When people found themselves in tense situations, moments that cracked open fear, anger, or a choking rush of emotion, each person reacted in a different way. Some froze, some raged, some fled. Sheri's reaction was the kind that betrayed a lack of experience with violence: her body shut down and her mind stuttered. She could feel Anton's grip at the fabric of her shirt, the cloth stretched across the reception desk as he hauled her forward.
The rawness of it registered in every taut line across her shoulders. He was not a weak man; Anton trained his body with some regularity and carried himself like someone who believed physical force could solve problems. He had recently been rubbing shoulders with people who ranked high in the local hierarchy of strength and influence, and that confidence hardened him.
