by K T Rose
“Come on,” Danny said.
He walked in like it wasn’t below zero. I followed behind him, hugging my chest. Motion sensor lights flickered on and ate up the darkness. My jaw dropped. My legs went stiff. Pale arms, hands, and legs hung from thin wires, dangling free from the high ceiling. Small brown spots littered the floor just below each hanging limb. A thick sheet of frost coated the silver walls. As Danny dragged Tony's body, his clothes wiped up frost from the floor and open a clean, shiny path.
In the back of the freezer, Danny pulled a door open with his free hand. On the other side, a small room released the stench of rotting meat. At least it felt small. It was hard to tell from the blood-stained walls, and the various knives and saws attached to the walls like some kind of sick display. Danny stepped inside and I stopped short at the threshold. The foul smell loomed, burning my nose and turning my stomach. I cupped my mouth with my hand.
Danny lifted Tony and dropped him into a wooden chair in the corner. He grabbed rope from the floor and wrapped Tony’s wrists against the chair’s arms. Tony’s chin fell to his chest and his shoulders jerked.
Danny slapped the back of Tony’s neck. “Stop crying. What the fuck did you think was going to happen? Huh? Jackie? Get your ass in here!”
With stiff limbs, I stepped forward and stopped at the threshold. My chest dropped to the pit of my stomach. I gulped. This is the only thing standing between you and school. You need this.
Danny stepped over to a laminate counter against the opposite wall. On it lay a pale, naked man. Joe. A frantic jolt shook his body, and he let out a horrified cry underneath the silver tape that plastered his mouth.
I gagged.
“Don’t throw up in here, asshole. I don’t wanna be stuck in here with your stench,” Danny growled.
My stench? Was this guy right in the head? Or had he gotten used to the fumes? My vomit would be like spraying perfume in a pot-a-potty. “I’m—ugh. What the hell is this place? What are you doing with them?”
“Don’t ask stupid questions. It’s throwing me off.” He pulled his leather jacket off and tossed it on Tony’s lap. Danny adjusted his jeans, pulling his pistol holster up a bit.
“I—uh” My voice cracked.
“You want the money? Finish the job without asking questions. That’s the deal. So either step into the freezer and start putting parts in bags, or stand there quietly.”
I nodded. I didn’t want to see this, and neither was I interested in touching those limbs. I wasn’t touching anything but the door on the way out. I didn’t have a choice but to stand still.
Danny smirked and walked over to the oak dresser against the wall. He grabbed a pair of black rubber gloves from the top drawer and pulled them on. He pulled them over his hands and up to his elbows. Then he stepped over to a coat rack and pulled a rubber apron over his navy t-shirt. Finally, he picked up a plastic face shield and pulled it over his thick hair, as normal as a welder getting ready for work.
He pulled a cleaver loose from the wall magnet and pointed the steel head at me. “Now listen, kid. School can’t teach you how to make money. Only I can.” He turned back to Joe. “What? You want to be an engineer? You’d be lucky to pull in one hundred thousand a year and I’m talking before taxes. I make that in a week, sometimes in a couple days.”
He brought the cleaver down onto Joe’s shoulder. Joe shrilled a cry that made my ears ring. Blood splashed, soaking the cleaver and Danny’s chest. It ran down the rubber apron, dripping to the cement floor.
“Fuck, man!” My body clenched. I backed into the freezer. A limp, hanging finger caressed my hair and I stumbled forward again.
“Yeah, it’s possible to make money without getting your hands dirty. But where’s the fun in that?”
He hacked Joe’s shoulder again. Joe’s screams died into silence as his limbs twitched to a slow stop. Flesh squelched against the blade with every wet hack.
“He’s out,” Danny said. “That’s good for his sack. Pussy. No wonder he stuck to real estate.”
He chopped at Joe’s shoulder again. My muscles jerked at every wet thud the blade made as Danny went at it.
“You think this shit is clean? You think this shit is easy? I got news for you, kid. You want to make money, and I mean real money, you gotta get dirty.”
