Dead Man's Hand

by Steven Meehan

  Immediately the same goon, presumably Dante, grabbed my neck again and forcibly lifted me to my feet. This prompted Dempsey to slam his hands down on the table. Everyone froze and fixed their attention upon the still seated man as he moved his glare away from me and upon Dante as he growled. “Dante, how dare you assault one of your co-workers, and after I had just laid down the importance of manners to our newest employee too. I don’t care what might have gone on in here before I arrived. He is now one of my employees just like you, and you should know better.”

  The pressure had come off of my neck the instant Dempsey started speaking, I was fortunately able to keep my feet, though barely. When I turned around I saw Dante’s massive form and realized that I had been trying to royally irritate a living mountain. That had certainly been one of my dumber moves; right up there with attending this tournament in the first place. And when he spoke, I was certain that he was number one, “I’m sorry boss.”

  “I’m not the one to whom you need apologize.”

  I expected the room to shake as the massive mountain of a man turned around to look at me and voiced his apology. “I’m sorry for lifting you up by your neck Francis.”

  Despite the apology, I couldn’t help but feel like I had just been threatened. How could a man who had been cowed mere moments ago manage to lace a threat inside of an apology? Though now that I saw the man I had zero desire to press him any further so I quickly replied, “Don’t worry about it Dante. Like the boss said we’re all family here.”

  With another one of his child-like smiles Dempsey spread his arms out wide saying, “See, I knew we all could get along. Now Dante, you will lead our newest employee out of here.”

  As I picked up the two envelopes, Dante put his hands under my arms and assisted me to my feet. When I turned around I saw a few things that I burned into my mind. There were two other people in the room, the other goon, an older woman, and of course there was the equipment I was told about. Now there were plenty of reasons to be nervous, one of them was helping me from the room right now, but it was the woman that was the real source of my unease. But, it was another puzzle for another time, right now I needed to get out of here.

  “Oh, by the way, Francis.” Hearing the dissatisfaction in Dempsey’s voice, I hesitated for a moment before turning back to him. Once he could see my eyes he added a personal dig. “I hope you don’t mind but I made the assumption that you would accept my offer. And I’m sorry to say that Bella seemed less than pleased when I mentioned it to her.”

  Those words made my stomach drop again. Bella had thought I was a good man, now what would she think of me? Would she even speak with me again? As thoughts of Bella swirled inside my head, I turned back toward the freezer’s door. Walking through, I was almost boiled alive by the hot air of the kitchen. Either Dempsey didn’t know what happened with an extreme temperature change or he just didn’t care. Or perhaps, even more disconcerting, Dempsey simply wanted to teach me a lesson about how dispensable I really was to him, despite my special abilities. Whatever the reason I was grateful to be getting away from Dempsey and that odd woman. Who had she been? And why did she trouble me more than Dempsey, or even Dante for that matter?

  Dante, as frightening as a man of his stature is, I was thankful for his assistance. I don’t think I would have been able to move a step without him helping me stumble my way through the kitchen. Also just as fortunately, we made the small trip to the rear exit in silence. I was fairly certain that Dante was mute simply to keep his temper in check. Once outside the restaurant, Dante surprised me by helping me into a sitting position on the loading dock. I had been expecting him to basically dump me and allow me to continue my defrosting alone.

  As soon as I was settled, however, Dante tried to make his escape. I quickly spoke to his retreating back, “Excuse me Dante, but do you all still have my coat and watch?”

  Without turning around the mountain of a man replied shortly, “When we’re out of ear shot of anyone else, you can drop the act. We both know neither one of us can stand the other.”

  I somehow managed to keep a civil tone in my voice as I repeated my request. “What about my coat and watch?”

  “Do I look like your servant?”

  “No you don’t look like a servant.” I offered in reply. And then I took my life in my hands as I continued, “But you do look like an inhospitable host.”

  The anger was practically radiating off of him as he muttered the words. “I’ll see what we have…”

  When he reached the door I thought of something else I was missing. “I’m sorry but I seem to be missing my phone as well.”

  My words halted Dante’s motion for a moment before he continued on through the door into the restaurant. I hoped he was searching for my requested possessions and not a good place to hide my body. But there was nothing I could do about it, so I decided to search the contents of the other envelope. When I opened it the first thing I saw was a photograph. I removed the photo and caught sight of a few stacks of cash lying at the bottom of the envelope. With great care I laid the photo down on the other envelope before turning my attention towards the money.

  I pulled out the stacks of cash and quickly thumbed through them. To my surprise I found a random collection of hundreds, fifties, and twenties in each stack. I would have to count the stacks in full later, when I was alone. With a mental curse I let the money slide back down to the bottom of its envelope and just sat there for a moment. There was no reason not to look at the picture, other than not wanting to know what I was being paid for. But I knew, if I wanted to live, I would eventually have to look at the picture, so I swapped the cash for the photo.

  Looking down I studied the single eight by ten, but the face it contained held my focus. While it wasn’t the best photograph I had ever seen, the original picture may have been of better quality. But this must have been blown up to take up most of the room available on the eight by ten sheet of glossy paper. This was a surveillance photo plain and simple. Apparently Dempsey was keeping tabs on the man, but I knew that I didn’t want to know the why.

