The guard was about to hit him again when the interior door on the other side of the room opened.
Leaning against the locker, just trying to stay on his feet, Gabriel looked to the door.
Ambrose entered the room, bringing with him Lance and Derek.
The two guards moved away from Gabriel and faced Ambrose. When the man let Gabriel go, he nearly fell to the ground. He managed to stay on his feet, though, using the wall of lockers behind him to stay upright.
The guards stood at attention to Ambrose, and he sneered at them, a fire in his eyes.
“What the fuck is this?” Ambrose asked the guards.
“He tried to escape,” the guard who’d been spit on said.
Gabriel laughed. “So now you’re gonna lie to him?”
“Shut the fuck up!” the other guard shouted. He turned around and punched Gabriel in the stomach, again.
Gabriel doubled over, clutching his stomach. He coughed and watched as more blood trickled from his face to the ground. The two shots to the stomach made it difficult for him to breathe. He’d closed his eyes, searching for the strength to stand, when a noise deafened him, and he felt something warm splash onto him. He opened his eyes and watched as the guard who’d just struck him fell onto the ground near him. The top of the man’s head was gone, and blood pooled around it.
When Gabriel stood up, he saw Ambrose aiming a revolver at the other guards. Smoke rose from the barrel.
“You gonna be next?” Ambrose asked the guard.
The man trembled. “N-no, sir.”
Ambrose lowered his weapon, and signaled toward the door.
“Get the fuck out of here,” Ambrose said. “Go outside and help get that crowd in line.”
“Y-yes, sir.”
The guard wiped his face and hurried out of the room. He didn’t look back at Gabriel.
Shaking his head, Ambrose re-holstered his gun and shifted his attention to Gabriel. He leaned in and examined the cut on his cheek. It continued to bleed. Gabriel could feel it streaming down his cheek.
“He opened you up pretty good,” Ambrose said.
“Yeah, your guys don’t mess around.”
Ambrose smiled. “No, they don’t.”
He turned around and nodded at Lance and Derek.
Gabriel’s eyes went wide as the two men approached him. Derek punched him in the ribs, and he fell down this time.
“Get him the fuck up,” Lance said.
Gabriel found himself being lifted to his feet, his arms pinned behind his back. He coughed, opening his eyes to see Lance standing in front of him. A crooked smile stretched across his face.
He turned his Eagles hat backwards.
“I’ve been looking forward to this.”
Lance reared back and came forward. He didn’t have much time to appreciate how hard Lance had hit him because another fist struck him across the cheek just seconds later. Gabriel felt his body go limp, and he wanted to fall down, but Derek wouldn’t allow it. He held him up, leaving Gabriel there like a punching bag. Lance continued his assault.
Eventually, Derek’s arms tired out and he let go of Gabriel, letting his dead weight just fall to the ground.
Half conscious, Gabriel lay on his stomach watching the blood pool around him. Time stood still and his vision was blurry. He could hear the boots moving towards him, but the sound was fuzzy. When his body was lifted up again, he felt as if he was floating.
When he stood this time, he could barely open his eyes. He could hardly see, but he could make out Ambrose standing in front of him.
“I thought we had a deal,” Ambrose said. “I don’t like when people break my deals.”
Gabriel spit blood onto the floor below him. He managed the words, “It’s not like you’re going to live up to your end of the bargain.”
Ambrose smiled and laughed. “Yeah, well, that’s your mistake for not trusting me. Now, you’ve gotta pay for that mistake.”
Gabriel wrapped his tongue around the inside of his mouth, checking for all of his teeth. His tongue was numb, but he could still taste the blood. None of his teeth seemed to be missing.
He wondered if these were his last moments. In a lot of ways, he hoped they would be. He was tired of dragging through this world filled with nothing but death and hatred. If being alive meant spending another minute at this school with these maniacs, then he would welcome death.
“Do what you’ve gotta do,” he said.
