Outside The Ropes: OtherSide Of Fear Part 44

"Viktor told me, but he didnt have any information. He wanted me to look into it. I havent found out anything certain. Have you?"

He scratched the side of his neck and peered at Gage through slits in his eyes. "You looked into it? And found nothing?"

Gage leaned forward. His words and actions came out confident, sure, "Barely. He mentioned it on the boat and with everything that happened..."Gage spread out his hands, we all knew what happened that night. "Ive focused on other things."

"You didnt think to mention it to me?"

"They had connected Viktor to the Bratva. And then you took out Viktor." Gage shrugged. "I thought you set up those men too. It didnt seem like a problem anymore."

The sound of my breathing ripped through me and I held my breath, not wanting to be the one to ruin things, not wanting to draw attention to me. Gage appeared so calm, so certain in his lie.

The man Rusnak sent away for drinks returned and poured liquor into gla.s.ses. Rusnak flicked his fingers, making the man stop. "Leave us to talk, but leave the bottle."

The man set the bottle down in the center of the gla.s.ses, and then him and the other men returned to the half built bar. They sat on the stools there, far enough away that we couldnt hear their m.u.f.fled conversation but close enough to feel their eyes on us.

"It was convenient." Rusnak picked up the bottle, raising one eyebrow as he topped off his drink. "But suspicious because I didnt set it up. And I havent heard anything about who did. If it was someone for us, then they should reveal themselves." He gestured the bottle at Gage in a silent offer.

Gage grabbed the bottle and poured his own gla.s.s half full, adding a shots worth in another tumbler. He handed that to me, his steady fingers grazing mine. The small connection was enough to calm me some, to rea.s.sure me that he knew what he was doing.

As the men sipped their drinks, I downed mine, needing to silence the crackle of my thoughts and focus on them.

"Didnt they shoot each other? Maybe there was no one else. Was either under your pay roll or Viktors?"

Rusnak shook his head, silently sipping his drink, but his eyes seemed to speak in another language, sparking as Gage continued.

"Then maybe one worked for someone who was."

"Thats a good thought. Reasonable. But no ones claiming them." He looked between Gage and me. "Did you know them?" The question could have been directed at either of us. "Kalvin McDonnely and Anthony Fields." His gaze settled on me.

"Anthony. I knew him," I answered, knowing that Rusnak already knew that truth.

"Regan new him when he was a cop in Baltimore. He approached her once here in New York, but we sent him away. I told Viktor and Alessandra about that. It was the same time the FBI were questioning me."

Rusnaks gaze stayed attached to me. "What did he question you about?"

"Gage. Shadow. They were after Shadow." I had to break eye contact. I looked to Gage. "Maybe it was Shadow who had them killed." I swallowed the lump in my throat and forced myself to face Rusnak again. "Or maybe one of them worked for him."

He tilted his head, eyes penetrating me like a knife. "Maybe."

"Does it matter at this point?" I asked, unable to keep silent under his look. "If they were only on to Viktor, that connection is gone. Is there something else going on that we should be worried about? Has someone else been asking questions?" I wanted to get us off the questioning table.

"Thats what Im looking into, if theres anything else to worry about. Hopefully they will follow the clues and tie Viktor to Shadow and consider it closed." He braced his forearms on the table, talking to me like he was teaching me something. "Im looking out for my interests though, for our business, and Shadow is a large part of that. Protecting Shadow protects us and our investments."

"Shadow-"

"Now that this deal is behind us," Gage cut me off. "Ill look into this further and make sure it wont be a threat to future projects. Thats where my interest lies, so were both in agreement on that. I dont want things interfering with potential business either."

"Good, thats what I wanted to hear. But can you really? Even with her?"

Neither of them looked at me, but my heart stuttered at being put in the center of their conversation.

"Leave her out of it," his voice strained as he tried to keep control, lines flas.h.i.+ng in his neck and jaw. "Thats my one demand. You leave her out of it, and Im willing to put aside our past differences so we can both benefit."

"But can I trust you?" He asked like he was talking to himself, trying to decide.

"Im asking myself the same thing about you." Gage nodded towards Rusnak. "But at least my track record proves you can. Ive never betrayed the brotherhood."

"Neither have I." Rusnak sat up, voice forceful as he defended Gages slight.

"But you undermine me."

That man came back in, his beard hiding his expression as he walked straight to Rusnak. The others in the room took notice, perking up in their seats.

"My changes were to protect the s.h.i.+pment, to make sure it stayed secure." Rusnak nodded to Gage, taking the slip of paper the bearded man handed him. He dropped his eyes, smoothing his suit as the man behind him spoke into his ear. His face transformed, hardening. "Theyre sure?" He turned to the man who nodded. Rusnak lifted his hand and the others in the room gathered where we sat.

Rusnak turned back to Gage with a smile that extinguished any hope I had. His smile promised nothing good, something terrible crawling behind those eyes. "Youre right. We should leave her out of this. Leave, Regan. My driver can take you home."

"No," I sat up, nerves bursting in flashes behind my eyes. "Im not leaving."

Gage put his hand out, blocking me, to keep me still or to send a message. I saw now the others were moving closer, and the bald man closest to me had stepped to my side of the table.

Rusnak raised an eyebrow at Gage. "Nows the time to prove yourself. Send her home."

Gage rose to his feet, pulling me close to his side. "Ill take her home, and then Ill come back and we can talk."

We made it out from behind the table before two men blocked our path, and the other two came up behind us.

Rusnak stepped in-between them, facing Gage. "You need to stay here." He nodded back to the table. "You know Ill get her home safe."

Gage pulled me to him, knocking Rusnaks arm down before he could reach me. "Dont f.u.c.king touch her."

