by Sarah Monte
“You mean he didn’t trust me?” asked Bob with a rather haughty look.
“Oh I’m sure he trusted your offer, I could almost see drool dripping down his face through the phone. The problem is that he doesn’t trust people all that easily. And he is going to be a lot more alert and on the lookout for any possible skullduggery now, given the climate and my apparent deception,” added Liam wryly.
“Alright then, I’ll get the precinct together in ten. Mr. Spaulding, Mike – you guys need to be ready to leave in a jiffy too,” said Ted as he left the room.
Jennifer stood up to fight to go with them, but a sudden head rush made her swoon a little and land in Mike’s arms. “Are you okay Jenny?” yelled Mike in alarm as he caught her gingerly, making her sit down again.
“I’m fine, I’m sorry I think I got up too soon. Don’t worry about it. Listen Mike, I want to come with all of you,” pleaded Jennifer.
Mike had promised her that he would never leave her again, but this time he knew beyond a shade of doubt that it was the right thing to do. He took her hand and said, “Jennifer, we don’t have time for this right now – please understand. You’re not feeling well right now, any other day I would have definitely taken you. For now though, you’ll just be more of a liability and I’ll be a little too distracted to focus. Please, don’t get me wrong. Just sit this one out, everything is going according to plan anyway and we’re taking quite a big group with us. You’ll be fine here.”
Jennifer merely nodded limply, knowing that Mike did have a point. He kissed her softly, trying to convey his feelings and hoping that she wouldn’t think too badly of him. Jennifer smiled at him as he pulled back to leave, praying that things this time would indeed turn out fine as the men filed out of the room.
They made a mad dash towards the location, lucky enough to get there before Donovan did. A vast and scattered perimeter was quickly established, with only Bob left standing at the spot, Liam and Mike hiding in the car and Ted not far away with backup. Just as the minute hand struck the thirty minute mark, a whole slew of black cars pulled in and parked in one straight line opposite Bob. A group of thuggish men armed with everything from sticks to guns got out, and the last man to get out was Donovan.
Mike could only hear their voices, yet revulsion and rage filled his heart as every inch of him yearned to get out of the car and beat Donovan to his death with his bare hands. Sensing the same, Liam whispered to Mike, “Don’t be a daredevil, it’s not worth it. Just because you’ve been lucky to remain unhurt all this time, don’t think that Donovan can’t hurt you anymore and that you’ve got a shield now. Stick to the plan, and we all get the revenge that we want.”
“Hello, Mr. Spaulding. It’s an honor to meet you, I’m Donovan,” said Donovan as he reached for Bob’s hand and shook it.
“Hello Donovan. Let’s get down to business, shall we?” said Bob as Donovan nodded. He reached for some papers in his bag, handing them over to Donovan who passed it on to the man beside him for verification. “I must say Mr. Spaulding, considering the number of people who have been deceiving me relentlessly nowadays, I was a little worried that this might be a hoax too,” said Donovan.
“I suppose you tried to trace my number then?” asked Bob with a raised eyebrow.
Donovan chuckled and raised his hand saying, “Guilty. It is suspicious though, that a man of your stature stands alone in an area like this.”
“Either you’re really that thick, or you’re trying to kill me so you want to know where my men are placed. You may soon learn this Donovan, that men of my stature don’t require a brute show of force to look formidable or feel secure. I know just how to ensure my safety without having to resort to such, forgive me; borderline obnoxious behavior,” said Bob with a dry smile.
Flushing, Donovan merely signed the papers that his assistant handed back to him, giving them to back to Bob. “You must know something, it’s a little trick of mine that I’m quite proud of,” said Donovan as Bob began to put the papers away.
“What is it?” asked Bob a little disinterestedly.
“Well, my man Lyle here doesn’t actually know how to read. But I always give my papers to him to pretend to do so in front of the person I’m dealing with,” said Donovan with a superior expression.
