While James searched his pockets, Alex kept her eyes on the man's face, watching for any indication that he was going to attack or try to escape. She might not like the idea of killing him, but she could easily pretend that she was going to, so when James made his implicit threat, Alex pressed the knife hard enough against the spy's throat that a thin line of blood appeared.

The man sneered at James, and said, "I'm not telling you anything, dog."

Alex pulled the knife back and immediately slammed point-first into the wall beside the man's head, nicking the top of his ear. She bore down on the knife, making the wound bigger. "Talk," she snarled, "or you lose the ear."