Page 83 of The Kingpin's Call Girl

“What makes you think I’m working alone? There are thousands of cops in this town, and every one of us wants Luka. There’s nowhere you can run from us. Every police car. Every cop on horseback.”

“So this goes on until I’m dead.”

“Don’t be dramatic. You’re more capable than you want me to think, and you got closer to him than you let on. I’m just asking for a couple more favors.”

“He said we were in a transaction—a transaction he’s done with.”

“Is he, though? Because I keep thinking about him taking that phone away. It’s just a piece of trash to him. He’d never re-use it. And you’re right about him never fucking the same woman twice. But he’s seenyoumultiple times.” He pauses and shows a horrible smile. “I find that very interesting. You know what else I think? I think he took the phone back because he wanted to remove the temptation. Like an alcoholic getting rid of bottles of booze.”

“No,” I say.

“Yeah. Yeah, I think this is gonna work. Unless you fuck it up. And you don’t wanna fuck it up, do you?”

“He doesn’t want to see me again!”

“Well, he’s gonna see you again, isn’t he? You’re gonna make it happen. I’ll text you when he heads to the restaurant next, and you are fucking showing up there, you understand? You tell him you miss him and beg him for one more date.”

“He’s gonna know something’s off.”

He leans in. “Better do a good job like I know you can, then. You’ll be reunited with your sister, and everyone will be happy. The only way out of this is through.”

Chapter Thirty-One

EDIE

I walk home, wrist throbbing, mind blazing with panic. I feel like there’s nowhere to run—just danger around one corner and more danger around the other. My only instinct is to hide. Somewhere small. Somewhere dark.

How could I have let Bender bully me into telling him about the meeting? How did he know I was holding back?

What have I done?

A cop car slides by, and I’m sure they’re looking at me.

I spot another police officer up ahead.

Are they all watching me?

I turn a corner in full freak-out mode. My heart is pounding so hard I think I might have a heart attack.

Deep breaths.

Deep breaths.

I stop and pretend to look at my phone. I don’t know what to do or even where to go.

For one wild second, I think about coming clean to Luka, begging his forgiveness. I have this fantasy of Luka going after Bender—grabbing his hair and ripping out his windpipe—because nobody fucks with what’s his.

But I’m not his anymore. Worse, now I’m a snitch.

What if he gets arrested? What if he goes to prison?

Needless to say, if you repeat any of this to anybody, you’ll get a firsthand demonstration.

It was pretty clear what he meant by that. I’d get a firsthand demonstration of the slaughtering if I repeated anything I heard, and I definitely repeated things I heard.

I’ve seen enough movies to know if anybody’s getting their windpipe ripped out, it’s me.

To choke the life out of somebody, to feel their blood run over your hands while the light goes out of their eyes. It feels fucking amazing.