Chapter Twenty-Three Ro
Chapter Twenty-Three
Ro
“You might be content to remain here like a sitting duck, but I am not,” Amanda mumbles.
“What are you talking about?” I glance up from the bed where I’m doomscrolling. After seeing to the patients for an hour, I came back here to lie low and watch the squirrely blonde. I don’t trust her as far as I can throw her.
Gambit taking off without a word is unsettling. Whatever they have going here, I want to stay as far away from it as possible.
“He must keep you in the dark, huh?” She peers down her nose at me.
“Then be a girl’s girl and enlighten me.”
“We’ve made a lot of enemies. You do too well, and all eyes are on you. They asked to be let into our circle, and we said no. They’re done asking.”
“Who?”
She glances away. “Do you know why I’m here? For trying to protect my family. Is that the kind of organization you want to associate with?”
I hold my hands up, palms out. “Hey. I’m passing through.”
She laughs bitterly. “Yeah, I used to think that too. Now I'm sitting here with my husband out there doing who knows what, and my child held by men with no soul.”
“Wait. Someone has your son?” No wonder she looks pale and drawn.
“Imagine a man holding a gun to your son’s head and the only option you have is to go along with his plan or watch his brains be splattered all over the wall.”
My stomach lurches. “Oh my God.”
“He thinks I’d put my baby’s life in the hands of a boy’s club that only cares about their own best interest. Fuck no.”
“They wouldn’t help you get him back?”
“I couldn’t risk it. Not when there are eyes everywhere.”
I point to her. “You know something.”
“It’s best for both of us that we leave now.”
“Before what, Amanda?” I stand from the bed.
Pressing her lips together, she turns away. I take the gun off the nightstand and turn off the safety.
Her head pops up at the click. “I’m not asking you again.”
“I see why he’s with you. You’re both savages.”
“Uh huh, you’re ‘bout to learn exactly how far I’d go to keep me and mine safe if you don’t start talking.”
A shot explodes somewhere in the building. I hit the floor.
“You just signed your death warrant bitch. I’m not trapped in here with you. You’re trapped in here with me.”
She rushes me, and I raise the gun, aim, and pull the trigger. My ears ring, and the chalky dust of gunpowder tickles my throat. I cough as she hits the ground, screaming.
“I’m not a killer, but it’s damn near impossible to attack with a blown-out kneecap, isn’t it bitch?” I shot out her second kneecap, and she twitches, passing out from the pain. I creep toward the door, weighing the risk of staying put with knowing what’s going on.
Unlocking the door, I push the door open. More shots ring out, mixed with people yelling and boots pounding on pavement.
If I stay here, everyone knows where to find me. Leaving the room behind, I hurry down the hallway to the cleaning room. Equipped with a washer and dryer and cleaning supplies, it’s a nondescript, small room, perfect for putting myself in a defensive position.
Closing the door, I push the dryer against the door, and crawl on top of it to peer out the small window that’s a leftover from church days.
The massacre occurring horrifies me. Zero, Roulette, and Highway are open firing at their own brothers.
Red splotches litter the walls and the cement floors.
There are holes in the stained glass. I hyperventilate, covering my mouth. Why are they doing this?
Zero is forced back by a bullet in the shoulder.
Roulette returns fire, hitting an older club member.
I search the area, seeking out Gambit. I can’t find him.
Did he leave again? Panicking, my breathing comes in small puffs of air.
I cannot lose him. Charm’s blond hair pops up from behind the bar.
He fires off a few well-aimed shots that take Zero down.
The blood spouting from his neck tells me short of necromancy, he won’t be getting back up.
Light shines on a head that appears beside him.
The sight floods me with relief. He’s alive.
For now. Rapid fire sends everyone diving for more cover, screaming.
Roulette sprays the semi-automatic fire.
The single shots the others are firing can’t match it.
Holding my breath, I wait for him to fire again and break the tiny window.
The noise is masked by the loud shots. Holding my breath, I aim. A lifetime hunting on the water to keep my belly full had made me a crack shot. I’ve never killed a human before. My hands shake.
Fuck get it together, Rowan. Swallowing, I take a deep breath.
