Paradise Burns

by J. P. Sumner

  The drill broke through the ceiling and the floor above. I removed it quickly and waited a moment, to see if there was any reaction. Satisfied I’d remained undiscovered, I went back over to the bed and retrieved the camera and monitoring unit from my briefcase. The camera was a long, thin, flexible cord about three feet long. It was attached to a small notebook-style computer. The seven inch monitor showed what the camera saw. Where the keyboard would be were two joysticks, which could be used to move both the camera cord and the lens. I booted it up, then fed the camera through the hole I’d just drilled slowly, until it reached the floor of Jackson’s suite. I had the computer in my left hand, and was working the joysticks with my right, as I stood on the chair. I looked around with the camera. His suite was huge, which posed a slight issue. Given he had, from what I could see, four rooms in total, it was difficult to get a true reflection of who was with him, if anyone, as I could only see into the main lounge area. I could see Jackson sat at a desk, his head resting in his right hand as he concentrated on whatever he was looking at. I could see the double doors that led out to the hall, and I could see three doors leading off from the main room. Two were closed, but one was open slightly. It was to the right of the entrance doors. I made a mental note to check that room first, just in case. But other than that, he appeared alone in his suite.

  There was a knock on my door, and a voice outside announced itself as room service. I retracted the camera, climbed down off the chair, put the camera on the bed and retrieved my gun from the briefcase. The weight of my Beretta was always a comfort in my hand. I knew I had complete control of any situation when I had a hold of this gun.

  I moved over to the door and opened it, stepping behind it as I did. As the guy walked into the room with a tray in both hands, I pushed the door shut and stepped forward. He turned his head, caught by surprise, and before he could say anything, I slammed the butt of my gun into his right temple. He slumped to the floor, unconscious before the tray crashed down next to him.

  Goodnight sweetheart.

  ELEVEN

  I knocked on the door of the Summer Suite on the sixteenth floor, directly above my own hotel room. The uniform I’d borrowed fitted reasonably well. My gun, now equipped with its silencer, was tucked in the back of my pants and covered by the bottom of my waistcoat. I was carrying the tray that had been dropped in my room. I hope he’s not genuinely hungry, because I didn’t salvage much of the caesar salad that fell on my floor, and it looks awful.

  ‘Who is it?’ a frustrated voice asked from inside the room.

  ‘Room service,’ I replied.

  There was a brief pause.

  ‘I didn’t order anything, and I do not wish to be disturbed.’

  ‘Ah, dammit! Listen, I’m sorry for the mix-up, sir,’ I said. ‘The thing is, I need you to sign to say that you refused the delivery before I can return it.’

  There was more silence. I continued my sales pitch.

  ‘I’m really sorry to trouble you with this, sir. It’s just if I don’t have the correct paperwork, I’m going to get in a lot of trouble. Can you please just quickly sign this, and I’ll be out of your way.’

  I heard movement from inside the room. Bingo! I balanced the tray on my left hand and reached behind me, wrapping my right hand around my gun.

  I heard the bolt unfasten. I saw the handle turn. My plan was to drop the tray as the door opened so the noise masked any sound from my gun as I shot him between the eyes. Then I’d drag his body into the room, shutting the door behind me. I’d search everywhere for any paperwork relating to the plot of land he was going to sell to Pellaggio, then clean the entire scene of any trace I’d been there, then leave.

  That was the plan anyway.

  However, as the door opened, it wasn’t Ted Jackson stood in front of me. It was a tall, gorgeous, leather-clad woman. She was holding a gun in a very steady hand, and she was aiming it right between my eyes.

  Shit!

  The seconds that passed between us felt like hours. For me, at least. The silence was deafening, and everything seemed to freeze. My mind was racing, purposefully, rushing to find a solution that didn’t involve me being shot.

  There weren’t many, I’ll be honest.

  I soon came to the conclusion that if she wanted me dead, I would be. Therefore, it’s probably best to let this play out for now, until I was in a better position.

  ‘Hi,’ she said. Her accent was hard to pinpoint. It sounded like a blend of different European countries, with a hint of American.

