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"Bradley" She stopped in appliances by one of the young stock boys loading a washing machine onto a metal roller cart "Have you seen Mr Mackay?"

"He just went back outside" Bradley nodded his shaggy head toward the e lot

"Thanks, Bradley" Nodding quickly, sheoutside as she shaded her eyes to stare around

"Hello, Miss Jansen, can I help you?" Jim Bedsford stepped froarette to the ground as he stared back at her with a heavy scowl

"I was looking for Dawg" She gave hi inside her "Perhaps he’s inside"

"He’s in the lumberyard" Jim moved closer "He fired me, you know"

Crista froze as he blocked the way around the side of the building

"I’ll discuss it with him" She attempted to bluff her way back to the door

"Miss Jansen, open that door, and I’ll shoot you"

She turned back slowly, her eyes widening at the sight of the black barrel beneath the dark ball cap Bedsford was carrying in one hand

She glanced up at the ca a weapon

"You’re going to come with me, nice and easy like" He s will knoho I left with, Ji will know"

"Don’t try to run your mouth at me, bitch" His voice didn’t raise or lower, it re van and stop arguing with me before I have to kill you I don’t want to hurt you, but I’ lot desperately

"If I have to kill you, then I’, too," he pointed out in what she assumed was a reasonable tone "It won’t be hard He’s not the only So Or the only one who can play assassin Now, are you going to cooperate, or do I have to get pissed off?"

Daould miss her soon Crista looked up at the camera desperately, her fists clenched by her sides as sheeye and realized that the monitor probably hadn’t even picked up Bedsford But he would know, she told herself Daould know, and he would come for her

"I don’t want to hurt you" He opened the door to a s her "Get in the driver’s seat We’ll drive out of here nice and easy"

"Why are you doing this?" Cristahand "I’h laugh met her words "Hell, you think this job er seat, the gun held firive a shit about this job except for the fact that it helped us keep an eye on Dawg We needed to knohat he was up to, so I worked here and kept up on things Kept hi lot, praying someone had seen her, that someone would knoho she had left with

"Come on, you’re not a stupid bitch," he clucked in a that he’d been set up by Natches Soood i hooked up with you and was able to track your movements We just needed a little more time, and ould have had the money while those nasty little terrorists would have believed it was you Even those yahoos who helped steal the missiles didn’t knoho Johnny was Or you, for that matter Until the other day"

"He told theht into the detention center and flashed your ID and signed your na to be able to keep you safe

The men who helped Johnny steal the missiles think you have theoing to get think he’s you" His smile was satisfied "You’re dead, no o Of course, Crista had figured that one out already

"So why not just shootwheel hard as she turned down the road leading to the highway

She didn’t believe in going easy She had one chance, and it would be risky At the end of the lane was a traffic signal It was green right now, but if she tiht have a chance to escape

Her heart was racing, fear thundering in her head as she drew closer

"You knoon’t un shifted in his hand, the barrel pointing up as she brought the van to a stop as the light turned red "Wouldn’t it hurt sowith me and pray your boyfriend rescues you?"

He couldn’t rescue her if he didn’t knohere she was or who had taken her And he couldn’t rescue her if she had a bullet in her head

She glanced at the gun again, then up at the scowl on Ji will kill you," she told hione if she didn’t do so look earlier in the day had assured her that she had taken the wrong side He would show no more mercy toward her than he had the transport driver whose truck he had hijacked

"Daon’t kill me if all he has to do is clear your sweet little narunted "Look bitch, we just have to do one oes down, and we fly out of here, then we’re in the clear, no ainst ours, plain and si with ua I have some friends there Some contacts"

"Are you crazy, Jihway, aullibility

"Do you think Johnny did this just so he could escape to so Soo"

"I don’t really care what he does with you" There was a shrug in Ji to take the money and set up in a nice little hacienda there We have it all picked out"