Press down on the trigger and squeeze. Three shots later, his head is full of bullets, and I’m dropping down to the metal to avoid responding fire.
I fall off the metal square, slamming my ribs on the way down to the unforgiving concrete floor. Moaning, I curl up in a semi-ball.
“You fucking bitch. I’m going to kill you.” A single shot rings out, silencing his ranting. The door to the closet is kicked. I flinch, rolling onto all fours, and pressing against it with my back to keep the intruder out.
“It’s me. Ro, open the damn door.”
“Gambit.” I stand gingerly, holding a hand to my ribs as I shove the heavy metal appliance out of the way.
The door flies open, and he pulls me to him. “You crazy, stubborn, woman. Are you okay?”
“Yes.” I try to calm my heavy breathing. “What the hell is happening?”
He grimaces. “People are revealing their true colors.”
“Then why are we still here?” I know he wouldn’t willingly keep me in danger.
“You want the good news or the bad news?” he asks somberly. His eyes are sorrowful, and his tone is apologetic.
“Good,” I whimper.
“Reinforcements came before the shooting started.”
“And the bad?” I meet his dilated eyes.
“So did theirs.”
My heart drops.
“We’re surrounded right now.”
“By whom?” I croak.
He scowls. “I didn’t stop to ask their names.”
I slap his arm, and he smiles down at me. The expression is forced. “We’re going to be okay.”
“Don’t lie to me. This place is nothing like the compound back in San Diego.”
He looks away, and I grab his face. “Gambit.”
“The plan was to burn it to the ground regardless. This became a closing mission the second we discovered a major breach.”
Glass breaks, and we both jump.
“Come out here with us. Stay behind me, and keep your gun on you, Annie Oakley.”
He turns, and we run toward the chaos. Smoke is pouring from a canister thrown through the window. I cover my face with my hands. Coughing, I clutch Gambit’s vest to keep from losing him in the ruckus.
“Get that shit out of here,” someone barks. A prospect runs over, scoops up the tear gas, and returns it outside.
“Where’s the weapons stash?” Stone rasps.
“They must’ve fucking removed it,” another brother yells in response.
“No. No, this is not fucking happening on my watch.” The anguished cry comes from a voice I don’t recognize. Crouched low, I follow Gambit back behind the bar.
Another round of fire turns the windows to Swiss cheese. Is this how I die? I get the love of my life back, and we go out like Bonnie and Clyde?
“Take your shirt off.”
“What?” I blink up at Gambit.
“Take your shirt off. We’re going to make use of this liquor.” Stripping off my t-shirt, I accept his switchblade and cut it into strips. He pulls the cap off a bottle of Everclear, shoves the rag down, and holds it out.
“Do the honors, please.” I light the end and pray. He runs toward the holy window and flings the bottle. It sails through a gap and hits something outside with a thud. The scream that goes up tells me it hit a target. The gunfire ceases as they try to get the fire under control.
“Get back there and help him. I want those things going out nonstop,” Stone commands. Ignoring the fact that I’m stripped down to my bra, I make them tirelessly. We might be short on guns, but we have plenty of grit and ingenuity.
“Fire in the hole,” a grizzled voice yells.
I watch as one of the older members throws himself on top of something.
A few seconds later, blood, bits of bone, and limbs are flying around the room.
My jaw drops as I try to process what I just saw.
A lump of sickly gray clings to the wall. I shudder, swallowing down bile.
“They have fucking grenades. Who the hell is this?” Stone yells.
“I don’t know, but if we don’t want to meet our maker, we'd better come up with a plan quick, ‘Cause we’re dropping like flies,” Gambit says.
“I got it.” Charm jumps up and sprints away.
“What is he doing?” Stone shakes his head. A moment later, the sound of a bike reaches us before we see Charm.
“You’re going to what? Ride out?”
“No. We’re going to have a bomb too.” Charm smiles manically.
“Told you he should’ve been named Rocket or some shit. Fucking fire bug,” Gambit mutters.
Working together, they douse the bike with alcohol and shove rags in the gas tank.
“It’s my turn to take a risk,” Charm insists.