Danny pulled the arm from the socket and tossed it aside, then looked at me. “And when you protect what you love, better believe it gets dirty. There’s nothing human about what I’m doing. It’s the thing of monsters and demons. But that’s my job. It’s my passion. My neighborhood…I’d do anything to protect it. What these fucks are doing is what’s criminal. Fucking sell out.” He lifted the shield and spat at Tony, then wiped his mouth with the back of his bloody glove and pulled the shield back in place.
He hacked at Joe’s knee. My own kneecap jolted and cramped.
“You know what this Joe fucker is doing? He wants to tear our neighborhood apart. He wants to tear everyone from their homes with shitty small ass checks and resell the properties to rich assholes just like him.”
He brought the blade down on Joe’s kneecap again.
“Do you think that’s fair? To allow these jack asses to come into our neighborhood and well our shit to outsiders? I don’t! I’m not letting that shit happen.”
Tony mumbled something.
Danny sighed and threw his head back. “Don’t interrupt me when I talking to our young!” He looked into my eyes. “You wanna be like this guy? Shady as shit? Trying to sell off the community that made him rich? Fucking moron. Dollar signs made him forget to check to see if Pauly was lying or not.” He chuckled. “And let’s be honest, your uncle is a bad liar.”
He separated Joe’s calf from his thigh and tossed it over at Tony. It hit his forehead before flopping onto the floor.
“You see, usually I kill them first. It eases up on the bleeding. But I figured for this lesson, you needed to see it all. Feel it all. Grow a stomach for it.”
Mucus ran from Tony’s nose, mixing with his tears as he convulsed and balled. I’d never seen a man cry so hard. Especially a man like Tony.
“You’re next, you traitor fuck,” Danny said. “Can you believe this guy? He walks around this bitch like he’s the man. Like he knows how to solve everyone’s problems. Bring money into the community, he says. Fix all the rundown houses and apartments, he says. Sell the parlor and the car wash where I get my car waxed every month. Guess what? Nobody asked you for your fucking help! You got this ass over here thinking that college is the way out. Out of what? We’re fucking kings around here. We run this shit and you want to tear it apart?”
He looked back at me. “Watch who you follow, kid, because they’ll end up hanging limb from limb in that freezer.”
Tony shook his head frantically.
“Don’t ‘no’ me fucker. It’s too late for you. But it ain’t too late for the kid to prove his loyalty.”
He brought the cleaver down on Joe’s neck, whacking away, filling the room with stray viscera and spraying blood. Joe’s head popped off and rolled to my toes. The bloodied stump brushed against my feet. His face hid behind a blanket of blood that soaked his hair down to his chin. Rigid hack marks scaled whatever was left of his neck. I staggered back and bent at the waist before puking up Ma’s lasagna.
Tony cried, yelled even. I couldn’t tell. I shook my head. This isn’t happening. This isn’t happening. But it was. All the red and loose body parts were proof of it.
Danny shoved Joe’s body to the floor. The wet thump sent an abrupt vibration through the room. My trembling knees buckled and I collapsed to my hands. I eyed the door, wary of escape.
Danny trudged over to Tony.
“Never thought you’d be here, huh?” He asked Tony. “Remember how we’d make assholes pay their debts? Looks like you’ve fallen out of favor, forgot what loyalty meant. I’ll feed you to the community you betrayed. I’m even going to invite little Ant back to
have a serving. You know how much he loves Pauly’s hotdogs and burgers.”
He turned to me. “Get up and help me move him.”
I shook my head. “No, no, no, no. This ain’t me, man, I can’t—”
“You think it’ll be any different if the shoe was on the other foot? You think you know Tony, but you don’t. He deserves this. This man is trying to tear your Ma from her apartment. Close Pauly down. He is a traitor.”
“Not like this,” I uttered.
“I’m sorry, kid. I really am. But I can’t let you do that.”
“Wha—what?”
“You heard it right.” He rushed for me so fast, I barely took a breath before his big, wet hands closed around my neck. My body left the floor. “If you don’t listen, you’re going on that counter instead. You, and then him. This is happening either way. You'll do it, or you’ll die.” He squinted. “I thought we talked about this already.”
