The piece of shit muttered a curse and plodded to his chair in the back, thankfully as far away from her as possible.
I’d almost killed him on the tarmac. The moment I’d heard the gunshots, I’d been seized with panic that Olivia was dead. Instead, he had the gun on her, and my brain quit working.
Relief she was alive mixed with rage over what Gio had done. This unexpected rush of emotion had stopped my impulse to sink a bullet into him—which was good. With the rest of the crew dead, I had no choice but to let it play out.
If I’d killed him when I had wanted to, I might have gotten a little justice for the dead men beneath us on the plane, but what about my mission? What about the deal in the works with the terrorist cell? With both his sons dead, Vitale would be impossible to break.
That is, of course, if Olivia didn’t kill us first with whatever scheme she was working on. I admired the fight in her, but she had the worst fucking timing. I had hoped she would trust me, but that answer was clearly no.
“Can you fix it?” I asked, apprehensive of the lie I knew was coming.
“We’ll be okay. It’s a slow leak.” But she sounded out of breath, and I noticed it was difficult for me to catch mine as well. The alarm that signified she’d put her plan into action rang again, only this time it was serious. She didn’t get a chance to shut it off. The compartments above our heads burst open, and oxygen masks rained down.
I pushed aside panic and snatched up the dangling orange cup, fumbling with the elastic straps. She’d moved with planned efficiency, and had her mask secure a heartbeat after they’d fallen from the compartments.
Gio yelled something, but it was muffled as he must have put on his own mask.
“Stop this,” I ordered her. “Whatever you’ve done, fix it now.”
Her traitorous gaze darted from the gauges to lock onto me. She pulled the cup of her mask half an inch away so she could speak. “You think I made this happen?”
“Yes.” Not a shred of doubt.
She glanced away, guilty. “I didn’t.”
I grabbed her elbow, hard. I didn’t have time to talk senseinto her, even if I could get her to listen to it. Her eyes widened with startled pain at my grip. The last thing I wanted to do was hurt her, but, goddamn it... we were wearing oxygen masks and sirens wailed overhead. Was the plan to kill us all?
“Now,” I commanded.
“No.”
Cold wrapped its fingers around me as she pushed us closer to where I didn’t want to go. I played the last card I had left before the mission directive would take over. “Olivia, please.”
Again, she pulled the mask away from her face. “He’ll run out of oxygen before we do. Just wait a few more minutes.”
Only then she’d correct whatever she’d done to depressurize the plane.
I knew all too well what a dangerous game she was playing. Knocking someone out by depriving them of oxygen was risky. If Gio went too long, any chance of the CIA gathering intelligence on the terrorist cell would die with him.
Goddamnit. I’d come too far to turn back.
I dug in my pocket and pulled out the knife, flipping the blade open. She was smart enough to know I couldn’t threaten her life. But I could make the empty threat of harm and try to intimidate her. Her knuckles went white on the wheel as she eyed the sharp blade.
“Fix it,” I half-ordered, half-pleaded, and set the edge against her forearm.
She looked down at the blade pressed against her skin, the steel flashing with each warning light above her head. “I will soon, I promise.”
How long did Gio have? What if the asshole had taken his mask off?—
I released her, pulled the knife away, and stood.Don’t think about how stupid this is. Just get it over with.
“What are you doing?” she asked, alarmed.
I took a deep breath, yanked at the clear tubing that was connected to my oxygen bag, and wrapped it aroundthe blade, showing her what was about to happen. Only the constant, repetitive warning alarm blared from the panel before she reacted.
“No!” She reached up to try to stop me, but it was too late.
I sliced easily through the rubber, severing my lifeline, and tore the mask off my face, throwing it across the cockpit in pure frustration. I fell back into the seat, so angry that she’d forced me into this. Now she’d have to choose which was more important, exacting her revenge on Gio, or letting me continue to breathe.
