by Flite, Nora
I didn't have time to recoil from the pain of a multitude of stabs as the jagged, wooden rubble dug into me. Disoriented, Beeker took a battery of incoming rounds.
I frantically searched for his gun, or a knife, or anything that would help me against the coming Knights. It was no use, between my Beeker-shield and the poor bastard that we landed on, there was too much debris for me to find anything.
Feeling that this was the end of the line for me, I almost laughed at how close I'd gotten to saving Flora, just to be shot to death.
“Connor!” shouted a dream that was too good to be true.
I turned my head so hard in disbelief that the tendons strained. For a fleeting second I thought I'd died.
Flora, the girl who'd robbed me of everything I held dear.
The girl I was willing to die for...
And she was only a few feet away.
“Here!” She tossed me her gun—my gun.
I snatched it out of the air right as the first Knight came through the door's threshold. Gun raised, he turned towards Flora. I put a bullet through his ear. The man's speed toppled him forward, allowing me to get a bead on the second, and now very surprised, Knight behind him.
The second biker unloaded, but I was too buried beneath his dead companions for him to hit me. When he ran out of bullets I nudged the bodies to the side, carefully aiming a few well placed shots into his heart.
I pushed all the bodies off me and crawled to my feet with a grunt. I stood before Flora covered in blood, dust and mayhem, like Lazarus risen from his grave.
Without a care for the filth, Flora threw herself at me. “I'm so sorry,” she said between between kisses, so hard and fast that any doubts I'd had about her or us vanished. “I'm so, so sorry.”
Gunshots and the screams of the enraged and the dying echoed down every hall. I pulled away. We were far from safe, but I needed to look at her. Her beautiful shining eyes, upturned brows and soft features struck me harder than any blow I'd received.
With Hell around every bend, I squeezed her into a hug that was too tight for the devil himself to pry open. I almost said something to her I shouldn't have. It was on the tip of my tongue, words that could never be taken back once uttered.
Hesitating, I backed off and whispered my relief into her ear, instead. “I missed you.”
Flora's arms loosened so she could look at me, her eyes searched mine for proof that I wasn't some fever dream of dying hope. Her eyes told me that she'd never thought she'd see me again.
If I had stopped to think about the staggeringly high odds of us both surviving long enough to share in this moment, I'd have thought the same. Yet here we were, wrapped in bodies and tragedy, held together by the spite of a love that defied logic and fate.
She buried her face into my chest and struggled to take in air. “I missed you so much. I didn't think I'd see you again, not after everything. How is this happening?”
The uncaring chaos of reality set in abruptly. In the distance, past Flora and the doorway I'd smashed through, more of Tully's guys stormed in after us.
I grabbed Flora and spun us both out of the doorway, right as a hail of incoming gunfire whistled by. Our backs against the wall, I ran a hand over her cheek. I just wanted to keep touching her. “What do you say we get out of here?”
Flora still couldn't find any words, so she just smiled and nodded.
“It's Claudine, right?” I called to the woman who was trapped on the other side of the doorway. She nodded.
Dulled, emaciated, hauntingly pale... It was amazing how hard of a toll the drugs had taken on her. She only faintly resembled the picture that Flora carried around.
“On the count of three I want you to run over here, okay?”
Again, Claudine nodded.
I held up one finger, then two. On three I dropped to the floor, leaning into the doorway to lay down cover fire as Claudine quickly shuffled across the opening to the other side.
I didn't think I hit anyone, at least not enough to stop them from coming after us, but I did buy us a few seconds. “Bus is leaving, ladies. Follow me.”
“Wait!” Flora grabbed my arm, stopping me. “I can't leave the other girls. We have to get them out, too.”
I regarded her with amazement. In the face of a life-threatening situation, Flora still managed to muster up a staggering amount of selflessness. She never ceased to impress me.
Renewed sounds of the fighting and gunfire came from the room that held Tully's men. Using the black mirror face of my phone, I peered into the room.
