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“About five hours,” Alex said.
“You right-handed or left-handed?” Kramer asked.
“Left-handed.” She lied without hesitation.
Kramer made a fist and hit the cast. Hard. Alex bit her lips together to hold in the scream as wrenching pain shot up her arm. She would not give Kramer the satisfaction of crying out.
“Tough woman you have here, Wolf,” he said as he turned toward Gideon. “But with her dominant hand incapacitated, I’m more worried about you.”
He aimed his gun at Gideon’s head. “I’d prefer to have you watch us have fun, but I don’t trust you. So maybe I’ll get rid of you first,” he said. “Ms. Conway can collect the files.”
“How do you know my name?” Alex asked, desperate to keep his attention off Gideon.
“Sergei and Yuri.” He glanced over her shoulder and dismissed her with a smirk. “They told their boss what was going on, and their boss told me. Including about the files you took from Trotter.”
He turned back to Gideon and raised the gun again.
Alex moved close behind Kramer. Slid her casted arm out of its sling and swung it as hard as she could at the back of Kramer’s head. He stumbled. The gun fell to the floor, and he went down on one knee, scrabbling for his weapon. Her arm screamed with pain, but she ignored it. Powered by rage and desperation, she hit him again. His other knee hit the ground, and he put one hand on the floor to steady himself.
As he wobbled on his knees and reached for his gun, Gideon reached down and yanked his backup gun out of its ankle holster. Pointed it at Kramer and fired.
Flying backward, Kramer stared at Gideon. Alex watched as Kramer finally collapsed on the floor. He still held his gun, but his fingers were loose on the handle.
Gideon moved past her and stomped on Kramer’s hand. When Kramer let go of the gun, Gideon kicked it away. Raced over to the bed and tore off strips of a sheet. He tied Kramer’s ankles together. Then he ran into the bathroom and came out with two towels.
Blood pumped out of a wound in Kramer’s abdomen. Gideon pressed the towels to his wound and grabbed Kramer’s hands. “If you want to live, press on those towels hard. Keep the pressure strong.”
Kramer put his hands on the towels. Pressed down as Gideon watched.
“Harder,” Gideon ordered. “Unless you want to die. Which may be the smart move. Death versus what the Bratva would dish out to a traitor? I’d pick death.”
Finally, after Kramer’s fingers whitened on the towels, Gideon hurried over to Alex. Gently replaced her arm in its sling. “How’s your arm feel?” he asked quietly.
“It hurts,” Alex said. She wasn’t going to lie to Gideon. “But completely worth it.”
Gideon finally smiled. Brushed a kiss over her mouth as he pulled out his phone. Dialed the sheriff. When Jacobs answered, Gideon said, “We’re at the compound’s safe house.” He rattled off the address. “We’ve got a Bratva mole for you, Sheriff. We’ll need an ambulance for this one, too. He’s got an abdominal wound.”
Kramer took a deep breath. Moaned with the pain. But he tried to laugh. “You have no proof, Wolf,” he said. “I know you’ve suspected I was dirty for a long time. That’s why I got rid of you. But you haven’t found anything. I’m not stupid enough to leave evidence.” He scowled. Panted a little. “Damn Jerry Trotter. I thought he was a useful tool for laundering money. I didn’t think he had the balls to keep a file on me and my boys. But knowing Trotter, he probably screwed that up, too.”
“People can surprise you,” Gideon said, staring down at his former boss. “I hope that gut wound doesn’t kill you, Kramer. I want you to rot in prison for the rest of your miserable life.”
Alex handed her phone to Gideon. “I recorded almost everything he said,” she told him. “His own words will convict him. Jerry’s files will just be the icing on the cake.”
Gideon looked at the phone. Looked back at Alex. “My God,” he said. “You’re unbelievable. With all that was going on, you thought to hit record on your phone. No wonder I…”
The door banged against the wall again, and Gideon spun around. Brought his gun up.
The sheriff stormed through the door. Stopped and stared at Kramer. Widened his eyes and shook his head. “That guy?”
