” liquor breath said, the tone of his voice suggesting annoyance and little patience for idiots.

My heart thudded, and time slowed as beady eyes turned and looked my way. The world tilted and then righted as recognition registered on his features. “Hey, don’t I know you?”

It was like he’d pulled the trigger on a gun. Heavy hands landed on my shoulders and pulled me back into a hard chest. Liquor breath held me as he walked us into the living room and the light. “You know her?”

Beady eyes nodded slowly as he studied me.

I remembered who I was supposed to be, a stranded motorist with no clue what I’d walked into, and struggled against liquor breath. “Take your hands off me,” I said, my voice prim, severe, even as my words vibrated and shook.

“She was at Owings’ apartment,” beady eyes said, his expression hardening. “She’s the one gave me this bruise on my neck.”

The grip on my shoulders tightened. “Oh, yeah? Strange coincidence, don’t you think, Charlie?”

“Sure is,” beady eyes/Charlie said. “That mean Owings is somewhere nearby?” He glanced toward the darkness outside.

“No,” I said. “I just work for the guy. My car really did break down and I—”

The punch, right to my gut, came so hard and sudden I had no way to prepare for it. One moment I was talking and the next I felt like someone had slam-dunked a watermelon into my midsection.

I wanted to curl around the injury, but meaty hands held me upright as I gasped and sucked wind, trying to refill my lungs. Finally, air made it down my throat, but every breath hurt.

“Wanna try that again, sweetheart?” Liquor breath leaned forward and whispered in my ear. “Want to tell us where the hell Owings is hiding?”

“I’d assume he’s at home. I haven’t seen him—”

My head swung back and my face lit with pain as Charlie slapped my face, hard.

My fear vanished in the face of my pure rage. I swung my head back to face him, tasting blood on my lip. “You’re so brave, beating up on a woman who’s being held down,” I said, my voice a growl. “Think you’d be so brave if he let me go?”

Charlie’s eyes narrowed, and his cheeks reddened. He raised his fist and I braced for impact, but liquor breath chuckled and let me go. “Is she right, Charlie? You afraid to take her on without me holding her?”

Charlie smiled, but I saw the wariness in his eyes. It would be pretty embarrassing if I kicked his ass in front of his buddy there. “I’m afraid I might hurt her too bad, and she won’t be able to tell us where her boyfriend is hiding or what the hell she’s doing here.”

“I’m sure he’s not too far,” liquor breath said. “We’ll find him. Go on and see if you can get her to talk when I’m not holding her.”

Charlie raised his hands and backed up. “I’m not going to fight a woman, Frank.”

Liquor breath/Frank laughed and grabbed my neck, yanking me into his side. “Yeah, I reckon she’s tougher than you, Charlie. Why don’t you go on out and look for Owings? I’ll take care of his girl.”

Charlie lumbered toward the door, but it burst open before he got there.

Bert and Fin rushed in, lead pipes in their hands.

Frank tossed me against a wall to get to the fight, but I dropped, clamped my legs around his right ankle, and brought him down. He hit the floor hard and cursed.

I leapt up, prepared to finish what I’d started, but a crutch landed on Frank’s back. I looked up into Alex’s face.

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