She felt the hands on her shoulders a second before her bar stool was forcibly swiveled around.

Wally, a hand on both her arms, leaned down into her face. His breath smelled like whiskey and vomit. His face was flushed with anger. She read his lips. “I was talking to you. Think you can just ignore me, you little whore?”

She tapped her ears and gave him an OMG look, but he didn’t get it.

“You think this is a game?” he said. “Something funny to you?”

By this time, Burke was on his feet and by her side. She looked over at him in time to read his lips. “Take it easy. We don’t want any trouble,” he said.

The bartender returned and sat a large bottle of whiskey in front of Wally. LJ didn’t see what the old man said, but she suspected he was also telling Wally to calm down.

LJ, however, wasn’t going to sit back and let some Jersey Shore reject insult her. She tapped Burke’s shoulder and motioned her head toward Wally, wanting Burke to translate for her.

Then she signed, “Tell him this. I find pretty much everything about you funny, shit for brains. But I bet the funniest part is when you take your pants off.”

She looked at Burke, who wasn’t speaking. She slapped him on the shoulder, raised her eyebrows, and held her hands out toward Wally.

“Okay,” Burke signed. She turned her eyes to Wally to see his reaction.

LJ wasn’t sure if Burke translated exactly what she had instructed, but based on the growing rage on Wally’s face, Burke had at least given Wally the gist of it.

Wally’s head looked like it was about to explode. She noticed for the first time that his pupils were bloodshot and dilated.

She gave him the finger, and her best fake smile.

Wally started to say, “Little girl, I’m going to turn you over my knee and—”

But the drunk and probably coked-up idiot wasn’t able to finish his sentence.

A blur of movement flew past her face as August Burke sprang into action. Wally was leaning on the bar, his hand resting beside the bottle of whiskey that Prune-face had just delivered.

To her shock and amazement, Burke moved with ferocity and purpose. He snatched up the bottle of whiskey and busted it over Wally’s hand.

Glass exploded all over the bar, and Wally screamed in pain. But Burke wasn’t done, he drove his knee into Wally’s crotch, doubling him over.

Then Burke grabbed Wally by the balls with his left hand and pushed the jagged end of the broken bottle against Wally’s carotid artery.

LJ had taken a few steps back, but she could still see Burke’s face. The young doctor’s features showed no real emotion or fear. She read his lips as he said, “Do you want to die today, Wally?”

Chapter 49

As she had hoped, the young gunman had started to doubt his boss. Gabi could see it in his eyes as he walked with purpose toward the vault room. She debated with herself on whether or not this was her chance at escape, a chance for all of them. Maybe the last and only chance they would get. But what if their captors heard them, or the frightened young man was told to get back to his post. There was no way she could get them all out quickly enough. Too much could go wrong, and as keyed up as the young gunman was, he could very well react out of panic and mow them down with his assault rifle.