Page 101 of Lethal Game

"I don't know. What happened here tonight? Who shot Novikov?"

"There were two men. They were dressed in black trackpants and black jackets, with ski masks covering their hair and their faces, dark glasses over their eyes, and gloves on their hands. One shot Novikov before he could get his gun. The other one grabbed me and tied me up. And then I heard another shot. I think that one was probably just for pleasure. Arseni was already dead."

"Did they say anything?"

"Not a word. They were here for less than ten minutes, and then they were gone. They left me to wait, to wonder what my fate would be." She paused, giving him a questioning look. "Are you going to shoot me, Jason?"

He was tempted. He really wanted to put a bullet in her. The hatred he felt for her was intense and overwhelming. There was no one here but him and Alisa. And she probably wouldn't care all that much if he killed the woman who had gotten her kidnapped.

Or would she?

His gaze moved from Stephanie to Alisa.

She looked back at him with uncertainty in her gaze.

"What do you think?" he asked her. "There's no one else here but us. We can say we found them both dead."

"We could say that," she replied. "I don't think anyone would be sad they were gone, not after what they've done."

"No one would miss them," he agreed, looking back at Stephanie.

"Then do it," Stephanie said. "But you won't be able to live with yourself. I know you, Jason. You can't kill without conscience. It's not who you are."

He raised his gun and pointed it at her head, seeing her flinch, seeing her suddenly realize she might be wrong about him, that he might actually kill her.

As the moment stretched out, he thought how easy it would be to pull the trigger, to not go through the trial, to not have to listen to her make up stories about herself, her actions, and what happened to his father.

But Stephanie was right. He couldn't kill without conscience. He wasn't a criminal. He wasn't evil.

He had told Flynn on the first day he'd joined the team that he wasn't out for revenge; he wanted justice. He'd been talking about Novikov then, but now it was about Stephanie.

"Dying would be too easy for you," he said. "You're going to pay for what you did. You're going to live the rest of your life in prison. You will get to spend every day thinking about the people you hurt and the choices you made. And I will be very happy I'm the one who put you there." He lowered his weapon. "I can't stand to look at you."

He walked around her, and as he gazed at Novikov, lifeless on the floor, he heard Stephanie start to cry. He felt completely unmoved.

The man at his feet was a monster, and the woman in the chair was one, too. Novikov was gone and Stephanie would pay for what she'd done. And this was finally over.

Pulling out his phone, he called Flynn. "I've got Novikov and Stephanie," he said. "I'm texting you the address."

"What do you mean you've got them?" Flynn asked in surprise.

"Novikov is dead. Stephanie is tied up," he replied as he texted the details to Flynn.

Flynn swore in amazement. "How did you make that happen?"

"I had some help. I'll tell you about it when you get here."

"The address is close by."

"They were going to have a great view of the fireworks."

"I'll be there in five minutes," Flynn said.

Jason put his phone in his pocket, took Alisa's hand, and pulled her into the hallway. "I'm sorry, but we need to wait for Flynn to get here before I take you to the hospital. It won't be long."

"You don't have to apologize to me, Jason. I'm so relieved Novikov is dead, and Stephanie is going to jail."

"Me, too." He paused, gazing into her beautiful brown eyes with the golden flecks that were now shimmering with happy relief. "I thought about killing her. It would have been very easy."