  ‘Hey,’ I replied.

  ‘Room service? That’s original.’

  ‘Well, you know what they say: if it ain’t broke...’

  ‘Send a fixer?’

  ‘Something like that.’

  For a moment, I thought I saw her let slip a small, half smile. But I could be wrong. I wasn’t really looking anywhere but at the end of the gun that was pointing at my face.

  ‘Do come in,’ she said.

  I stepped inside the suite. It really was huge. I took a quick glance around, absorbing everything. The layout and the position of the doors and the furniture. I glanced over at Jackson, who was still sat at his desk, but had turned around to see what was happening. His face showed more disinterest than concern - clearly a level-headed guy who’s no stranger to dangerous situations. Interesting.

  I turned around to face the woman, who still hadn’t moved the gun even a millimeter. She looked very similar to when I first saw her yesterday afternoon. Her dyed blonde hair was long and slightly curly, resting on her shoulders. She had dark green eyes, which were very pretty, but there was no emotion in them - none at all.

  She was starting to concern me, simply for the fact she was so at ease with pointing a gun at me. Most people, even seasoned veterans at such things, will be on edge a little when holding a gun on someone. Don’t let anyone tell you different. And don’t believe what you see on TV. If you have a gun on someone, your whole body is tense. You’re trying to remain calm, as the slightest wrong movement could accidentally kill someone. Your finger has to maintain the right amount of pressure on the trigger, and the slightest movement that you’ve not anticipated, and your twitch muscles will kick in and your gun will fire off a round. You also have to consider every eventuality around you, such as the person you’re pointing your gun at making a move on you. If they do, you have to maintain control of your gun to avoid it going off in any struggle that might unfold. Finally, you have to prepare yourself for pulling the trigger and being so close to the body that you see the effects. You only learn to deal with those things, and be more calm and natural when faced with them, after many years of experience. Right now, this woman was showing she has roughly the same amount of experience I do.

  She took a step toward me and leant in close. She reached behind me and took my gun out of my pants.

  ‘You won’t be needing this,’ she said. She threw it on the floor without a second thought.

  ‘I want that back, it’s very special to me,’ I said.

  She raised her eyebrow.

  ‘I’m gonna put my tray down now, okay?’ I continued. ‘Just letting you know so you don’t shoot me or anything.’

  ‘Go for it,’ she said.

  I had the tray in both hands. I knelt down to place it on the floor, but at the last minute, I frizbeed the tray into her legs, right on the knees. It caught her off guard and she lost her balance, causing her to lower her gun. I jumped back up and stepped in close to her, grabbing her right arm and moving so I had my back to her. Keeping her gun arm under control with my right arm and my upper body, I used my left elbow to jab her in her stomach, then again in her face. She fell backward against the door, stunned but not out of it. She’d dropped her gun, which I’d very quickly bent down to retrieve.

  Don’t get me wrong, despite what I do for a living, I wouldn’t hit a woman as a rule. But given she had a gun, and took me by surprise, I figured the bitch had it coming.

  As this was hap
pening, Ted Jackson’s cool, calm demeanor had left the premises, leaving the quivering wreck I now saw before me. Papers were scattered as he scrambled out of his chair and made a run for one of the other rooms.

  ‘Teddy, be cool,’ I said, and promptly shot him in the foot with his bodyguard’s gun. He stumbled and fell and started bleeding all over the expensive carpet. He was screaming, which was understandable, but a little annoying. I walked over and kicked him in the side of the head. He stopped screaming.

  I looked back over at the front door and the woman was getting to her feet, shaking her head to clear it. I aimed the gun at her.

  ‘Don’t do it, darlin’ - I’m better than you are.’

  TWELVE

  She looked like she wanted to protest, but I could see her assessing the situation and realizing that right there and then, I was right. She dropped to one knee and put her hand to her head where I’d hit her.

  ‘You’re in way over your head,’ she said.

  ‘I don’t know about that,’ I replied. ‘But there are a few questions I need answers to. And you’re going to give them to me.’

