Blind Spot - Katana Collins Page 0,37

slowly. My knife still clenched in my hand, but to the kid it just looked like I was holding a set of keys. With my free hand, I slipped the watch off my wrist and held it out. “Here, take it.”

The boy licked his lips, eyes darting back and forth between Shelby and me. He was scared, and the whites of his eyes glistened under the street lamp. He didn’t stray far from the alley, the brick wall nearly scraping his back.

Instead of taking the watch, he gestured to Shelby. “Give it to her. Have her bring it to me.”

I gnashed my teeth. Oh, hell no. I didn’t like where this was going. A quick glance at Shelby showed she was barely keeping it together. I wasn’t sure she could handle walking, let alone handing over items.

“I’m grabbing my wallet,” I said, the open blade of my small knife squeezed into the flesh on my palm. A trickle of blood oozed through my fingers, but it was either that, or the kid would see that I had a weapon.

I fumbled to open my billfold, grabbing the cash in there, and held it up along with the watch. “Take the cash. Take the watch. And get the fuck out of here.”

His unsteady hand teetered, but remained pointed at me. “Don’t tell me what to do. I have the gun.”

One side of my mouth tilted higher, and I let a nasty laugh escape. “We both know that’s a fucking toy.” Curling back, I hurled the money and watch into the alley.

And bingo. He shifted on his feet, head turning to where I threw the items. I lunged for the gun, snapping his wrist back, and the handle slipped clean from his palm and into mine. Getting my footing, I pointed the gun at him. “There we go,” I said. “And lucky for us, you were dumb enough not to wear gloves. Do you know what that means?”

The boy’s eyes glistened with imminent tears, and I wanted to laugh. Laugh the entire time I was sending him to a jail cell. This asshole? He should be in jail. He should be doing community service.

“Go. Get your shit. You can have the money. I’ll be sending this toy, with your prints on it, to my dad, where it’ll sit along with a file of this incident. If your prints show up anywhere else in the system, they’ll log you in for this crime. If you keep your nose clean, you can take the money and get yourself a fucking job. Sound like a deal?”

The boy nodded, shifting on his feet.

“And if you ever bother her”—I gestured to Shelby—“or anyone in either of these parking lots again, trust me when I tell you my father will fucking eat you for dinner.”

He took off running down the alley, not bothering to stop for my watch and cash. I called out after him, “And spread the word to your friends, asshole.”

When the footsteps faded, I jogged into the alley and lifted my watch, sliding it back onto my wrist, and shoved the cash into my back pocket. “Piece of shit…” I muttered, walking back over to Shelby. When I looked back up, she was still standing there, staring down the alley with wide eyes and her arms still raised.

“Shelby?” I asked quietly, rushing over to her. “Are you hurt?” I swept a look over her from head to toe and saw nothing. No bruises, no torn clothing, no blood. A glazed look passed over her eyes, and a single tear fell down her cheek. The corners of her mouth trembled as though she was holding back a sob or a frown. Capturing her bottom lip between her teeth, she shook her head. She didn’t need me to talk. She didn’t need any “you’re okays,” or “I told you so’s.” Instead, I curled a hand around her neck and pulled her into me, guiding her over to my car. She fell into step with me. I opened the door and helped her into the passenger seat.

I brushed a knuckle down her cheek, and she shook my hand away, waving off her shock. “I–I’m fine. Just…just…”

I nodded and smoothed her hair with my good hand. “I know,” I whispered, shutting her gently inside the car before taking my seat behind the wheel. I reached behind me to where I kept a box of tissues and put pressure to my bleeding palm. The cut didn’t look so bad…maybe needed a