by AnonYMous
The Beaver Palace had turned into an absolute madhouse. There were people everywhere in various states of undress. Screams, shouts, gunfire, and the click-clack of marabou covered stilettos bounced off the walls from every direction. On the plus side the music seemed to have stopped. There was no more Lord of the Dance nonsense impeding on proceedings.
When they reached the top of the stairs Munson hesitated and looked around. Baby stared at the elevator doors in the corner of the main hall. They were still closed on this floor. She wondered what had become of the Red Mohawk. Even though Munson had said he would get her out of there, she couldn’t help but think her chances of getting out alive would improve greatly if she had her own masked serial killer with her.
‘Come on. This way!’ Munson yelled dragging her over to the double doors that led into the reception lounge. He charged through them with her tagging along behind. They were greeted by a sight that made Baby’s heart sink. The front door of the mansion was wide open. And storming through it into the entrance lounge was an army of armed riot police, dressed from head to toe in dark blue clothing with matching helmets. Benny Stansfield (who stood out prominently because he was wearing a beige suit) led them in. Munson stopped dead in his tracks and Baby clattered into the back of him.
Benny Stansfield pointed a handgun at them, holding it in both hands. The group of armed officers behind him, most of whom had machine gun rifles followed suit.
‘Drop that fucking gun, mister!’ Benny yelled over the din.
‘Shit,’ Munson muttered under his breath. Then he shouted out to Benny. ‘I’m not going to shoot.’
‘I know you’re not, because you’re gonna bend down slowly and place that gun on the floor, or I’m gonna shoot you.’
‘Okay, okay.’ Munson eased his grip on his gun, holding it by the handle with two fingers. He leant down and placed it on the floor. He stood back up and raised his hands to show he was surrendering. Then he whispered quietly to Baby. ‘Don’t panic.’
‘You’re Jack Munson, I presume,’ said Benny, keeping his gun aimed at Munson’s chest.
‘You know you’re never going to get away with this,’ Munson replied.
Benny ignored him. ‘Where’s Mellencamp?’ he asked.
Munson held his arms out with his palms facing upwards. ‘No idea,’ he said. ‘I’ve never met him. Wouldn’t know what he looks like.’
‘Baby?’ said Benny, turning to her. ‘Where’s Silvio?’
‘I don’t know. Upstairs in his office probably,’ she replied.
Benny gestured to some of his men. ‘You two check upstairs.’ He pointed at a couple of others. ‘You two go downstairs. The rest of you stay here with me.’
Without questioning the order, two of the riot cops hurried past Baby and Munson and headed down to the brothel area via the stairs, pushing aside one of the girls who tore past them, screaming her head off. Another two cops charged up the staircase that ran along the wall and up to a balcony directly above Baby’s head.
Munson called out to Benny. ‘Look man, I’m FBI. You’re making a lot of trouble for yourself here. I’ve already informed my head office of what’s going on in this town.’
Benny had been watching his men hurrying up the stairs. When Munson finished talking he glanced over at him as if he hadn’t heard anything he’d said. ‘Jack,’ he said with a smirk. ‘It is Jack isn’t it?’
‘Yes.’
‘Here’s the thing. I don’t give a fuck what the FBI knows. This is B Movie Hell. We make our own rules here. If Mellencamp wants you gone, and I’m almost certain that he does, then you’re gone. And probably so is Baby.’
‘We can come to some kind of arrangement you know,’ said Munson. ‘We’re on the same team.’
‘No we’re not. You’re a dead man walking. But you two aren’t even the reason we’re here. I want to know what happened to the doctor who showed up here earlier? Is there a fucking doctor in the house or what?’
Munson shook his head. ‘I don’t know what you’re talking about.’
‘I’m talking about a serial killer called The Red Mohawk who showed up here disguised as a doctor. Where is he? Or is it you Mr Munson? Are you the guy that’s been walking around in a mask murdering people in my town?’
‘Obviously it’s not me,’ Munson retorted.
‘Obvious to you my friend. But not to the rest of us. If anyone shows up here we can just tell ‘em we shot you because you were The Red Mohawk.’