  My eyes were pulled to the bottom of the page where I found a few printed words. I quickly guessed they were the name that belonged to the face, Mr. Alexis Rene LeBlanc. What did you do to draw Dempsey’s attention? As I sat there wondering who the man was and what he possibly could have done to merit this kind of scrutiny from Dempsey, I eventually turned the photo over. And on the other side I saw more text and immediately wished I hadn’t. What was there was an address, presumably the man’s home address, along with a simple command, take care of the problem.

  As I thought about what that command implied I almost missed the kitchen door squeaking open. I hurriedly slid the photo back into its envelope before turning around to greet Dante with a smile. And apparently it came out as more of a scowl because the man quickly shoved my coat into my arms, hopefully my watch and phone were inside the pockets. Seeing Dante’s face I knew that if I was missing anything else I would simply have to replace it.

  I could tell he wanted to turn around but he must have received a warning to play nice because he held his ground, waiting in case I had any more requests. So of course, I decided to press my luck with a few more questions. But since I didn’t want to truly expose my ignorance I needed to lay a little groundwork. “I looked at the other envelope.”

  I had taken a slight pause to steady myself but Dante interrupted, his apathy apparent. “Good for you.”

  I kept my annoyance down and as calmly as I could manage, asked my question while avoiding his eyes. “So what does ‘take care of the problem’ mean?”

  “How stupid are you?” I flinched at his words but I had expected something like them. When I glanced up his face displayed open contempt.

  “I’ve always been a solo act, at least… but that’s not important.” Why was I flustered with the mountain? I shouldn’t have to explain myself to him, but the words kept flowing out of me before I could stop myself. “But
I’ve never done anything more than a good old B&E. So no, I’m not entirely sure what it means. And since Dempsey said I should ask you any questions, I’m asking. What does this mean?”

  With a look of disbelief and frustration running across his features, the man tried to rub them off with his hands before offering his reply. “That man has been interfering with the boss’ business for far too long. And we’ve been unable to get to him using conventional means. You present a new means by which to remove the thorn. So remove it.”

  I wasn’t intentionally trying to be thick… okay, maybe a little. But I wasn’t going to do any interpretation with this command. I needed to know exactly where I stood with Dempsey. I needed to know what my role was going to be. So I probed a little more. Dante’s expression changed to one of scorn. “You need to take steps to ensure that we never have to deal with him again.” When I continued to remain silent, Dante spat on the ground right behind him before asking me, “Do I need to spell it out for you?”

  “I would genuinely appreciate it, yes.” I answered with a vigorous nod of my head.

  Disgusted he spat on the ground again before replying. “Take him for a long walk on a short pier. Send him swimming with cement boots. Teach him to push up daisies. Am I being obvious enough for you now or do I need to draw you a picture?”

  I couldn’t speak, but I managed to nod in Dante’s general direction. Once I did, he quickly left me there on the loading dock. I was numb to the world and it was no longer due to my stay in Dempsey’s frozen cell. No wonder the man had been so eager to get a hold of me. I had the potential to be the perfect assassin. I was someone who would never get caught, since I would never leave any evidence behind. I pulled the photo out of the envelope just enough to look down into Alexis’ blue green eyes and wondered if I could do what Dempsey was demanding of me. Would my struggle for my life mean anything if I had to turn into an assassin? Looking down into those joyous eyes I did nothing to stem the flow of tears

  Chapter 17

  It was good to be outside, with the moon and stars looking down on me. Despite the chilled air of night I was much warmer than I had been in Dempsey’s freezer. As I curled up in the shadows of one of the houses across the street from Alexis’ home, my mind was at war with itself. On the one hand I was trying very hard not to think too much, about anything, but most of all about the reason I was waiting here inside this patch of darkness. But every time I tried to push it out of my mind it came tumbling back into focus. I was here to assassinate someone.

  There in the shadows I was still trying to rationalize what I was planning on doing. One part of my mind, my conscious, kept focusing upon the truth, I was here with every intention of ending a man’s life. But of course there was another part of my mind, which desperately wished to cling to life. My self-preservation side kept trying to convince my conscious half that this was Alexis’ own fault. Each time my conscious started to complain, it was pressed with a question. Why would you intentionally antagonize a monster like Dempsey? And with every repetition of these words I grew just a little more deaf to my sense of morals. It was a good argument, no good could ever come from that kind of fight; a fact that I was already learning first hand.

  But just because I was growing deaf to its arguments, didn’t stop that other voice. Each time I heard the rationalization for my actions my fingers reached for the single envelope that I was carrying. And each time I opened the envelop I reached in and pulled the eight by ten photo from its confines and immediately flipped it over to double check the address on the backside. At least that was what I told myself I was doing, there was still just enough light left in the sky that I was able to confirm that address for the umpteenth time.

