by Luis Samways
“Good job, guys, it’s the final stretch now. We’re nearly done,” Donny said, watching from afar, leaning on the hearse’s bonnet, smoking a cigarette. One of his men turned to give Donny a look. It was a look Donny didn’t quite get. He was a little suspicious of the look he was given but decided to give the man a pass, especially since he had done so well throughout the day. First he’d driven Donny and the coffin around all day, and now he was digging a grave like a trained gravedigger. It impressed him. The diversity of his men was always something he was proud of. A lot of the other firm leaders out there didn’t have half the capability or creativity that his men had. And for that he was grateful.
The sun was setting as the evening closed in. The driver and the passenger were still digging, and Demi Reynolds could still be heard kicking up a fuss inside the coffin. For the most part, Donny and his men had been ignoring her. They thought it was for the best. After all, they didn’t want to waste time instilling fear in her, seeing that she was about to take a trip six feet under. Plus, they had already spent most of the week working her. And Donny was a fair man, in his mind. He didn’t think it was necessary to torture her too much. He was aware that he was a villain. A bad guy. But he didn’t see himself as a bully. There was only so much a man of his power could do to another person before it became bullying. He prided himself on being just. When he lost sight of that, he always felt ashamed. But Demi was a different case. She had killed his brother, and she needed to pay. A little extra mustard, so to speak, wasn’t unjustified. He thought it was only fair that she suffered.
“Come on, boys, let’s wrap this up. I don’t want to be here all day,” he said, looking down at his watch and noticing that the big hand was moving a little faster than he’d like.
“It’s a little tiring, boss. We have a few feet to go, and I feel like I’m about to have a heart attack,” one of his goons said, shoveling at the dirt while breathing heavily.
“Okay. Take five minutes, but not any longer than that. This isn’t the time to be taking liberties.”
The passenger stopped shoveling and climbed out of the hole. As he did so, he gripped the seam of dirt that rose above the hole and hoisted himself up. The sound of loose dirt falling into the pit made Donny smile. Soon enough, the sound of loose dirt hitting the wooden surface of the coffin would be heard, and to him that was nothing short of good news. The best news.
“You can take a break as well,” Donny said, lighting a cigarette and chucking the pack over to the passenger. He was talking to the other goon, who was still in the pit, digging furiously.
“You hear me down there?” Donny asked, walking over toward the pit and looking down. He saw the man digging hard. He was covered in sweat and heaving as he did his job. Donny stood there for a second or two, and repeated his question. The man stopped digging and looked up at his boss. He had that look on his face again. The one that confused Donny.
“What the fuck’s up with that look you’re giving me? We have a problem here?” Donny asked, his feet sinking into the loose dirt that was piling up.
“Not at all, boss. Just trying to get this done as quickly as possible,” the man replied, struggling for breath as he spoke.
“Well, don’t worry about it. Take a breather. You’ve been driving all day. You need a rest as well.”
The man shook his head and continued to dig. Donny was feeling a little angry by now. The man was disobeying his orders. His face went red, and he flicked the cigarette into the pit.
“Suit yourself, then. Don’t complain to me about you being tired after this is over and done with.”
Donny walked off back toward the hearse. The sound of Demi beating the inside of the coffin was straining his ears. He rolled his eyes and leant against the hearse once again. The other goon joined him.
“We going to quieten her down?” he asked, smoking a cigarette while unscrewing a cap on an Evian bottle.
“Let her do what she wants. There’s no way she’s getting out of there. She can punch, kick, and scream — she isn’t budging.”
The goon took a sip of water and screwed the cap back on.
“But what if somebody hears her banging?” he asked.
Donny glanced around as if to make a point. “Look where we are! There’s no one for miles. That’s the reason we chose this plot of land. It’s surrounded by trees, and no one walks by. They ain’t going to find her down here. It will take years and years before anybody finds her body. They’ll probably dig her up on one of those archaeology shows, like Time Team, in the future. Some asshole presenter will jump to conclusions as to who she was, what she did, and why she was buried.”
The goon started to laugh and flicked his cigarette onto the floor. “Yeah, and I bet in two hundred years we’ll still be paying for the BBC, and EastEnders will still be boring.”
The two of them laughed, and the goon got back to work. He jumped back into the pit and began to shovel once again.
“Why didn’t you take a break? You look like you’re about to collapse,” Donny heard his man ask the driver. There was no response, just silence.
“Charming,” the goon stated, continuing to dig.
Donny stayed where he was. The sound of digging in the pit and banging in the coffin meshed into one loud noise. His eyelids twitched a little as he waited patiently for the sound of both to cease.
“All will be quiet soon. Real quiet,” he whispered under his breath as he looked at his watch one last time.
Thirty-Five
Hamish pulled up on the ridge and turned his engine off. The sound of the engine hissing escaped into the early evening air. Hamish watched through the windshield as heat evaporated off the bonnet into the sky. He sat back in his seat and gripped the steering wheel tight. He could feel his hands cramping under pressure, but the sight through the windshield was making him angry.
