Threats

Domino settles down a little bit with Katie’s attention, and soon is happy to carry around her toy. Getting into Katie’s car as if she owns the passenger seat, she looks out the window as they go, growling every time she sees another car. Once at TJY, she follows Katie obediently, her toy in her mouth once again.


Zane freezes as he sees Nate’s gun. Surprise comes over him, and he hesitates. Anger in his eyes, but unable to retaliate, he obeys, standing and walking ahead of Nate off to the side and beyond the thin row of trees. It was apparent that he knew it was smarter to do as he was told than retaliate at this point.

Carson wastes no time in meeting them, and feeling in as safe secluded spot, he grabs Zane by the collar, slamming him up against a tree trunk. “I ought to kill you with my bare hands,” he growls.

Zane’s face has gone pale and he holds out his arms to the sides. “Try, and you’ll….you’ll be shot dead where you stand.”

“Where are they?” Carson demands. “Where are your men?”

“If I told you that, I would have no leverage.”

“Exactly.” Carson keeps Zane pinned with his forearm under the man’s throat, while reaching in his pocket to draw out a knife and exposing the blade. “But you know me, Zane… You know about me, don’t you? I could make a turnip talk if I wanted to bad enough.” He brings the blade up to run it lightly along Zane’s face and under his ear to barely tip his throat. “I’ve only had one person I couldn’t break, and they were protecting someone other than themselves. You don’t have a chance.”

Sweat pours down the sides of Zane’s face and he squirms under Carson’s hold. “You’re gonna die if you keep this up. If I….if I don’t show up in ten minutes, they’ll come. You’ll see…they will.”

“How many?”

“For me to know.”

“How many?!” Carson applies pressure to the knife on Zane’s cheek.

“Alright, alright!” Zane cries out. “I lied!”

Carson glares at him. “What?!”

“I lied!” Zane swallows hard. “It’s just me…just me….I don’t have nobody working with me.”

“Of all the stupid….”

“I wanted it all for myself!” Zane continues to squirm. “If I had help, I’d have to give them a cut. So I’ve been going it alone.”

“You lie!” Carson goes back to the pressure.

“No, please!” Zane begs. “You’ve got to believe me. I’ll do anything…give you anything…just don’t kill me, please!”

Carson searches Zane’s eyes, and is amazed to find he’s telling the truth. “You’re a piece of work, you know that?” Yanking him from the tree, he shoves him down on the ground. Anger surges through his veins. He’d been terrified of his little sister dying. He’d put other people in jeopardy. He’d gotten beat up, broke jail and fled the law. And all for what? One piece of garbage who was no more in control of this than anyone else…one small man who hadn’t had a clue any of this time where Carson and Misty were. And he’d pulled it over on Carson. That in itself was enough to make him mad, let alone everything else. Carson had been taken by the ultimate ruse.

Zane looks up at Carson and crawls backward, the terror in his eyes. “I told you what you wanted!”

“You threatened me, you threatened my sister,” Carson states flatly. He shifts his knife to hold the blade end instead as he walks toward Zane, his cold stare reflecting the want for death. “You messed with the wrong person. And with no one to come after me, you’re free game.” Carson draws his arm back, his muscles tight, ready to throw the knife.