Double Deep Dark Desires

by Olivia Harp

  * * *

  Jena ran as fast as she could, the cold air hurt hard in her lungs as she breathed it in. She wouldn’t last long out here, it was even colder than she thought.

  I’m going to freeze to death.

  She only wore a thin sweater and her pajama bottom. If she hadn’t put on her shoes she wouldn’t have been able to make it this far.

  “Find her!” She heard the old man yell. Just past the trees behind Beast and Mills house, another house stood in silence. Every light was off.

  She turned back, the men were nowhere to be seen. Shit. Her body began to shake, she’d been sitting still for less than a minute and the cold was already beginning to bring her down.

  Her only chance was making a racket loud enough to wake the neighbors up before boss Caronte an his thugs got to her.

  “We know you’re here,” a middle aged, bearded man said. She saw him now, looking for her in the dark, “we just want to talk.”

  Sure. Just talk. The gun in his hands said otherwise.

  She couldn’t make a noise now. She had to hide.

  No. Hell no.

  She knew better than that. She would not wait for those bastards to find her cowering in the dark. She stood up, picking a big rock, still hiding behind a tree.

  “It will only take a moment,” the man said, “we just want to ask you some questions.”

  “Found her?” Another voice asked from afar.

  It would take him four or five more steps before he saw her. It was now or never. The bearded man opened his mouth to respond.

  “Not yet—”

  Jena jumped, cracking the rock on his face, breaking his nose with her improvised weapon.

  The man fell down, dropping his gun two feet away, she looked at him, his face covered in blood, not fully aware of what just happened.

  She raised her hand again to take him out but he caught her, still dazed.

  He was incredibly strong, Jena couldn’t bring him down.

  He rolled to the side and suddenly she flat on the cold, damp ground.

  “You bitch!” He said, half of his teeth missing.

  She tried to hit him again but he held both of her wrists.

  “She’s he—”

  She kneed him square in the balls. All of his strength drained from him, his hands went to his genitals, falling beside her. She was suddenly free.

  She stood up as fast as she could but the thug caught her feet and she fell down again, her arms and legs now full of bruises.

  He began standing up, still hurting down there, then she saw it.

  The blood in her veins felt cold, this was a different kind of fear.

  The man’s gun. It was there, in front of her, lying silently on the ground, she just needed to reach out for it—

  He pulled her back, taking her away from the gun, the jerking motion surprising her. Jena tried to kick him but he had regained some of his strength, pulling her fast and hard.

  She yelled, her body being dragged away from the weapon, her torso full of cuts and bruises.

  “No!” She yelled and jumped forward to grab the pistol.

  The man stood behind her and saw what she was trying to do.

  There it is.

  She had it in her hands.

  Crack! He kicked the air out of her lungs with a kick to the stomach. Her mind went blank, she thought she was going to fait.

  The gun fired loudly, the bullet hit a tree a few yards ahead. She had to focus. She had it in her grip. She tried to turn around and point it at her enemy but he stepped on her hand.

  “You think you can—”

  Jena grabbed his other leg and pushed, the man grunted and fell over her. Her right hand was useless now, she couldn’t even feel it, was it broken?

  She held the gun with her left hand, the thug reached over her and pressed her hand against the damp earth.

  “Be still, bitch, unless you—”

  “Stop right fucking there.”

  Her heart stopped. She couldn’t breathe. She was done.

  Her eyes turned to the right and found the old mafia boss, Robetro Caronte, staring at her with his cold black eyes.

  “You move again girl and I’ll shoot you dead.”

  She was frozen by fear.

  The man who wrestled with her stood up, his face a red ruin, cleaning the blood running down his nose.

  “Fucking—”

  “You shut the hell up,” the older man said, “she almost got you. I see how much you’re worth.”

  He slumped down instantly, embarrassed.

  “Sorry, sir, I—”

  “Throw the gun away,” the man said to her, not longer paying attention to his henchman.

  She was still on the ground, shaking so hard she had a hard time controlling herself. It wasn’t just the fear.

  The adrenaline began to fade and she was lying on the ground, she could feel the cold in her bones now.

  There was nothing else to do. They got her.

  She threw the gun away.

  “You all right, sir?” The younger thug wearing a red scarf asked, running to the commotion.

  “Help her up.”

  He did, her body was as cold as death, her jaw clenched shut.

  “Where are they?” The old man asked, “Mills and—”

  “They’re not here,” she replied, defiantly, “you won’t find them anywhere.”

  “Oh, they left you their house, that’s what you’re saying?”

  Scarf pulled her up and held her arm. Her whole body hurt.

  “Yes, that’s what I’m saying.”

  Her words came out strong. Stronger than she thought she could ever make them to be.

  The man nodded.

  “We’ll wait for them, then, I can be patient.”

  Scarf pushed her.

  “Walk.”

  “My clothes are all ruined,” said the bearded man she ust fought, pulling his head back, trying to prevent more blood from pouring out of his nose.

