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We were.
I took a step back, staggering slightly. I swallowed hard, trying to make the world feel steady beneath my feet again.
It occurred to me that I should be furious with Nickie. After everything I’d done and sacrificed to keep her safe, she’d betrayed me by going behind my back and speaking to Tony. But if she hadn’t, would I even be alive right now, or would X have continued his job unhindered by the unexpected encounter with Tony’s men and completed the job he’d been paid for?
The thought of X having killed me in an alternate universe made me dizzy.
A sudden crash, and a yell came from the front of the warehouse, and a moment later two of Tony’s gang appeared from between the crates, holding X as he struggled between them.
“Hey, boss,” one of the men called out. “We just found this guy lurking around.” He threw the guns to the floor between us. “He was armed, too, so I’m guessing he planned on causing trouble.”
“Get your fucking hands off me,” X snarled, wrenching himself one way and then the other to get out of the grip of the other men. But the two of them were stronger than he was. Plus, they were both armed, where he was now defenseless.
“It’s okay,” I chimed in, looking wildly at X. What was I supposed to think now? My mind was spinning. “He’s with me. He’s not going to try anything if he knows you’re going to help us, not hurt us.”
X’s expression was dark with anger, and my heart wrenched. I knew who he was from the start. He was a killer, and I couldn’t let this new information change how I felt about him.
But Tony shook his head. “This is the guy who killed Billy and Sam, and then Matthew and Gino on the road. He’s not going to get away with just walking out of here.”
My heart lurched. Tony was going to kill him.
“No! Stop,” I cried. “I won’t testify if you hurt him.”
“You don’t have any choice,” said Tony. “Your cover with Witness Protection has been blown, and if you don’t do what I want, you won’t have our protection either. That’ll leave you wide open to your father’s men, and you know you’ll be dead within days.”
“Please, Vee,” Nickie begged me. “Just stop fighting everything for once in your life.”
“You think I’m just going to stand by while they execute him? Are you fucking kidding me?”
X locked eyes with me, and my chest contracted, so I felt like I couldn’t breathe. “It’s okay, Vee,” he said. “You need to go on and live your life now. Forget about me.”
I shook my head. “Not going to happen.”
“You don’t have any choice.”
“I’ll do it, boss,” said the guy holding onto X, lifting his weapon to point it at X’s temple.
But Tony shook his head and pulled his own weapon. “After the number of my men this guy has killed, I think I should get the pleasure.”
He pointed his gun in X’s direction, and I opened my mouth and screamed.
