The men shifted nervously, and as one of them took an assertive step towards the staircase, music began to thump loudly through the ceiling and walls. Laughter bubbled up my throat and I spat more blood out of my mouth. Grinning manically with no doubt bloodied teeth, I murmured, “That, is Wreak Havoc, by Skylar Grey.” Shaking my head, I chuckled. “My Beauty has chosen well.”
Kleeman’s startled gaze crossed to mine.
“Yes, Eddie, that would be the new and improved, Beauty. Time’s up, daddy-o.”
15
BEAUTY
Marisol had outdone herself. Even though she’d angered Eddie, she was still considered head of the household as far as the guards and staff went, so there was nothing suspicious about her moving freely around the property. From the garage, she’d found some tools and stuffed them into another bag, telling the guards at the door she needed more products to make us women presentable. With scissors we’d snipped the cable ties around my wrists, then using a chisel I’d begun to chip away at the crumbling concrete where the chain around my ankle was bolted to the wall. What felt like forever might have only been an hour before the stone loosened enough for me to drag the bolt loose. Unable to unbolt it from my ankle, I simply hung the length over my shoulder to keep it out of my way.
“You call the guard in, tell him Ruby has collapsed or she’s not breathing.”
Marisol looked like she was going to vomit. Her eyes were wide and olive skin pale. Her hands trembled with fear, but she still gave me a firm nod.
“You need to sound convincing, panicked.”
“Oh I’ll be panicked,” she mumbled. “What are you going to do?”
Flipping the chisel that rested in my hand, I smiled.
“Kill him, silly.”
Even though I knew she was sweating bullets, and likely two seconds away from being sick, Marisol moved to the door, took a deep breath then began beating on it, screaming for the men to help her. As I predicted, the barn door was flung open, and a head peered around the door.
“The young girl, she isn’t moving.”
The guard was quick to enter, ignoring the spot where I’d been chained to the wall and heading straight to Ruby’s stall. As he passed by the stable beside Ruby’s, I stepped out of the shadows and swung the chisel at his neck. It wasn’t the sharpest blade, but I came at him with force, throwing my weight behind my improvised weapon and allowing it to sink deep into his flesh.
Startled and choking, the guard was soon laid out prone on the floor. Dropping to my haunches, I searched his body, pulling free a handgun and two ammo clips. I continued to pat down his pockets in search for keys that might get Ruby free. A long, grey cylinder looking piece was tucked into his back pocket.
“No way!” I mouthed.
“What’s that?” Ruby asked timidly.
“This, is a silencer. Hart used one a couple of times, this is so freaking awesome.”
Giggling, I wound the piece onto the barrel of the gun, then proceeded to point it toward the doorway, imagining the bullet being released from the chamber and sent into the head of the second guard still standing outside.
“Chiquita, we need keys for Ruby.”
Remembering my mission, I resumed checking the bleeding guard’s pockets finding nothing else of use.
“Maybe the other guy,” I murmured. Grabbing the gun, I rose to my feet.
“When I give you the signal, I want both of you to yell. Make a fuss, anything to get the other guard through that door, okay?”
They both nodded but looked like scared little kids. Making my way to the door, I stood to one side of it, adjusted my grip on the weapon, and nodded to Marisol whose head was poked around the edge of the stall doorway, so she could see me. With the sharp nod, she began yelling for help. The door sprung open, and the second guard was quick to enter. He didn’t see me, nor the quick death that came to take him. With the barrel of the gun poised at this head, I pulled the trigger. He went down heavy and I wasted no time in pilfering everything from his pockets. A cell phone, watermelon-flavored gum, wallet, really cool aviator sunglasses with silver mirror lenses which I slipped on my nose, ChapStick, some loose change, a Band-Aid, and hallelujah, keys. Throwing them toward Marisol, they scattered across the ground noisily.
“I’ve never known a man to carry so much shit in his pockets. Are the old stables still standing?” I asked. I don’t know where the memory of the old, dilapidated timber barn came from, but I knew it was real, and I knew it was a place I sought out as a child whenever Marisol told me to hide.