Tully's guys were down, the men who'd done it were already leaving the way they'd come in. They all wore the same patch—two downward crossed fists with black wings behind them—and it brought a smile to my face.
The Steel Veins had finally made it inside.
We were winning.
My smile broadened when I turned to face Flora again. Finally, some good news. “Don't worry about them, Saint Flora. Those girls are in good hands.”
“How can you be so sure?” It wasn't Flora, but Claudine who'd asked.
“That was the Steel Veins just then.” I cocked my head towards the room. “Pres said he wouldn't drag our sorry asses out of here until the girls were safe.”
“You came inside alone?” Flora asked. “You could've been killed!”
I popped out the magazine to check that I still had ammo. It wasn't much, but it was better than nothing. “And let you party with the Knights alone?” I slid the clip back in and smiled at Flora.
I watched as the worry set in, she'd just remembered something. “The other women, the locals!”
“I locked them in that room. The Veins will get them out when the fighting's over. They'll be fine.”
She slumped, a relief that hadn't been allowed to breathe finally spreading wide. “Okay, thank goodness.”
I took her hand and began leading her away. The time for thanks would have to wait.
We weren't out of the woods yet.
Bodies littered almost every room. There was seemingly indiscriminate carnage everywhere. The muted slapping of our combined foot falls through the lush, blood-soaked carpets, would follow each of us in our moments of reflection for years to come.
Every direction I took us in was blocked by brutality. I was pissed at myself for having such a singular focus that I didn't look for any alternate routes out of here while searching for Flora. “Anyone know of an exit that won't get us killed?”
“I might,” Claudine said. “There's a servant’s entrance that rarely gets used. Maybe we can get out that way.”
Nodding, I let her guide us. A few turns later we passed what was left of the mansion's main entrance. It wasn't much, but at least the fire was put out completely. The whole area was destroyed. It looked like it was struck by a bomb, then drowned by the rain.
“That's really there, right?” Claudine's hand drifted up to point at the massive dump truck that laid on its side, slowly oozing smoke.
“That explains the explosion we heard earlier,” Flora said, turning to me in renewed awe. “That was you, wasn't it?”
“I do love to make an entrance.” If the situation wasn't so damned dire, I'd have reveled in the satisfaction of driving a construction vehicle through a posh mansion.
Claudine led us through a game room, then around a kitchen and down another hallway. She was right, each step brought us further away from the fighting. The decor had gradually become more and more plain. Gold trim, marble sculptures and elaborate wooden and metal fixtures became nonexistent.
We passed through the remaining two rooms, they were compartmentalized and featureless. They held most of the lawn care and landscaping supplies. Finally outside, I briefly marveled at the gigantic, immaculately maintained lawn. It was defiantly bright-green, considering it was autumn. It flowed directly into the marshy river.
On the bank was one last fanboat, the others had taken the girls to safety by Remy and the Veins. Strangely, it was facing the opposite way, inward li
ke it had just arrived. Regardless, that was our ticket out of here.
It didn't matter that I'd only heard of these kinds of boats in passing, or that I had no idea how the hell to operate them. I guess today was my day to learn.
Flora and Claudine ran ahead while I made sure we weren't followed. They were passing a boat maintenance shed near the shore when I spotted stirrings in the water and through the tall grass. All the noise had definitely disturbed the wildlife. I didn't see any alligators, but that didn't mean they weren't around, lying in wait for a distracted meal.
“Hey!” I was about to warn them to keep an eye out for trouble when another gunshot rang out, this time ear-ringingly close.
I saw Flora drop before I heard her scream.
A lump of dread lodged itself into my throat. It took everything I had not to run directly to her, but I knew just being nearby wouldn't help. Claudine had no such hangups, she bent down by her sister.
I circled around the shed to where the shot had come from.
Lucky stood proudly, smoking gun in hand. It immediately dawned on me that it was his fanboat we were headed to. He must've just arrived on it, that was why it was facing the way it was.
I came up behind him, my pistol drawn and trained. He finally noticed me, his eyes flaring wide. There were no clever quips, no witty banter and no hesitation.
