Crescent City Shootout

Coming April 3rd! In pre-sales now!

She was on the sidewalk of a narrow side street when someone was suddenly beside her, giving her a hard shove into the mouth of an alley. Struggling to keep her footing, she stumbled a few steps inside the alley and looked up to see who had assaulted her.

There was another shove, but she was front-on to it now, and kept her footing easily, retreating a couple of extra steps to gain some fighting room. They came after her as much as she backed up, three of them, young, late teens or early twenties.

“See! Look at her!” one of them said, triumphantly. “Close up, she’s hot. I bet she’s got a cute little ass under all that clothing, too! I saw her yesterday but she was always around a crowd.”

Taylor had been switched on with the first shove, watching, evaluating, analyzing. Deciding whether these punks were going to live or die tonight. If these guys had been out to rob her, that was one thing. She was on an operation and she didn’t need any run-ins with the local police to interfere with that, so she tried appeasement first.

She reached up under her poncho for her drop bag. Since gold and silver coins were now the preferred currency, people carried pouches or bags of coins. She had a couple, one a drop bag with some silver, nothing too valuable, but something that fit her disguise. If you gave someone gold, they might think that you had more and take an even greater interest in you instead of going on their way.

As she reached, the men bowed up, reaching for their own weapons. She slowly unclipped the bag and shook it as she drew it out from her clothing. No knives or guns made the distinctive clinking sound of silver, so none of them fully drew their weapons on her. The thrill was there for her, though. What would she do against three pistols? How would she get herself out of that situation? Life was just so much more delicious out there on the edge, balancing on the tightrope over the pit of fire. Even better when the rope swayed unexpectedly and she almost lost her balance for a second.

She was hyped now, adrenaline roaring through her system like it was coming out of a fire hose. She breathed in and she could smell everything. She could smell emotions. She could smell colors. She could see, hear, feel things to a superhuman degree.

She tossed the silver purse down at the foot of the leader of the little pack. He kicked it to the side contemptuously, although his friend picked it up and pocketed it.

Her right hand slid under the poncho when she’d dropped the silver left-handed, a little distraction for her audience. Now, hidden under the poncho, she caressed the handles of her knife and her pistol. Which one tonight? Blade or bullets? Or maybe both? She thought. She started to breathe through her mouth, almost panting, and she licked her suddenly-dry lips.

“Oh, I don’t want that, cher,” the man said. He stepped forward and pushed her back again, his hands going forward but Taylor dancing back before he really touched her. He thought he was forcing her back deeper into the alley but at this point she was luring him in. The hunters had become the prey and they didn’t even realize it yet. She had seen the alley on a previous walk and knew the layout. It was nothing much, just a service way for trucks to come in to deliver to the back door of a restaurant and to pick up the trash. It dead ended after about fifty feet and had a dumpster to her left against a brick wall. The street was a lesser-travelled one. She could have some privacy here.

Robbery was one thing; rape was an entirely different matter. These men were going to pay dearly for their attempt. She was going to make certain they would never be able to even consider that act again.

In pre-sales now, releasing April 3rd!

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0GQQJVD4W/ref=

Link for the whole series: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0D2RCR4LT