He released me and I fell to my knees. I stood and wiped the tears from my face, watching as Danny cut Tony’s arms free. He sat the cleaver on the wall magnet. “Let’s go.”
I grabbed Tony’s legs and Danny grabbed his shoulders. Tony flopped like a fish out of water. His legs slid from my weak grip and his feet met the floor.
“Move, kid!” Danny grabbed Tony by his neck and lifted him. Tony’s legs went limp and Danny pinned him down to the table. “Slide his legs up here!”
I did.
Danny wrapped Tony’s neck with the rope, attaching it to the underside of the table. He clutched Tony’s flopping ankles with one hand and tied them down.
Tony wailed as he tried to lift his head. He gagged with every attempt.
Danny snatched the cleaver from the wall and pointed it to my chest. “Here,” he said. “Prove your loyalty and I promise you don’t have to worry about school, debt, money, or bitches.”
I shook my head and with trembling hands, I grabbed the cleaver at the wooden handle. I stared down at Tony, who stared at the ceiling with hurried breaths filling his chest and tears rolling down the sides of his face.
“Jackie, you think there’s a better way to live. Well, I’m telling you there isn’t. You won’t need for a damn thing again.”
I shook my head as I blubbered. This isn’t what I wanted: no choices.
Danny scoffed. “Oh. I see. This is about Ant. Your best friend. Your little buddy. You want to be like that little asshole? Flaunting around, talking about how he’s going to be this high-priced doctor? How he’s going to get so much ass out there at in New York? You want that life? Oh wait, you think getting a degree would fast track you into the upper class and move you outta your Ma’s faster? Guess what, you cocky little shit: debt is debt no matter how much you try to dress it up. But this? This is the way to live. Tax free. No pressure. No government in your pockets. No surprises. No pulling your hair out trying to make someone else rich. We make ourselves rich. Me and Pauly. Used to be Tony but, he’s tied up right now.” He chuckled.
“I just—I—I—can’t—"
Danny sighed. “Maybe I was wrong to try and force it on you your first time. Fine.” He snatched the cleaver from my hand and Tony squeezed his eyes shut.
Danny raised the cleaver.
“Wait,” I said. “All right. All right. I’ll do it.”
“Nice to see you come around to your senses.”
I looked down into Tony’s eyes and then at the cleaver. “Can—can I use other end instead?”
“Blunt force? Nice. I used that before. It’s fun. Not as clean as you think, but easier to use for your first time. But using the opposite side of the cleaver is a good way to slice your hand open. And I’ll tell you, that shit hurts like a son of a bitch. Hang on.” He went over to the top drawer and pulled out a club.
“Here.” He handed it to me.
I caught Tony’s eye again. Disappointment matched my level of uncertainty.
I raised the club over my head. This was it. I went in there a man with aspirations and goals. Thoughts of flying out to MIT and kissing Ma goodbye for a few months. Now, I stood over my best friend’s Dad, ready to smash his head in with a club.
I flinched when Danny’s phone went off.
“Hold on.” Danny squeezed his pocket and the ringing stopped. “All right. Go ahead.”
Holding my position, I closed my eyes tight. Ant would never forgive me. He’d probably come after me, hell-bent on getting me back. I’d welcome it and even hope he’d find me sooner or later. You don’t have a choice, I thought. Either Tony went, or I did.
“Open your eyes,” Danny said. “In order to get over your cowardice, you need to look in his eyes. It’ll never be the same from this point on. You’re taking him away from here forever and with good reason.”
I huffed and then sucked in a deep breath. There had to be another way. An agreement? A truce? Danny’s steely eyes said otherwise. They screamed kill the enemy.
Tony had to die and I had to be the one to do it. That, or they’d come for me.
A banging noise came from deep within the building, just over our heads.
“Shit. Hold on.” Danny pulled a pistol from his waist band. “I’ll be right back.”
He disappeared into the freezer.
I looked down at Tony. This was our chance. Heart jumping, I said, “I’m going to get you out of here.” I rounded the counter to the blades on the wall magnet and snatched up a butcher knife. I sawed the rope loose from his neck and ankles. He sat up, throwing off the ropes and jumping to the floor..
