Page 7 of Silver Or Lead

He walked to a nearby table. “Silver?” He held up a pile of cash in one hand. “Or lead?” He pulled his gun from his holster, pointing it at her chest. He went so far as to remove the safety.

Angela gave him a bland look. She was getting really sick of people pointing guns at her. She stepped forward, using a finger to push the muzzle of the pistol down. “Please. We’ve already covered this. Your lead doesn’t scare me.”

Abel grinned at her. He flicked the safety back on and re-holstered his weapon. “Silver it is.” Then he tossed the thick stack of money at her.

Angela caught it and looked down, finding all hundred-dollar bills. A quick estimate had her guessing it was around ten thousand dollars. She simply raised her eyebrows at him, saying nothing. Abel looked to his right, lifting his chin in the direction of another man who opened a duffel bag. He pushed it over with his foot, sliding it across the floor. When it hit her foot, Angela glanced inside at a pile of money divided into similar thick stacks.

They think they can buy me? she thought angrily. She took a deep breath to calm her rising ire. And not only that, but her nerves as well. For all her bravado, the stress and pressure of her ordeal were beginning to catch up with her. She was going to crash. She recognized the signs. And when she did, she wanted to be anywhere but where she was.

Taking one more deep breath, she pasted what she hoped was a pleasant smile on her face. “I don’t want your silver either. Just to be clear, I wouldn’t so much as wipe my ass with your money.” She paused, warning herself not to say anything else. But her mouth opened. “Go fuck yourself.”

Abel smirked. “I’d rather fuck you.”

Angela glared at him. He was a gorgeous hunk of a man if you liked the rough sort—which she did. But she wasn’t into killers, so she raked her scathing gaze from the top of his messy blond hair to his booted feet. Then she focused intently on his crotch until he started to squirm. If there was ever a time when she wished she had laser vision, it was then; she would have fried his testicles right off his body and danced around in the ashes. Something of her thoughts must have shown on her face because Abel gulped and covered his junk behind his hands.

Saying no more, she turned and stalked from the room. She had no idea where she was, let alone how to get out, but she walked swiftly down the long hallway. She felt numerous pairs of eyes on her from the surrounding rooms and cameras that were scattered strategically in the corners. She kept expecting to be stopped, especially by the boss-man himself. He had stayed close as she worked on his brother, but he had been in and out a lot, answering calls and fielding questions. She supposed that murdering a bunch of people in broad daylight the day before came with some rather time-consuming consequences. A hysterical bubble of laughter fought its way past her lips.

Oh yeah, she thought. I’m about to lose it.

When nobody stopped her, she kept walking, and finally made it to the elevator she had arrived in. Pressing the down button, she waited for it to light up to signal her freedom. But it didn’t. Gritting her teeth, she all but punched the button. Nothing happened. She looked up, noting a security camera above the elevator doors. She barely suppressed a shiver. She knew he was watching her. Roman. Even through the lens of a camera, she could feel his gaze. She told herself it was fear, nothing more. But the hardening of her nipples made a liar out of her.

Cursing under her breath, she glared at the camera. “Open the doors.”

The camera’s red light continued to blink at her, the silence making her want to scream. When her hands started to shake, she fisted them quickly, praying her body held up just long enough for her to get the fuck out of there. Or long enough for Roman to march down the hallway and put a bullet in her head himself. There was a part of her that didn’t much care either way, and she hated herself for it. So, she straightened her spine one last time and gave her next order with everything she had.

“Open the fucking doors, Roman! I’m done. Do you hear me? Do you understand what I’m saying? I’m fucking done.” Her words wobbled along with her chin, and moisture flooded her eyes. She closed them, denying the helpless feeling—denying the world.

After what felt like hours, a small ding sounded, followed by a soft whoosh. Angela opened her eyes, walking quickly into the elevator. She saw the ground floor button was already illuminated and made no attempt to press anything else. She stared straight ahead, willing memories—both new and old—to stay beneath the surface.

Thankfully, the elevator finished its descent, and she walked briskly through the large, opulent foyer. She ignored the staff sitting behind a tall reception desk, especially the one man holding his earpiece and talking quietly. She made it to the double-glassed doors under her own steam and walked into the night.

It would be later, as she was standing in her shower under the too-hot spray, that she would fall to her knees and begin to cry—the adrenaline and endorphins finally leaving her body. Yes, she had been badass. She’d been a boss and owned the hell out of the situation. But it was only because her fight-or-flight response was for shit.

As she rocked back and forth, Angela put her hands over her ears to block out the triggered memories, telling herself she was okay over and over again... How long would it take her to believe it this time?

CHAPTER FOUR

Roman watched the scene between the doctor and his second-in-command from the security room. He had wanted to be there when she was given the ultimatum, but he didn’t trust himself. Not to stop himself from killing her—which they probably should have done—but to stop himself from tying her to his bed.

He wanted the woman like he’d never wanted anything before. It was as if her mere presence had awakened a sleeping beast. He’d been witness to a lot of beasts in his lifetime, but the lust she sparked within him scared him more than any of those other monsters. So, once he believed his brother was going to be okay, he left the hard talk to Abel, fleeing to the relative safety of his security office.

Watching her now, as she stared down the barrel of a loaded gun for the second time, his cock hardened yet again. She was a thing of beauty, bold as brass and stronger than any person had a right to be. She looked tired, but her words were just as fierce as they had been the night before. He was surprised to realize he didn’t want to fuck some submission into her. No, he wanted to submit instead.

He recalled her telling him that she was the one with all the power. “And I’ll be fucked if she wasn’t right,” Roman muttered.

“Sir?” Alaric, his night security manager, queried.

Roman waved a dismissive hand. “Nothing.”

“She’s feisty,” Alaric commented, watching the screen just as avidly as Roman was.

“That’s one word for her,” Roman allowed, glancing at his phone. It had been blowing up with messages and calls, including from the cops. Luckily, Roman had the best, most ruthless attorneys on his payroll, and they were fielding all the annoying questions. As well as keeping the police at bay. He knew he would need to put in an appearance with the cops sooner or later. But he was hoping to get some sleep first.

“I’d rather fuck you.”

Roman’s attention snapped to the camera feed. His friend was getting his flirt on with the prisoner. “Oh, hell no!” He growled, fists clenching tight. He wanted to reach through the screen and throttle his oldest friend. But that wouldn’t be anywhere near as satisfying as feeling real flesh give beneath his hands.

Turning sharply on his heels, he strode to the door, pausing with his hand on the knob when he heard nothing but silence. It was odd. From what he knew of Dr. Angela Hawthorne, she should have been ripping Abel to shreds with her razor-sharp tongue.

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