Enemies of a Sort

by A. B. Keuser

  *

  Giuseppe stood next to the bomb, his hands clasped behind his back. He stared at the wall as though it exhibited a masterpiece of art on display only for him. The glazed-over look was oddly at home on his face.

  Chadrick and Bruce had come down to the mine to give Flynn an update on Giuseppe’s foot hold. Only a few men were left, scattered about the gulch and the outskirts of town. On his way back out of the mine, Chadrick whispered something to Putty.

  Putty muttered an unintelligible apology to Flynn and left. Bruce remained in his place. Giuseppe didn’t seem to notice the changing of his guards, as he continued to stare forward until his watch beeped. Startled by the noise, Bruce jumped to attention and dropped his rifle to position.

  “Not to worry, my slovenly friend. It’s just my reminder.” Leaning down, Giuseppe punched a complex series of keystrokes into the timer followed by a new time limit, and then returned to his study of the wall.

  Flynn was starting to get annoyed by Refuti’s games. He checked his gun, though he knew it couldn’t have unloaded itself. Giuseppe set the time long enough that he wouldn’t have to ignore his wall too soon, but not long enough for them to get to a shuttle and leave.

  As if he’d read his mind, Giuseppe glanced at him out the corner of his eye. “I’d hate for you to think about killing me and running.”

  As Giuseppe watched the wall, a distant rumble echoed though the caverns. The ground shook, Bruce and Giuseppe were knocked to the ground. Flynn braced himself against the wall, covering his head with his arms, but no rocks fell from above. In the silence that followed, Flynn looked to the supported structure of the tunnel and listened closely. He heard nothing to indicate a cave in had occured.

  Beside him, the bomb beeped shrilly and the countdown screen changed, glowing red over the full face of it. Flynn didn’t have a clue what had happened, but he knew it wasn’t good. He stepped forward and saw the missing piece of the bomb.

  A shot rang out from behind him and Flynn turned to see Giuseppe half way down the shaft clutching a blood soaked shin.

  Seamus raced from behind a bend in the shaft and held his gun to Giuseppe’s temple. “Where do you think you’re going, Ass-wipe?”

  Flynn moved to Giuseppe’s side, ignoring the fact that the boy had disobeyed him completely. It was growing ever more apparent the kid had no regard for his own safety. If they got out of this alive, Flynn was going to have to have a talk with the kid’s guardian.

  “What are you running from, Giuseppe?” Flynn pulled Giuseppe back toward the bomb, uncaring when the man shrieked in pain. “What’s changed?”

  “I heard some of his guys when I was sneaking in,” Seamus said, gleefully. “It’s rigged so that movement triggers a lockout code, like if you guys tried to dismantle the bomb or something it would mess up the timer, and then the timer set-back code won’t work.”

  “So you can’t push it back anymore?” Bruce shouted, his voice riddled with fear.

  “I have no idea what happened,” Giuseppe said gasping as he clutched at his leg.

  “I do,” Flynn said, calmly. “Part of the explosives jiggled loose in the tremor. It responded as if someone tried to move it. So you’re screwed now, Giuseppe. Do us all a favor and give me the code.”

  “I can’t; it won’t work. You heard the boy. It’s locked out.”

  “Bullshit,” Flynn said. “Are you willing to die with us? One way or the other you aren’t getting this planet without us.”

  Just then, Putty rounded the corner with a bag slung over his shoulder. “Did you miss me?”

  Flynn started to say something but Putty waved him off and stepped between Giuseppe’s good and bad legs.

  “Chadrick managed to stabilize your sister. Do you know how close you came to killing her? I mean its one thing to disapprove of a marriage, it’s another to get your sister high enough that she nearly ODs on one of the most addictive substances in the galaxy. I can’t imagine what you were thinking, giving her that much mad milk. You could have tranquilized a colossal whale. It’s amazing she didn’t die outright. Lucky for her Chadrick is an excellent doctor.”

  “I had to do something. I had to protect her. She wanted to leave, and you were only going to hurt her.” Giuseppe said to Putty, his concern obviously false.

  “Right, so you decided to hurt her first?” Putty dropped his bag to the floor and pulled out a roll of duct tape and a focus charge like the ones Flynn had seen topside in a tool locker.