Looking through the windshield, he could see two men digging what looked like a grave. A few meters past the grave, above ground, was a hearse. Leaning against the vehicle was his boss, Donny the Hat. Hamish watched as they went about their business, unaware that they were being observed.
The ridge Hamish was parked on stood about forty feet above them. It was a natural ridge made out of earth and rock. It wasn’t normally used by cars, but Hamish thought he’d get a better look at his targets from the top. The ridge itself was positioned a good hundred or so yards away from the group of men digging the grave. It meant that Donny or his two lapdogs wouldn’t hear him approaching. He wanted to have the element of surprise. That’s why he decided to drive up the unkept ridge and prepare for an ambush.
Hamish was careful to not draw any attention to himself. He had thought about his options regarding saving Demi. He had two of them. He could either reverse down the ridge and drive up to them, or get out of the car and scale the rocks toward them. The first option would give them a heads-up that he was coming. They’d be able to hear the car approaching. They might grow a little trigger-happy and decide to shoot, even though Donny had said it would be okay for Hamish to turn up. The second option seemed more viable when it came to securing Demi with the least resistance possible.
The thing was, Hamish was a big guy. Scaling a ridge, walking down a slope, and stepping over rocks could put him in a compromised position. He was bulky, so he’d make a lot of noise whilst walking down a ridge. And that wasn’t acceptable. Not for an ambush. He’d draw their attention and possibly their fire, once they saw him approaching them holding a shotgun. They wouldn’t question what was going on. They’d just see an approaching giant holding a massive gun. And then they’d open fire.
Hamish grew frustrated with his train of thought and banged his fist against the dashboard. It made a rather large echoing sound as it reverberated off the fake leather interior. He caught his breath a little as he started to slow his breathing down. Watching from above like he was doing was causing his excitement levels to go through the roof. His heart was racing and he was trying to calm himself,
but the thought of becoming a hero in saving Demi from being buried alive was what was making him excited.
Throughout most of his life, Hamish had been seen as a slob. An oaf. A fool. A big, clumsy idiot. But now he could be so much more. And he wanted to be so much more. Ever so much more, in fact. So much so that he was willing to get out of the car, shotgun in tow, walk down the ridge, and start peppering Donny and his goons with twelve-gauge slugs.
“You’re ready,” he told himself as he reached for the boom stick, which sat on the passenger seat. The sensation of the gun in his left hand made him feel giddy. A smile etched across his face. He was really doing it. He was really going to make them pay and save the day.
He got out of the car. The sound of his feet hitting the dirt and gravel sounded awfully loud in his ears. He didn’t know whether he was being overly loud or whether he was just sensitive to sound. But upon straying from his car and taking the first few steps toward the ridge, he knew he was being quiet enough. The adrenaline rushing through his body was making his hearing overly sensitive. He could practically hear all three men below him, even though they were a good hundred yards away. He watched for a split second as he saw Donny spark up a cigarette. He watched as the end of his cig went a bright orange. Hamish could hear the paper burning, that’s how zoned out he was. Everything was dissolving around him. Sound and vision were all that was present. Everything else was melting away.
He walked down the ridge and cocked his shotgun. The sound of the chamber filling with two shells sent shivers down his spine. He was getting closer to Donny and the men. He could hear twigs snapping under his feet. He swatted a branch away from his face and came out on the other side. He was now on ground level, on a par with Donny. He was twenty or so yards away. Donny stopped sucking on his cigarette and dropped the butt on the ground. He looked up and saw Hamish coming. At first he had a smile on his face. But as Donny noticed what Hamish had in his hands, that smile disappeared.
Then Hamish’s surroundings came into focus and the zone he was in eroded away. As he pressed down on the trigger, everything went silent.
And then the sound of gunshots echoed throughout the clearing.
Thirty-Six
Demi had nearly fallen asleep in the coffin. The lack of air on the inside was making it harder and harder to remain awake, but somehow she was managing it. She could feel her heart rate slowing down. Beads of sweat were making their way down her neck from her forehead. Her breathing was raspy, and her nose felt bunged up. She was just about to close her eyes again when she heard a very loud noise.
“What the…?” she managed to say through her sore throat.
The loud noise went off again. This time, two pops in a row. She tried to sit up and banged her head on the low lid that was acting like a ceiling. She cursed out loud, holding her sore head and wincing in pain. But then her eyes widened. She heard the noise once again. Another loud pop. Then, as if out of the blue, she put two and two together and realized that she was hearing gunshots. Heavy-gauge shots, at that. At first, she didn’t know what to think. She heard a few muffled cries, but she didn’t know who was doing the shooting. Had the police found her, and now they were having it out with Donny and his two men? It didn’t sound likely. The armed police don’t tend to make such loud noises. They had silencers and automatic rifles. Not shotguns.
As the shooting continued, Demi wondered if a farmer might have come across Donny digging the hole and opened up fire on him. Maybe it was his land, and he didn’t take kindly to people burying gangsters on his property. But as the sound of gunshots ceased for a second or two and the sound of a distant car’s engine roaring to life echoed through the coffin, Demi realized what was going on. Donny had been ambushed, and it seemed he was trying to make a break for it. She obviously couldn’t be too sure on the facts, but being locked up in the dark with only your hearing working made her feel as if she had superhuman hearing. Everything around her was audible, from the tires screeching off to the sound of gunshots hitting the back of a car’s window. It was as if she could see what was going on using audio.