Ambrose reached to his waist and Gabriel closed his eyes. Waited for the cold steel to press against his forehead. Waited for an ending.
Instead, he heard static, and Ambrose spoke. “You there?”
Gabriel opened his eyes. Ambrose held a walkie to his mouth.
“I’m here, sir.”
“Bring me the girl. The dark-haired one.”
Jessica.
CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR
Lying on her side with her back facing the door, Jessica couldn’t sleep. She’d tried, but her mind kept racing about where they had taken Claire. She also wondered if anyone would ever come and take her out to watch Gabriel’s fight. She hadn’t been told she was going, but had just figured the people would want her there to see her friend die. Jessica wanted to believe that Gabriel would come back. Had made herself believe it. But deep down, she wasn’t sure. She had seen what had happened to Thomas: how he’d been torn apart by the Empties. Even though Gabriel still had his legs, Jessica knew that Ambrose wouldn’t make it easy for him.
She shot up and looked toward the door when she heard what she thought to be gunshots.
Jessica ran to the door and looked through the small window. A small group of guards ran down the hallway, passing by her room.
“Hey!” she shouted, banging on the door.
The guards ignored her.
“What’s happening?” she mumbled.
When no one passed by again, she sat back down on her bed.
Over the next few minutes, she only heard the gunshots once more. She trembled. All she could do was think of Gabriel and hope that he was all right.
Jessica wasn’t paying attention when the door handle clicked. The door opened and one of Ambrose’s guards entered the room, stopping only a few steps in. A second guard stood behind him, remaining in the hallway and holding the door open.
“Get up,” he said.
“Where are you taking me? To see Gabriel?”
The guard took three more steps toward Jessica. “Ask another question without doing what I say,” he said, threatening her. “Go on.”
Jessica glared at him, but she stood.
The second guard came forward and handed his counterpart a set of handcuffs.
“Up against the wall, back to me,” the guard said. “You know the drill.”
Jessica stood against the wall and waited for the guard to restrain her. He approached, but he stopped when more gunshots rang out. These were continuous. They were louder, and sounded closer.
“What the hell?” the guard in the hall said.
The radio on the nearby guard’s waist came alive.
“Attention, we need all forces to the front of the building, now! We’re being attacked!”
Jessica looked back over her shoulder and saw the guards looking at each other.
“Do we still bring Ambrose the girl?” the guard in the hall asked.
The other guard shook his head. “I’m not sure.” He brought the radio to his lips. “What of the girl? Over.”
More gunshots fired off outside, and no one replied over the radio.
“Fuck this,” the guard said. “We can come back for her.”
He hurried out of the room and the other guard let go of the door. They ran down the hall.
Jessica’s eyes went wide as the door closed slowly.
She ran for it, diving across the floor.
Jessica caught the door just before it closed all the way.
She stood up, looking back and forth down the hallway. It was clear; she w
as free.
With gunshots continuing outside, she went to look for Claire.
***
When Gabriel’s eyes fluttered open, he was on the floor with his back against a wall. He couldn’t recall passing out, and his vision was still fuzzy when he looked up.
All three men in the room had their backs turned to Gabriel. Ambrose shouted commands into his walkie talkie while Lance and Derek stood nearby, awaiting their boss’s word. The gunshots continued outside.
Lance looked back, and Gabriel had enough sense to close his eyes again.
“We’ve gotta get you to safety, sir,” Lance said.
“You come with me,” Ambrose replied. “Derek, stay here with this piece of shit until I signal you.”
“Why don’t we just kill him now?” Lance asked.
“Just shut up and come on.”
Gabriel listened as the two men scurried out of the room.
He wanted to open his eyes, but was worried that Derek would be looking down at him. So he kept them shut tight, waiting.
Boot steps moved across the floor, heard only between the gunshots. Derek whistled.
Gabriel opened his eyes.
Derek stood on the opposite side of the room, examining a poster on the wall. It showed a weight lifter handling an impressive amount of weight and had a cheesy inspirational quote plastered across the middle.
