You can do this, I tell myself. Thinking of all I’ve survived before helps. Only, those other times didn’t have Hazel’s life hanging in the mix.
He better not have touched a fucking hair on her head, or I won’t hesitate to end him once and for all. I’m almost to the top and prepare myself to fight like hell, no matter how much my body screams at me.
“Where you headed?” One of the guards asks as I stumble on the last step.
I give them both a goofy grin. “I’m looking for a girl. Red hair. Big tits.” As I gesture at my chest, they follow the movement withtheir eyes, giving me an opportunity to throw them off. As they stare, I manage to lift my right arm, and aim the gun I’ve been concealing right at them.
“Let me in, or I’ll blow your head clean off.”
The coward complies easily, as his friend raises his hands in surrender.
“I don’t want any trouble, man.” He says, hands shaking as he gets the door open.
“What the fuck are you two doing. I told you to never fucking disturb me.”
The room is barely lit, but I can make out Hazel’s passed out form on the floor.
I see fucking red and burst into the room, gun raised right at Kyle’s face.
He’s shocked to see me, but that shock quickly turns into a smirk, always the politician tryin to control the situation.
“You really think you can get away with shooting me, Ace?”
Even with my mask still attached, he knows it’s me.
“Get the fuck away from her, asshole.”
“Fine. I was about done with her anyway.”
A closer look shows me that Hazel still has her mask on her face. She’s still breathing too, and for the first time since I’ve been separated from her, I take a small, brief sigh of relief.
“What did you do to her?”
He shrugs, and I fill the barrel with a live round.
“I’ll ask you again. What the fuck did you do to her?”
He has the good sense to finally look afraid.
“I just drugged her a little, she should be fine.”
“Fine?” I spit out. “You piece of shit. You deserve what’s about to happen to you.”
My finger pulls at the trigger, feeling years of hatred boiling up between us. But as it gives beneath the weight of my pull, I’mknocked to the side, making the shot go wide and clipping Kyle in the shoulder.
The guard’s knocked me off balance, but I regain my footing fast enough to block his next attack. It costs me though, because I feel another one of my cracked ribs pops with the exertion.
“Shit.”
“You’re going to wish you never did that, little brother.” Kyle says gripping his blood-stained arm. Hair disheveled, he comes at me, teeth bared.
I raise the gun again and that stops him in his tracks.
“Take one more step, I fucking dare you.”
We’re locked in a stand-off. I’m outnumbered, but it’s clear his two guards aren’t armed. From the weight of the gun in my hand, it feels like I wouldn’t have enough bullets to take them all on.
“Now, you’re going to let me leave this place with her.” I gesture at Hazel. “And I’ll let you fucking live another day.”