  I knew why that voice inside my head kept turning my attention to the envelope, I just didn’t like it. But I also knew that I had to be honest with myself, especially with this. I wasn’t nervous or worried that I might have the wrong home, no in fact I had confirmed it far too many times by now to think I had mistaken the location. The real source of my unease was twofold, one was the real reason I kept pulling out the photograph, while the other was Dempsey’s readiness to take me in. Which of course only amplified my unease regarding the photo. That willingness was uncharacteristic from the man, the only common thread I had been able to pull from all of the rumors and stories was his ruthlessness. He displayed nothing else when dealing with people who crossed him, especially cheaters.

  Needless to say I didn’t believe Dempsey’s line about sparing my life simply because I was special, despite his claim. And the moral side of my mind calling me to spare Alexis’ life gained a little bit of control, forcing me to turn the photo over in my hands. Could my abilities give me a little leeway with this? With the question fresh in my mind I went from studying the printed address to the man’s face. And just like every other time, Alexis’ joyous eyes caught my attention. Even with the distortion from the enlargement I was able to plainly see the spark of happiness in those bluish-green eyes. Studying the face once more, I noted the same details of Alexis’ face again, and my self-preservation shouted that it wouldn’t make any difference. Other people like me existed, Dempsey would just find another to take my place.

  Those cheerful eyes were framed with shoulder-length blackish brown curly hair that was loosely tied back. But it was the man’s smile that unsettled me almost as much as his eyes. Just like the joy I could sense from those eyes, I could see genuine happiness in that smile. Somehow I knew that happiness wasn’t fueled by a single instance, but rather it had been crafted over a lifetime of happy moments. And I knew that the majority of those moments were not ones that made him happy, rather they brought happiness to others. Alexis Rene LeBlanc was indeed a good man. That pesky side of my brain always kept coming back with this argument, I had been sent to take care of… No! I had been sent to assassinate a good man.

  What does that make me? The question hammered at me every time my conscience brought this up. I knew what Dempsey was, he was a monster, but I couldn’t answer the question about myself. I had begun to wonder if perhaps Alexis deserved to live more than either Dempsey or myself. After all, I was the one hiding in the shadows, biding my time so I would be able to assassinate an apparently good man. Well scratch the apparent, I couldn’t keep using that qualifier. I have always believed that you could judge the value of a man based solely on the enemies they managed to collect. So if a man like Dempsey wanted a man like Alexis dead, then by that fact alone he was either a very good man at worst or a saint at best. Either way, it was clear that he didn’t deserve to die.

  But yet here I was. I slid the photo back into its envelope and I let my eyes fall to the date, which had been printed on the upper right corner of the photo. Now it was bad enough that I needed to assassinate a good man, but what made this worse for me was that it needed to be done tonight. It was clear that Dempsey was intentionally making my life more challenging with that inane deadline. Yet, the more I thought about it, there was a certain amount of sense behind such pressure, perverse as it might be. He needed to know that he could trust me, and what better way to do that than by giving me a handful of hours to complete my first task.

  At least, I was hoping that was what it was. It was either that, or he was placing way too much stock in what he considered, magic. And that was another thing I was having trouble reconciling, his belief in magic. It just didn’t mesh with the stories I had heard. But I was absolutely certain that had been the look I had seen in his eyes. Belief that magic was real and that it could accomplish anything for him.

  Not that Dempsey’s belief in magic was really all that pivotal to what I had to do at the moment. In the end my choice was as simple as it was difficult. Either execute a good man or allow myself to be executed. And as selfish as the decision was, I really didn’t feel like dying today. Thus, the price for my freedom was going to be an innocent life and my self-respect. And the last vestiges of that principled side of my mind asked the most troubling question. A
re you going to be able to live with that?

  I promptly squashed the question because it wasn’t something I was willing to think about. Instead, I busied myself with contemplating my “duty” to Dempsey and scanned the neighborhood again. It seemed like a relatively quiet night, at least I was unable to see anyone through any of the windows or on the street so it felt like a safe assumption. Especially when I needed to “take care of the problem” by the end of the night. I quickly and carefully dashed from shadow to shadow. Each time I reached a new pocket of darkness I waited for a moment to see if anyone had noticed me.

  When I finally reached the exterior wall of Alexis’ home I searched for the deepest shadows and I tucked myself away there. I must have waited for only a few moments, but it felt like an eternity, and it only gave me another opportunity to think about the task ahead of me. Since I doubted Alexis would welcome me into his home through the front door, I quickly decided to create my own opening, once I was ready. I silently placed my hands upon the wall positioning them just wider than my shoulders. Now I technically didn’t need to do that, physical contact was all that mattered, but it did help me focus my body heat, so it was what I always did.

  Closing my eyes I took a mental image of Alexis’ wall, and slowly began to create a hole in the mental copy of the wall I was touching. Once there was a hole in my mental image, I began to make it wider bit by bit until the hole was wide enough for me to walk through. As soon as I had it firmly entrenched in my mind, I began to gather all of the body heat I would need in order to power the transformation. Once it was gathered, I channeled it all through the mental image in my mind, down my arms and into the wall through my fingers. And as I opened my eyes, I saw my round entrance there to greet me.