Chapter Twenty

Nina

Horror washed through my body at the sight of Eli hunkered down over Uncle Marv while he screamed. He was going to hurt him, and I ran forward, shrieking for him to stop. Eli looked right at me and released Uncle Marv’s arm—then choked him out and lowered him to the pavement.

I slowed to a halt, still a dozen feet away from him, my mouth hanging open in total shock. How could he do that in front of me? What kind of person did he think that I was?

“I said stop,” I snapped down at him, glowering.

Eli drew himself up to his full height, towering over me, but I wasn’t scared. To be honest, he could always make my breasts tingle when he stood close enough, but I ignored that sensation and spoke animatedly with my hands. “How could you do that?” I shrilled. “I told you to stop, and you looked right at me and knocked him out!”

“But I didn’t dislocate his shoulder,” Eli replied, scoffing. “I had to knock him out, Nina, or he would have immediately told JP that I had his security pass.”

I almost stammered, his words threw me so hard. “What?”

“I took his security pass for Redman Corp.” Kneeling down, I knotted my arms firmly under Marvin’s shoulders and hauled him into the air, tugging him backward into the alley. “Now I’ve got to make sure he stays out of my way for the rest of the night.”

“You’re going tonight?” I staggered after Eli as he dragged Marv to the corner of the alley and propped him against some loose garbage. My nose twitched with disgust at the image. “Eli… You’ve come far enough. You’ve done enough. Can’t you take this to the police? They can get a warrant and take over now. They’ll know what to do.”

“I know what I’m doing,” Eli promised me firmly. As if to prove his point, he tore off the thick, bright yellow drawstrings from a damaged trash bag and knotted them over Uncle Marv’s ankles and wrists. “And the police damn sure know what they’re doing, too. They’re protecting their interests.” Eli jammed a dry, crusty-looking rag into Marvin’s mouth. It had come from the loose garbage and I thought I might puke. He tied more yellow drawstring around Marvin’s head, securing the rag in his mouth so his every sound would be muffled. “That ought to keep him overnight.”

“You can’t leave him like this,” I whined, tears crowding up into my eyes. He looked so pathetic, and Eli was acting an awful lot like one of the Freaks right now.

“I have to leave him like this.” Eli jabbed a finger at me and crossed over Marvin’s legs to point it. His eyes flashed with frustration. “He won’t be knocked out for long, and he’s going to come to with a fully functioning memory, Nina. I’m going to those headquarters tonight. Someone will find him soon enough. But I’m damn sure not going to make it easy.” He hesitated, and his mouth softened. The fire in his eyes died down. “He’ll be okay.” Eli surprised me with this gentle promise. “I need you to relax.” His hands smoothed down my arms and collected my hands in his, turning them up to show the tender underside of my palm. He traced one finger down my palm and whispered, “You’re too good for this world. Let me take care of it.”

I swallowed and peered up into his warm, beautiful topaz eyes. I wanted to let him take care of everything. I wanted to melt into a puddle and give him control. But I couldn’t. Not if people were going to get hurt.

“Can’t we get the police involved?” I asked again. “So, my store was robbed. There’s insurance on the store. It’ll help me cover the damages until we can get back on our feet, and the police will hunt down the culprits. Everything will be fine. You don’t have to get your hands dirty on this, Eli.”

Eli laughed and dropped my hands, stepping away from me. “I’ve got to get my hands dirty. Insurance isn’t going to cover money that disappeared from a store with no signs of forced entry, babe. JP took that money. And JP owns the motherfucking police. If we go to them instead of directly to the source—tonight—all we’re doing is giving him fair warning.”

“How can you be so sure Dad bought the police?” I shrilled, desperate for a leg to stand on. It was a bad point to try to make, because the police haven’t bothered to stop a crime in Montclair for years now. This place was invisible to them. “They’re professionals! If they can’t help us, they’ll send someone who can!”

“No, they won’t!” Eli insisted through gritted teeth. “They’ll send JP. He’ll grab you. He’ll fortify his headquarters. He’ll get more Freaks. He’ll make sure I never see the light of day if I ever see you again. Nina…” His voice softened, and he shook his head. I knew that he believed everything he was saying, even if it sounded so wild to me. I couldn’t imagine Dad hurting me. I had a hard time picturing him as an abusive man, even after everything that Eli had said.

His topaz eyes pierced my heart straight through, and he said the words I knew were coming: “You have to choose a side once and for all, bright eyes.”