Page 5 of Perfect Vengeance

“My first hit-and-run.” Kinsey finally sounded appropriately worried. “At least he’s a no-good, thieving mobster.”

Gina knelt next to Margo and swallowed the lump in her throat. No matter what he’d wanted, she never meant for anyone to get hurt. Then again, he might have been planning to beat her to a pulp.

Daring to hope Kinsey didn’t know where to find a carotid artery, Gina rested two fingers on the man’s neck. Nothing. A renewed shiver of fear crept up her spine, lifting the hair at her nape.

The skin beneath her fingertips was warm and stubbled. She shifted to the other side of his neck and pressed her fingers into the hollow beneath his jawbone. Still nothing. She adjusted her fingers a fraction and was rewarded with the faint thumping of a pulse. “Thank God.” She let out the biggest sigh of relief she’d felt in her entire life. “He’s alive.” But a thin, steady rivulet of blood trickled from his hairline.

“That bump on his head might not be his only injury,” Margo said.

“I know, but we can’t risk moving him. We have to call for help.” Gina ran her hand down his arm, hip, and leg. “If he does have broken bones or internal injuries, jostling him might cause more damage.”

“Wow, he’s huge.” Kinsey crouched beside them. “No wonder it felt like I creamed a water buffalo.” She pointed to his outstretched arm. “I think his wrist is broken. See where it’s turning colors and all puffy?”

Gina’s heart squeezed. This is all my fault.

“Uh, guys?” Margo interrupted. “It’s great that he’s alive, and I’m sorry his wrist may be broken, but Annabelle’s right. We can’t stay here any longer. We have to clear out before someone sees us.”

“We can’t abandon him.” Gina’s voice cracked, and she felt more and more guilty about what they’d done. She was the team leader. Whatever happened was ultimately her responsibility. “What if he really does have a serious injury, like a broken back or a skull fracture or a ruptured spleen?”

“You’ve been watching too many medical shows,” Kinsey said.

“No, she’s right.” Margo massaged her chin. “We can’t leave him like this, but we can’t hang around here either. We’ll hit the road and immediately call 911.” She tucked her hand around Gina’s upper arm. “Let’s go.”

“Wait a minute.” She swatted her friend’s hand away. “It’s freezing out here. He could go into shock. Check for a blanket or a spare jacket in the car, anything we can cover him up with.”

“All right,” Margo relented. “But we need to be fast.”

While Margo and Kinsey searched the Charger, a twinge of suspicion niggled away in her brain. Could be the guy was just another mobster, maybe from a rival family. Something still bugged her about who he was and why he’d been chasing her instead of making his own getaway.

“This was the closest thing to a blanket I could find.” A scraggly cloth tarp dangled from Margo’s hands.

“It’ll do.” She grabbed the cloth but stopped before draping it over him. “I want to search his pockets, try to find some ID.”

“Who cares who he is?” Kinsey asked. Patience had never been her strong suit. “Let’s get out of here before someone catches us.”

Gina pulled open the man’s jacket, looking for an inside pocket. A wicked-looking gun stuck out from a black leather holster on his belt. Odd that he carried his gun in a holster and not stuffed in his pocket or waistband the way criminals did.

She shook it off and continued her search. “Don’t just stand there, help me. But be careful. I don’t want to hurt him.”

“Little late to worry about that, dontcha think?” Kinsey began patting down his chest. “He’s got great pecs.” Her roving hands had hiked up his knit shirt, and she let out a low whistle. “Whoa, nice abs.”

“This is no time for groping.” Gina lifted the back of his jacket. “Check his pants.”

Kinsey ran her hands over his rear jeans pockets and let out another whistle. “And what a great ass.”

“Kinsey!” Margo threw her an impatient look. “We’re not at a strip club. Hurry up!”

“Okay, okay.” Kinsey tugged a black wallet from one of his pockets. She flipped it open and held it in front of the Charger’s headlights, illuminating the laminated ID.

Gina’s heart skipped a beat. Then another.

Margo gasped.

“Holy shit,” Kinsey whispered.

For several seconds longer, none of them said another word.

Gina continued gaping at the man’s wallet as everything fell into place.