16

FALLON “Are you satisfied?” I spit, the taste of defeat bitter on my tongue as I will myself not to cry. “Immensely.” Leone leans back, the ghost of a smirk playing on his lips as the dealer clears the table and exits quickly without so much as a backward glance. His callous fingers slide along the barrel of the gun sitting next to him on the table, a caress that promises nothing but death. The weapon is an extension of his arrogant will, cold and ready to deliver its final verdict. A chill skitters down my spine as I watch him pick it up and take aim at my father’s blindfolded form. “Please,” I whisper, my voice a jagged edge of desperation. “You have me now; let him go.” “Unfortunately for you, my dear, mercy isn’t a luxury in my world.” My heart thunders against my rib cage, each beat a drum roll to the inevitable. But as he pulls the hammer back with a click that echoes like a tomb being sealed, something primal surges within me. I can’t—won’t—let my father pay for trying to save E