“Yes, that’s very cute. I suppose it gives you time to judge the other person’s expression – and if you see the slightest doubt or fear in there, you’ll shoot that person dead and think later. I did notice that actually, because your man there held the file upside down,” replied Bob with a wave of his hand.
“Good catch there, Mr. Spaulding. It’s a pleasure doing business with you,” said Donovan with a wide smile as he signaled his men to put their weapons inside.
“The only thing you’ll be doing for a long time now is going to jail, Donovan,” said Mike as he stepped out of the car behind Bob, accompanied by Liam who registered the shock yet predictability in Donovan’s eyes.
“We meet at last then, I’m Michael Sinclair – and you my friend, are over,” said Mike with a smile.
Donovan’s last expression seemed a little frozen on his face as he took in the guests. Just then, there was an uproar behind him as the police forces behind Ted fired and killed every last henchman that Donovan had brought with him, with the exception of Lyle – who anyway seemed too stunned by the last minute to react in any manner whatsoever.
“So this is how the great Donovan falls,” spat Liam jeeringly in Donovan’s stunned face. “You destroyed my family just enough to bring out the conscience in me that was dying and suffering all these years. I have not only avenged my child now, but the law will also avenge my wife and make you pay for all the suffering. You’re finished, Donovan.”
Donovan looked at him straight in the eyes, something that Liam found a little disconcerting. “Perhaps you’re right Liam, I am finished. You certainly have managed to deceive me completely and together with the dim witted good side managed to trick me into my doom. But I do have a few chips up my sleeve, and if I go down, I’m not planning to go down alone.”
Liam looked a little confused, Ted and Mike a little disturbed. It wasn’t really possible for Donovan to do something now, but if he had already then there was no telling what it could be. Ted walked ahead and knocked Donovan to the ground, drawing blood from his mouth. He pulled Donovan by his hair and jerked his face upwards saying, “What the fuck do you mean by that scum? Are you still trying to play your mind games with us?”
“Mind games? Oh no, no, no, no. I’ve played a very real and dangerous game with all of you, and it seems I’ve lost. You took out all my players, but I’ve taken out some of yours too,” winked Donovan as Liam and Mike felt their hearts sink.
Chapter Twenty Nine
Jennifer sat at the precinct a little unsure of what to do. Her moment of weakness had passed, and it was killing her to sit there and simply wait for the news of her boyfriend’s potential victory or God forbid, a failure.
She looked at her phone, and wasn’t surprised not to find a single call from any of them there. She stood up again, feeling slightly amiss about her health once more. Not seeing any other alternative, she decided to drive down to the hospital and spend some time with David. He was all alone there anyway, probably desperate for some sort of information since he didn’t know anything about all the shit that had gone down since the first plan had failed.
Getting into the car, she decided to drive to the hospital, where she would wait for Mike’s call. If and when things ended well, he would want to celebrate it with David anyway, thought Jennifer as she drove. If she had an idea of what would be waiting for her at the hospital though, she might just have reconsidered.
But there was no going back now.
****
“Spit it out if you don’t want to die the same way you have killed some people Donovan,” asked Ted again, in a menacing voice this time. Donovan knew that he was done for, but he wanted to go out having fun – and it seemed like he
was having the time of his life there.
“That just doesn’t seem like a good enough deal to me officer, with all due respect,” replied Donovan with a smirk. “But I can give you a bit of a clue,” he said with a wink.
The remaining three looked at one another, and it was to everyone’s surprise that Bob Spaulding walked ahead, pulled up Donovan and dusted off his shoulders. With a smile, he spoke in a low voice, “Donovan, I know what you’re trying to do here. If I was in your place, I’m sure I’d love to go out the same way too, fucking around with the bastards who managed to take me down. On any other given occasion, I’d appreciate this and even respect you for it. But I need you to realize that I’m there here and now, and like I said before – pick on people your own size.”
It was clear that his words had an impact on Donovan, who simply said, “Liam needn’t worry about avenging his wife anymore, is all I’m saying. She’s very peaceful wherever she is, or at least – so I hope.”
