by Melissa Jane
“You here for that fucking stupid bitch?”
“Indeed I am, and she is far from stupid or a bitch you miserable sack of shit.” And with that I did something that broke the silent rule and shot Carlos in his manhood. This time, his bellows changed to that of a high-pitched scream, his already bloodied hands now clutching desperately to his now detached dick. Never again would he traumatize women with rape. He would bleed out in an hour or so before he died, but that hour would be absolute hell for him.
Stepping over his weakening body, I took pleasure in seeing his once tanned face now a pale grey, sweet beading down his bare scalp.
Glancing up, my eyes met Sofia’s, still exactly where I told her to wait. “You ok?”
She looked stunned, frozen to the spot, only a slight nod indicating she heard me.
Giving her a quick smile, I took to the stairs where a terse conversation could be heard, one of the voices belonging to Aiden.
Slowly rounding the corner my Glock ready, a man stood with his back to me and like everyone else, his suit attire was coated in a layer of dust. In front, I caught the eye of Aiden who was carrying an unconscious Laila.
“I asked you a question, boy,” The Russian man said. I was taking a wild stab in the dark, but something told me this man was Alexsonov, the sadistic bastard who had special ordered two underaged girls. The very girls Ethan and Aiden helped escape. The very same predicament that led Laila into Juan’s waiting hands. Now as payment, he wanted Laila.
“Get the fuck out of my way.” Taking no shit, Aiden responded with an equally forceful tone.
“I don’t think so. You’re not going anywhere with the girl.” There was a pause while he looked over her limp body. “What the fuck happened to my purchase?”
“You can thank Hector for that,” Aiden said dryly.
“Where are you going with her?”
“The fucking hospital before she dies. Where the hell do you think I’m going?”
“Give her to me, I will take her.”
“Over my dead body.”
“It can be arranged.” He raised his gun, but my finger was already on my trigger. “You’re one of Hector’s boys,” he continued, “The one who hired that fucker who stole my two girls.”
“Yeah, that’s right. I am the one who hired the fucker and it was the best decision of my life. Those girls are safe to live a normal life now without you and your fucked ways in it.”
“Watch your tongue, boy.”
“Get out of my fucking way.”
The sound of the safety being flicked was my cue. “Hey, cocksucker!” I called. As Alexsonov turned my way, Aiden ducked to the right, a bullet piercing his temple. He fell to the floor in an instant, his head smashing into the drywall on the way.
“That’s a shame,” Aiden said, at our latest fallen victim.
“What?” I asked.
“The fucker deserved a more painful death than that.”
I gave a look of mock offense. “I’ll do better with the next asshole.”
“Here,” Aiden said, “Take Laila to the car. I should only be a few minutes getting Ethan.” Even as he let her fall gently in my arms I could see his heart breaking.
“She’ll be fine,” I said gently, not sure if I believed my own words, “I’ll start working on her while we wait for you.”
“Good. Shoot any fucker who dares to get close.” Aiden took off at speed, knowing each second was the difference between life and death in this hell.
To say Laila was is bad shape was an understatement. Her pale body was covered in thin razor blade slits, the weeping blood having smeared over her white skin. Her lip had been smashed open yet again in almost the same spot as last time. Worst of all, her collarbone had bore the brunt of a close range bullet, mangled flesh at point of exit indicated she must have had her back to the shooter.
Fucking cowards.
Laila’s hair clung to her sweat-dampened face, her breathing shallow. She didn’t deserve any of this and my heart ached knowing that there was an all too real possibility that the monsters may have won this battle.
Danny
Stretching Laila out on the back seat, I made an assessment of her injuries. Blood was still pulsing from her collarbone, as I placed some gauze over the wound.
I could only hope finding Ethan would be an easy feat for Aiden, Laila’s life depending on every second that passed. With a sudden jerking motion, I dropped the antiseptic bottle and gauze fell from my hands, my body thrust back until I fell from the car, landing heavily on the concrete. Despite my best efforts to escape, the thick hands around my neck failed to let go, the weight of my attacker pinning me to the ground. I hadn’t seen him before in the mansion, but he looked to be a guard dressed similarly to Carlos, the man whose shins I blew out. Unlike the other who was probably dead, this man had thick dark hair gelled back into a ponytail. He didn’t look as intimidating as his colleague, but he was still larger in size.
He cast a leering look at Laila’s motionless body, a sickening grin returning back to me.
“What were you planning on doing to her?” He snarled.
“Certainly nothing you are thinking,” I replied as best I could manage through sporadic gasps.
“I didn’t so much like her before. Too mouthy. Didn’t know her place. Now that she can’t fight back, I’m thinking I might cash my cheque now.”
“Spoken like a true coward.”
