Total pages in book: 112
Estimated words: 105734 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 529(@200wpm)___ 423(@250wpm)___ 352(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 105734 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 529(@200wpm)___ 423(@250wpm)___ 352(@300wpm)
As I’m considering all these things, an impatient part of my brain weighs in. You’re being ridiculous, it says. Do you think you’re some kind of ninja? How on earth are you going to stop this from happening when everyone in the room is ten times bigger than you are?
I shut that voice down as soon as it plays through its unhelpful rhetoric. I may not be a female action star, but I’m not going to play the damsel in distress either. Now, I’m trapped behind Frankie. The way he’s bent over, he’s pushing me up against the wall. All I can do is grab his shoulders, as if I can comfort him through his pain. But Carlo Andretti doesn’t stop there.
I watch in horror as Andretti grabs Frankie by the shirt and hauls him to the center of the room. All three of the massive bodyguards Andretti brought with him start to pummel Frankie. There’s no way he can fight back.
The apartment is so small, it’s like a hurricane in my living room. Somebody pushes against the TV, and it crashes to the floor. Another person swings wildly and a lamp gets in their way. The light flickers off as the bulb breaks. It falls against the living room window, cracking the glass. I put my hands over my head to protect myself from the debris.
At the same time, Frankie cries out. I can see him try to struggle against Andretti’s men. He lands one punch in one guy’s stomach, but that’s about all he can manage.
They get him down on the floor and begin kicking him. Andretti shouts for them to get back so he can finish the job himself. I see an opening during the chaos and take my shot. I can’t jump into the ring with Frankie, but I can do the next best thing.
My sights are set on Harlan. He’s not participating in the beatdown, but instead, stands in the kitchen looking smug. He still has that bottle of orange juice in his hands, as if the whole thing is just an amusing show.
I climb over the mess in the living room, literally putting my hands on Andretti’s crew. Someone grabs my wrist, but I kick them in the shin. There’s a shout and the pressure against my arm is released. Andretti has time only to whip his head around before I’m past him and standing beside Harlan.
“Grab her!” Andretti shouts.
Frankie reaches up from his position and punches one of the bodyguards in the groin. A second man goes down from a swift kick to the knee. Now there are two people on the ground, and three men standing above. Frankie flails, trying to do as much damage as he can from his powerless position.
The size of the apartment is working in our favor. There’s too much chaos for the bad guys to get their bearings. The muscle that Andretti hired is whipping around on the floor, one attempting to grab his injured knee while the other holds his crotch. Their struggles only serve to unbalance the rest of the men, and soon, they’re all leaping to get out of the way.
I grab the orange juice from Harlan’s hand, tossing it over my shoulder where it lands squarely in the middle of the fight. Andretti cries out, surprised by the sweet, cold juice. He doesn’t know what it is at first, and by the time he figures it out, Frankie has latched onto his ankle.
Harlan steps back, trying to point his weapon at me. But with the action going on in the living room, he can’t make enough space. His back hits the refrigerator and he whips his head around to make sure it’s not another person. I take advantage of the situation, putting both hands around his gun.
Now I must hold on for dear life. He fires the weapon and I can feel it jump. But I’ve already managed to press my hip to his, meaning that I’m out of range when the bullet is fired. It digs a hole in the cabinet beneath the sink, causing water to spray all over us. That only creates more chaos which works in my favor.
I lean over and bite him in the neck like a vampire. He releases the gun so he can put both hands on my shoulders. Shoving me backward, he frees himself only to run right into the table. Harlan cries out in pain, dropping to one knee.
“Stop!” I yell, waving the gun at all of them.
Andretti pulls his own revolver, and we’re caught in a standoff. Water shoots out of the pipe, hitting me in the face and soaking through my shirt. I can’t see Frankie to figure out if he’s okay. There are two men on the floor, but I can’t tell if the third is there too.