“Sí, only just.”
“Take Ruby there and hide.”
“Lucy?” Marisol called out as I made my way to the door. Pausing, I glanced back over my shoulder. “Please be careful chiquita.”
Quickly making my way back to her, I held up my pinky.
“I promise.”
She linked her pinky with mine and gave me a shaky smile. Stepping away, I raced back to the doorway of the barn. Glancing back over my shoulder, I winked.
“Don’t worry la mama, this will be a piece of cake.”
Marisol’s eyes glassed over at the mama reference. It felt right giving her such a title, and I did recall having called her that in the past. The sweet moment was fleeting, because I had shit to get done, like rescuing Hart.
Trusting that Marisol would get Ruby free and to safety, I tiptoed cautiously out the front door. It was the middle of the day and there were very few places to hide, but there was no need. It was quiet, only a gentle breeze tangling in the leaves of nearby trees breaking the silence. As quickly as I could with the aches in my body, I made my way back to the house much the same way that I arrived at the barn, without the men chasing me, and the spectacular tumble down the hill. My eyes remained glued to the spot I lost my necklace as I moved past, but no shimmer amongst the leaves and grass caught my eye. That loss hurt a hell of a lot more than the bruises that littered my body. At the back fence I found the gate wide open, and one guard standing there with his studious focus on a cell phone in his hand. Creeping up slowly behind him, I shot him point-blank, loving the soft thump of my muffled weapon. Bringing the beautiful cylinder to my lips, I blew across the end of it. There was no smoke drifting from the barrel, but it felt like a pretty cool thing to do.
“My beautiful baby, mama’s gonna take good care of you.”
Crouching low, I moved cautiously around the gate. I felt like a total badass, but the reality was I was a complete novice and regardless of my confidence, I did half expect to get caught. Finding little to mask my run from the fence to the house, I decided there was nothing else to be done . . . I had to nut up and run, fast. My socked feet only slipped once on the polished tiles around the pool, and helped muffle any noise as I took the steps two at a time and made my way to the back door at the furthest end of the decking. Turning the door knob ever so slowly, I checked the coast was clear and slipped inside. With my heart crashing about my chest like a wild animal, I paused to catch my breath and listen, just like Hart had taught me. My ribs were throbbing like a bitch, my face hot and swollen, and my feet a little sore. I ignored every twinge in my body and focused on what I could hear.
Don’t be rushed, take your time, observe your surroundings.
Hearing nothing, I pushed my new sunglasses up on top of my head and began to tiptoe through a wide open and very empty laundry. At the open door that led into a hallway, I paused again and listened. Still nothing. Where the fuck was everybody? Repositioning the chain which still hung over my shoulder, I took a wary step into the open corridor only to be confronted with a soldier walking towards me. Sneaky bastard didn’t make so much as a sound as his heavy boots moved over the tiles. We both stopped, and I smiled, which seemed to catch him off guard. He hesitated in reaching for his weapon, big mistake. Raising my gun with the beautiful silencer, I shot him in the face. Blood sprayed the wall he was standing closest too, leaving a striking pattern that captured my attention for a split second too long.
The hard muzzle of steel pressed against the back of my head. Damn it, I’d let my guard down for a moment. Hart would be so disappointed.
“Drop the gun!”
Fuck that. I was not dropping my gun. Hart hadn’t taught me a way out of this particular situation, but I was quite sure that losing my weapon was not an option. Reaching into my bra strap, the gun pressed harder against the back of my skull and the man demanded I let go of the weapon, again.
“Just chill, I’m reaching for some gum, and that’s gum, G.U.M, not gun.”
Pulling the watermelon flavored chewing gum from my bra strap, I fumbled with one hand to pull the wrapping away. I had no idea what I was doing other than biding my time, so I could figure a way out of this mess.
“Want some?” I offered, holding out a piece.
“Drop your fucking weapon!” The guard yelled, sounding like a goddamn broken record.