The brutal blow of his fist smashed into my eye socket, my head snapping to the right. A dull throb and blurred vision wasn’t ideal in this situation but that’s what I got. Throwing my legs up, I wrapped them around his neck forcing him to bend backwards. He grunted against the pressure, his hands immediately releasing my throat. With a grunt of my own, I twisted my torso until we both got caught in a roll. Unhooking one leg, I moved quick getting enough distance before I brought my foot back down, smashing the heel of my boot into his nose. Above his yelps, the sickening sound of broken bone filled the night. Repeating the process, his body losing its strength, I aimed for his mouth, the crushing blow now rendering him quiet, teeth shattering on impact. Unhooking myself, I pushed him away from me. My energy had been sapped from the chokehold, so I waited on hands and knees while my breathing evened out. I couldn’t see the guards face, his features swallowed up by the night shadows. Getting to my feet I noticed his hands covering his injuries, the moon light now revealing just how much he was bleeding. Unhooking my Glock that had been pressed painfully into my back, I moved to stand over him. Giving a slight kick in the ribs, I waited for the guard’s full attention. When he didn’t move, I kicked harder ensuring the steel capped toe smashed into his bones. With a deep groan that sounded like a wounded bear, he finally rolled onto his back his hands falling away to reveal four front teeth missing, two split lips and an irreparably broken nose. Blood was everywhere and it showed no signs of stopping.
“If she’s dead, fucker, I will find you and kill you all over again!” His eyes lit up in alarm seconds before the bullet stilled him completely.
Moving back to the car, I went to work on helping Laila. Gently pressing gauze against her wound I watched with dwindling hope as the white fabric turned an instant red. I knew that this would be a job for the hospital, but my heart was defiant, my mind knowing that she may not make it there in time.
I studied my surroundings every few seconds, cautious of more rogue guards who felt compelled to settle a debt that wasn’t theirs. The west wing of the mansion was in complete darkness, courtesy of the earlier explosives.
Using a clean cloth and some antiseptic, I wiped gently over Laila’s wounded skin. First her arms, her chest and breasts, stomach and then legs. For a brief moment Laila stirred, her eyes squeezing shut, her mouth mumbling short incoherent words.
“Laila, can you hear me?” I coaxed gently. No response. This happened a few times over the course of fifteen minutes while I waited for Aiden, but she would only fall back into a state of unconscious.
> When Aiden and Ethan finally did arrive, I saw them sprinting down the lane until they reached the car. Aiden’s concerned face tried to read mine seeking answers to his girl’s condition. I wanted to promise him that everything was ok, but it wasn’t.
He looked at the dead guard on the ground and the blood that was still oozing from his face.
“What happened? Did he hurt Laila?”
“No, but he would have. Get in the car, we need to go.”
As we pulled onto the street, I didn’t waste time in finding out what had gone down in the mansion.
“So I’m sorry to speak ill of your family, I know how highly you thought of them, but did you finish the fuckers off?” It wasn’t the most subtle question, but I was trying to get his mind off worrying about Laila. I knew it was a stretch but I had to give it a shot. Aiden was one tough motherfucker. The last time I had seen tears in his eyes was when I told him Anna had been killed. But now my best friend who had had his fair share of undeserved shit, now looked like a broken man. I knew all too well how he felt.
For the next ten minutes Aiden revealed everything. Hector had been obsessed with Aiden’s mother. She ran when things got bad, not wanting to be a part of his fucked up world. When Hector found her, she was already married to another man and together they had a little boy, Aiden. Hector had confessed he was the one who had murdered Aiden’s parents when he was just seven years old. That he adopted the boy, raised him with love in a place his birth mother despised and later as an adult, had him trained in defence in order to protect the men and women buyers who frequented the mansion. It was one fucked up situation.
With Aiden in the back nursing Laila’s head, the three of us then discussed what the plans were. The hospital was the first stop. Knowing full well that we couldn’t cross the border to seek medical help we drove to the nearest hospital in Mexico. Aiden was a wanted man after having killed the two policemen in Reno, so the last thing he could do was return to the states.
“When we know that Laila is in a stable condition, Aiden can take the car back to mine and freshen up.” I looked at him through the rear view mirror. “We need to keep you as inconspicuous as possible.”
Suddenly the air grew thick in the car, Ethan and Aiden casting cautious glances at each other.
“Do you want to tell him?” Ethan asked, almost pleading.
“Tell me what?” I demanded.
“They knew where Laila and Ethan were because they found Jorge. Well actually they found Maria, his cousin.” A while back when the chase first began, the four of them had gone to Maria’s house before embarking on the next leg of their journey. She lived out of town away from where Hector’s men would have been searching.
“And?”
“They threatened Jorge that they would kill Maria if he didn’t reveal where we were. So of course he told. I wouldn’t expect any different. Maria was so good to us when we first started our escape. She didn’t deserve to be caught up in it.”
“So, she is ok?” I wasn’t quite sure what they were getting at. Clearly while still in the mansion Aiden and Ethan had discussed quite a lot.
“Maria is safe, but Jorge didn’t fare so well. He is in San Diego hospital. Some passers-by found him almost bashed to death on the side of the road. Left to die, and he would have if it weren’t for the family that stopped to help him.”
“Fuck me!”
“But that’s not the end of it. When they took Ethan and Laila they burned down your house. I’m sorry Danny. All your things, everything you owned have been destroyed.”
“The fuckers burnt down my house?”