  “You got beat by a woman, I got no use for you,” the boss said.

  “No, boss. I wanted to take her alive.”

  “You were going to kill me.”

  The boss smacked her so hard she didn’t even register falling down, everything turned bring and painful and the next moment she was on the ground, being pulled up by Scarf.

  “You talk only when you’re spoken to,” the old man said.

  Jena kept stumbling back to the house. This was not going to end well.

  She knew that now.

  Chapter 27

  Beast

  Beast drove the car into the front parking lot, destroying the stop arm at the entrance. Time was against them.

  Mills waited for him at the door, vigilant.

  Beast walked out of the car and opened the trunk, taking out a five-gallon gas can.

  This is it.

  Beast poured the gas over the mattresses, boxes, computers, cameras, everything.

  “This shit is going to burn so bad.”

  “They made it easy.”

  Muffled moans of pain to their right called their atention, it was the guard, the one who was supposed to watch the screens, he was regaining consciousness.

  Too late, though, he was already tied up and gagged.

  They stared at him as he realized what was going on, then he started “yelling” even louder.

  “Chill the fuck out,” Beast boomed, “we’re not going to burn you alive.”

  His eyes were pleading, holding back tears and rage, he was trying to say something.

  “Go to him,” Mills said, “I’ll do this.”

  Beast left the gas can on the floor and walked to the man, taking the silver tape off his mouth in a swift motion.

  He screamed in pain.

  “What do you want?” Beast asked.

  “You can’t leave me here—”

  “I told you, we’re taking you outside.”

  “No! They’re gonna kill me!”

  Shit. He
was right. The Salianis weren’t known for being understanding and merciful, after all.

  That’s not my problem.

  “I can’t let you go.”

  “I haven’t seen you, I don’t know anything about you. Please, man. I just work here.”

  “Not with an Assault Rifle you don’t. You would have killed us if—”

  “Listen, it’s just a job, I—”

  Beast put the tape back on his mouth.

  “Be quiet, unless you want to smell your own burning flesh in a few minutes.”

  That quieted him down.

  “Are you done?” He called at Mills, who was no longer in sight.

  “Almost,” he replied from somewhere on the back of the warehouse.

  “All right.”

  “So what do you think? Are we going to do it?”

  Mills didn’t reply, maybe he chickened out.

  “Sure, fuck it, let’s do it.”

  Beast smiled. It was Mills, he never chickened out of anything.

  He walked to the next rack of mattresses and pulled out a knife.

  “Ready?” Mills voice echoed in the dark.

  The job was done. They just needed to do one more thing.

  He stabbed the mattress in front of him, gasoline stained his coat, the smell wouldn’t come off for weeks.

  “Two minutes,” he said.

  They were artists, and this was their masterpiece, a killing blow to the Salianis.

  He just needed two more minutes.

  * * *

  “You got the hard drives?” Mills asked.

  “Yeah, all of them here.”

  They would get rid of the security feeds later.

  “You wanna do the honors?” Mills asked, handing him a box of matches.

  “Glad to.”

  He lit a match and threw it inside. It wasn’t like in the movies, where the whole building catches on fire instantly and then explodes.

  This was much different. The warehouse took a few moments to really catch fire, and after half a minute or so, the inventory began burning.

  The smell of gas quickly turned into an overbearing, melting plastic one. They waited until everything inside the building caught fire.

  “It’s done,” Beast said, walking to their car.

  The fire grew bigger, consuming everything, its raging fury beginning to take hold. Glass began to break, black smoke rose in the air thicker and thicker until the sky was completely dark.

  They hopped into the car and drove away.

  “What about the guards?” Mills asked.

  They’ll find them soon enough, Beast replied as he passed them by, sitting at the edge of the parking lot, inside a run down car, still tied up.

  “You think they’ll make it?”

  Beast shrugged, “If they’re smart they’ll free each other and flee the city.”

  “If they’re smart,” Mills replied.

  “Not my duty to save their asses.”

  Mills smiled as the vehicle gained speed. It had been too clean, too perfect.

  “Finally, we can relax,” Mills said.

  “Finally.”

  But no one was relaxed. They just literally fanned the flames of war.

  Things would either get worse, if the Salianis got their heads out of their asses and fight back at them instead of each other.

  Or.

  The boss would send them to do more hits. They proved themselves supremely able to pull them off. Caronte would become the king of Chicago, he and Mills his personal executioners.

  His stomach churned.

  He did what he had to do to stay alive. This was what he got. But he could never get used to taking a person’s life, even if it was for self-defense.

  his beacon in the dark.

  After this, they might finally relax, his boss would be busy taking over the city, shipments would go up. Money would flow.

  Beast smiled.

  He couldn’t wait to see Jena. To kiss her beautiful lips.

  Chapter 28

  Jena

  Beard smacked her right on the face, busting her lips.

  “Stay still, bitch.”

  The pain quickly subsided. It was funny, in a way. She’d beaten that bastard down, and he knew it.