Mike stared hard at Donovan, still trying to comprehend his words when he felt a man screaming and running from behind him. The next thing he knew, Donovan was flat on the floor, laughing like a maniac as blood flowed freely from every part of his body. Liam slashed blindly at Donovan’s face, drawing blood from him but screaming in pain as though every wound was being inflicted on his body. Ted tried his level best to pry them apart, while Spaulding just stood there and watched the scene with an expression of slight pity on his face. Mike was unable to say anything, the sight of Liam thrashing the life out of Donovan reminded him of how he had been with Rat.
And Rat was no more now, which was because of Donovan. Donovan had killed Rat, Liam’s family, tried to kill both David and Jennifer and hurt god knows who else. Donovan deserved to die like this. Not with a trial or with any semblance of law and justice. He deserved to die for the monster that he was and for all the sins that a thousand lives couldn’t possibly atone for. Mike went forward and pulled Ted back, who looked at him in surprise as he exclaimed, “What the fuck are you doing Mike? Help me pull them apart or Donovan will die!” Mike just looked at Ted with what was most definitely the most serene expression to have settled on his face in a long time.
Leading him away from them, he said, “Donovan doesn’t deserve to live Ted, you and I both know that. I wouldn’t want to take Liam’s satisfaction away from him, seeing as I can’t do the same without ending up in jail. Let it be Ted, que sera sera.”
Ted looked incredulously at Mike, but didn’t react all the same. Soon the officers made it to the location and pried them apart. Liam was red-faced and sweaty, and Donovan was barely recognizable anymore except for the wide smile, which seemed to infuriate Liam even further. Ted went over to Liam and began reading out his rights to him in order to place him under arrest on multiple charges. Bob had left a while back, not wanting to stay any longer than he had to. Mike walked over to the officers who were providing first aid to Donovan and looked at him with a pleasant smile. He had dreamt of this day for far too long, and as far as adventurous things go – this had a rather dull ending.
“What did you get out of all of this Donovan? You lost at the end of the day, and you couldn’t even cause any lasting damage to my loved ones,” said Mike.
Donovan chuckled and coughed, spitting out some blood and wiping his mouth on his sleeve. He looked at Mike and said, “Who said the danger is over Mr. Michael Sinclair? I know you kept me here thinking that David wouldn’t be in any danger, but what makes you think that I couldn’t have scheduled an attack there already? You stand here and mock me because you revel in your over confidence and righteous victory. But you’re no better than me Mr. Sinclair. You sacrificed a relatively innocent man’s life for your own gains with no regard for consequence. You dipped your hand in the dirty in order to lure me out and you let Liam beat me to ease your own conscience without having to do any actual work. You are every bit as selfish and as evil as I am, just not strong enough to gain more power than you possibly could.”
A little stunned at what he had just heard, Mike looked at Donovan in the eye and composed his expression before replying, “You can’t hurt David, he has security with him all the time now. And as for the rest of your psychoanalysis, I usually don’t take advice from psychopaths themselves.”
“You tortured and turned my men against me Mr. Sinclair, but despite all my evil – I choose the peaceful route more often than you would think, unless I had no other choice of course. A little bribe here and there works wonders, as you would of course know,” said Donovan with a wink.
Mike stared at him with wide eyes, and then closed them to take a deep breath. Exhaling, he punched Donovan straight in the nose so hard, with an audible crack Donovan was knocked out immediately. Mike turned away and walked quickly towards Ted with a completely content smile. In response to Ted’s aghast look, he simply shrugged and said, “What? I would’ve regretted it my whole life if I hadn’t gotten to do that. But we have a bigger issue at hand here. Donovan insinuated that David might be in danger, and the monster is twisted enough to get anything done. We need to head to the hospital right now!”
