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seriously.
    â€œGood, you won’t have to pretend.” Jack then eyed Brandy and said, “I’d like an extra pair of eyes to help Laura watch these guys while I’m gone. Are you okay to stay? Or do you think you should get to a hospital?”
    â€œI’d like a doctor to check out my burns, but I’m okay for now,” replied Brandy. “I would like to have a shower, though.”
    â€œMake it quick,” said Jack.
    Brandy frowned, then said, “I hope I don’t get scars or something. I mean, how would I explain that if I was to get married?”
    Jack and Laura didn’t reply and returned to the main room. Jack tore off the blindfolds again. He then prodded Clive in the ribs with his foot while holding their driver’s licences in one hand and the shotgun in the other. “You, big nuts … or I guess your name is Clive,” he said, glancing at the driver’s licences. “Do you guys have wheels at the hotel?”
    â€œKlaus and I do,” Clive answered. “Liam came with Klaus.”
    Laura looked at Jack. “I’m worried about you taking off with this jerk and leaving me the gun. What if he —”
    â€œI don’t need a gun to handle this little hemorrhoid,” said Jack gruffly. “We’ll go in his car and he’ll drive. You’ll need the blaster to cover these other two turds. If I get held hostage, flip a coin and kill one of them, then exchange me with the other guy.”
    â€œSomebody might hear the gunshot,” Laura cautioned.
    â€œNot if you shove the barrel far enough up their asses. It will muffle the sound.”
    Klaus and Liam looked at each other as they thought of their chances with a coin toss.
    â€œOne more thing for you guys to know.” Jack smiled grimly. “I texted your names and addresses to a good friend of mine. He’s not as nice as I am. Clive and Liam, I see you each have a P.O. box for an address. Klaus, your address is in Germany. It doesn’t matter where you guys live. If anything happens to me, you’ll be tracked down.” He looked at Clive. “Get dressed. You’re taking me for a drive.”
    Once Clive was dressed and they were about to leave, Jack looked at Laura and said, “While you’re waiting, clean your prints from the room. If you don’t hear from me within an hour, kill ’em both and fuck off.”
    â€œOh, God!” Liam cried. “Please … an hour…. What if that’s not enough?”
    â€œNo talkin’,” Jack snarled.

Chapter Six
    Outside in the hotel parking lot, Jack had Clive give him the keys to his car and asked, “Which one is it?”
    â€œOver there.” Clive pointed. “The white Beamer.”
    Once in the car, Jack returned the keys to Clive and told him to drive.
    â€œWhere we going?” asked Jack.
    â€œThey live on an acreage out in Fort Langley.”
    â€œThey?”
    â€œKlaus and two of his buddies rent the place.”
    â€œAnd you’re sure they’ll still have a pound?”
    â€œI delivered it to them this morning. I’m pretty sure they still got it.”
    â€œPretty sure?” said Jack harshly.
    â€œWell, uh, I mean, I mean … there’s always other stuff. I know they got lots of jewellery.”
    â€œI told you how I feel about wearing that,” replied Jack. “Do they have anything else I might be interested in?”
    â€œNot really, unless you’re interested in some fake IDs.”
    â€œYou mean driver’s licences?”
    â€œNo, I’m talking passports.”
    â€œPassports? Yeah, right.” Jack ladled on the sarcasm. “A buddy of mine could sure use one, but these days you’d never be able to cross a border with a fake passport.”
    â€œThese aren’t fake,” Clive protested. “They’re real. I’ve, uh, got … know people using them. Your friend would have