“Come on,” I said, sticking my head in the freezer and listening hard. Footsteps stomped the stairs. “Shit, he’s coming.”
“In the freezer,” Tony directed, flexing his jaw. “Now!” He hurried, passing me at the threshold. I followed.
He made a right inside and ducked low behind a silver bin near the wall just outside the room. I crouched next to him, clutching the butcher knife.
“As soon as they go in there, go close the door,” he said.
I tensed. “What?” Air caught in my throat as Uncle Pauly and Danny entered the freezer and strolled inside the room.
“Now!” Tony said.
I ran for the door and slammed it closed.
“Move!” Tony said as he pushed the bin into the door.
“Jackie!” Danny yelled as he banged on the door. “Let us out you piece of—”
“Hey!” Uncle Pauly said. “Don’t talk to my nephew like that! Get the fucking door open and get their asses back in here. Now!”
“Boss, I—”
“Jackie! Let’s go!” Tony had already made it to the freezer entrance by the time I turned around. Once I made it to his side, he closed the door. He pulled a set of keys from his pocket and locked it.
We raced up the staircase and approached the door. A silver padlock bound the thing closed from the inside.
“Fuck!” Tony said.
“Open it!” I yelled.
He shook his head. “That’s…uh. That’s new.”
I kicked and pulled and twisted on the doorknob.
“Kid…” Tony said
Thumps from below.
“Fuck!” I said.
“Kid!”
“What?” I yelled at him.
I turned to Tony, who’d made it halfway up the staircase to the next floor. “Let’s go!”
“Where?”
“Upstairs.”
Loud grunts and a shredding of metal came from below.
Tony bolted up the stairs. “Come on!” he said.
I followed close behind him. On the second floor, he threw his shoulder into the door, thrashing it in.
I darted past a receptionist desk. Behind it, a big sign read: Millennium’s Graphics. I headed for the office desks lined up against the window. The city’s twilight gleamed, painting the floor pearly white.
My heart lurched when footsteps hit the stairs.
“Hide!” Tony said
as he nestled himself into a closet next to a coffee-making station near the staircase.
I ran for a cluster of desks and crouched underneath one closest to the receptionist desk “Fuck, fuck, fuck,” I muttered through shaking jaws.
“Kid!” Danny called out from the staircase under slowed footfalls “Why you gotta make this difficult? You're making your uncle look like an asshole! You know that? He’s looking really bad for advising me about how to train you.” His voice filled the room on his entrance. “He wanted to bring you on board, and he don’t just do that for anyone.” The floor creaked under his heavy feet, sending a panicked chill up my back. “Not me though.” He chuckled. “I didn’t want you apart of my work. I smell pussy on you. It’s ripe.” His feet swept the floor when he stopped moving. “You’re a fucking wimp. I tried to tell him that school was probably a better route for you because you’ll never be like us. You’ll never know what it is to work hard. Sometimes you have to shed a little blood for it, but it’s all worth it in the end because…”
A shrill clatter sounded as something hard and metallic banged against the floor.
He wasn’t too far away from me. My fist tightened around the knife handle.
“…you get everything you want. You grew up loving the freedom of getting whatever you wanted. Or whatever your Ma or Ant bought for you. Yeah your Ma works. But Ant? This neighborhood made his daddy rich, which Ant fed off of. Pauly did that. But do you get it? Do you give a fuck? Nah. You’ll just go off to Massachusetts and forget all about that.” He scoffed. “You’ll have not a care in the world.”
My shoulders jerked when Danny grunted and tossed more furniture. A school of pens and pencils rolled across the floor, hitting my foot.
“Pauly and I lose everything if this neighborhood goes under!”
A thud against the wall, then the men grunted as shoes screeched against the tile floor. A metallic clamor pierced my ears.
I peered around the desk. Tony skirted over a desktop and Danny rushed over to him. He pulled Tony by the shirt and threw him to the floor. He stood over Tony, his back to me, and brought a foot down into his gut. Tony let out a harsh umph with every stomp. I winced at every blow as if it were my body taking them in. Air ran from my shriveling lungs.