Chapter 49

And the likelihood of shaking only increased as he felt the icy metal of a pair of heavy scissors slide into his shirt—and begin cutting it off of him. In a few quick minutes, the white cotton cloth, covered in faint blue stripes, was reduced to tatters. As much of it as possible was ripped off his back, arms, and chest, leaving only scraps where the bindings proved too tight to yield. He shivered. “What, no foreplay?” His quip came at the price of another cheap shot to the jaw, but he forced himself to laugh it off. “You know, that was a nice shirt.”

The unmistakable smell of cigar smoke filled his nostrils. At once, Dakota understood why they’d removed the garment.

“Tell us about your work with the network,” said one of his captors, who gripped Dakota’s left index finger and bent it back nearly to the point of breaking. As he stifled a yelp, something red hot pressed into his chest. “Tell us about Adelaide Price.”17

Kenna