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“Let me walk you out.”
“I’m okay. I just got a message to say my cab’s outside.”
He tuts. “Cabs are not safe. Not for pretty girls in big cities like this.”
I barely refrain from rolling my eyes. Damn stupid people, making my condition flare up again. “I’ll be fine. I have the hotel room to myself tonight, so I’m going to take some pain meds and crash. I’m sure I’ll feel better tomorrow.” I offer him the information, knowing he’ll soak it up.
“Well, if you’re sure. I hope you don’t have to travel too far. I’d hate for you to get sick.”
“No, it’s only ten minutes from here. I’m staying at the Dalton View.”
He smiles and wishes me well before turning to leave. His cell phone is out of his pocket and in his hand before he’s even out of sight.
I place a quick call of my own before heading out through the staff-only exit, winking at the busboy I flashed my tits to earlier when he doesn’t stop me. I step out the door, scan my soundings, and head for my rental. Climbing in, I grab what I need from the glove compartment and drive to the hotel.
Once inside, I head to my room. Opening the door, I move quickly, not knowing how long I have. I change from my short skirt and tight, low-cut top into a pair of black jeans and a black sweatshirt, shoving the old outfit in the trash. When that’s done, I place my gun in my thigh holster after strapping it on. Repeating the process, I shove a small pistol into my ankle holster before slipping a small penknife into my bra. I twist my hair up into a messy bun, securing it with a pair of chopsticks with ends that have been filed to a sharp point, then I press the stud on my earring, which scrambles all electronics within twelve feet of me. After arranging the pillows in the bed to look like a person, I flick off the light and step back into the shadows to wait.
My mind drifts back to Maxim. I wonder what his reaction was when he woke up to find I’d disappeared. Part of me suspects he’ll be pissed, but another part thinks he saw it coming. Was it cowardly to sneak out in the middle of the night? Maybe. Do I care? Fuck no. I’m so fucking sick of being used.
Thankfully, I’m not without my own connections. After a couple of hours hiding out at the airport, I had a new passport and a stack of cash to get me out of Russia and back to Greece, where I am now trying out a new plan of attack. The one that came to me while I was feeling sorry for myself curled up in Maxim’s shower.
Hunting down Santos has proved even more difficult than I anticipated. Clearly, he has the means to stay hidden indefinitely. So, the only play I have left is to draw him out. Santos is a natural-born hunter, but he’s too smart to fall for a trap. There is only one thing he’ll risk exposure for. Me.
If the boogeyman doesn’t come out of the shadows for the girl he was obsessed with, then Calix is right. The man is dead, and someone else has taken over. I don’t believe that any more now than I did before, but I guess I’ll find out soon enough.
After an hour of my mind spinning in a million directions, I hear the familiar sound of a key card in the lock. When it beeps, I remind myself to come back and teach the desk clerk a lesson. Two guys walk in, one from the bar earlier and another, a little older but in better shape.
I wait for them to close the door and approach the bed. When the guy from the bar reaches for the pillows, I quietly pull my gun, flick on the light, and shoot him in the face before leveling the gun on the other guy.
“Put the gun down,” the guy says softly, as his hand moves slowly to grab his own piece. I shoot him in the shoulder, and then, because he’s pissed me off, I shoot him in the other one too.
“I’d like to see you try to shoot me now.” I grin.
“You crazy bitch,” he roars, charging toward me, his arms hanging limply at his sides. He freezes when I aim at the center of his forehead.
“You know, everyone says that, and I just don’t get why.” I do, actually, but he doesn’t need to know that. Besides, everyone’s a little crazy these days.
He looks at me like he thinks I’m nuts.
“Don’t look at me like that. You broke into my room, armed, with the man who tried to drug me earlier, and yet I’m the crazy one for protecting myself? I think you need to reevaluate your expectations. It’s only in movies where women sit around waiting to be abducted.”
“You have no idea who you’re dealing with.”
“Oh God, not this again. Is there like a handbook you all have to read or a script you have to memorize when you’re initiated into the henchmen ranks?”
He scowls at me but doesn’t answer.
“I mean, at least there isn’t a looks requirement, or you’d be shit out of luck. If I had met the last guy they sent to kill me under different circumstances, he might have stood a chance of getting a little action. He was cute, you know? You, however, look like something I drew with my left hand.”
I squint, pretty sure I can see steam coming out of his ears. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to hurt your feelings. I tend to get a little bitchy when people try to kidnap me. It’s something I’m working on.”
“Really?”
“No.” I drop all emotion from my voice and glare at him. “Tell me what your orders were.”
“Fuck you.”
“Not even if you use someone else’s dick. But I’ll make you a deal. If you tell me what I want to know, then I won’t fuck you with my gun here. I should warn you. I do tend to get a little trigger-happy.”
