Page 139 of The Kingpin's Call Girl

Her sister stands back, arms crossed. There’s no question it’s Mary. Has she been down here all this time?

My rage burns so high it’s a miracle the entire place hasn’t burst into flames. Somehow, I keep my focus. Chalk it up to long years of experience.

“This is between you and me,” I say.

Bender smirks. “Drop the piece and slide it to the middle of the floor with your foot. Slow.”

I set down my gun and slide it across the floor. “This doesn’t end well for you, Bender.”

“The name’s Zamir. Zamir Zogaj.” He nods at me. “Now, the one in the back. I know you carry there.”

I pull my Glock from my belt and slide that one across, too. “You’ll let them go, now.”

He chuckles.

I knew he wouldn’t let them go, but it’s best that he thinks he’s in control.

I wait for him to ponder his options. I can practically see the gears moving. He’s realizing that he’s got one shot—at me—and he’ll have to take his gun off Edie to make that shot.

It’ll be just enough of a pause to allow me to dive for his legs, a move I’ve trained many times and done only once—a lightning-fast takedown that has the added benefit of dropping me out of the range he’s likely to shoot in.

The odds of not getting hit are fifty-fifty, but that’s the risk. I risk taking a bullet going in, but then I’ve got him. A man can’t shoot you when you’re on top of him, destroying his face.

I just have to get him to take the gun off Edie.

More than that, I have to touch her. I feel like I could tear apart the metal bars with my bare strength—that’s how intensely I need to get to her.

She’s being unbelievably brave, standing there calmly, hating on Bender.

“I’ll admit, this was unexpected,” Bender says.

“You two okay?”

“Fine,” Edie says. A lie. She’s in pain—it’s all over her face. “This is my sister, Mary. Mary, this is Luka.”

The woman sitting on the floor on the far side of the cage raises a hand in greeting.

“You do know the DNA test is happening right now, right?” Bender says to me. “There’s no stopping it. That train has left the station.”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah.” As if I’d choose anything over Edie.

He smirks. “One of your own men supplied me a hair sample. All your guys know it’s happening now. They know there’s a question about your blood, and they’re all waiting for the result. And what do we think it’ll show?”

One of my own guys gave up my hair?

If I weren’t so focused on that gun barrel shoved into Edie’s cheek, I might give a shit.

“How ‘bout you ease off on her,” I say.

“That’s how much you suck as a leader,” Bender continues. “That’s how eager your men are to be rid of you. Once they got wind that you might not be a true Zogaj, they couldn’t wait to provide a hair sample. And it’s at two independent labs, so there will be no question. I have it from good authority that the result will be a resounding F. F for fraud.”

It’s right about here that I notice Mary slowly moving to the side of the cage behind Bender. Inch by inch.

I nearly have a heart attack thinking she’s going to try and attack Bender from the inside of the cage—a sure recipe for getting Edie shot. But then I notice that she’s got some lumpy-looking Vaudeville hook in her hand. She slides it out the bottom of the bars—across the floor—and toward my gun, just beyond Bender’s periphery.

Fuck. She’s going for the gun.

“So, one of my guys brought you my hair? I have a hard time believing that.” I move casually to the side, drawing his attention away from Mary.

---