Placing the gum in my mouth, my eyes darted anywhere and everywhere. Figure this shit out, girlfriend. I couldn’t hear any approaching footsteps, but I hadn’t heard the dead fucker in front of me or the dillhole behind me either. The house appeared silent apart from the nagging bitch holding a gun on me and the sound of my chewing. Fuck this, Hart needed me and we were wasting time here. Deciding I wasn’t about to allow anyone to get in the way of my rescue, I sighed deeply, then dropped to my knees which cracked painfully on the tiled floor. Ignoring the hurt, I did the only thing I could think of, throwing my head back and hoping I was somewhere in line with the man’s groin. Spitting out a grunt followed by a pained curse, I assumed I’d hit my mark. Rolling away like some badass combat bitch, I lifted the gun and shot the guard who was in the process of raising his own weapon. I hit his big, shiny forehead, and laid on my side on the floor for a moment basking in the pure genius of the move I’d just pulled off.
“Wish someone was taping this, Hart will never believe me.”
The doorway to my left sprung open, and the world’s most cowardly rabbit filled the space. He was unarmed, his face a peculiar shade of green, his wide eyes full of fear, nose obviously broken. My silencer was aimed at his head, but I didn’t pull the trigger. Not yet, anyway. We needed music.
“Hey rabbit,” I said with a smile and a wave before flicking my chain back over my shoulder as I climbed to my feet. Every part of my body ached, but I hid my wince and suppressed a groan. Never show weakness, even if I did feel like a ninety-year-old grandmother who’d been run over, scraped off the road, stewed, swallowed, and vomited back up.
“W-What the fuck is going on?” He stammered, noticing the bodies in the hallway.
“I’m staging a rescue, dummy. Where’s Hart?”
Jacob’s eyes widened further, but he didn’t say anything.
“Whatever, doesn’t matter. Come with me.”
“W-What?”
“We need music,” I explained, waiting for him to step into the hallway. When he didn’t, I aimed my gun at his head again which got him moving. Blowing a bubble with the gum, it popped and the rabbit flinched. Damn scaredy rabbit.
“Want some?” I offered when he glanced over his shoulder.
“What?”
“Watermelon-flavored gum?”
“N-no,” he stuttered out.
“How many guards does your father have here?”
“W-What?”
“You appear to have an unhealthy relationship with that word, and I really don’t fucking like it. Guards, soldiers, dudes with guns, how many?”
“I-I have no idea.”
Lowering my gun, I shot him in the back of the leg. Jacob howled with pain and crumpled to the floor, his hand gripping the wound as he sobbed out words like “please” and “mercy”, words I was completely ignorant of.
“How many men, rabbit?”
“Seven! Seven hired mercenaries, Thomas, d-dad, and m-me.”
The words spewed out of his mouth almost as fast as the blood that seeped through his fingers.
“Who the hell is Thomas?”
“Head of security.”
“What does he look like?”
“Wha – “
Waving the gun around in front of Jacob stopped the nasty ‘W’ word he was about to spit out.
“Ummm, tall, big, broken nose.”
“No way!” I hissed.
Thomas was Eddie’s head of security, but he was also the fucker who had grabbed me off the street all those years ago. Interesting, I was betting Eddie was unaware of the role Thomas played in my abduction.
“Where is Christopher?”
“W-What?”
“I swear, if you use that word again I will flip my bitch switch. Christopher? Where is he?” I asked again, speaking nice and slow.
“H-hospital.”
“Huh, what did they tell the doctors about the . . . you know?” I imitated stabbing myself in the neck.
“They said h-he fell while c-carrying a fork in his hand.”
I snorted, “Believable at least, he is a dumbass. Okay, get up and move your furry tail. We got places to be, music to rock out, people to kill.”
“I-I can’t, my leg –” Pointing the gun at his other leg got him moving. He struggled to his feet and hobbled toward the living room, his bloodied hand using the wall for leverage and leaving a trail of beautiful scarlet in its wake.
