Page 108 of Till Death Do Us Part

I tried my best to give him a defiant look, but it was hard when I felt like I was about to throw up. He nodded past me.

“Quayle, take her muffle off. I want to have a conversation.”

It slipped off of me, dropping to the floor, and I gasped, choking on the feeling. Glenn knelt in front of me, his hand caressing my chin.

“Tell me what you want, my dear,” he said, and I gritted my teeth.

“I want you to end this,” I spat. “I want Horizon gone. And I want you to leave my wife alone.”

He chuckled. “That much, I’m afraid we can’t do. But I know your loyalty has a price. Everybody’s does. So don’t be shy. This is a good opportunity for you. No, I can’t buy the South Yard… but I could make you a member of the Horizon team. All you need to do is go away to a luxurious retirement destination of your choice and stay there while we build our future.”

“You’re not building your future. You’re destroying everyone else’s. I’m never working for you.”

His eyes darkened. “Do you realize what’s happening in this city? Just because you won’t look doesn’t mean it isn’t there. If we didn’t do it, somebody else would. And if they didn’t, somebody else would. This isn’t a place where we all hold hands and sing together. The real world isn’t like that. These are killers, thieves, liars and cheats, Elaine. Weapons are already falling into everyone’s hands. If we had them all… there would be no more need for violence, no more need for threats. We want to bring peace to Merona. Just like you do. So, what do you say?” He brushed his fingers under my chin again, and I wanted to throw up. “Hawaii? Santorini? Bali? Where would you like to spend the rest of your days safe, pampered, and blissfully free from all this?”

I clenched my jaw. “You can’t buy me, Glenn.”

He chuckled darkly, brushing a thumb over my cheek. “Everyone is for sale, darling. You just have to find their price. Vera’s price was very high indeed… but she’s been an excellent investment. Your price, I suspect, may be higher still. But I’m willing to pay it.”

Another voice called out from behind him as two people came up on a lift. “Sir,” one said. “We’ve identified the movement routes and triangulated their location. It’s a Whitecliff safehouse in an old church, on the west side.”

Glenn turned back to them. “Good,” he said. “Any sign of activity?”

“Yes, sir. We believe the Wolf is en route to Ms. Whitner’s house.”

My stomach leaped and sank all at once.

Vera. Was she coming for me?

Was she coming alone?

If she blamed herself for this, she’d have tried to handle it without asking anyone else for help. But in a place like this, against Quayle…

Glenn must have seen the fear in my eyes, because he smiled cruelly at me. “You hear that?” he said. “Your wife is coming to see you. One last happy reunion…”

I clenched my fists, straining against the bindings. “If you do anything to Vera, I will never, ever help you.”

“When the dog bites the master… some discipline is required.” He wrinkled his nose. “I had underestimated your abilities, Elaine. It’s a shame to lose our best operative. But she swore an oath to us… and we know what happens to people who betray the family.”

“You’re not a family. You’re a thief who stole her life away from her. She never owed you anything.”

He slapped me across the face—a stinging impact flat along one cheek that left me ringing. “Don’t talk as if you know anything,” he growled. “Soon enough, Vera will take the bait and walk straight into our trap. And she’ll be powerless in a place like this…” A sick smile spread over his features. “It always does some good to make sure an operative like her has a weakness. So that if they ever go out of control…”

I swallowed hard, tears stinging at my eyes.

He was a monster. If there was any doubt left in my mind, it was gone now. Everyone was just an asset to him, an item to be catalogued and amortized. And I would die before I let him turn into a weapons magnate to rule over the city.

“What do you say, Elaine?” he said, kneeling in front of me again, caressing his hand over my cheek. “Join us… and we just might spare your wife.”

I squeezed my eyes shut, tears hot on my cheeks.

There was only one thing I could do.

Chapter 54

vera

Of course it was here.