The only sound between Flora's labored wails was me pulling the trigger.
Next came the subsequent dry, sad clicks. Lucky flinched, but my cartridge had been empty.
“Shit, man!” Lucky hollered. He double checked that he hadn't been shot. Then he laughed in blatant relief. “Where do you think I got my namesake from, fella? Just not your lucky day— Ronin?” he asked, looking me over and realizing who I was. “Oh my... Then that must mean...” Lucky glanced at the Flora. “This—” He laughed again. “This couldn't be any more perfect!”
Flora rolled on the grass, clutching at her thigh. It was pouring blood, and though she was trying to stop it with her hands, Claudine was crying. She desperately wanted to help, but she needed more than her will for this. I had no idea how badly Flora was injured, but if Lucky hit an artery, she would be dead in mere minutes. Flora's life was slipping away.
“You're still riding with the same whore?” Lucky asked. “It must be love. Can't blame you, really.” He looked Flora over lewdly. “Even all bloody, that piece of pussy cleans up awfully sweet.”
Right then, regardless of what came next, I said something in my head. It wasn't a prayer, but more of a pledge. I swore to anyone or anything that might be listening that I wouldn't let this happen.
I wouldn't let Flora die.
“You ain’t got a damn thing to say? You know, my nuts still fucking hurt, you fucking asshole! You know what I'm gonna do now? I'm gonna let you watch as I kill your whore fir—”
I didn't have the time nor the inclination to listen to the threats of the dead. In that moment I was no longer a man, I was just a series of synapses, rapidly firing. I was cornered and with Flora hurt, flight never registered as an option.
There was only fight.
I charged Lucky, hurling my gun at him. It struck him in the throat, dipping his head and obscuring his attempted gunshot.
A near miss.
I put my forearm into his throat when I reached him, taking us both to the grass. Lucky squirmed, his unkempt nails drawing long, red lines over my brow. I let him rip the skin on my face because it took both of my hands to strip the gun from him.
But when I did... I had him.
With the weight of long-overdue justice, I rained down wrathful blows onto Lucky's face with the handle of his weapon.
Abduction. Crack. His eye socket shattered.
Rape. Crunch.
Imprisonment. The flesh on his cheek flayed away.
Human trafficking. Teeth exploded.
Murder.
Each pulping strike was fueled by all the lives Lucky had destroyed. All the horrible shit that this evil bastard had a hand in, finally catching up.
I was Lucky's reckoning day.
“Ronin!” Claudine's voice was so distant that I hardly heard it. I'd given myself over completely to my old military training. I was a passenger in my own mind. My body was on autopilot. “Ronin!” Again, I barely recognized it.
All I saw was Lucky's face. It was a shattered pulp. His breathing raspy and broken, he struggled to maintain consciousness. I saw my gun-clenched fist punch the pistol's barrel into his mouth. Then, I saw myself fire off the rest of his magazine.
“Connor, help!”
Flora.
In the wake of the gunfire I heard her voice and it cleared my head immediately. I felt like I had just woken up.
Already rising to my feet, pushed myself into a run and prayed I reached them in time. “Get her to the boat!”
A massive alligator had slithered out of the waterline, looking for an easy feast. It waddled toward them both. The beast's low hiss had turned into a full, guttural bellow when it neared. Its long, wicked mouth revealed dozens of razor-sharp teeth.
Despite Claudine's best efforts, she couldn't drag Flora away fast enough. The gator quickly closed the gap. Finally, well within biting distance, it lunged at the easiest target.
Flora.
My heavy boot came down on the reptile's upper jaw, closing it only inches from Flora's already wounded leg. The gator thrashed, shaking me off easily, then lunged again. There was so much blood pouring down my face from the scratches that I had trouble tracking the beast.
I had to throw myself on top of it and hope to land on something that wasn't teeth. Fortunately, I hit its back and was able to close its mouth with my hands. The sting in my eyes made it so I had to do everything almost entirely by feel.