‘That would work,’ said Munson. ‘If it weren’t for the fact that my boss already knows the identity of The Red Mohawk. You guys may not know, but I do and so do my superiors. You try to frame me for the murders and they’ll throw you in jail. Fuckhead.’
‘Fuckhead? Did you just call me fuckhead?’
‘Yes I did.’
Benny raised his gun a few inches and outstretched his arm, hinting at the possibility he might fire it at Munson. ‘That’s not very nice,’ he said.
Munson grinned. ‘You know, I just realised something,’ he said.
‘What?’
‘You’ve never shot anyone before, have you? You’re stalling because you don’t really want to shoot me.’
Baby wished there was something she could do to help. She looked around the entrance lounge for anything that she could use as a distraction or a weapon. To her surprise, she spotted something within seconds. Her only problem was how would she get to it? There were six riot police, including Benny, and they were all pointing guns at Munson. She took a small step away from him. No one seemed to notice, or care. There was a sofa to her right. It was the sofa she and Chardonnay had been sat on earlier before Mack had stormed in and dragged her downstairs. She needed to get to it.
She took another step towards it while Benny and Munson continued to trade macho insults and play mind games with each other. One of the riot cops behind Benny looked like he was watching her, although it was hard to know for sure because his eyes weren’t visible through the visor on his helmet. His rifle seemed to be slowly moving in her direction. She took one more step towards the sofa and planted her hand down on the arm of it.
‘What are you doing?’ the riot cop asked, pointing his rifle directly at her.
Everyone’s attention was drawn to Baby.
‘I was shot earlier,’ she said. ‘I’m feeling faint.’ Without waiting for anyone to tell her otherwise, she slid onto the sofa and sat down.
Benny kept his gun trained on Munson but shouted out to her. ‘Don’t you fucking move from there, Baby!’
‘Okay.’
‘Munson. You get down on your knees.’
Baby watched Munson drop to his knees. Benny edged towards him, his gun now pointed directly at Munson’s head. He was planning on shooting the FBI agent in cold blood, Baby was convinced of it. It was time to put her plan into action. She picked up the remote control for the television. On the screen in front of her, she could see the frozen picture of the packed Coyote Ugly bar. Chardonnay had paused it earlier when threatened by Mack. Baby hit the PLAY button on the remote. On the screen Maria Bello’s character shouted out via a megaphone -
“Okay, let’s give a big Coyote Ugly welcome to LeAnn Rimes!”
The riot police were startled by the shock of the shrill voice from the TV. They started pointing their rifles wildly, while swinging their heads around trying to figure out why LeeAnn Rimes had decided to come to B Movie Hell. Benny stopped edging towards Munson and turned around to see what was going on. ‘What the fuck?’ he said, a confused look on his face.
The other riot cops zeroed in on Baby and the TV. On the screen the sight of LeAnn Rimes and the Coyote Ugly girls dancing on the bar and singing Can’t Fight the Moonlight greeted them. For a few seconds they all watched the television in fascination, before Benny shouted out again.
‘TURN THAT SHIT OFF!’
Baby pointed the remote at the TV and pretended to press a button. She shrugged. ‘It won’t turn off.’
�
��For fuck’s sake!’
The distraction clearly worked. Benny now seemed to be caught in two minds about shooting Munson. He raised his gun and then immediately lowered it. He shook his arms, as if loosening them, and raised the gun again. He did this a few times before he seemed to eventually psych himself up and take aim with some genuine purpose. Baby’s breath caught in her throat as Benny’s finger began to squeeze the trigger.
In the end he hesitated for just a second too long. Without warning, an object the size and shape of a football came flying over the balcony above his head. Benny saw it just in time. He caught it in his arms just before it hit him in the chest. It almost knocked his gun out of his hand. He stared down at it. Everyone stared at it.
It was Silvio Mellencamp’s head. It looked pale and shrivelled and there was a vast amount of blood seeping out of the bottom of it.
‘SHIIIIT!!!’ Benny dropped the head on the floor. It rolled away from him towards Baby. It came to a stop on its side. Mellencamp’s tongue slid out of his mouth and licked the floor, while the whites of his eyes gazed up at Baby.