  I’d stuck the cable ties from my briefcase in my pocket before coming up here dressed as a bellboy, so I used these to secure the woman and Ted to two of the chairs in the suite. I was sat on the couch in front of them, leaning back with my feet on the table in front of me, waiting for them to come round. I’d even been nice enough to wrap a towel around Ted’s bleeding foot. After all, I didn’t want him passing out or moaning too much before I had a chance to speak to him.

  I slapped Ted’s face to bring him round. Up close, he didn’t look as high and mighty as he did when he was walking around chatting into his phone and swinging a briefcase around. He groaned as consciousness washed over him once again.

  ‘Hey, Ted,’ I said.

  ‘What’s happening?’ He groaned, still a little confused from being shot and kicked in the head.

  ‘Right now, you’re tied to a chair in your suite at The Four Seasons. You have a hole in your foot, which I put there to stop you running off.’

  He frowned, as if in deep concentration. He turned his head and saw his female bodyguard sat next to him, in much the same position. Except she hadn’t been shot.

  ‘Don’t worry, your lady friend is here next to you. We’ll get to her in due course, but first I really must get the formalities out of the way.’

  ‘Wh-what formalities?’ he asked. ‘I don’t understand.’

  Fear was starting to creep into his voice, replacing the confusion.

  ‘Sure you do, Teddy. You were meant to be selling some land to a mob boss named Roberto Pellaggio. But you pulled out of the deal with no notice or explanation, and kept his money. He hired me to ask you really nicely to reconsider your position on this matter and to let him have the deeds to the land, as per your original agreement.’

  I leant forward, gesturing with the gun.

  ‘Which reminds me. Say, Ted, don’t suppose you fancy selling my employer the land you just screwed him out of, do you?’

  ‘What? Is that what this is about? Jesus Christ!’ He shook his head in a gesture to clear it, then looked at me.

  ‘Tell that Marlon Brando wannabe that he can go screw himself. I can’t believe the ballsy prick would go this far. Didn’t think he had it in him.’

  ‘Ted Jackson!’ I exclaimed. ‘Way to grow a pair! But seriously, he’s a very powerful mob boss, and he will do absolutely whatever it takes to get that land back. If you didn’t learn that about him when you were dealing with him, you’re dumber than you look.’

  ‘He has no idea who he’s dealing with!’

  I sighed.

  ‘I know he doesn’t, the guy’s a fucking idiot,’ I agreed, which seemed to take Jackson by surprise a little. ‘But I don’t really care. I know who I’m dealing with, and that’s what matters. Pellaggio is going to pay me a hundred grand to kill you if you don’t sell him the land. He’d rather I didn’t have to, but he understands it’ll probably be necessary.’

  Ted laughed. Which I thought was a little strange, given the circumstances.

  ‘I’ll give you quarter of a million dollars to let me go right now, and I’ll pretend this never happened.’

  ‘While I have no doubt you can afford such a generous offer, I don’t get why you’re saying it like you’re doing me a favor?

  He leant forward as much as he could, which wasn’t much.

  ‘You say you know who you’re dealing with, but you really don’t. You’re nothing but a low-life hired gun who’s in way over his head, and you’re going to die whatever happens here.’

  While I knew he was completely wrong, and could forgive his cavalier attitude given he clearly had no clue who I was, I believed that he believed what he said. However, his unjustified bravado was starting to annoy me.

  I sighed.

  ‘Ted, tell me why GlobaTech Industries have such an interest in a plot of land in the middle of the Nevada desert?’

  ‘Screw you,’ he said, pausing after each word for added effect.

  He was starting to gain confidence, which is quite strange, given his current predicament. Normally, you’d make sure any hostage had zero confidence at all times, to minimize any risk. But there was no risk here, and I was curious about his reaction, so I thought I’d let it play out a bit longer.

  ‘Okay, let’s try something else,’ I gestured to the woman next to him. ‘Who’s she?’

  ‘She’s my personal bodyguard.’

  I looked at her. She was observing the situation with a curious detachment. She remained silent.