I punched its eyes repeatedly. It bellowed and thrashed, but this time, I refused to let go. This thing was a killer?
So was I.
It finally started to retreat, and I knew that any fight the beast had left was gone. It had mistaken us for easy prey. No doubt Tully had been feeding it unwelcome company for some time.
I jumped off of it, watching as it crawled towards the water. Looking back to Flora, I could see that her bleeding wasn't as bad as I initially thought. As long as we could get that bullet out of her, she'd be fine.
“Fucking hell.” I knelt down to catch my breath and stripped off my belt. “Is everyone still whole?”
“I think so,” Flora said, wincing. I walked over, tying off her leg with the belt to halt some of the bleeding. Seeing her in this much pain renewed my anger at Lucky. I picked her up and carried her to the boat.
“How bad is it?” she asked, her chest flaring. She was clearly in pain, but trying not to show it.
My anger melted away, the time for that had passed. “I don't recommend we go dancing for at least a few days.” I enjoyed her helpless smile. “But when you're ready, I'll let you pick the place this time.”
“Those dumpsters will always hold a special place in my heart,” she chuckled grimly. Even now, covered in blood and pale, Flora was beautiful.
I gently laid Flora into the boat, then helped Claudine in. Lucky's fanboat was top of the line. It looked like it could hold about fifteen people and had one elevated seat, obviously for the driver, which was placed just before a massive caged-in engine and fan.
Sitting in the driver's seat, I turned the boat on and grabbed the one stick that was probably used for steering. Then, I hoped for the best.
“Do you know what you're doing?” Flora shouted over the extremely loud engine.
“I've got this,” I shouted back. “Hold on.” I looked behind me, expecting to throw it in reverse like a car and back out into the water. Instead, we jolted forward awkwardly at the mansion.
“Ronin?” Flora regarded me with a growing amount of worry. Claudine grabbed her sister and laid them both on the boat's floor. It was good thinking; if we hit something, they would be less likely to be thrown into the gator infested
waters.
Donning a steadfast, confident facade, I began again. Once I learned how the steering lever worked, I quickly got the hang of everything else. I managed to bring us into a big U-turn and get us out onto the water.
I had no idea if Tully's thugs were shooting at us, but I sure as hell wasn't sticking around to find out. The fanboat was the loudest and least inconspicuous thing I'd ever operated, and I’d just driven a dump truck.
After a few minutes, we were on the river and the estate had drifted out of view. The grassy water was a little choppy and the controls were way too sensitive, but it didn't slow me down that much.
Soon, I saw the distinctive outlines of motorcycles and other boats in the setting sun, along with about thirty to forty people in an adjacent field. We'd reached the Steel Veins rendezvous point. The danger was finally over.
Looking closer at Flora, I saw that she was looking too pale, even for her. She was struggling to stay awake.
“We need the club doc over here. Now!” I roared, scanning the crowd for the doctor. I could see his tent halfway up the field. It'd be faster if I just brought her to him, so I hopped down and picked up Flora.
Jumping onto the bank, I ran her through the throng of rescued girls and bikers that milled about in various stages of distress.
The grizzled, clean-shaven old biker looked at me over glasses that hung halfway down his nose. “What'ya got, son?” He quickly sprayed and cleaned the plastic folding table, disinfecting it.
“Gunshot to the leg, but she's lost a lot of blood.” I set Flora on the table gently.
He prodded her wound. Flora yelped, shivering violently. With one last, pitiful look at me, her eyes rolled back as she passed out. The pain had been too much, and though I knew it was normal for her to faint from it, I still grit my jaw at the sight. I hated seeing her like this.
Doc cut down the side of her khakis to expose the area for cleaning, then he handed me a roll of paper towels. As he sanitized his equipment, I tore off a bunch to put in Flora's mouth. If she woke up during the procedure, she would need something to bite down on.
Claudine squeezed Flora's hand. “Is she going to be okay?” She was coming down from her high and was fighting the urge to become frantic. I knew all too well how she was feeling.