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Fear crawled over me at the reminder

Ivy was in there alone with a killer

Pushing the door open carefully, I slipped inside the apartment Ivy’s floor was covered with deep-pile carpet thatthe wall The apart room, like mine

I sed past the lunored the cold sweat gathering under my arms, and forced myself to peek around the wall

Freddie stood in the center of the roo for him A baseball cap was dran over his head

And he was pointing his gun at Ivy

Ivy didn’t look as emotionless as she sounded There was fear in her dark eyes as she stood before hi the tiled hearth of the fireplace at her back

“You give iveto fuckin’ shoot you in the head And I will I got nothing to lose”

“I-I-I can call ht take a few days”

“Are you listening, you duun “I don’t have a few days”

Instinct took over

One second I was behind the wall, the next I was diving at Freddie Jackson without any thought but to stop hiround, Freddie’s expletives filling un fell into the thick carpet

Adrenaline crashed throughwith Freddie’s We started to wrestle The little shit was stronger than he looked I screaht and—

BANG!

Agonizing pain tore throughinto myself Fire streaked up my neck and down my arm, and I couldn’t catch my breath