Benny staggered back. He had blood on his hands and down the front of his beige suit. He stared up at the balcony. His comrades all pointed their guns upward to see who or what had thrown Mellencamp’s head down at them.
Something else came flying over the balcony. A much larger object. This time it was the body of a man. A riot cop. It was one of the two guys Benny had recently sent up to Mellencamp’s office. Benny reeled back out of the way. The body landed with an almighty thud on the floor, scattering the other cops who all jumped out of its way. Baby felt the ground beneath her feet shake. There was a groan from the body that had landed on the floor in the middle of everyone.
‘He’s still alive!’ someone shouted.
‘What the fuck’s that in his hand?’ someone else mumbled.
‘A grenade.’
‘Shit.’
A small grenade rolled out of the fallen cop’s hand. It flashed brightly and made a loud hissing sound. A huge swathe of smoke poured out of it, spreading quickly in all directions, filling the room almost instantly. Baby heard a great deal of coughing and spluttering as everyone tried to back away from the smoke.
What followed next was a barrage of gunfire from above. Baby dived over to the corner of the sofa to get as far away from the middle of the room as possible. The gunfire was thunderous. The riot cops began firing back blindly from within the cloud of smoke that had engulfed them. Baby placed her hands over her ears and tried to focus on LeAnn Rimes and the Coyote Ugly girls. She could barely see them through the smoke, and it now looked like they were dancing along to a chorus of gunfire and screaming rather than Can’t Fight the Moonlight.
It quickly became hard to breathe and as the smoke engulfed her, Baby began coughing, which just made it even harder to catch her breath. She put her hands over her mouth and nose. Her eyes were stinging.
Eventually about two thirds of the way through Can’t Fight the Moonlight, the gunfire died down and LeAnn Rimes voice became audible again. Baby heard a few groans from within the dissipating smoke. She looked back to the middle of the room, her eyes streaming with tears from the smoke. It was hard to see anything. But then suddenly a man’s hand grabbed her by the arm and hauled her up from the sofa.
He dragged her through the smoke and towards the front doors. She stumbled over a couple of bodies on the floor but carried on, desperate to get to the fresh air outside. Whoever it was that had hold of her hand, he seemed to know where he was going. She could feel the air clearing a little with each step. Her lungs felt like they had closed up completely. But then suddenly she felt fresh air on her face. Her rescuer dragged her further clear of the smoke and into the cold air outside.
Baby opened her mouth wide and tried to suck in as much oxygen as possible. It made her cough and she doubled over as she attempted to get her breath back. The man who had pulled her out kept a tight grip on her left arm. After a couple of deep breaths she straightened up again and looked upon the face of the man who had helped her out of the building.
It was Benny. He pulled her in closer to him, his arm wrapped around her waist. His body pushed up against her back and he pressed a gun against her temple.
‘You’re coming with me,’ he said. ‘Make one stupid move and you’re dead.’
Fifty Three
Benny had his arm wrapped tightly around Baby’s waist. He was backing away from the front entrance of The Beaver Palace, dragging her with him. Baby kept her eyes focussed on the front door of the building, hoping to see the Red Mohawk make an appearance through the smoke that was billowing out from the reception lounge. There was definitely someone still alive in there because every few seconds a gunshot would ring out, although it sounded like whoever was firing was deep inside the building.
Benny was clearly panicking. He kept alternating between pointing his gun at Baby’s head and the front door. His breathing was erratic and hinted at some genuine anxiety. In fact, Baby considered the possibility that he was actually more nervous than her, even though she was the one with the gun against her head.
When they were halfway down the drive Benny whispered into her ear. ‘My car is parked just over there. When we get to it, you get into the passenger side. Don’t do anything stupid or you’ll regret it.’
Baby decided to try and play on his anxiety. ‘The Red Mohawk has come to take me home,’ she said. ‘If you take me with you he’ll come after us. Leave me here and he’ll forget all about you. Why don’t you just make a break for it?’
‘The Red Mohawk came take you home?’ Benny sounded surprised. ‘Who is he?’
