shrieked and thrashed like a fish on a hook. The stench of burnt flesh twisted my stomach.
“Clay’s been a bad boy,” Nicky said. “Offered me up to Agent Black in exchange for immunity. Of course we caught him before he could hand over any evidence she didn’t already have. Right now, Clay’s making a painful and life-changing discovery. You know what that is, Dan?”
“Go ahead and tell me,” I said through gritted teeth.
He moved in, standing almost toe to toe with me. “There’s no such thing as immunity from
me
.”
Another blast of sparks. Another muffled scream. I tried not to look.
“I don’t know what he’s supposed to tell you with that gag in his mouth,” I said.
“Tell me?” Nicky said. “Nothing. He’s already told me everything he knows. I don’t want to hear another word out of him for the rest of his short and miserable life.”
“Then why the fuck are you still torturing him?”
“To make a point. Dan, are you familiar with the castle doctrine?”
“Sure,” I said. “Somebody invades your house, you’ve got the right to use lethal force.”
Nicky put his arm around my shoulder. To my credit, I didn’t flinch.
“I’m the king, Dan. That makes Vegas my castle. And when someone invades my castle, that means I have the right—no, the moral and ethical
duty
—to use any means necessary in its defense.”
While Juliette whispered in Clay’s ear, Justine put down the jumper cables and picked up a cordless drill.
“Our friend Clay, here?” Nicky said. “He’s an object lesson. First, to make it clear that actions have consequences and disloyalty is something I take very, very personally. Second, to reassure everyone that I have this situation under control. The feds don’t have anything. They’re not going to
get
anything, and everyone just needs to chill out.”
The drill whirred to life. Justine held it up to the light, so Clay’s good eye could see what was coming next.
“I want you to spread the word,” Nicky said. “Feds or no feds, Nicky Agnelli still owns Las Vegas. When the storm blows over, everybody who stayed cool is going to get a little something special in their Christmas stocking. Those who break ranks, on the other hand? I got more basements, Dan. There’s always more basements.”
“Fine,” I said. “Message delivered. Now I’m leaving.”
His grip tightened on my shoulder.
“Just one more minute. Stay and watch this part. This is gonna be good.”
Justine looked over at me. Her eyes blazed orange in the shadows, like a candle burning inside a mad jack-o’-lantern. A forked tongue slithered from her sister’s mouth, tasting the blood on Clay’s ragged ear.
“Stay and watch, Danny,” Justine cooed. She moved closer with the drill. “We’re just getting warmed up.”
• • •
I emerged into sunshine and heat like a long-lost cave explorer, slamming the kitchen door behind me. Then I staggered over to the picket fence, doubled over, and threw up on the freshly mowed grass. I leaned against the rough wooden fencepost with one hand until I could catch my breath.
After the basement, the quiet and peaceful suburban street was surreal. Nothing seemed real, nothing but the memory of that burning-flesh stench. I could still taste it in the back of my throat, no matter how many lungfuls of dry, hot air I gulped down.
Nicky knew. I had two encounters with Harmony Black in two days, and suddenly I got a front-row seat at his little torture show? I was a magician, and “coincidence” wasn’t a word in our vocabulary. He wanted to make sure I wasn’t getting too chummy with the enemy. After all, I knew more of his dirty secrets than almost anyone alive. If I wanted to burn him, I could.
And I did. I wanted to burn him to the fucking ground. Problem was, hurting him meant hurting people I cared about, too, people who would get dragged down by his sinking ship. Until I found a way around that, I was still Nicky’s guardian
“Clay’s been a bad boy,” Nicky said. “Offered me up to Agent Black in exchange for immunity. Of course we caught him before he could hand over any evidence she didn’t already have. Right now, Clay’s making a painful and life-changing discovery. You know what that is, Dan?”
“Go ahead and tell me,” I said through gritted teeth.
He moved in, standing almost toe to toe with me. “There’s no such thing as immunity from
me
.”
Another blast of sparks. Another muffled scream. I tried not to look.
“I don’t know what he’s supposed to tell you with that gag in his mouth,” I said.
“Tell me?” Nicky said. “Nothing. He’s already told me everything he knows. I don’t want to hear another word out of him for the rest of his short and miserable life.”
“Then why the fuck are you still torturing him?”
“To make a point. Dan, are you familiar with the castle doctrine?”
“Sure,” I said. “Somebody invades your house, you’ve got the right to use lethal force.”
Nicky put his arm around my shoulder. To my credit, I didn’t flinch.
“I’m the king, Dan. That makes Vegas my castle. And when someone invades my castle, that means I have the right—no, the moral and ethical
duty
—to use any means necessary in its defense.”
While Juliette whispered in Clay’s ear, Justine put down the jumper cables and picked up a cordless drill.
“Our friend Clay, here?” Nicky said. “He’s an object lesson. First, to make it clear that actions have consequences and disloyalty is something I take very, very personally. Second, to reassure everyone that I have this situation under control. The feds don’t have anything. They’re not going to
get
anything, and everyone just needs to chill out.”
The drill whirred to life. Justine held it up to the light, so Clay’s good eye could see what was coming next.
“I want you to spread the word,” Nicky said. “Feds or no feds, Nicky Agnelli still owns Las Vegas. When the storm blows over, everybody who stayed cool is going to get a little something special in their Christmas stocking. Those who break ranks, on the other hand? I got more basements, Dan. There’s always more basements.”
“Fine,” I said. “Message delivered. Now I’m leaving.”
His grip tightened on my shoulder.
“Just one more minute. Stay and watch this part. This is gonna be good.”
Justine looked over at me. Her eyes blazed orange in the shadows, like a candle burning inside a mad jack-o’-lantern. A forked tongue slithered from her sister’s mouth, tasting the blood on Clay’s ragged ear.
“Stay and watch, Danny,” Justine cooed. She moved closer with the drill. “We’re just getting warmed up.”
• • •
I emerged into sunshine and heat like a long-lost cave explorer, slamming the kitchen door behind me. Then I staggered over to the picket fence, doubled over, and threw up on the freshly mowed grass. I leaned against the rough wooden fencepost with one hand until I could catch my breath.
After the basement, the quiet and peaceful suburban street was surreal. Nothing seemed real, nothing but the memory of that burning-flesh stench. I could still taste it in the back of my throat, no matter how many lungfuls of dry, hot air I gulped down.
Nicky knew. I had two encounters with Harmony Black in two days, and suddenly I got a front-row seat at his little torture show? I was a magician, and “coincidence” wasn’t a word in our vocabulary. He wanted to make sure I wasn’t getting too chummy with the enemy. After all, I knew more of his dirty secrets than almost anyone alive. If I wanted to burn him, I could.
And I did. I wanted to burn him to the fucking ground. Problem was, hurting him meant hurting people I cared about, too, people who would get dragged down by his sinking ship. Until I found a way around that, I was still Nicky’s guardian
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