turns out. Tell me, Macey, were you even on that helicopter when it crashed?” Taotie queried.
“What do you think?” Macey didn’t cower before Taotie. Brave even as it was stupid. The thug wasn’t one to tolerate what he considered to be disrespect.
Taotie’s expression hardened. “You fucking cunt. You tried to kill me.”
“Me? I wasn’t the one with the gun.”
Ted blinked. What the fuck was happening?
“Holy fuck, is this the broad you were telling us about? The one that got you kicked out of China?” Ralph’s gaze went wide.
“This cunt conspired with a bitch to kill me and escape,” Taotie confirmed.
“Actually, I had nothing to do with what happened. But can’t say as I minded either,” Macey declared.
“Because of you, I almost died.” Taotie’s face twisted with rage.
“Oops.” She offered a non-apologetic shrug. “Unfortunately, a necessary thing given you wouldn’t have stepped aside so I could escape.”
“The whole reason I was placed as your guard was because Ronin knew you were thinking of running.”
Ronin. Ted stored the named for later. The unfolding drama couldn’t be missed.
“Can you blame me? He treated me no better than a prisoner.”
“Living in the lap of luxury,” Taotie spat.
“Luxury?” Rather than show meekness, Macey’s chin lifted. “He bought me clothes to hide the bruises he left. Showered me in jewels as if that was supposed to make me forgive his abuse.”
The hands by Ted's sides tightened. It was getting harder and harder to listen.
“Whine, whine, bitch, bitch,” Taotie mocked. “Such a hard life. He would have given you everything. But then you supposedly died in that crash, and Ronin went ballistic. Guess who was left behind to deal with it? He blamed me for everything. I was the one who got the brunt of his punishment.”
“Couldn’t have been that bad, given you look fine,” was her tart reply.
Ted could have winced. Talking back wouldn’t help the situation.
“Fine?” Taotie barked. “I was shot in the head!” He shoved back the thick hank of hair that usually covered his forehead, showing a puckered mark.
“A little bit too much to the left, judging by the scar. I can’t believe she missed.” Macey shook her head. “She’s not usually so careless.”
Ted blinked. She didn’t just say that.
She did. And wasn’t done. “Guess you had more empty space rattling around inside that fat head than anyone would have imagined.”
Ted almost took a step back. Why did she deliberately antagonize?
To his surprise, Taotie didn’t fly into a rage, but with a wave of his hand, his friends fanned out. The man smiled, and a knife slipped into his palm. “The doctors claim I am a living miracle.”
“Have to say I’m surprised to see you alive. Ronin doesn’t usually tolerate failure.” She seemed determined to make Taotie snap.
He’d never heard of this Ronin guy, but if she was willing to pretend to be dead, it couldn’t be good.
Taotie’s hands curled into fists. “I suffered his displeasure. For the first two weeks, I was in the hospital. Ronin came by every day just so he could tell me I should have died instead of you.”
“Why didn’t he kill you?” She sounded almost curious.
“Because he wanted me to suffer. Because of you,” Taotie spat, “I spent months in a hospital, a dirty one because Ronin wanted me to hurt. Whenever I got close to healing, he’d send someone to beat me up. The only way I got it to stop was by escaping China. Starting over. I had to claw my way back up, and even then, only made it as far as running a two-bit operation in America.”
“You should aim for higher in life. Maybe, I don’t know, try getting a real job that doesn’t involve breaking any laws or helping an asshole hold a woman prisoner.” Macey just wouldn’t stop.
Ted didn’t know if he should admire her or ask if she’d forgotten to take some meds.
“Fuck you,” Taotie spat.
“I see your vocabulary hasn’t improved much.” She shook her head.
“Let’s see how well you talk once I’m done with you.”
“You won’t be hurting me.” A statement that only served to confuse Ted. She seemed way too calm.
“You’re right, I won’t. But I have a feeling I know someone who will. Wait until Ronin hears you’re alive. Maybe returning you will appease him.”
“I am not going back, and you won’t be telling him anything.” Macey stepped closer to Taotie, hands tucked behind her back. Ted noticed that she had a needle in her hand.
Hold on, why did she have a needle?
“Bitch, you keep talking like