But then her breathing stopped, and she held her breath. She could hear approaching footsteps. They belonged to somebody heavy. Somebody tall. Somebody who was there for serious business. They were getting closer and closer to her. She tried to shut her eyes and block out the sound, but not even covering her ears with her hands did the trick. She could still hear everything, and it all sounded menacing. From the dirt scattering across the ground as the heavy footsteps came toward her to the sound of adrenaline-fueled breathing, whoever was approaching the coffin knew she was inside. Demi could tell. The footsteps had a certain purpose behind them. They sounded strong and confident. As if they were accomplishing something.
“Please don’t kill me!” she shouted at the top of her lungs. The footsteps stopped suddenly. And then she could hear what sounded like a shotgun being dropped to the ground.
“Oh my God,” she whispered under her breath. It was all getting too much for her. She was hanging on to the last fibers of life, but she didn’t know how long she could hold on.
Then the footsteps went from idle to moving, and now they were moving with a purpose. She clenched her fists and got ready for whatever was coming her way. But then there was silence. It was eerie and foreboding. The silence resembled a countdown to Demi. A clock that was counting down to her fate. With only seconds left on this earth, she decided to make peace with whatever was waiting for her on the other side.
“Please forgive me for my faults. May I be forgiven for the wrongdoing I have done in this life. May the people who have died at my hands forgive me for my profession. Though I do evil, know that I am not. Know that I gained nothing but pain throughout my whole life. Although it isn’t an excuse, it’s all I’ve got. And that, that makes me sad. I wish I’d found love. I wish I’d found whoever or whatever you are. I know people call you by many names. They have many beliefs as to what you stand for. But if you stand for only one thing, please let it be forgiveness. I don’t want to suffer anymore,” Demi said, her voice trailing into a whisper.
Suddenly, Demi heard somebody calling her name. She opened her eyes and started to breathe rapidly once again.
“Demi?” the voice said.
“God? Is that you?”
There was silence for a split second, and then laughter. “No, you muppet. It’s Hamish!”
Demi broke into tears of joy. She felt a little stupid, but she had a smile on her face. Deep down, she’d known somebody was looking out for her. She just hadn’t realized it was Hamish.
“Please get me out of here!”
“Don’t worry, I will.”
The sound of something heavy hitting the lid above her made Demi jump. Suddenly an onslaught of blows rained down on the coffin lid. She could feel every whack. It sent vibrations through her. But then there was light. A hole the size of her fist emerged above her. She could see trees. The sun was barely there. An orange horizon splashed across her face. But the hole became bigger and bigger. Shards and splinters of wood fell onto her chest and legs. She covered her eyes for a second or two as the hole became larger and larger. Finally, the sound stopped, and she opened her eyes. She saw Hamish peering down at her. He had a sledgehammer in his hands. He was covered in dust and looked as if he had been up all night. She smiled at him as he extended his hand. She grabbed it, and he pulled her out. As her feet touched the ground, she nearly lost her balance. She felt unsteady, but Hamish embraced her, keeping her on her feet.
“Thank you, Hamish. I can never repay you!” she said, tears streaming down her face.
“Don’t worry about paying me anything. You didn’t deserve this. Donny has been throwing his weight around for too long. Enough is enough.”
They hugged for what felt like forever, but in reality, it was only a few minutes. But then the realization of what had just happened spread across both their faces.
“Where’s Donny?” she said, looking around
for the first time.
She saw a dirt mound next to a hole. The coffin was on the right side. Two bodies lay on the ground. Neither of them were Donny. Both of them looked like they had gotten shot in the face with a shotgun. It was a nasty sight. Brains leaked onto the soil. Their faces didn’t look like faces anymore. Their heads resembled a watermelon that had been dropped on the floor.
“Donny got away in the hearse. We need to go after him, or he may regroup with a bunch of his goons and really bring the fight to us.”
Demi looked at Hamish and nodded. She gave him another hug. He was a big man. Some would probably call him fat. Others might have said he was just big-boned. But whatever it was, she enjoyed hugging him. She ran her hand across his right cheek. The scar he’d gotten from Donny a while back still felt fresh. She went on her tiptoes and planted a kiss on his cheek. He blushed. His big round face went red, and he looked down at his shoes for a split second.
“Thanks, Hamish. I really appreciate what you did.”
“No problem, Demi. But we’d better get going. I know the hearse isn’t the fastest of vehicles, but we need to get on the right road. It’s like a maze around here. Plenty of places for him to hide.”
She nodded, and they both started jogging. Hamish pointed to the ridge that stood in front of them. She could see his car on top. They quickly ran toward the ridge and climbed up the dirt mound, over some rocks and branches. They reached the top and both got in. Hamish turned the key and reversed. He did a 180 turn and revved the engine.