  ‘You’re being protected by a girl? Jesus, Teddy, is that not emasculating at all to you?’

  The woman huffed in disgust at me, which I didn’t acknowledge. I simply smiled back at her, causing her to roll her eyes and look away. Jackson said nothing, although he clearly wanted to. I was trying to goad him into giving me information, and he probably knew it. Not the oldest trick in the book, but it’s certainly in the first few chapters.

  ‘Not your standard security detail, I’m sure you’d agree,’ I continued, turning back to Jackson. ‘So who is she?’

  He looked at me with impatient, defiant eyes, maintaining his silence. Okay, time to take his confidence away again.

  In one swift movement, I stood up and used my free hand to throw the table in front of me across the room. This spontaneous, violent act took Jackson by surprise. As he gasped in shock, I shot him in his other foot. This caused him to scream and black out.

  ‘Oh, Teddy,’ I said. ‘That’s just embarrassing.’

  THIRTEEN

  Despite the commotion, our mystery woman remained silent. I turned my attention to her now. Shooting Jackson in his other foot had taken her by surprise as well, and prompted her to start thinking of her own well-being. I watched as she assessed her situation, tried her restraints, had a quick look around the room and came to the realization that right now, she had no move. She looked at me and relaxed again in her chair.

  ‘I can’t believe you hit a woman,’ she said. She wasn’t annoyed - well, not any more than anyone else would be after they’d been elbowed in the face. I think she was just toying with me.

  ‘Yeah, sorry about that,’ I said. ‘Actually, I’m not - you had a gun on me, so you deserved everything you got.’

  ‘I only had a gun you because you were going to try and kill the guy I’m supposed to protect.’

  ‘Well, I was only going to kill him because he screwed a gangster out of millions of dollars.’

  ‘Oh, well, that’s alright then!’

  She pulled a face, and I realized we were arguing like siblings.

  ‘Why are you protecting him anyway? What makes that guy so special?’

  ‘I’m just following orders, like you.’

  ‘I don’t follow orders, I don’t answer to anyone. A benefit of being self-employed.’

  ‘Are you always this argumentative?’

  ‘Are you alway
s this much of a bitch?’

  ‘Oh, your words cut me like a knife.’

  ‘There’s no need for sarcasm.’

  ‘There’s no need to tie me to a chair!’

  ‘You had a gun on me!’

  ‘What, that again? Get over it, you pussy.’

  I sighed. What is it with this woman? I didn’t particularly want to shoot her, but she was testing the restraint of my trigger finger while pitching her tent on my last nerve.

  ‘Enough,’ I said. ‘You’re going to answer my questions, or I’m going to shoot you in the face. Understood?’

  She said nothing, but raised a quizzical eyebrow - either to show she understood, or to silently call my bluff. I assumed it was the former, not the latter, seeing as I don’t bluff.

  ‘What’s your name?’ I began.

  ‘Does it matter?’ she replied.

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘Fine, my name is Clara Fox.’

  ‘Thank you. Okay, Clara, who do you work for?’

  ‘Right now? Him.’

  She motioned with her head to Ted Jackson, who was slumped next to her.

  ‘So, what, are you freelance?’ I asked.

  ‘I go where I’m told to. I don’t ask questions.’

  ‘That’s a weird answer to a perfectly straightforward question.’

  ‘Take it or leave it, I don’t care.’

  ‘Do you know why you’re protecting him?’

  ‘Yes.’

  ‘Elaborate.’

  She sighed. I don’t think she was losing patience as such, I think she was just unhappy because she’s not used to not being the one asking the questions. I don’t know what it is about her, but I like her. Not like that. She’s more of a kindred spirit, I think.

  ‘My assignment was to protect Jackson while he closed a business deal between our respective employers for the sale of a plot of land in Heaven’s Valley. We knew that the local mafia had been approached to buy up the land as well, but we also knew that deal had been cancelled. It was assumed there would be some comeback, so I was assigned to make sure Jackson remained safe while he closed the deal with my employer.’