“How can you say that after what we’ve been through?”
“We?” Now Zoya stopped and thrust her face up into Marcus’s. “I’m the one who’s had the day from hell. You’ve just been following me around for some crazy reason. Now call up your father and—”
“Zoya, why are you acting this way?” Ira said, throwing her arms around Zoya’s shoulders. “I’m your best friend and you’re acting like you don’t even know me. So you’ve had a rough day. We care about—”
“Stop talking!” Zoya shouted, wincing at the pain lancing through her jaw. “None of this matters right now. We can’t stay here. That big bastard Bunny is awake and is going to come out that door any moment now. I’m not sticking around to greet him.” She shoved Ira’s arms away and trotted toward the sidewalk again.
Marcus and Ira caught up with her. “I thought I’d killed him,” Marcus said.
“Well, you didn’t. Good job. Can you please just have your father get you a cab now?”
“I already called him. He’s sending something for Irina. I’m going with you.”
“You’re an idiot, you know that?”
“You’re committing suicide and I’m the idiot? Fine. Just know that I’m going to be killed right along with you.”
“Will you two stop it?” Ira said, struggling for breath due to the fast pace. “I don’t want either of you to die. Why don’t we all just calm down and get in the taxi when it gets here? We can talk things over out at the dacha.”
“Ira, I have to do this,” Zoya said. “I have to do this, and if I don’t go right this moment I’ll never be able to. I don’t want you involved.”
“It’s a little late for that,” Ira said.
“Since when have you ever done anything more dangerous than get a pedicure?”
“Stop being rude,” Ira said. “I don’t want to help you get yourself killed. You said if you stopped to consider your actions you’d never go through with this, well that’s exactly what you should be doing right now — pausing to think about what you’re doing. You’ve lost loved ones and that’s a terrible tragedy. I’ll do anything to help you through that. But you won’t help anything by running off to die yourself.”
Zoya didn’t respond, just picked up her pace. Ira jogged to catch up, Marcus trailing behind her.
“Tell me,” Ira said, “what is your plan? Do you have one? Just announce your presence at the door and say, ‘Here I am, please shoot me now’? Did you forget that I watched them kill Pyotr? You aren’t going to teach men like these any lessons. They aren’t the type who can learn. Will you please stop ignoring me!”
Zoya grabbed the collar of Ira’s coat and dragged her through the doorway of a crumbling, deserted building. The small entryway smelled of alcohol and urine, and by the trash scattered about it had clearly been lived in by several desperate people. Marcus lingered in the doorway behind them.
“You have no idea what I’ve seen today,” Zoya hissed, thrusting Ira up against the wall. “I began the day with a family and friends, and now you’re the only one I have left. Go to your dacha and be with your family. Live your life. I’ve made my decision and I’m sorry if that upsets you. At least if I know you are safe I can be content with my choice.”
“You want to confront a bunch of butchers,” Ira said, tears streaming from her eyes. “To what end? You don’t have a plan at all, do you?”
“Maybe if the two of you would leave me alone I’d have time to think of something.”
“The cab’s here,” Marcus said. “Just down the street. I’m telling my father to send it on.”
“Please, Zoya,” Ira pleaded. “Put this out of your mind for now. Get in the taxi with us. I’m begging you.”
Zoya stared into Ira’s eyes for a moment. In a whisper she said, “Do you know what happened to Oksana? Because I cannot put that out of my mind, not now, not ever.” She held up a zip-cable. “I’d show you exactly what I saw, but I love you too much to do that to you. You must trust me. I owe Oksana for what they did to her.”
Ira slid down the wall, weeping.
“Go on, Irina,” Marcus said. “The car’s here. I’ll go with Zoya and do what I can.”
Ira wiped her eyes with her sleeve and peered up at Marcus, then her mouth dropped open as her gaze jerked to the doorway.
Zoya whirled around to see a skinny man in a black track suit holding a gun on them. She recognized him as the mobster who’d been driving the sky cycle during the chase earlier. In the narrow entryway she didn’t see any way she could get the drop on him, even with the help of the combat card.
“What is this?” Marcus cried. “We called for a taxi.”
“Your father sends his regrets,” the man said in a raspy voice. “Says you’re to be delivered safely to your apartment.” He pointed the gun at Ira. “I don’t know nothing about you, babe.”
“Don’t you dare hurt her,” Zoya said.
“I don’t give a fuck about her. You two,” he said, nodding toward Marcus and Irina, “stand up against the wall. And you, lady, don’t you move at all or I’ll shoot. I know all about the little toy in your head. In fact, reach up very slowly and eject it…now.”
“How about you take me to your boss at The Pyramid?” Zoya said.
The man grinned. “Looks like we all want the same thing for a change. That’s exactly where I’m gonna take you, okay? Now do as I said.”
Zoya inched her hand up and pressed the tiny button to eject the card. The red glow vanished from around the mobster, along with the green glows from her friends. She felt naked.
Keeping the gun on her, the man held his other hand toward Zoya. “Now hand it to your girlfriend there. She’ll pass it along to me. Drop it and I’ll cap your knee.”
Zoya did as he said, handing the card to Ira, who then gave it — with a wildly trembling hand — to the man, who slipped it into a coat pocket.
“Good,” he said, grinning. He stepped up behind Marcus and Irina and, never taking his eyes — or gun — from Zoya, he expertly patted them down. “Stay right where you are,” he said to them when he had finished. “Now you.” He waved the gun at Zoya. “Turn around and stand still while I search you.”
She did as he asked. He stepped up behind her and quickly felt around her waistband, then skimmed his hand up and down and between her legs.
“Someone sure did a job on your face. Bunny?”
Zoya remained silent.
Straightening, the man felt beneath her left breast and then cupped the right one. Zoya’s sense of outrage and desperation had been growing, and this was the last straw. She smashed her elbow into his stomach, then she whirled and kicked him in the balls. The gun clattered to the ground and the man stumbled against the wall, groaning and cradling his groin. Zoya kicked the man in the face and he screamed.
Faintly she heard Ira yell, “Zoya! What are you doing?”
“Here, I’ve got him!” Marcus was suddenly there, pinning the man’s arms from behind. “Hurry! He’s stronger than I am.”
Zoya stooped and picked up the gun, then held it to the man’s temple. The mobster was wailing in pain, his eyes squeezed shut. She looked up at Ira. “Get in the car. You don’t want to see this.”
Ira was weeping again. “Stop this. They’re going to kill us all.”
“Marcus, let him go. Get Ira into the car.”
“You…you sure?”
Zoya glared at him.
Marcus stood and backed away from the groaning mobster. He clutched at Ira’s arm.
“The car, I said!”
The two just stood there, mouths open.
Zoya blew out her breath and shot the mobster in the head. The shot was loud in the crumbling corridor, but then silence fell.
“What…what did you do?” Ira bawled as she screamed it.