Free Like a Knife by Annie Solomon Page B

looked away, as if ashamed. "You don't have to worry about... about anything like that happening again."
    "Oh, Nick." Her throat squeezed shut. Her anger dissolved, and suddenly she felt like crying. That he would do that for her. Turn his life upside down to protect her. "I... I don't know what to say."
    "Don't say anything. Just go."
    "No one's put themselves on the line like that for me. Ever. Not even my father."
    He grabbed her by the shoulders and pushed her backward toward the street. "You're welcome. Now get out of here."
    His hands on her shoulders felt good, but she ignored the little skip her heart took. Instead, she dug in her heels, stopping his backward drive. "What does Spier want you to do?"
    "Rachel-"
    "The sooner you answer my questions, the sooner I'll go. Spier wanted something from you. What?"
    He dropped his hold. Propping one elbow against the side of a building, he sighed and rubbed his forehead. "The usual stuff-rob from the poor, fight for the rich, inspire corruption, and reward greed. Bring death and destruction to one and all."
    "I'm serious."
    "So am I." He crossed his arms and leaned his back against the wall, eyeing her.
    "And are you enjoying your work?"
    "Yeah, I love it. Great benefits."
    A wave of warmth for him washed over her. He was such a liar. "Nick, I can't let you do this."
    'It's not up to you."
    I'll be all right. I'll call the police. I'll tell them what you said."
    He langhed, pushing himself off the wall. "The police? You think the police can protect you from Rennie? They couldn't protect his own wife from him."
    "His wife? What do you mean?"
    "He killed Shelley." Nick said the words with quiet conviction.
    A ripple of uneasiness fluttered low in her stomach. "He killed his wife? But Nick, why?"
    "Let's just say he had his reasons."
    "Are you sure?"
    "Oh yeah. So don't think he'd hesitate a second before doing the same to you." The look he threw her said, Do you see now? Do you understand? "Get out of here, and don't come back."
    She bit her lip, the reasons for his insistence shimmering inside her. Hanging around him could put herself and her school in danger. Nick was a grown man; he didn't need her help.
    But how could she abandon him here, especially after what he'd done for her?
    "Come with me," she said, knowing it wasn't smart but saying it anyway.
    "You're not listening. I can't see you. Ever."
    "Look, if it means getting you away from Rennie Spier, I'll take the risk."
    "You will?" But before she could take another breath, he grabbed her from behind, pinned her arms and imprisoned her against him. "Remember what this feels like?" His voice rasped in her ear. "The tape over your mouth, the hood over your head? You struggled, didn't you? Just like you're struggling now."
    "Let me go." She twisted, but he only tightened his hold.
    "You're locked in darkness, drowning in fear. Will they hurt you? Kill you?"
    "Stop it"
    "Will the sound of your dying be just like your mother's? Will you scream like she screamed? Bleed like she bled?"
    "I said, stop it!" Heart pounding, she fought him, but her efforts were as useless now as they were then. He was too big, too strong. The memory of that night slammed into her. The swift-surprise, the helplessness, the bowel-loosening trip in the car. She heard the shot that stopped her mother's life, saw the lifeless look in her eyes as she lay on the ground. The two memories merged into heart-thumping hysteria. "Let me go. Stop it, stop it!" But the voice in her ear crooned on.
    "Remember, Rachel. Next time you're willing to risk your life, you remember what this feels like." And with that, he flung her away.
    Breathing hard, she tried to get the saliva back in her mouth. She rubbed her arms where he'd held her. "You bastard."
    "Yeah. And I'm the good guy."
    Her heart was beating so fast, it was a wonder it didn't fly out of her body. Legs shaking, she stumbled away from him. Out the alley. Down the street. As far as she could get.
    Nick