Luke didn’t go down. Instead, he shoved a hand in his jacket and pul ed a gun out of a shoulder holster and trained it on Bil y. I barely noticed, because Bil y was now pointing his gun at Hank.

Both Lee and Hank were side by side, maybe three, four feet between them. They’d both advanced while Bil y had fired and were only six feet away from him.

Both brothers were in a faceoff with Bil y.

This isn’t happening, I thought with dread and then I didn’t think anymore. Instead, I moved quickly, thanking my many years of practice in high heels, because they came in handy. I came wide around Luke so he couldn’t grab me and started toward Bil y as fast as I dared.

“Luke, get her out of here! ” Hank’s voice cracked through the room.

“Bil y, I’l come with you,” I said, moving forward more quickly to avoid Luke, pul ing at a strength I had no idea I possessed and ignoring Hank. Al I could think was that if I had anything to do with it, Bil y wasn’t going to shoot Hank or anyone. I didn’t know if he’d hit Luke but if he had, that was the end as far as I was concerned.

“Shoot him, Luke,” Lee said.

“Roxie, get out of the way,” Luke ordered from behind me. Then when I didn’t do as he ordered he said to Lee, “I can’t get a clean shot.”

I made it to within arm’s length of Bil y and his hand came out and nabbed my arm, twisting me and pul ing my back to him so hard I slammed into his body. His arm wrapped around my waist.

He was using me as a shield.

Hank’s expression shifted, going from control ed rage to out-and-out fury.

Then Hank moved toward us.

Bil y shook his gun at him.

Hank halted, but then Lee moved forward.

“Stop f**kin’ movin’!” Bil y yel ed at Lee and Lee halted.

“This isn’t happening,” I whispered my earlier thought aloud.

Someone was going to get hurt, probably already had been hurt. Al I could think was that I had to stop it.

“We have to go,” I said to Bil y.

“I’m gonna kil him,” Bil y returned, stil pointing his gun at Hank.

“No! Don’t. Please, don’t. Let’s just go,” I cried.

“He tried to take what’s mine. I’m gonna f**kin’ kill him,” Bil y yel ed.

He was crazed, out of control and I was scared he’d do it.

I put my hand up to his arm, my fingers curling around his bicep just at the moment Bil y fired again.

bicep just at the moment Bil y fired again.

Then, I didn’t think, I just moved.

I twisted and shoved him with my entire body. He wasn’t expecting it and we both teetered and then went down. Bil y on his back, me landing on top of him. I tried to rol away, I wanted to check Hank, needed to do it, but Bil y grabbed me and rol ed us both. Coming up, he brought me with him and held me, my back to his front again, arm stil round my waist.

He was breathing heavily now. I’d knocked the wind out of him but he was hanging on.

My eyes immediately went to where Hank was and he was stil standing, much closer now, nearly on top of us. He, Lee and Luke had used the tussle to close in.

Hank’s face was hard, a muscle moving in his jaw, he wasn’t in control of the situation and I knew it was pissing him right, the hel , off.

Al I felt was relief that he didn’t seem to be bleeding.

Then, everything happened at once.

Bil y whirled, taking me with him and pul ing us several feet away from Hank. Luke, Lee and I saw, now, that Vance was moving down the hal way toward us, gun raised. Then Bil y stopped pul ing back and whirled again and I saw two more men, both wearing black suits, white shirts and thin black ties, both arriving from another doorway and closing in. I had no idea who they were but they also had guns pointed at us.

Again Bil y whirled and there were two more men I’d never seen before, coming from even another doorway.

They were dressed a lot like Bil y, except they looked cleaner and their eyes were not wild but clear and purposeful. They also had guns pointed at us.

We were surrounded, with eight guns aimed in our direction and that didn’t count Marcus who I figured was somewhere in the room (although no one else was and, for that, I al owed myself a tiny prayer).

“Put down your gun, Flynn,” Hank demanded.

Bil y whirled again and we faced Hank.

“Fuck you,” Bil y retorted.

“Put it down! ” Hank’s voice was like a whiplash.

“Desmond wants to talk to you, Bil y,” one of the leather jacketed men said from behind us, ignoring Hank’s order and al the other people in the room. Bil y whirled us to face him and he kept talking. “Let go of the girl.”

“Fuck you and f**k Desmond too,” Bil y returned, shaking his gun at his new target.

“Would someone please shoot him?” Lee asked, his voice sounding impatient, like he wanted another glass of champagne and this was an annoying delay.

“Where? I got a clean shot at the back of his knee,” Vance asked conversational y from behind us.

“Take it,” Lee ordered casual y and Bil y whirled us around to face Vance.

“Bil y, quit jerking me around. I’m getting dizzy,” I complained stupidly (but, in my defense, he was making me dizzy and not in a good Hank-way).

“Now I got a clean shot,” Luke shared. With our latest whirl, Luke was behind us.

“Just don’t hit Roxie,” Lee instructed.

“Just don’t hit Roxie,” Lee instructed.

Bil y whirled us around to face Luke.

“Oh for goodness sakes!” I snapped, beginning to lose my fear as wel as my temper. I’d never been held hostage, pre-abduction, so I had no idea they were playing with him, messing with his head.

“No one’s shootin’ him. Everyone stand down,” Hank said.

I chanced a glance to my side and saw Lee’s head turn to Hank.

“Stand, the f**k, down,” Hank repeated, not taking his eyes, or gun, off Bil y.

Bil y moved us to face Hank and Lee gave a nod to Vance and then to Luke, then he dropped his gun arm and stepped back.

This was for show. I figured Lee was a faster draw than just about anyone. Don’t ask me how I knew this; I just knew it like I knew that Wolford hosiery was the best, bar none.

I felt, rather than saw, Luke and Vance drop their weapons to their sides. I had no idea what the other men did. This should have changed the danger level in the room but instead, with Hank facing off against Bil y it heightened so it was palpable.

“Let her go,” Hank demanded and something about the way he said it made it sound like he was demanding more than just Bil y taking his hands off me.