“Oh, the man that just shot you? He’s Eric,” I instructed over Tony’s bloodcurdling screams of pain. “But he’s not the one that’s going to kill you.”
“I love this chic,” Eric said with a deep, booming laugh. “Axel? Don’t you love this chic?”
I shifted on my feet in time to see the tall, giant of a man named Axel give a nod my way.
“Don’t mind him,” Eric chuckled. “He doesn’t say much when he’s not the one doing the killing.”
“What the fuck is going on here?” Tony howled.
“It’s like this,” I started. I sucked in a breath, threw my head back, and let the air out of my lungs in a long, cleansing stream. I reached for the still smoking gun in Eric’s hand, and as the weapon touched my flesh, the coldness of the steel washed over me. I lifted the gun, pointed and fired a round directly into Tony’s chest, throwing him to the ground in violent fashion. As clutched his chest, and gasped for air, I walked over and pressed my foot in the hole in his leg, ignoring his shrieks.
“Eric and Axel are making moves in this city. They’re trying to become the biggest crime bosses this place has ever seen, and you fucked them when you killed my uncle, you dumb fuck. He owed them a substantial amount of money from his gambling debts, but it was money he was also paying them consistently, which in turn helped them bankroll their ambitions to take over.
“After youmurderedhim, in cold blood, they sent their representative to try to intimidate me into paying them. Kind of like how you did. The difference, however, was they were smart enough to listen to me. I negotiated a deal with them. I’d pay them The Midnight Prize fight money, in exchange for letting me be free and clear of the debts of my uncle. Also, I plan on running my own ring, of which I will give them percentage in exchange for their aid against my enemies. Enemies like you.”
“Ari,” Dustin called from behind me. “You can’t.”
“Be quiet,” came another voice. It was deep and gravelly, and behind me. I surmised it belonged to Axel. “The lady in charge is speaking.”
I pressed down harder on Tony’s leg. “I told you I was going to pay you back. He may not have been much, but he was my uncle, which means he was family. And if there’s one thing I do, I take care of my family.”
“You dumb bitch,” he gasped. “You think you can trust them?”
“No, I don’t. But, you know how these things go. The enemy of my enemy and such.”
“Can we get on with this?” Eric asked. “I don’t want to miss the after-party.”
I pointed and squeezed, making sure to put the bullet in the same area his must have gone when it ended the life of Alejandro. Except when this bullet ended the life of Tony Schmitt, I didn’t look away.
