Time in the backroom stretched and warped, each second an eternity of thick, suffocating silence. Asher’s breath hitched in his throat, his body frozen against the stack of bar mats. Every nerve ending was alight, screaming. Stay here. Don’t make a sound. Dominic’s command was a lifeline in the storm of his fear, the only thing holding him to the spot.From the main room, he heard a muffled voice—Viper’s, oily and arrogant. “Come on out, De Luca. I just want to talk. About your bartender.”A low growl was Dominic’s only reply. Then, the distinct, sickening sound of a struggle. A heavy thud, like a body hitting a wall. A pained grunt. Asher’s hands flew to his mouth, biting down on his knuckles to stifle a cry. He should do something. He should call the police. But his phone was in his locker, and his feet were nailed to the floor. He was trapped, a helpless spectator to a violence that felt both terrifying and intimately his own fault.Another thud, this one wetter, more final. Then,
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