Holding our breath, we watch as he revs the engine. A brother near the door holds onto the doorknob and nods. Charm runs forward, rolling the bike, and the brother opens the door at the last minute. He releases the bike, letting it go as the flames rise.
For a moment, it’s a scene straight out of a Ghost Rider movie. Slamming the door, we all hit the deck, covering our heads and waiting. Gambit covers my body with his. A minute passes.
“Shit. It didn’t work.”
A loud explosion rocks the building. The remaining windows in the front blow inward. Scrap metal hits the walls. Boom. A car flies up in the air. I watch it awed and horrified. The amount of destruction is insane. An alarm blares in the distance. Another grenade is tossed inside.
“Retreat,” Stone calls. We make our way toward the back of the building.
The door strains to keep others out as the enemy presses forward.
I hear the door splinter as we move into the back hallway.
The men take their positions, kneeling like soldiers in a civil war.
With bullets running low, every single shot counts.
Barricaded against the wall beside Stone, who’s to be protected at all costs, I see my life flash before my eyes.
“We make it out of this and we’re getting married,” Gambit whispers.
“What?” I jerk to the left to meet his wild-eyed gaze.
“Fuck waiting, we’ll figure it out as we go.” His eyes dance with the wild mirth I remember from our youth. There’s never any talking him out of things when he gets like this.
“Benoit—"
“Only thing I want to hear from you is yes.” He crowds my space. Intoxicated by his sense and the weight of his presence, I cave.
“Yes.” I give him a shaky smile. Heart pounding in my ears, I experience a moment of true bliss in the midst of madness.
“Now I have a reason not to die.” He pecks my lips.
“Can you save the tele novella for later?” Stone asks gravelly.
A horn blares seconds before the entire building shakes. Screams of pain and thuds. A black Hummer appears at the end of the hallway, blinding us with its headlights. The door opens, and a dark-haired man with a long beard, threaded with gray, wild hair, and a crazy grin pops out.
“I brought reinforcements.”
“Dutch, you crazy son of a bitch.” Gambit stands.
I exhale. The gunshots in the background suddenly seem friendlier.
“It’s a fucking army out there. Ain’t no one crew on this job”
“We’ll get to the bottom of it all after we win the war.” Stone said.
“You might want this.” Returning to the jeep, he pulls out a duffel bag and tosses it to Gambit.
Unzipping the black bag, he smiles. “Now we’re cooking with gas.” He pulls out a semi-automatic and begins to distribute them.
“What’s the status?” Stone barks.
“We got them surrounded and blocked in on the outside. “No turning tail and coming back to do this shit again,” Dutch explains.
“I want bodies piled up on pyres to burn down with this cursed ass location,” Stone’s jaw twitches. He lifts the semi-auto, and I’m handed a rifle.
“We all know you’re a good shot,” Charm says.
Nodding, I check the weapon, using the sight to get a feel for the aim.
Moving forward, we act as a team traveling in a circle, tense and ready to dispatch anyone who threatens our safety.
As we exit the hall, I’m stunned at the turnover.
Men are on their knees, arms behind their backs, bleeding out in various stages of dying, and full-on brawling, throwing fists with members of KOC.
“Stone. I need you over here.” I watch Stone stomp over to a man on his knees. He kicks the prone man in the chin. Blood sprays from his mouth. “Who the fuck are you working with?”
The man spits out a mouthful of blood and teeth but remains silent. Stone follows the kick with a rifle butt to the face. “I asked you a question.” The deadly calm he exudes terrifies me.
“Onyx Devils and Negros Arnas.”
Stone laughs. “Thought you’d pitch in together? Still, this is too much power for your level. You have one more chance.”
“The cops want to take you down. They were willing to use us to do their dirty work.”
“And you have proof of this?” Stone presses the barrel of the rifle to his temple.
“Y-yeah.”
“Then you’re worth more alive than dead. But only you.” Turning, he releases shots into prone bodies.
“No.” The man tries to move forward, and Stone kicks him in his chest.
“You know the mission. Get this piece of shit out of here and take him somewhere secure.” He walks away, and I stand in the ruins of an old church, wondering what the hell comes next.