  Bruce watched, wide eyed, as Putty bit the duct tape and tore off a long piece. Slapping the focus charge into the center, he wrapped the miniature bomb around Giuseppe’s bloodied knee.

  “You know,” Putty said, tapping his chin and observing his cobbled together threat. “I’m not sure that’s going to be enough incentive,” after all, that knee is already shot… hey, that’s a pun, right?”

  He bound the other knee in the same way and then paused, tapping his finger to his lips. “That still doesn’t seem sufficient.”

  Flynn watched as his brother tore off another, longer piece of tape, slapped another charge in place and looked at Giuseppe with a deranged smile. “I really do hate to do this to you…” He laughed a sharp and shrill bark, doubling over, “Okay, that’s a blatant lie.”

  Putty secured the tape over Giuseppe’s groin and the man let out a little whimper as he tried to scoot away.

  Flynn bit his tongue to keep from telling his brother to stop. Putty’s bluff was getting a little excessive, but they were running out of time.

  “Oh dear,” Putty said, holding up three detonators. “I’ve completely forgotten which of these is tied to which charge….”

  He tossed one of the detonators into the air and began juggling them.

  “You’re insane!” Giuseppe spat the words at Putty before turning to Flynn. “Can’t you see this is madness?”

  “Hey! Shit-for-brains,” Putty said, catching the detonators and kicking Giuseppe’s good knee. “I don’t have to do what he says; I’m the big brother. Now I’m giving you ten seconds to give us the damned code. Ten.”

  “You’re completely insane.”

  “Nine.”

  Giuseppe glanced between Flynn and his brother, clearly hoping Flynn would intervene.

  “Eight.”

  Giuseppe struggled with his bonds, but Flynn could see there was no chance of them coming loose.

  Putty waggled the detonators at him. “I’d really consider what you’ve got to lose, there, buddy. Five.”

  “You can have Sophia! Just leave, take her with you and I’ll never bother you again.”

  Putty shook his head. “She’s a person. She’s not yours to barter or sell. Four.”

  “Please, I’m begging you, don’t!”

  Putty picked one of the three detonators in his hand and stuffed it in his pocket. “Don’t beg, give us the code. Three.”

  “Two….” Putty flicked open the safety covers on both charges in his hand.

  “One.” He flicked one of the switches.

  A loud pop followed by a scream and the sickening smell of burnt flesh permeated the shaft.

  Flynn grabbed Putty by the arm and threw him away from Giuseppe as the man pitched sideways, one of his legs no longer connected at the knee.

  “What the hell, Putty?” Flynn kept his voice quiet. He knew Giuseppe was in agony, and probably couldn’t hear them over his own screams, but he didn’t need to risk it. “I thought you were bluffing.”

  “Our lives hang in the balance and you want me to bluff? This guy isn’t going to help us as long as he thinks he has the upper hand. He knows he doesn’t now.”

  Bruce had wedged himself and Seamus as far into a corner as he could, a look of horror and panic covered his face as he tried to shield the boy’s eyes and ears.

  Putty shook free of Flynn and tossed the used detonator to the side, and pulled the next from his pocket.

  “Now that’s a shame,” he said to Giuseppe.
“I was hoping for a different outcome.”

  Giuseppe’s eyes were fixed on the detonator in Putty’s hand. He’d stopped screaming, though a strangled sob filtered from the back of his throat every time he opened his mouth.

  “Now,” Putty said looking from Giuseppe to the bomb. “Are you going to give me that code? Or am I going to have to remove that small piece of anatomy that lets you call yourself a man?”

  Giuseppe trembled as he too looked to the bomb and then up to Flynn.

  Setting his jaw, Flynn did his best to keep emotion from his face. This was not what he had in mind, but sometimes war called for drastic measures; they had a planet to save. And for now, anyway, Putty really was in charge.

  Putty moved his hand, his fingers curling around the detonator.

  “Nine Seven Two Two Three!” Giuseppe yelled and Bruce rushed in and grabbed the detonators from Putty’s hand before he had a chance to do something stupid.

  Flynn punched in the code. He sent out a silent prayer to the black of space, held his breath and pressed the button to disarm.

  Silence enveloped the mine.