He turned to the Daimons. "One step closer, and I snap her neck."
They exchanged a doubting frown.
"I mean it," he said as they looked like they were about to pounce. He increased the pressure on her carotid and jugular. Within seconds, she was out. Still, he waited a few seconds more, in case she was faking. At this point, he wouldn't put anything past her.
Once he was sure she was unconscious, he slid her to a dry spot on the floor. "All right, punks. Bring it."
The moment he took a step forward, they ran deeper into the tunnel.
Well, at least they weren't the infected Daimons who could convert him.
Jess started to go after them, but rethought it. It was too close to dawn, and right now he had the prize of all time.
The woman who'd been hunting them.
A woman he'd once known ...
"I can't believe you survived." But how? He had so many questions, they made him dizzy.
Best thing to do would be to interrogate her and find out what was going on and why she had such a hard-on for them. Hoping he didn't live to regret this decision, he picked her up and carried her back to the street. Now that she wasn't trying to kick his jewels into his throat, he realized just how tiny she was. Very well muscled, but short.
Like Matilda.
He squelched that comparison quick. She was nothing like his mild-mannered, soft-spoken bride-to-be. No one was. It was why he'd fallen in love with her and why all these decades later, he still ached from the loss of her friendship.
The woman in his arms was like everyone else he'd ever met. Treacherous. Lethal. Only out for herself. Whatever he did, he couldn't let himself forget that. She wanted him dead, and if he didn't stop her, she'd kill him and then move on to the rest of his colleagues.
No good deed goes unpunished....
He'd protected her and her mother, and how did she pay him back? By trying to kill him.
How utterly typical.
Jess made it out as the sky was just starting to lighten. I better hurry and be quick about it.... It was getting a little too close at this point.
He hadn't gone far from the drain when he saw a police car driving by on the street.
Crap.
What were the odds that they'd not see him and keep going? Probably about as good as them believing he was carrying his wife back to their room after a heavy night of drinking.
Yeah ...
He hadn't been that lucky in a long time. "I hope lockup doesn't have a window," he muttered under his breath.
The patrol car pulled up to the curb and stopped. "Hey, you there! Come over here."
Yeah, it was nice to know his bad luck was the only stable thing in his life.
Jess tightened his grip on Abigail as he debated his options. None of them were good, especially since he was packing an arsenal under his coat. One they were sure to object to if they discovered it.
Making sure to act nonchalant, he moseyed over to the car. "Yes, sir?"
The officer glanced down at Abigail. "Is there a problem?"
Uh, yeah. You people are bugging the shit out of me when I need to be rocketing home. Jess forced himself not to betray his annoyance. "Little too much to drink. I was taking her back to the casino where we're staying."
The man narrowed his gaze suspiciously. "You need a doctor?"