  “Stop it, Peter,” the boss said, pouring himself a glass of water in the kitchen.

  She sat on a stool they found upstairs, the wall to her back. The kitchen was the only place they could hide. Every other room had huge windows. This place was more easily guarded, with the entrance to her left and a glass door to her right, looking at the backyard. She wasn’t tied up, it was easier to watch her here while they waited.

  “Sorry boss, she needs to know who’s in charge here.”

  It didn’t matter how many times he hit her, how much he tried to look tough. His reputation was ruined forever.

  She won, in a way.

  “I think she already knows that,” the boss said.

  “Be careful,” Scarf said, “we don’t want her beating you up again.”

  The boss chuckled. Beard —Peter was his name— pressed his lips, staring daggers at Scarf, hatred building up inside of him.

  That was what she did. He would be forever known as the man who got beaten by a woman.

  Poor bastard.

  She smiled, looking straight down. She wasn’t stupid, provoking him would only end up badly for her.

  “So what was the plan?” Boss Caronte asked, “Did you really think I was going to forget about you?”

  She met his eyes, “yes.”

  He laughed, “forget about the only person who saw me kill Enrico Saliani? I didn’t know those men were so stupid.”

  She didn’t reply. No need. He needed to feel superior, so she let him.

  They’re going to be here soon. I need to do something.

  “You’ll never going to find them.”

  “Really?” Boss Caronte said, “I think I will, don’t you worry about that.”

  “They’re not here.”

  “They will be.”

  “They left me on my own.”

  “You’re loyal, I’ll give you that,” the man said, “you’re risking your life for them.”

  “I’m not risking—”

  “Do you know who they are? What they’ve done?”

  She didn’t reply. He was right. She didn’t know a lot about them, she only saw one side of them, their good side.

  “They’re killers,” Caronte said, “but you already know that.”

  She saw them shooting at the bodyguards on her coffee shop. How could she live knowing that?

  “They’re the best, actually. You know why? ‘Cause they’re cold blooded bastards, they have no heart.”

  “They do.”

  Scarf laughed.

  “Don’t talk back to the boss—”

  Beard —Peter— raised his hand to hit her. All of her body trembled as she looked away.

  “Stop it, Peter,” the boss said, “where are your manners?”

  Caronte sipped water. He was awfully calm.

  “Go outside, move the car out of sight, let’s surprise them.”

  Peter looked at her, then nodded and walked away.

  They’ll be here any minute now.

  She needed to do something, anything, if she wanted to save them.

  “They’ve killed more people than you can imagine,” the old man said, “how can you live knowing that?”

  She didn’t want to listen to him. His words were more painful than the bruises on her body.

  “You know how they call them, in the organization?”

  She stared at him. Please shut up. Please.

  “Tell her, Henry.”

  Scarf licked his lips.

  “Tell her, come on.”

  “The plague.”

  “What?”

  “Because wherever they go,” Caronte said, “they leave nothing but death behind.”

  The old man chuckled.

  “They don’t c
are about anything in the world. I’m surprised they let you live, that’s why I’m keeping you alive, I want to ask them.”

  He was lying. She knew them, she’d seen their true selves.

  And yes, they let her live, risking their own lives for someone they barely knew.

  “You don’t know them,” she whispered.

  “What’s that?”

  “They’ll come for you.”

  “I’m counting on that.”

  “They’ll make you pay.”

  Mister Caronte walked to her, his steps echoed in the empty house like a ticking bomb.

  “We will see about that,” he whispered in her ear, “we’ll see how much they’re willing to sacrifice for you.”

  He was using her as bait.

  Cold fear ran through her veins, she needed to run before they came back. Or at least find a way to warn them.

  Silence filled the room for the following minutes. Beard came back, after hiding the car. The gun was pointed at her. What could she do? There were no options. Sweat ran down her forehead, her heart began to race. She was trapped in here with no way—

  A honk outside rattled her bones. She recognized it. They’re already here.

  It was too late.

  Chapter 29

  Mills

  They turned into the gravel road that led to the house. It was a familiar, almost happy sound.

  They were home. Mills checked his phone, no messages from anyone.

  “Didn’t call you, either?”

  Beast showed him the screen.

  “None whatsoever.”

  “Do you think we should call him?”

  The house looked completely dark, except for the soft, yellow light of the kitchen. Did Jena make dinner again?

  It was past two in the morning.

  “Wait—”

  “I know,” Beast said and stopped the car a dozen yards from the front door.

  “Call her,” Beast said, but Mills was already doing it.

  The phone went straight to voice mail.

  “It’s turned off.”

  A pale streetlight illuminated the road behind them, reaching out weakly to the front of the house.

  Both men stared at each other and without a word, walked out of the car. Mills looked at his friend. Something was very wrong, he knew it in his bones.

  Mills put his index on his lips, silence.

  Beast moved to the front of the house. He knew what he had to do.

  First things first.