Gabriel shifted, wanting to work himself to his feet, when suddenly Derek turned away from the poster. Gabriel fell limp, closing his eyes again.
Boots moved across the room once more. They moved closer to Gabriel, stopping next to him. One of the lockers near him opened, and then another.
“You’d think there’d be something left in one of these,” Derek said to himself.
He continued to open lockers, and Gabriel awaited the perfect moment.
“Jackpot,” Derek said, a tinge of excitement in his voice.
The pages of a magazine turned above Gabriel.
“Damn, girl. I’m not sure your daddy would like seein’ this.”
Derek moved again. When Gabriel opened his eyes, Derek stood only a few feet in front of him, his back turned.
Gabriel bit his lip, tasting the blood residing there. He saw his chance.
Gunshots continued to blast outside, drowning out the inside of the locker room. Gabriel eased himself to his feet, all while Derek kept his nose buried into the magazine he’d found. Gabriel’s entire body ached. His face felt as big as a watermelon. Blood had started to dry on his cheeks. He feared looking into a mirror to see his nose. But his legs felt fine, and those were what he needed right now.
As gunfire rained outside, Gabriel ran forward. Derek hadn’t a clue what was happening until it was too late.
Gabriel grabbed onto Derek’s coat with one hand and the back of his head with the other, gripping a wad of his long hair. He used his momentum to carry Derek toward the nearby wall. The gunfire outside ceased, and Gabriel heard Derek’s face break as he slammed it into the wall.
Derek’s body dropped from his grasp and landed tangled on the floor. The impact of his face on concrete had left a blood splat on the wall. Gabriel kneeled next to the guard and rolled him over.
His nose was completely mangled. Teeth were missing from his mouth. Blood poured from both places.
Gabriel checked his pulse.
Nothing.
Gabriel sighed, shaking his head as he closed his eyes. Even with all he’d been through at the school, it didn’t make killing easy. He collected himself and gathered Derek’s weapons. The rifle he’d held had fallen onto the ground nearby, and he wore a handgun on his waist, along with a knife. He took the weapons and went to stand.
“Don’t fucking move.”
The voice was familiar, and Gabriel swallowed hard. He turned back and saw Lance with a Glock pointed at his head.
“Throw that shit over here,” Lance said. “And I’ll know if you’re bullshittin’ ‘cause I know everything that asshole carried.”
Gabriel closed his eyes and sighed. He threw the rifle onto the floor and slid it toward Lance. He gripped the handgun on his waist.
“Try anything and you’re dead.”
“I’m dead anyway,” Gabriel said.
“That might be so, but not quite yet.”
Gabriel pulled out the handgun and slid it across the ground, followed by the knife.
“Stand up.”
Gabriel stood.
“Face me.”
He turned.
Lance’s eyes shifted down to Derek, and he smirked. “Dumb motherfucker.”
“At least you’ve got the balls to look me in the eyes when you shoot me,” Gabriel said. “I’ll give you that.”
Lance scoffed. “Shoot you?” He lowered the Glock, tossing it onto the ground.
Gabriel tilted his head to the side, confused.
“I’m gonna kill you with my bare fucking hands.”
Lance charged.
***
Jessica moved down the hallway with a stealth-like ability. She looked around each corner, making sure it was clear before moving further. Each room she passed, she looked through the window, checking to see if Claire was inside. Every room so far had been empty.
Outside, the gunfire continued. The further she moved away from her room, the quieter the firefight became.
She was walking down a long hall when a door opened ahead. Jessica ducked into a nearby doorway, concealing herself behind the end of the row of lockers. Footsteps clicked across the floor and Jessica turned to check the door. It was open and she went inside, careful to shut the door behind her.
Jessica froze against the wall, listening as the person walked by. She waited until she heard the footsteps no more, and then exited back out into the hallway.
Two doors down was the room the person had come out of, and Jessica hurried to it.
