Snow Blind - Lori G. Armstrong [119]
Leverage? An even exchange. Me for Nyla? I shuddered to think which one of us wasn’t worth leveraging.
“You listen to me. Here’s the deal: I’ll give you one, but not both. You knew she did it, huh? Well, get whatcha pay for.” Jackal beckoned Trina forward. I willed the blood to stop whooshing in my ears so I could hear Tony’s voice one last time.
423
“Now ain’t the time to threaten retribution.”
Jackal took two steps. “Really? I’m shocked. But not so fuckin’ shocked that I’ll let you choose. No, I get to play God today, hombre.”
Jackal lifted the gun and sited my forehead. I’d been shot before so I knew it’d hurt. But I wouldn’t give this fucker the satisfaction of squeezing my eyes shut. Then he swung the gun at Trina and pulled the trigger six times.
She screamed.
I screamed. Her blood sprayed across my face before she crumpled to the earth at my feet and I tasted her blood on my lips.
Jackal pointed the gun at me again and made the
“quiet” signal with his finger across his lips, his crazy eyes locked to mine.
I didn’t make another sound.
“Shut the fuck up, Martinez. I’m givin’ you a chance. Find the one who’s alive. I’ll leave them both here. For shits and giggles, I’m taking the coats. Since you’re a college boy, good with numbers, try to figure out how long the survivor will last with the windchill. Don’t try tracking this phone because I’m taking it with me and ditching it first chance I get. I’ll be in touch.”
Jackal hung up. He shoved the cell in the pocket of his filthy cargo pants and eliminated the distance between us.
I didn’t have the energy to cringe. My ears rang 424
from close-range gunfire. I was absolutely fucking numb with fear. This man redefined monster. I just wished I would be around to see what torture Tony inflicted before he allowed Jackal to die. I couldn’t help but look at Trina. Her eyes were open. Her mouth was slack with death. Blood spread across her chest like her heart exploded upon impact. Looked like wild animals had torn out her throat. How had she managed to scream?
“Why did you kill her?”
“She was as good as dead anyway.” Jackal pressed his nose to mine, and again the sour odor of his mouth and skin and soul made my flesh shrivel with revulsion. “What do you think the Hombres would’ve done with her once they found her, huh? Let her go? Trust me, they would’ve found her eventually. No matter what.”
I didn’t move.
“Do you think they woulda talked to her? Asked her why she had anger issues? Do you think they’d understand why she opened fire on their leader? No. The Hombres don’t talk; they act. They’d rape her, then beat her, then rape her some more before they started torturing her. I’ve seen it before. Hell, I’ve done it.”
My throat hurt with the need to swallow, but I couldn’t.
“No way would they’ve let her live. She signed her own death certificate when she shot at Martinez. 425
Trina served her purpose. Me killin’ her fast like that was the least I could do for her. It was the . . . humane thing to do.”
Humane? Fucked-up logic for sure, but I didn’t dispute his rambling.
He grinned nastily. “And blowin’ holes in her was worth hearing calm, cool, and collected El Presidente lose his fuckin’ mind when he heard the shots. That’s just a personal bonus for me, with him thinkin’ I killed you. With him freakin’ out about what he’ll find when he does eventually find you out here in the middle of fuckin’ nowhere. You’re dead, too. You know that, right?”
I nodded.
Jackal dangled a pair of handcuffs. “Take off your coat. Get on your knees.”
I threw my wool coat on the ground. “Are you gonna kill me?”
“Not with the gun. But if I stuck around you’d probably beg me to shoot you. Ain’t gonna be fun freezin’ to death, which is why I didn’t shoot you. I want you to endure pain. I want you in agony before you finally die. I want Martinez to see how you suffered and to have to live with the fact he didn’t get to you in time.”
I thought of Vernon Sloane for the millionth time. Dying alone. Did he wonder who