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I only wish the odds weren’t stacked against us. Because Theo was right. He’ll be ready, waiting, and I doubt he’ll be alone.

Theo checks his phone, grunting. “Time to go. Can I count on you to keep a cool head?”

“Let’s just go.” I’m not about to make a promise I can’t keep, not when I already promised June she would be safe.

This time the neon above the entrance is dark. “Mourning the loss of their dear leader,” Theo suggests with a bitter chuckle. I can’t bring myself to echo it. I’m coming, June. Hold on a little longer. Just a little longer.

Another difference from what we found that first night: armed guards waiting at the door. One of them makes sure to flash the piece holstered under his suit jacket, while the other openly displays his as he waves the metal detector wand over us. “They’re clean,” he growls to his associate, who leads the way into the club.

“The floors too. My shoes aren’t sticking to the floor nearly as much tonight,” Theo observes.

“Shut your mouth,” the thug leading us warns. “The boss wants you all to himself, but he knows accidents happen.”

So David is already the boss. That didn’t take long.

The main floor is empty, quiet. David’s guards lead us into a back room. Cheap cologne and perfume still permeate the air enough to make me gag, and the thought of June being tainted by a place like this makes it all the worse.

The door is open, dim lights on, making it eerily dark. This is probably a room where private parties take place—smaller, but more comfortably appointed than the main floor.

In the center, there’s a brass pole erect on a small stage. And June handcuffed to it.

The sight of her alive and in one piece makes relief flood my system. She wiggles her fingers, wearing a wry grin. “You came.” She nods to the pole. “I figured I’d see if I have any other job prospects. You know, in case the writing career fizzles.”

“Who told you you could talk?” From the deep shadows farther back in the room emerges David, still in his tux, now wearing a scowl as he jerks his thumb at her. “Is she always like this?”

“Only when she’s been abducted and fears for her life,” I growl.

“Though you may be surprised how often that’s happened lately,” she quips, earning a scowl from David, who makes the mistake of raising his hand threateningly.

“I wouldn’t do that,” Theo barks.

David assesses the situation, then snorts. “Oh yeah? How will you stop me? You’re unarmed.”

To make his point, he waves a pistol, the metal gleaming in the overhead light. “It seems to me I can do whatever the hell I want, and there’s nothing the two of you can do about it.”

Enough of this. “Let her go.” I’m not pleading—it’s a demand. I can hardly breathe seeing her this way, with her dress rumpled, makeup ruined by sweat, hair loose. And when she turns her head slightly, I see that wasn’t the first time David decided to get physical. The swelling along the side of her face and corner of her mouth is a crime, a sin, something unforgivable.

Not that I intend to forgive him.

He bursts out laughing. “Is that all you’ve got? ‘Let her go’? And why would I do that?” He looks her up and down, and his nasty little smirk broadcasts every thought before he says another word. “You know, come to think of it, she could make my family a lot of money. Maybe not as a dancer—” He grimaces. “But in other ways.”

She shudders when he drags the backs of his fingers down her bruised cheek. “The right man would pay a lot of money for something this young and sweet.”

“Relax,” Theo mutters from the side of his mouth. “Don’t let him get to you.”

It’s a little late for that. “She has nothing to do with any of this. Let her go now, and we can settle this like men.”

I’m amazed I can keep my voice so steady. Cold sweat is beginning to roll down the back of my neck. I feel the presence of his hired muscle behind us, and sense this meeting will soon come to an end, one way or another. There’s an almost manic light glittering in his eyes.

“Like men?” He barks out a bitter laugh that makes June flinch. “You mean the way you shot my brother like a dog and left him in a filthy alley? Because that’s not what men do. That’s what cowards do. Cowards who run away and play dead,” he adds with a doleful look at Theo.

“Say whatever you want about me,” I reply. “But it has nothing to do with her. Let the girl go. Whatever happens after that, happens.”

“You really thought it would be that easy. You could waltz in here, set the terms, and I would fold. I’m not as stupid as Derek,” he snaps. “You wouldn’t have fooled me the way you fooled him. And it’s not going to be that easy tonight, I’ll tell you that much.”

For a man of his size, he moves fast, stepping up behind June and throwing an arm around her trembling body to use her as a shield. He presses the gun to her temple, grinning maniacally. “I want you to watch this,” he hisses. “This is for my family.”

Everything moves in slow motion. Me lunging for them before Theo can hold me back. June’s wide-eyed terror, the way her mouth opens like she’s about to scream.