Baby didn’t get a chance to answer. The silhouette of the Red Mohawk appeared in the middle of the smoke just inside the Beaver Palace. He strode out through the doors until he was clearly visible and the smoke was filtering out behind him. He was holding a gun in his right hand. He stopped and aimed it at Benny and Baby.
Benny pointed his gun at him and shouted. ‘Stop right there!’
The Red Mohawk had already stopped so it made little sense for Benny to shout the instruction, a further sign that he was in over his head.
The Red Mohawk kept his gun trained on them. It looked like he was lining up a shot at Benny’s head.
‘Hold on just a goddamn minute!’ Benny shouted. ‘Just listen will ya? I’m not going to hurt the girl. Just put your gun down and let me and her get out of here. But if you fire even one shot at me, I’ll kill her and you. And it’ll be your fault!’
‘Shoot at me,’ the Red Mohawk replied, daring Benny to back up his words with action.
‘What?’
‘Shoot at me. From that distance you’ll miss.’
Benny stopped pointing his gun at the masked psycho and instead pressed the barrel against Baby’s head.
‘Don’t fuck about!’ he snarled. ‘I’m calling the shots here. You place your gun on the ground or I shoot the girl. Do it now. No sudden movements.’
The Red Mohawk didn’t move or show any sign to indicate that he was considering doing as Benny instructed. The delay made Benny even more nervous. He pushed the barrel of the gun harder into Baby’s temple. Baby held her breath and tried not to move a muscle. Was this how she would die?
‘Put the gun on the ground and lie down!’ Benny yelled. ‘You’ve got three seconds to comply or I’ll shoot her. One…. Two….’
The Red Mohawk finally reacted. ‘Okay,’ he said. He raised his left hand to signal to Benny to stop counting. Then he bent down to place his gun on the ground. Baby closed her eyes and winced, fearing Benny was about to fire a shot at The Red Mohawk.
BANG!
She heard the gunshot loud and clear. She even felt the bullet whistle past her ear, missing her by less than an inch. Benny released his grip on her and she heard his gun clatter onto the gravel by her feet. She opened one eye and saw Benny crumple to the ground in a heap by her side. He had taken a bullet to the face. His head hadn’t e
xactly exploded, he just had a hole right in the middle of his forehead with blood dribbling out of it. His eyes had rolled up in his head and his tongue was hanging out.
She stared back at the Red Mohawk. He was still bent down, resting on one knee. But standing in the smoke behind him, pointing a gun at her was Jack Munson. A darker shade of smoke was rising up from the barrel of his gun.
Baby took a sharp intake of breath as she realised that Munson had taken a very risky shot.
‘Oh my God,’ she mumbled. ‘I don’t believe you just did that!’
‘It’s okay,’ said Munson, lowering his gun. ‘I make that shot ninety-nine times out of a hundred.’
Fifty Four
Joey Conrad took off the Red Mohawk mask and dropped it onto the ground by his feet. He ran his hand through his thick dark hair, which had matted somewhat under the mask. ‘Good to see you again Jack,’ he said.
‘You did good Joey,’ said Munson. ‘A little excessive for my taste, but you got the job done. That’s what counts, I suppose.’
‘Yeah.’
Munson looked down the driveway at Baby. She hadn’t moved since he’d fired a bullet through the forehead of Benny Stansfield. ‘You okay Marianne?’ he called out.
Baby nodded. ‘Can you call me Baby?’ she replied meekly. ‘I’m not ready for Marianne just yet.’
She looked cold, standing there in the night air in just a pair of jeans and a sleeveless red top. Joey Conrad walked over to her. He took off his red leather jacket and draped it around her shoulders. ‘Here, this’ll keep you warm.’
‘So what now?’ Baby asked.
‘I’m taking you home,’ he said. He stroked her hair and smiled.
Baby looked into his eyes and smiled back nervously. ‘Thanks for everything,’ she said.
‘No problem. You were worth it.’
Munson called out to them. ‘I can take her home.’
Conrad turned around. ‘This is my first proper mission Jack. The objective was to rescue Baby and take her home. Let me finish it.’