It didn’t take long. Kenzie barreled around the corner and down the thoroughfare. People on the sidewalk stepped out of her way. She was heading for her father’s store.
“Hold up,” Ted called, extricating himself from Mohammed’s chariot.
She saw him and came wading through the light traffic, fists clenched.
Ted’s relief at seeing her unhurt didn’t last long. The anger on her face was formidable. He wasn’t sure what he’d done to deserve it, but there was no doubt in his mind that her wrath was aimed at him. “Can we talk?” he said. “Give me one minute. Thirty seconds.”
She kept coming. The punch came from low to high. She didn’t have her weight behind it, but her long limb transmitted a ton of force. He let her hit him, trying to relax and flow with it. Her fist landed on the side of his head, above the ear and well back from the temple. It hurt, but he stayed upright.
“You son of a bitch!” she yelled into his face.
“Are you done assaulting me?” Ted said. “Can we talk now?”
“How dare you come and frighten my family? Who the hell do you think you are?” Her hand had to be hurting, but she shook it once and formed a fist again.
Ted held up both hands in defense. “You got your one shot. Now you’ve got to hear me out.”
She swung again. He blocked it.
“Ow,” she cried. “That hurt.”
“Hey, lady,” a voice called from a Canada Dry delivery truck. “Get outa the street.”
She flipped the driver off but moved exactly one step closer to the curb. The truck eased by.
“Tough broad,” the driver called to Ted. The man was grinning.
Ted pretended he wasn’t there. Half-assed misogynist male bonding wasn’t going to help the situation. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to scare your father, but we had to find you. Take a look at Lester, will you?”
Lester had stayed in the car. Ted stepped aside as Kenzie looked in. Lester was pitiful, shrunken, damaged, and barely capable of keeping his head upright.
“Oh, no,” she said. “Oh, my God. Who did this?”
“Russians,” Lester whispered in a pained rasp, playing the moment as if it were his final scene.
“Holy hell,” she said. “Those fucking creeps. I hope the cops bounce them on the sidewalk a few times before bringing them in.”
“We haven’t told the police,” Ted said.
“What?” she said. “Why the hell not?”
“Kenzie, listen to me. We don’t know who else they’re after. They roughed me up, too. Nothing like Lester, but they got me in the courthouse. Cops all around us. Nobody saw a thing. But I don’t think those guys would have cared. They’re very scary.”
“And you’re here to warn me? Why would they be after me?”
“I’m not saying they are. I don’t know. But they’re after us because we’ve been looking under rocks connected to the Spike. If they’re not looking for you now, they may be later.”
“I’m no threat to them,” she said, but she didn’t sound certain. “But you are. We’ve got to hide you two while we figure out our next step.” She noticed Mohammed for the first time and raised her eyebrows in an unspoken question.
“This is Mohammed. He’s new in town. We’re expanding his horizons.”
“It is pleasant to meet you,” the driver said, not meeting her eyes.
Kenzie stepped close to Ted. “Can you trust him?”
“I think a fifty-dollar bill would buy everything he knows, but someone’s got to know to ask him,” Ted said. “I think we’re okay.”
“Can Lester walk?”
Ted looked down at him. Lester was milking his moment. “With encouragement.”
Kenzie stepped between them, facing Ted and close enough to give them a moment’s privacy. “Does this mean you’ve resolved those ethical concerns you were so worried about?”
Ted met her eyes. “No problem.”