me. I squeezed my eyes shut, prayed to the universe that they would not say the words. Anything but those terrible words.
“There’s a reward out for this chick,” Kazz said.
Chapter 48
THEY CAME FOR ME. The duct tape had been a quick, ill-planned, temporary restraint. Now they had to get me bound up properly and out of sight. I couldn’t hide that I was recovering any longer. As Gammy came over the top of me, I rolled and kicked upward with both feet. I’d aimed for her chest, hoping to propel her backward, but I was still dizzy. One foot glanced off her side, the other sinking into her fleshy stomach. She gave a breathy groan and doubled over, Kazz backing off in shock.
I rolled away, tried to stagger to my feet, but I wasn’t completely in control yet. Balancing on one knee, I ripped the duct tape off my mouth. I thought about screaming for help but doubted anyone in the bar would hear me. The music had been pretty loud, and Kazz and Gammy’s familiarity with the shed suggested they brought their victims here regularly. The bartender might have been in on it. Even if I thought I’d have a chance of being heard, I wasn’t going to cry for help in front of these bitches. Half a fight is bluffing, looking like you know what you’re doing. They had to know I was prepared to defend myself, that I didn’t appreciate being lured and captured like an animal.
“I’ll let one of you run,” I offered. “There’s no need for both of you to get hurt.” I didn’t expect them to take the bait, but it was worth a try—getting down to one opponent might have equalized things in my incapacitated state.
The two women reassessed the situation, Gammy clutching her stomach, eyes watering. Three breathless adversaries, already twitching with adrenaline. If I could convince either of them, it seemed likely to be Gammy. She was younger, simple-looking, the sidekick hanging around the tougher, stronger Kazz. Gammy was dumb, but she could see I knew how to fight.
“It’s only money,” I told Gammy. “Whoever stays is going to leave here in an ambulance.”
“It’s a hundred fucking grand,” Kazz sneered. “Don’t let her mess with your head, Gam. We got this.”
“Be smart, Gammy,” I warned. “You can leave here and continue your miserable, parasitic life hustling small change out of unsuspecting drifters. Or you can roll the dice for some hard cash and end up eating your next meal through a tube.”
While they calculated their chances, I tried not to look at my gun lying on my backpack just a few meters away. The women appeared to have forgotten it. But if I leaped for it, I knew I’d remind them and they’d get to the weapon before me. The room was still slowly turning, blurring. I didn’t have the time to unbind my wrists. I reached for the nearest weapon—a good-sized wrench sitting on a set of shelves.
Kazz came first. Her eyes were on the wrench, so I faked, knowing she’d duck, and swung at the side of her head. My movements were exaggerated by the drugs, off-balance. The heavy wrench had been a bad choice. In a downward chopping motion, I missed her head completely. She sank her fist into my stomach. I fell into the shelves, sending glass jars falling, smashing, spraying screws and bolts. Gammy rushed in, emboldened by Kazz’s success, and grabbed a handful of my hair. I dropped the wrench and reached up, sank my nails into her hands, raked down as hard as I could.
They were both on me, a tangle of arms. I reached out, grabbed an iron clamp that had fallen off the table and swung wildly. With a lucky shot I got Kazz right on her collarbone. I heard the dull thunk of the iron hitting the bone through the denim of her jacket and through her skin. She wailed in pain, struggled away, and I swung again, holding the clamp like brass knuckles, hitting Gammy with a half-strength blow in the side.
They backed off once more, but not for long. I was proving a nuisance, but I hadn’t scared either of them yet. I needed to draw blood. Break bones.
In the seconds before they came again, I ripped at the duct tape on my wrists with my teeth, slashing through the sticky plastic. I pulled, and my wrists parted reluctantly. The clamp wasn’t enough. I needed something long-range. I ditched