Curtain Call (The Jewel Project #7)

45. Loyalties

The sound of the gunshot seemed to reverberate through Sam's entire being, mixing with his mother's pain-filled cry.

The moment Davyn's body hit the ground, she wiggled herself out of Kay's hold and charged at him. A dark stain blossomed on the left side of his torso, making it clear that the bullet had hit its mark. Maxi pulled his head in her lap, desperate tears sliding down her face.

"The rest of you have no reason to move," Von Crooken declared the moment Jessie made to get to them, too.

A wave of hatred overwhelmed Sam, but he pushed it back, trying to keep his head clear because they were still in danger, maybe more so than ever. He'd lost all hope that Freider would spare them. Because even if he might hesitate to kill his actual children, Sam had a feeling he wouldn't hesitate to shoot Kyle, Kay, Jessie or Angie.

"I'm not dead," Davyn grumbled, pushing himself up against Maxi. His right hand rested over his wound and he winced. "Damn, this stings. You always were such a lousy shot. Why couldn't you aim for my head or my heart?"

Freider's eyes widened, obviously not intending to give Davyn a mere flesh wound.

"Maybe I should do it," Von Crooken said.

"Hold your horses, Nicholas. I realized that I wanted to do one more thing before I went down in a blaze of glory." Davyn pulled himself even higher and yelped in pain.

"Maybe you should stop moving," Maxi said. "And also stop being a dramatic ass and try not get yourself killed."

"Nope, I want to be standing for this."

Kyle moved towards them, but Jimmy pushed him aside and hoisted Davyn's right arm over his shoulders to help him stand. Which was probably wise since Jimmy was wearing a vest and Kyle wasn't. He seemed to realize that, too, because he stopped where he stood, glaring daggers at Freider and Von Crooken.

"There is one more tiny part of the story which I've left out."

"You've got to be joking, there can't be more," Jerry said and Sam had to agree. What else could hit them?

"I promised you something," Davyn said, turning to Kyle.

"And I promised you something in return, but apparently I fucked that one up," Kyle mumbled.

"The thing is, my promise sort of makes yours unnecessary, but I appreciated the sentiment."

"What the fuck are you talking about?" Von Crooken said, pointing his gun from his former boss to Kyle and back.

"You see, Nicholas, I told Kyle about my little problem. You double-crossing me. And he promised he'd help me take you down. Which is admirable, but I don't really need it. And that is because of what I've been planning to do all along."

"Please! You had no idea what I was doing."

"I beg to differ." Davyn took a step away from Jimmy, standing on his own and facing Freider. "So I'm sorry, brother, but you're once again on the losing side."

Freider huffed, keeping his gun pointed. "You think that having my kids on your side ensures your victory?"

"Actually, yes, if they were, and you should count that as the biggest failure of your life, but that's not even it." Davyn looked from Jimmy, to Kyle, and each of them in turn. "I promised to help you bring the Counters down. And for that, I owe you an army."

"A what?" That was the last thing that Sam had expected.

But Davyn straightened as much as he could, blood still soaking his t-shirt, put his left hand in his mouth and let out a piercing whistle.