Page 82 of Westin

He slid his gun back into the waistband of his jeans and pulled out a large hunting knife. She refused to cower as he approached her, holding her head up straight, looking him in the eye. He grabbed her braid and began to saw against it, pulling on her hair so that she could feel a few strands pop loose. She gritted her teeth to keep from crying out.

“Hey, Petey, are we expecting someone?” a voice called out from the front of the building.

Petey turned, releasing Lee as he did. She reached up and grabbed his wrist, wrapping her hand around the blade of the knife to wrench it from him. He didn’t seem to understand what she was doing at first, because he just looked down at her like he thought it was some kind of joke or something. And then he smacked her, rocking her head back. But she had that knife—and one twist… She jumped to her feet and shoved him back. He stumbled, releasing the knife, but she still had hold of his wrist. She jerked him into her, flipped the knife in her hand and pressed it to his throat. He backed up until he hit the wall, fear finally coming into his eyes, burning in their mossy depths.

Chaos suddenly broke out around them. She thought his buddies had come to his rescue, and she was ready to tell them to back off. But it wasn’t his friends.

“Sheriff’s office!” a woman’s voice cried out. “We’ve got a warrant to search the premises.”

Petey’s head turned and she pressed the knife harder against his neck, drawing blood. “Stay still, asshole!”

“You’re fucking insane!”

“Lee Montgomery?” The woman’s voice that had called out a moment ago was behind her, speaking in low, calm tones. “Agent Montgomery?”

She nodded, bouncing on her good foot as pain once again began to throb in her bad ankle.

“I’m Sheriff Jack Reeves. Your boss back in Seattle asked that we come and give you a hand with this bust.”

Lee nodded, tears beginning to fall from her eyes. “The boys on Golden Sphinx. There was a fire.”

“They’re fine. In fact, there’s a couple outside waiting to see you.”

She nodded. But she couldn’t back down. She wasn’t sure why, but she couldn’t let Petey go. Something inside of her wouldn’t let her.”

“My partner is back at Golden Sphinx, too. He and another man, Isai Gomez.”

“I know, Agent. We’ve already spoken with Westin Clark.”

She nodded a third time, feeling almost like a bobbing head, but unable to stop. “He’s okay?”

“He’s fine.”

“You know who these people are? You know they’ve been running drugs through multiple states? That they’re responsible for dozens of fentanyl overdoses and—”

“We know, Agent. We’ve got it under control now.”

“Make her let me go,” Petey said, his whole body suddenly trembling against her.

“I’m not making her do anything,” the woman behind Lee said. “She’s the agent in charge here. If she wants to slit your throat, she has the authority to do it.”

“That’s not funny!”

“I’m not joking.”

The fear in Petey’s eyes increased tenfold. “Look, Lee; I didn’t touch anything more than a few hairs on the back of your head. That’s it! Please—you don’t have to do this.”

Lee nodded. “You’re right. I don’t have to do anything.”

But still, she couldn’t make herself let him go. The image of him with that gun in his hands, balancing it like he was trying to decide which hand he could aim better with, if he could do tricks like some gunslinger in the Old West. All the while, he was contemplating her death. And she’d been ready for it, prepared to give up her life for the safety of her friends on Golden Sphinx.

She wanted him to pay for that.

But he would pay. This man was going to go to prison for a very long time. Clint had video of him putting money in a dead drop. She had phone conversations between him and Fang, and more between him and Will. And she was sure some of the guys in this very room would be more than happy to offer testimony on him if it meant lesser charges for them.

It was over. She had bigger fish to fry.

Lee stumbled back, dropping the knife to the floor, hopping on one foot. The sheriff caught her, wrapping an arm around her as she gestured for one of her deputies to come put the cuffs on Petey J.