She looked through the window and gasped.
Claire lay in the middle of the room on a stretcher.
The door opened when Jessica pushed down on the handle and she entered the room, rushing to Claire’s side.
“Claire?” Jessica put her hands on Claire’s shoulders and shook her, but she didn’t move.
Jessica laid her head against Claire’s chest to check for a heartbeat.
It was faint, but there was one.
“I’ve gotta get you out of here,” Jessica mumbled.
Jessica had unlocked the wheels and started for the door when it opened.
A man entered, reading a piece of paper on a clipboard. Jessica froze as she saw him.
He looked up, and a smile extended across his disgusting face.
“Well, fancy seeing you here, dear. You remember me, right?”
She, of course, did.
Bruce.
***
If Gabriel’s head had hit the ground when Lance tackled him, then he likely wouldn’t have ever woken up. But his back slamming against the concrete floor was enough to send a bolt of pain down his spine. It disoriented him long enough for Lance to land the first two punches.
The wounds on Gabriel’s face came alive again, and he raised his hands to block further blows. He remained in the defensive position, trying to keep Lance’s fist away from his face.
“Fight, you fucking pussy,” Lance spat.
Lance grabbed ahold of Gabriel’s arms, pinning them down. When he let go of one of them to try and connect with another blow, Gabriel struck, hitting Lance’s in his injured nose and knocking him off of Gabriel.
Gabriel rolled onto his side and both men staggered to their feet.
Blood streamed from Lance’s nose. He covered it with his hand, then looked at the blood on his palm.
Gabriel clutched his ribs, which still ached from the earlier abuse. It was hard to breathe, but he drew in fast breaths.
“You ready to die, Alexander?” Lance asked, still wiping blood away from his face.
Without speaking, Gabriel raised his hand and waved Lance toward him
.
Again, Lance charged.
Waiting until the last possible moment, Gabriel sidestepped him. Using Lance’s momentum, Gabriel pushed Lance from behind. He threw Lance into a door, which busted open. Lance fell into the room beyond it. Sporting gear filled the small supply closet. Much if it came spilling down onto Lance as he went head and shoulder first into a shelf, falling face first to the ground. When the balls, helmets, and bats had stopped falling, Lance lay still.
The fight continued outside, and Gabriel grimaced and held onto his aching ribs again. He turned around and limped to where Lance had dropped his gun. He picked up the Glock, the outside gunfire sounding much closer now. He checked to make sure the gun was loaded. It was.
He’d made it halfway to Derek’s rifle when he heard movement behind him.
When he turned around again, Lance reared back a baseball bat and screamed.
Gabriel’s eyes went wide and he ducked just in time. Lance’s swing missed, the bat crashing into a locker behind Gabriel’s head.
Gabriel raised the Glock, but Lance turned around and hit him in the forearm with the aluminum bat. He cried out and dropped the gun onto the ground. With Gabriel gripping his arm, Lance drove the butt of the bat into Gabriel’s gut. Gabriel doubled over and held his stomach. He fell to his knees, shutting his eyes as the pain passed through him.
When he opened them again, he watched Lance’s shadow move behind him.
Lance stood at Gabriel’s back. Unable to move, Gabriel remained on his knees with his shoulders slumped. The Glock had slid to the other side of the room.
Gabriel felt the cold aluminum touch his neck as Lance rested the bat on his shoulder.
“Any last words?” Lance asked.
Silence.
“Well, all right then.”
Standing executioner style behind Gabriel, Lance raised the bat.
Gabriel closed his eyes.
Lance swung.
Gabriel went face first to the ground, and Lance swung all the way around, having missed the shot. He’d swung so hard that the bat left his hands, crashing into the lockers behind them. His momentum carried him all the way to the ground.
The bat bounced off the locker and landed next to Gabriel. His eyes went wide as he grabbed onto it and stood.
Empty Bodies (Book 5): Damnation Page 23