The blur of dark suits in the corner of my vision was hard to follow. Everyone moved at once, but the flash of a gun being pulled caused me to pull out my own.

The bald man pointed his weapon at Gage, and I put him in the sights of my gun, finger on the trigger. He swung his gun, s.h.i.+fting his aim at me.

A hand slid over my glock, over my finger, squeezing as I pulled the trigger. The gun blast vibrated through my arm and the man in front of me dropped. My arm was jerked up to point my gun at my own head, my finger trapped on the trigger by another hand. I froze, afraid the struggle would fire the gun, and Rusnak pulled me tight against him, my back pressed to his front.

"Stop," he bit out his command.

Gage released the bearded mans head, and he collapsed to the ground, neck twisted unnaturally on his shoulders. A sure sign of death. His body radiated rage, shoulders inflating and falling with each breath as he glared behind me at Rusnak. "You wouldnt hurt her."

The gun shoved against the side of my head, the tip searing my skin from the heat of the shot fired before. "Ill do what I have to. Are you willing to test that?"

Gage stayed still, breath slowing.

"Put your gun down," Rusnak commanded.

Gage crouched down slow, setting the gun on the ground at his feet.

"Get him."

The other two men were hesitant as they closed in on him, until one pulled out a bright gun, firing at Gages back. The p.r.o.ngs of the Taser attached to him, sending him flat on the ground as he convulsed.

The glock was removed from my head, and Rusnak gripped me in both arms. I was fighting against his hold, unaware of myself, only of Gage on the ground swiping at the cords but not able to reach them on his back. Every new round of shocks, killing me to watch.

Rusnak turned us away from the sight, but I could still hear it. Gages body jerking on the ground. The sudden groans as a new wave hit his muscles. The two men laughing.

"Sh-Sh-Shh, Sweetheart. Stop fighting. Itll be better if you stop fighting."

I couldnt stop the tears that started, but I tried to strangled down my instinct to struggle against Rusnaks hold, wanting to do nothing more than help Gage.

"Blyad," Rusnaks voice changed and his body went rigid. "You should have left when you had the chance. Dont say anything."

"Whats happened?" Alessandra asked, walking in with Cherry and another man.

Rusnak flung me away from him, on to the hard ground. "Get her. Ill handle him from here."

He had my gun in his hand as he walked towards Gage.

44: Madness.

I SCRAMBLED TO MY FEET, JUST AS the men reached me.

"Come on, lets not make this hard," the bald one ordered, stepping close to me.

As much as I wanted to fight back, to attack, looking around the room was enough to still me. Rusnak crouched by Gage and lifted up his head, gun pointing under his chin. Blood streaked Gages face, pouring from his eyebrow, and his hands were bound behind his back.

"He wasnt going to stay and talk," Rusnak answered Alessandra. "And when we tried to make them stay, things got out of hand."

Alessandra came to Rusnaks side, bending down in her fitted knee length dress to look into Gages face. "You killed two of our men to avoid questions?" Her voice was a smooth, slow poison. "What are you scared of?"

Cherry walked over to where I was, just to the side of the men flanking me, but her eyes were fixed on Gage.

The man they entered with stood between the two groups.

"I defended myself. They attacked me," Gage rasped, and turned his head slightly before Rusnak gripped his hair tighter, stilling him. But Gage looked directly at him. "Why?"

"You lied to me. We know you talked to those agents the day they died. We have their phone records."

"I didnt. They never called me-"

Rusnak cracked the gun across Gages face, dropping his grip on his head at the same time. Gage rolled to the side and spit out of his b.l.o.o.d.y lips onto the cement floor.

"It was a burner phone, but we traced the location to your home."

I was ready to throw up, everything burning, about to jump out of my skin.

Gage spit again and lifted his head as high as he could from his side position with his hands strapped behind him. "Bulls.h.i.+t."

Rusnak lifted his hand high and brought the gun down on Gages face, only to raise it again and repeat the process.

"It wasnt him. Stop." I tried to dart forward, but the men grabbed me, one at each side.

Cherry lifted her gun towards me.

Rusnak paused, his arm suspended in mid air as he twisted my way.

"It wasnt him. He didnt have anything to do with it."

"Regan, stop," Gage yelled, "Dont f.u.c.king listen to her."

"It was my phone. Anthony gave it to me. Gage didnt know."

Rusnak walked towards me, a strange look in his eyes, a murderous look barely contained. "Youre lying for him. Stop it. Stop talking."

He had warned me not to talk earlier, but I didnt care. I wasnt going to let them abuse Gage for my plan. We were probably going to die for it anyways, but I wanted to spare him pain.

"Maybe shes not. Let her talk," Alessandra spoke, but I couldnt see her.

Only Rusnak filled my vision as he got closer, gun pressed to my chest.

"I told you it was probably her," Cherry added. "I knew that b.i.t.c.h was a snake."

Rusnak held my gaze for a moment, teeth grinding. My heart pounded against my ribcage, against the gun pressed to my chest.

"Its f.u.c.king impossible to tell exactly where a phone call took place at," Gages voice echoed in the open s.p.a.ce.

A darkness dropped over Rusnaks face. "Shut him up," he commanded the man at my side.

He dropped my arm and took a few long strides to reach Gage, kicking him in the head.

"We still need to question him," Alessandra stated, making the man move the direction of his boot to Gages side.

"Get him strapped to the chair," Rusnak ordered.

The other man dropped my arm and went to help. So did the man that came in with Alessandra and Cherry. But all three men kicked him before lifting him.

Gage continued to speak through it, in grunts as air was kicked from his lungs. "She never told him anything. Its like we said."

"Whats the truth?" Rusnak hissed.

I couldnt pull my eyes away from Gage to look at Rusnak. "Please, make them stop. Ill tell you."