Page 26 of With a Vengeance

Dante whirls aroundto face the others and, with a clap of his hands, says, “Now, who’s up for a drink?”

He makes it two steps before the others swarm him, furious.

“Are you crazy?” Judd yells while, at the exact same time, Sal says, “Why did you do that?”

“You’ve just doomed us all!” Lapsford then bellows, his face crimson. “Including your father.”

“Maybe he deserves it,” Dante says. “In fact, I’m starting to think all of you do.”

Lapsford glowers at him. “This isn’t over. There’s plenty of time between here and Chicago.”

“More than ten hours,” Judd adds as he pulls a pocket watch from inside his jacket. Too flustered to open it, he puts it away without checking to see if he’s right.

“And Iwillfind a way off this train, even if it means killing you and her.” Lapsford jerks a thumb in Anna’s direction. “In fact, there’s nothing to prevent us from doing just that and ending this whole charade.”

Anna nods to Seamus, who takes a step forward while simultaneously removing a revolver from his pocket. Someone—either Sal or Edith, Anna isn’t sure—lets out a shocked cry. A few of themen gasp. Even Dante gives Anna a wide-eyed look, as if he suddenly thinks she’s crazy.

He’s wrong there. In that moment, Anna is absolutely, utterly sane.

Next to her, Seamus aims the revolver not at Lapsford but at the car in general, his meaning clear. He can shoot any one of them if he wants to, a realization that makes Lapsford back away with his hands raised.

Seamus glares at the group, and for a second Anna, too, fears he might abandon their plan and shoot them all dead. There are enough bullets in his six-shooter. One for each person.

“I told you she planned to kill us,” Judd says.

Anna steps in front of Seamus, blocking everyone’s view of the revolver. She’d been reluctant to let him bring it, knowing the situation was fraught enough without adding a gun to the mix. But, just like with the knife strapped to her thigh, she ultimately deemed it a necessary precaution.

“No one is going to kill anyone,” Anna says. “I meant it when I said I want you all alive. Seamus has the gun to ensure that all of you remain calm.”

“And what if we don’t?” Lapsford says.

Seamus pokes his head out from behind Anna. “Then you get a bullet in you. That’ll calm you down. You want to wait a little bit, Lieutenant Colonel? Or should I just shoot you now?”

Herb Pulaski breaks away from the group and heads for the set of double doors in the center of the car. “The rest of you can stay here. But I’m not waiting around to get arrested or shot.”

He unlatches the doors and yanks them open. Wide enough for large trunks and pieces of luggage to fit through, their opening creates a gaping hole in the side of the train. Cold air blasts through the car, bringing with it a scattering of thick snowflakes that spiralto the floor. Riding the air with them is the noise of the train itself. A loud clattering of steel wheels on iron rails that echoes off the car’s barren walls. Buffeted by the wind and noise, Herb moves closer to the opening.

“What are you doing?” Judd says, shouting to be heard over the racket.

“What do you think? I’m gonna jump off this goddamn train. I suggest the rest of you do the same.”

Herb stands in the doorway and grips both sides of the frame, preparing to leap. Anna sweeps up behind him, panicked he’ll go through with it. Over his shoulder, she sees that the train is still following the path of the river. There are no longer any houses on the opposite shore, however. Just a dark, rugged expanse of water and woods dusted with falling snow.

“The average speed of this train is sixty-five miles an hour,” she tells Herb. “If you jump, there’s a fifty-fifty chance you’ll be killed instantly. Especially if you get pulled under the wheels. They’ll slice you faster than a knife through butter.”

Herb leans into the empty space beyond the doorway. “I’ll risk it.”

“Suit yourself,” Anna says, changing tactics. “But even if you are lucky enough to survive the jump, you won’t emerge unscathed. Therewillbe injuries. Broken bones. Cuts and abrasions. You certainly won’t be able to run. You probably won’t even be able to walk. And if, by some miracle you can, there’s nowhere for you to go. Not much of an escape plan, is it?”

Herb turns away from the opening to look at her. Anna searches his face, pleased to notice that hesitation has begun to settle over his features.

“I’m waiting, Mr. Pulaski,” she says. “Do you intend to jump or not?”

Herb looks back outside and Anna can tell he’s doing the calculations in his head, deciding if it’s ultimately worth the risk.

“Would you like me to push you?” she says.

“No!”

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