Without responding, Rafferty approached the edge of the platform as the train pulled out of the station. Leaning over and examining the tracks, all he saw was the blood from Jared’s shoulder wound. Maybe the train had pushed him to the other side of the – But before Rafferty could complete his thought, he saw Sara charging at him.

“You killed him!” she screamed. When she smashed into Rafferty, he dropped his gun and, caught off balance by the impact, went flying over the edge of the platform. But as he fell, he managed to catch hold of Sara’s jacket. Before either of them knew what was happening, they had plummeted to the tracks. Rafferty hit first, and Sara landed on top of him. Sara, wild with rage, was the first one up. As Rafferty struggled to rise, Sara grabbed him by his hair and rammed her knee into his face. “You psychotic piece of shit!” she screamed. “Who the hell do you think you are?”

Rafferty’s answer came in the form of a single backhanded punch that hit Sara in the side of the face and sent her straight to the ground. Raising his hand to strike her again, Rafferty didn’t see Jared’s fist until it was too late. “Don’t. Touch. My. Wife!” Jared growled as his knuckles crashed into Rafferty’s jaw. Sara retraced her husband’s steps to the narrow crawl space that had saved his life. Created by the pedestrian ledge that extended from the platform over the edge of the tracks, the tiny gap was just deep enough to protect her husband.

Using his good arm, Jared hit Rafferty in the stomach. And again in the face. And again in the stomach. For every restless hour, for every frustrated moment, for every ounce of fear he and Sara had suffered, Jared was determined to pay Rafferty back. Eventually, he grabbed Rafferty by the collar of his shirt and stared at his beaten face. Then a single gunshot sounded. Jared slumped to the floor.

Sara saw blood pouring from her husband’s back. She wheeled around. Claire was standing on the platform and holding Rafferty’s gun.

“Jared!” Sara screamed, rushing to his side.

“Oscar, are you okay?” Claire asked.

Rafferty nodded, struggling to catch his breath. He reached up and reclaimed his gun from Claire.

“Jared, speak to me!” Sara cried. “Please speak to me!”

Jared didn’t say a word. But as Sara hunched over him, she caught a glimpse of the leather ankle holster that Barrow had given her husband. Carefully, she reached down, hoping to get her hands on the small pistol.

“Nobody move!” a police officer yelled as he raced down the platform. He pointed his gun at Rafferty. Guff followed behind the officer.

Rafferty pointed his gun at Jared and Sara. Claire picked up Sara’s gun and did the same. “Let us out of here now, or I’ll kill them both!” Rafferty shouted from the tracks. “I swear!”

“I don’t negotiate,” the officer said. He aimed his gun at Rafferty and inched his way farther down the platform. “And you’re in no position to make demands.”

“Oh, no?” Rafferty asked. “Between you and your sidekick, you have one gun. We have two. If you try and shoot one of us, the other’s going to kill the happy couple. I’d say that’s a damn good position.”

Looking down at Sara and Jared, Guff saw that Sara was hiding the small pistol right below Jared’s shoulder. “Don’t listen to him,” Guff said.

“I’m not joking,” Rafferty warned.

“You do what you want,” Guff said confidently. “But if you try to hurt them, he’s going to blow both your heads off. He’s going to start with her and end with you.”

Unnerved, but refusing to budge, Claire kept her gun pointed at Sara and Jared.

Guff turned to the officer. “Can you make the shot?”

“I’ll make it,” the officer said.

“I’m warning you – don’t fuck with me,” Rafferty said. “You have three seconds to decide. One…”

Nobody moved.

“Two…”

Still nothing.

“Thr-”

“Her gun’s empty!” Sara shouted.

“What?” Claire asked.

“It’s empty. I emptied it before I left the office.”

“She’s lying,” Rafferty said.

“No, I’m not,” Sara insisted. “They wouldn’t let me take it out until I emptied it.”

Claire looked down at her gun. Her hands were trembling.

“Claire, fire it at me,” Sara said. “There’s nothing in there.”

“Don’t believe her, Claire!” Rafferty shouted. “She’s a liar!”

But as the tears rolled down Claire’s cheeks, she lowered her gun. Guff grinned at Rafferty. “Now what was that you were saying about one gun versus two?”

Rafferty kept his gun pointed at Sara, while the officer kept his gun pointed at Rafferty. “I’m not going to jail,” Rafferty said.

“Actually, you are,” Guff said. “The only thing you have to decide is whether you’re going to be riding there in a cop car or an ambulance.”

“That’s not true,” Rafferty said. “I’ll hire the best lawyers in the city.”

Sara knew he was right. He’d hire the best money could buy. And with the fingerprint gloves, they’d have plenty to work with. She looked down at Jared, who was still bleeding in her lap. No, she told herself. She couldn’t let Rafferty walk.

“You can get any lawyer you want,” Guff said. “All you have to do is give us the gun. You do that, and you’ll be in a much better position to get out of this.” Realizing he had Rafferty’s attention, he added, “You know I’m right. It’s the only smart thing to do.”

“This isn’t an easy case,” Rafferty said as he took his finger off the trigger. “With the right defense team, I’m off the hook. I’ll make bail by-”

“You think you’re making bail?” Sara blurted. “The judge isn’t going to allow bail for this. That cold-blooded murder of Conrad-”

“That wasn’t me!” Rafferty shouted, once again raising his gun.

“And let’s not forget what you did to Elliott and Kozlow, and Arnold, too.”

“She’s just trying to rile you,” Guff said.

“Don’t listen to him,” Sara said, still hiding Jared’s gun. Jared’s breathing became labored. She didn’t have much longer. “Once we have you, you’ll never see sunlight again.”

“Oh, I get it,” Rafferty said. “You figure if you enrage me enough, I’ll actually try and shoot you. And if I do that, this cop gets to put a bullet in my brain.” He shook his head. “I’m walking out of here, I’m making my one phone call, and I’m sleeping in my own bed tonight.”

“Not a chance,” Sara said, raising her voice. She could feel Jared shaking. “They’ll never let you out!”

“Sara, shut up!” Guff yelled.

“It’s a death penalty case!” Sara screamed. “You’re getting the death penalty!”

“Good-bye, Sara,” Rafferty said, lowering his gun. “It was lovely to make your acquaintance.” As he approached the edge of the platform, Rafferty raised his arm and held out his gun to the officer. The officer reached down to take it. But before the officer could even react, Rafferty pulled the trigger and shot him in the stomach. He then turned his gun toward Sara.

In one fluid motion, Sara pulled her gun and fired. Three consecutive bullets ripped into Rafferty. Two in his chest, one in his shoulder. As he staggered backward, Sara fired another shot. And another. And another. She pulled the trigger again, but heard only a click. Click. Click. Click. Rafferty continued to stumble. When he lost his footing on the train tracks, he fell backward and his body crashed to the ground. It wasn’t until that moment that Sara finally took a breath. The threats, the frustration, the angling and manipulation – they were all finally gone.

Hearing a soft moan from her husband, Sara dropped her gun and cradled Jared’s head in her arms. Right there: That was why she did it. “I need an ambulance!” she shouted. “Please!”

Blinking back into consciousness, Jared opened his eyes. “Did we win?” he whispered.

Her eyes welled up with tears. “Always the competitor.”

“Just answer me.”

She thought about Conrad. “Yeah,” she sobbed. “We won.”