Gun Games - Faye Kellerman [99]
“Hey, what’s going on?” Gabe asked.
Dylan recovered quickly, creating space between the two of them, pulling the tiny figure he was gripping out of reach. Gabe may have been frazzled, but he was coherent enough to notice the barrel of a .22 S/W revolver pushed into her spine.
“This is what’s going on.” Dylan yanked Yasmine’s hair, turning her head around so that Gabe could see her terrified face. They locked eyes and hers were wet, pleading with him to do something. Then something hard appeared on the back of his own head.
He heard the telltale click.
And when that happened, an eerie calm suddenly washed over his body, just like the way he felt when he had attacked the mugger a year ago . . . or when his dad used to shoot at him to get him used to the sound of whizzing bullets. His brain instantly transported into a zone he rarely visited—that of his father’s son. His heartbeat slowed as he regarded the situation with newfound clarity.
Dylan had jerked Yasmine’s head forward so that Gabe could no longer see her face. He said, “You had fun with my girl. So now it’s time for payback.” He pushed the gun deeper into her spine. She let out a garbled yelp. “You can come along if you want.” A sickening smile. “You can hold her arms down while we gangbang her.”
Gabe shrugged carelessly, his mind working faster than his mouth. Thinking before he spoke, listening to his father’s voice in his head.
I got a lot of enemies, Gabe. You gotta be careful. If you ever do get in a jam and can’t reach me, start thinking of a plan. And once you’ve got a plan, don’t ever, ever think about the consequences. Just act.
He picked up his pace, forcing the guy who held the gun to his head to walk a little faster. The others fell into step.
“Honestly, Dylan, I don’t know what you’re talking about. I never did anything with your girl.” Gabe’s eyes swept over the crew. Six instead of five. Four dudes, two girls—Cameron and a brunette. “I don’t even know which one your girl is.”
Cameron says something. “You are such a liar—”
“The blonde?” Gabe walked faster. “The one who called you an asshole?”
Dylan momentarily flinched.
“Look,” Gabe said. “I didn’t know she was yours. And I certainly didn’t fuck her. I’ve seen your babe twice. Once when I first met you and once at a bus stop.” Gabe pointed straight ahead. “That bus stop as a matter of fact.”
Where the fucking bus wasn’t due until twenty minutes.
Think of a plan, and then act on it.
“It was like six-thirty in the morning.” Gabe tried to keep his voice even. “I was waiting for the bus. She had bought some shit and invited me over to her house to have a smoke. Apparently her parents leave very early for work.”
Who do you attack first? The one with the piece on Yasmine’s back or the one whose gun was pointed at your gray matter?
Dylan said, “She said you doped her up and raped her.”
“Give me a break, dude, do I look like a guy who needs to rape for pussy?”
“He’s a fucking liar, Dylan,” Cameron screamed out. “You saw the marks.”
“What marks?”
“Where you tied me up—”
“You believe that shit, Dylan?” Gabe laughed. “C’mon, you’re a smart dude. I didn’t go to her house, not because I was dissing her or anything. I didn’t go because I had a record audition at eight in the morning with a major R and D guy from a big label—”
“You raped me, you asshole!”
“—chance of a lifetime, dude—”
“You fucking tied me up and raped—”
“—and no pussy is worth missing an opportunity like that.” Gabe could tell Dylan was digesting the contrary information. “You can believe what you want, bro, but I’ve never touched her. I earn my pussy honestly, dude. Rape is for losers.”
Dylan’s eyes were wavering now. Gabe was almost at a jog.
“Besides, anything I need, my dad gives free of charge. Why would I rape if I can have as much pussy as I want any time, any way?”
“Yeah, I forgot.” Dylan was sneering now. Maybe it was not so good to bring up Dad. “You’re the one whose father is a pimp.”
Gabe affected