Ted stared back at him in horror, and quickly delegated all further responsibilities to his junior before getting into the squad car and speeding towards the hospital. “You should call Jennifer,” said Ted without taking his eyes off the road as he blew past several cars, “She’s bound to be getting worried and the doctor did say that stress wasn’t good for her.”
“You’re right,” said Mike as he took out his phone. The phone rang several times before getting disconnected. Mike got worried immediately, surely something wasn’t going to go wrong a second time because he left her behind again. He called twice more, and on the fourth ring, someone finally picked up.
“Hello?” came Jennifer’s voice, “Mike? Where are you Mike? Are you okay? Did you catch Donovan, what’s happening?”
She was talking a little loudly, and Mike couldn’t understand why she was in such a crowded place when he had asked her to stay at the precinct. “I’m fine Jenny, and we did manage to capture Donovan. I’ll tell you everything when I see you. But where are you now?”
“I’m at the hospital Mike, I wasn’t feeling too well. And I also remembered that David hadn’t had any news about what was happening, so I decided I’d come visit him too. I’m just about to - ” and the phone went dead.
Mike couldn’t bear the thought of something having happened to Jennifer and David together, but the sudden disconnecting of the call scared the life out of him. Luckily, they were almost near the hospital and for some reason, Ted seemed unable to get in touch with any of his colleagues assigned for David at the same time. They reached the hospital and jumped out of the car together this time, Mike wondering when these incidents would stop happening. Running up the stairs, they burst into David’s room and saw him lying peacefully against the bed, smiling and talking with Jennifer.
Mike ran to hug her, reaching out to pat David’s shoulder as he continued to hold Jennifer’s hand and caress her face. “Are you okay buddy?” asked David with concern as Jennifer too looked between the two of them for an explanation.
Mike relayed the whole story to them, about how the plan had worked perfectly and Donovan’s men were shot down. Since he was not much without them, taking him down had been easy. Jennifer seemed a little disturbed at the death of Liam’s wife, this was a little more violence than she was ordinarily used to. He told them about how Donovan had goaded him into thinking David was in danger, and so they had panicked and rushed here.
“You’ve been so stressed out lately because of me, I’m really sorry man. I wish I could have been of more help to all of you – but thank you so much for getting me out of this. I cannot express my gratitude enough,” said David.
Mike hugged his brother tightly, glad that all of this was finally done and behind them. Ted and Jennifer too embraced, having had to cope with multiple things, most of which weren’t even their faults. “You don’t have to
apologize for anything David, this really wasn’t your fault. Maybe you were a bit of an idiot, but your biggest mistake was trying to hide your problems from me. Promise me you won’t shut me out of your life anymore, and let me be there for my brother,” said Mike, trying to blink back tears.
David looked at Jennifer, a shocked expression on his face as he got teary too and exclaimed, “I don’t know what magical spell you’ve got my brother under, but whatever it is that’s gotten Prince Ice here to open up and get emotional, I cannot be thankful enough for.” The brothers hugged again, and Jennifer looked at them fondly.
“I’ll go deal with the paperwork then, shall I?” said Ted, as he shook hands with everyone and left.
“Speaking of stress, I have some news for you that will probably ease your stress greatly,” said David with a knowing smile as he looked at the pair of them.
“I’ll have to undergo intensive therapy with an experimental drug for a year, but once that’s done Dr. Matthew said that there’s no stopping me from making a full recovery,” said David with a beaming smile on his face.
Jennifer and Mike looked at one another, Mike’s face overcome with joy that the tears began pouring out. He hugged David and Jennifer together, glad that he had managed to find his peace at last, that it was all over. It was indeed a strange thing for Mike to experience, that the weight of the ordeal that they had been through together was only settling upon his chest now that the moment had passed. He watched Jennifer take care of David, force feeding him, asking him questions about his life and getting along with him. They both threw their heads back and laughed as David narrated embarrassing anecdote after anecdote about Mike as a child to Jennifer. She looked at him fondly almost every single time, and every time they caught one another’s eye – there was a hint of love that made him feel lucky.