Plus Nikki trusted Mack implicitly, which was essential when you ran a business empire that sometimes operated on the fringes of the law.

“Don’t worry, Murdo,” Mack told one of Nikki’s closest lieutenants. “I’ll make sure she’s safe.”

“You don’t have to worry about me. Is he waiting for us where I asked?”

“Yes, we picked him up a few hours ago,” Murdo said.

Mack turned her head around to look at the banks of TV monitors that surveyed the blackjack tables, the poker tables, and the slot machines. Mack liked when they met at the casino—it was full of life and sounds, laughter, and sometimes tears, as the full gamut of human emotions were played out down on the casino floor. Then one of the outdoor cameras caught her eye. It surveyed the area around the corner from the casino’s front door.

Mack watched a rowdy group of men surrounding a woman who had her hands over her ears. They were pawing at her, and then they started to pull her away from the car into the dark. Mack was on her way in moments. She pointed at two of her burly workmates and said, “You two, with me.”

They made their way downstairs as quickly as they could. The two bouncers at the door to the casino joined them, and they hurried around the building, then heard muffled screams from the alley behind the casino.

Anger and rage filled her chest when she saw the defenceless woman up against the wall, one of the men’s hands across her mouth. Some of the men ran when they saw the big men Mack had brought, which left three who hadn’t seen them approach.

Mack grabbed the ringleader and shouted, “Get your hands off her.” The bouncers and her other guards got hold of the men. “Deal with them,” Mack instructed, while she pulled the trembling, shaking woman into her arms.

Mack walked back around the corner with the woman and guided her to the side of the car. “It’s okay. You’re safe now—you’re safe with me.”

The woman clung to her like she was clinging to a rock in a storm. The woman flinched as they heard the men shout out after some punches and kicks were no doubt meted out.

“I promise you’ll be safe. We’ll call the police and report these men. They won’t bother you again.”

One of the bouncers came around the corner and said, “What do you want us to do with this scum?”

“Hang on.” Mack relaxed her grip on the trembling woman. It was only when she did that, that she realized how much she liked the feeling of the woman in her arms. “I’m just going to talk to my man over here, but I’ll be right back. I’ll take care of you.”