Seven soldiers plus Thomas and Eddie. I’d taken out five, which meant there was still three somewhere in the house, or perhaps outside. I hoped Marisol and Ruby didn’t stumble across them. At the living room, I found the stereo. It was quite fancy with buttons, lights, and dials and I had no idea how to use it. Taking the guards cell phone from the other cup of my bra, I tossed it to the scared little rabbit who clumsily caught it with blood stained hands. It reminded me of a song I’d danced to in Russia, something about a red right hand, it was dark and quirky. It wasn’t quite what I wanted for today’s bloodshed though. I was after something wilder, something more me.
“I want to play music. Can you find a song on that phone and play it through the stereo?”
“W-What?” Jacob gasped.
“Dude, I swear if you say what again I’m going to cut out your tongue, and trust me, I know how. It was the first thing Hart taught me.”
With trembling fingers, he fiddled with the phone for a moment, then glanced my way as tears spilled down his pale cheeks.
“W-what do you want to listen to?”
Rolling my eyes, I settled them back on Jacob with a dead-pan expression on my face.
“You said what again.”
A moment later, a wet stain spread across the groin of his pale grey trousers.
“Did you just pee yourself?” I exclaimed.
He didn’t speak. He just stood there, frozen, and wet.
“I was just fucking with you, Rabbit,” I said with a chuckle. “You really are a scared little furry beast, aren’t you? Your daddy must be so disappointed.”
“I’m the brains. Christopher is the muscle,” he whispered.
“You’re the brains?” At that little revelation, I began giggling hysterically. I could hardly believe this weak, passive little shit could contribute anything towards his father’s life of crime. “So,” I said after settling down, “how exactly did you help Eddie rape children?”
“W-wh –”
I pointed the gun at his face
“Fuck, please don’t, please! Shit, don’t shoot.”
I didn’t say a word, I just glared.
“He doesn’t rape –”
“Oh fuck that.”
I shot him again, this time in the other leg and Jacob collapsed to the ground, sobbing hysterically.
“I know you knew exactly what was going on in this house. You came here twice, once when you were about seventeen and again twelve months later. You had a thing for brunettes.”
Stepping closer to the pathetic bleeding mess, I pressed my gun to his head.
“Tell me that you knew.”
“Please –”
&
nbsp; “Did you know?” I repeated with a growl.
He gave me a jerky nod, snot and fluid dripping down his chin. Of course he knew. Stupid rabbit. Hearing him confess to it though was somehow soothing, it pacified a need to fix this mess and dulled the flames of my anger, helping me to dial it down a notch or two. He was going to die today, but not right away. I needed some damn music.
“Wreak Havoc, by Skylar Grey.”
“W-Wha –“
“Careful Jacob,” I said in a singsong voice, pressing the gun harder against his temple.
The what that had been on the tip of his tongue was swallowed, and like the obedient little pansy-ass he was, he found the song I was after. Before he could press play though, the glass windows behind us blew inwards, shards spraying the living room as I ducked my head at the impact. Swinging around, I aimed my gun, and shot. It missed the man dressed in head to toe combat gear by a hair’s breadth. Before I could get off my second shot a familiar voice shouted at me to stand down.
“Raul?”
“Sí Hermosa, stand down.”
“What the hell are you doing?” I asked, utterly stunned by the sudden invasion of men that Raul seemed to be standing alongside. Henry was there too, looking as sullen and formidable as ever. They were all dressed in the Los Zetas uniform of customary head to toe black and protective vests all emblazoned with a blood red Z.
“Ahhh, rescuing you?”
“Hi Henry.” I waved at the big, scary man standing to Raul’s left. He nodded like the cool, calm and dapper soldier he was. “I don’t need rescuing.”
“Of course not, so, we are rescuing Hart?”
My gaze lingered on the strangers standing with Raul and Henry, distrust my first thought.
“These are men Hart assembled to come for you. They can be trusted.”
“He said that about Viktor.”
“Sí, we will deal with Viktor at a later date.”
Nodding my head, I slowly turned my back on the team that were dressed much like the men who had infiltrated the Kensington mansion all those months ago. Right now it felt like a lifetime ago.
“Rabbit, music.”
BEAU2Y (Beauty Part 2): Blaire's World Page 11