Chapter 12: Meeting with Geras
"You've got some nerve," the robber growled. "You cost me everything, you know that? That job was supposed to set us up good. But no—now my partner's locked up, the cops are crawling all over the place, and I've got nothing."
Elias slowly raised his hands, his muscles taut as he measured the man's stance. "Listen, I don't know what you think you're going to get out of this, but—"
"Money," the man interrupted, his voice harsh. "Whatever you've got, hand it over. Right now."
Elias narrowed his eyes. "Do I look like I'm swimming in cash? I'm living paycheck to paycheck over here."
The robber sneered. "Doesn't matter. You're gonna pay me back one way or another, pretty boy." He stepped closer, his finger twitching on the trigger. "Besides, how the hell are you even alive? I saw you go down—stabbed, shot—no one walks away from that. But here you are, sitting pretty. Almost makes me think you've got something special I can use."
Elias swallowed hard, his eyes darting to the revolver and then back to the robber's face. "Look, I don't know what you're talking about. I'm just as surprised as you are. Maybe it was dumb luck, okay?"
The robber scoffed, taking another step forward. "Luck, huh? Yeah, right. You've got something worth more than luck, and I want it."
Elias's pulse pounded in his ears as the man's free hand shot out, gripping his shoulder roughly. His thumb pressed into the still-healing wound, sending a jolt of pain through Elias's chest. He grimaced, his mind scrambling for a way out.
"Don't touch me," Elias said, his voice sharper than he expected.
The robber grinned, clearly enjoying the reaction. "Oh, what's the matter? That sting a little?"
The pressure on his shoulder tightened, and something inside Elias snapped. Acting on instinct, he swung his arm up and slapped the gun hand away just as the robber's finger squeezed the trigger.