“Yes.”
“Fuck me!”
“I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be. It was more like a base for when I wasn’t working. A holiday home. How’s Laila’s heartbeat?” As much as I’d like to defer the real issues, I knew there was still an imminent danger hanging over us.
“It’s slowing down rapidly.”
Pushing the accelerator down until it reached the floor, I could only pray that we would make it.
***
As soon as the fluorescent lights came into view, the tension in the car was replaced with a new found hope. We were certainly a sight to behold as we ran down the foyer of the hospital, every visitor and patient casting curious glances at our blood-soaked selves. Aiden held Laila as he sprinted to the E.R, a mix of panic, fatigue and sadness engulfing him.
A nurse who had seen our urgent dash was prepared with a waiting gurney calling out for the nearest doctor. The middle-aged woman eyed us suspiciously as she took in the state of Laila’s bloodied, almost naked beaten body.
“You need to wait here while we look after her,” she said in a calm voice. She gave us a double glance half expecting a protest, but we knew the drill and time was too much of the essence to waste arguing over the matter. We each took a step back, the nurse’s face relaxing somewhat before she approached the head of the gurney, steering it through the E.R doors.
“She’ll be alright, bro,” I said hoping that my words were the truth.
“Why does this shit always happen to us?” Aiden wasn’t looking at me. Instead his eyes were focused on the doors still flapping back and forth, his girl on the other side.
“We seem to be magnets for assholes and pretty women.”
Ethan shot me a disgusted look, Aiden’s lips twitching to form an almost smile.
“The two unrelated. Fuck me!” I said with mock exasperation, “One night of excitement and suddenly I’m dealing with two pubescent boys.”
“I didn’t say anything,” Aiden plead his innocence.
“You didn’t have to,” I couldn’t help my own laugh. We were all exhausted, all hopeful and all desperate for a miracle.
Danny
What seemed like hours passed before we heard any news. In the waiting room, cups of coffee in hand, we held out hope for the door to swing open and to hear a voice saying everything was going to be ok.
Not much was said between us during that time, each with our own reflection on a month from hell. There would be no hunting, no more killing and most of all, no more running, at least not from the bad guys. Aiden could never return to the U.S. What he had done was for the good of everyone. The officers he killed were not there to protect public safety. They worked for the bad guys and were quite happy to take someone’s life simply for financial gain. The authorities would have none of it. Aiden would be sent away for life and possibly face the death penalty.
Me? I had killed across the border also, my footsteps harder to trace, but I wasn’t prepared to take that risk.
I only had one reason to return.
***
I drove back the next day. Laila had opened her eyes and seemed in good health. The doctors had finished surgery and she was expected to be released in two more days. I had watched from the door as Aiden kissed her lips, both of them shedding some tears. At that point my heart both swelled and broke all over again. There was simply no better outcome for these two, their love for each other loud and proud. I had never seen Aiden so infatuated and Laila simply adored him.
They were perfect together.
They belonged to each other.
I wanted so badly to be able to touch Anna again. I had prayed so hard and for so long that I could have a happy-ever-after with her. Instead I always woke to the harsh reality that she was taken from this world in the most brutal of ways.
The risk I was taking by crossing the border was simply not a concern. I had one place to go that I would probably never return to. That thought alone broke my heart all over again, but it had to be done. In a weeks’ time back in Mexico, I would set sail for a shore far from this place leaving the worst kind of memories behind.
Danny
The sun shone bright despite a deep set sadness engulfing me. It seemed like only yesterday that I last stood here on this very spot. Her name in elegant cursive writing was more like punch in the gut, the vibrant colors of the flowers surr
ounding the headstone, crumbling my resolve.
Today was the anniversary of Anna’s death.
Time did not heal.
All it did was taunt.
Kneeling down, swiping at the stray tears, I tried hard to push down the lump forming in my throat. I rarely ever shed a tear. This however, was just an exception to the rule. I had no control over it. The happy times we shared were often overshadowed by the last moment I saw her alive.
Since rescuing Laila, I no longer had the nightmares that plagued me every night. It was like a giant weight had been lifted after a four year torment.
Touching the metal engraving, the heat of it warming my hand I knew this had to be the end. I watched as a single tear rolled off my chin, landing in the groove of the cursive font.
“I wish for you every day,” the words weren’t audible, my voice strangled by the lump in my throat.
Closing my eyes, I allowed the wave of emotion to take hold, relenting to the pain that still existed.
Her face appeared before me. So beautiful, so caring, so perfect. She was smiling at me, no longer a face of fear. No longer afraid for me. Her lips formed a sweet smile, the flowery scent she wore, intoxicating.
I knew she wasn’t real. But I could see her. Feel her.
“Anna Bonita, forgive me!”
“Forgive me for losing you. Forgive me for saying goodbye.”
The End
Coming July 7th
Sofia
My name is not Sofia.
Marcela Alejandra Ortiz is what I was christened twenty-five years ago. No one here knows who I really am, not that they care to find out. For the last six years the name meaning ‘wisdom’ has been nothing less than a brutal punishment.