Bloodbath

by K. A. Merikan

  Dom moved away from the fitting room and picked up a random blouse. “That’s the bigger size,” he said, tapping the hanger against the curtain. He could only hope Dana would get the memo that they were being watched.

  “Oh, thanks!” She took another minute before walking out in the new dress and giving a twirl, which was kind of funny, because Domenico remembered her more as the kind of woman who did push-ups, sweating profusely into the ground.

  The shopping assistant walked up to them with a smile and complimented Dana in Spanish.

  When the green dress was in the plastic bag and they both made their way toward the stairs, Domenico didn’t miss the man in the baseball cap following them at a distance. Was it a test of how aware of his surroundings he was? Since they were on familiar territory, it made sense to force him to prove himself, so he made sure to have an eye on everything despite appearing casual and confident.

  They went into a grocery store to buy snacks, and yet when the two of them left the shop, the guy was still on their tail, hiding away in the crowd. While Domenico ate a piece of pre-packaged chocolate cake, he made sure to look for anything suspicious from behind the reflective lenses of his shades, confirming the presence of two more men. One of them called Baseball Cap on the phone, and they shared a hurried, somewhat nervous conversation. To be fair, Domenico thought the guy had done a decent job at staying hidden. If Dom himself had been less of a professional, he surely wouldn’t have spotted him.

  “It could be a test,” Dana whispered, mirroring Domenico’s thoughts. “Could be why he wanted you to come with me alone.”

  A stranger who must have had no idea who he was dealing with, or another provocateur, patted Dana’s ass as they walked through a busy market with fruit and vegetables pouring out of each stall. He was young and stupid, out to harass to show off his bravado to a group of friends of similar age. The boy spun around, ready to run, but Domenico was being watched, and he never failed a single test in his life. Well, apart from the useless Physics exams back in school. So he grabbed the little fucker, twisted back the hand that dared touch Dana’s ass, just as he would have if someone dared to touch Seth’s perfect butt.

  “Fuck off. Woman not yours,” he said pointedly in broken Spanish, but loudly and forcefully enough to put his point across. The little punk’s friends must have understood Domenico wasn’t someone to mess with and didn’t try to come to the clown’s aid. So typical. It was so easy to impose on others when you believed you had the upper hand.

  “Sorry! Sorry!” the guy, who could be Mark’s age, yelled as soon as Domenico twisted his wrist.

  Dana sighed theatrically and patted Dom’s arm as a sign to stop. “Remember this,” she told the guy in Spanish.

  Domenico let go of him and nodded at Dana, like a dog happy to have served his mistress. “I think that was enough excitement for the day.”

  The boy was quick to disappear, rubbing his wrist and endlessly mocked by his friends. Maybe that was what Toro’s men came here for. To trail and make sure Domenico was good at doing his job? He would still keep an eye on them.

  They left the market square and walked into a cobblestone-lined path between two buildings where he supported Dana with his arm, because her high-heeled sandals kept slipping into the grooves.

  “Careful there, Miss Dana. We don’t want you to fall down in your state,” he said as they made their way through the narrow passage, and farther down the labyrinth of narrow alleyways hiding from the sun in the shadow of laundry hung above their heads. The deeper they dove into the natural maze of brick and concrete, the more stale and musty the air became, reaching a high concentration of a sickeningly sweet smell mingling with ammonia close to a set of trash cans tucked away in a tiny space between buildings. Domenico tried to breathe through his mouth and hoped Dana wasn’t prone to bouts of sickness, because he didn’t want to hold back her hair as she puked.

  She seemed well enough though, and merely fanned herself with a women’s magazine purchased on the way as they walked down a little street where they parked the car. Baseball Cap and another man followed them at a distance, but Domenico kept calm about it, more than certain now that there would be another test waiting for him. He frowned when a third man stepped into view at the other end of the pleasantly cool yet smelly alley. His name was Paolo, and Domenico remembered him because of abnormally large eyes that looked somewhat like a frog’s.

  Domenico stopped, gently pushing Dana against the wall and grinned, looking back at the two others, who wouldn’t stop walking toward them, closing the mock-trap. “Gentlemen, I’ve been watching you since we left the store. I assure you I know how to box, and we don’t want any broken noses today, do we? I think my skills have been tested enough already.”

  Paolo stared at him with his bulging eyes, as if unsure what to say, but then Baseball Cap spoke in Spanish, and his words chilled Dom’s blood to the bone. “Miss Dana, please move away when possible to not seem suspicious. This man could be dangerous, and Toro wants him alive. The other faggot’s a traitor, so this one could be too.”

  All the hairs on Domenico’s nape bristled.

  Dana feigned a shocked expression and clung to the wall with her back like a frightened fawn.

  Domenico looked at them, still keeping the pleasant face up, even though his muscles were getting stiffer by the second. “How about we all have a drink before we go?” he continued in English as all the three men walked up, visibly prepared to fight. He could see it in their eyes now. He could sense it in the odor of their sweat. They were nervous, because they didn’t know what to expect of him.

  Paolo licked his lips. “Okay. But I’d rather drink at home. Let’s go?” He glanced over Domenico’s shoulder, as if to inform the others of the scheme he was playing at. Good, they seemed to believe he’d been fooled and was about to walk into their trap.

  “That’s fair enough. I forgot one of us can’t have any alcohol. Sorry, Miss Dana,” Dom said before leaping to the side and delivering a hard blow to the first head on his way. The baseball cap flew into the air, and its wearer fell down, hitting his head against the cobbles. The next man, whom Domenico didn’t know, frantically fumbled for his gun, but Dom got to him first. The bastard was gone after a firm twist to his head. The neck snapped, leaving Dom with only one man to deal with.

  He turned around to the sound of safety being turned off in a gun, but before Paolo could shoot, Dana kicked him straight in the nuts from behind. It made his legs buckle and he dropped the gun with a cry of agony when his knees hit the cobblestones. He tried to scramble for the firearm, but Dana slammed her stiletto heel right into his hand.

  Domenico grabbed his knife, pulled back the bastard’s head by the hair, and stabbed it into the base of the throat. Pulling away to not be splashed by too much blood was an instinct, and with the artery severed, Paolo swiftly faded away. Domenico then punched the blade into Baseball Cap’s temple, but with the immediate danger gone, his brain was already swelling with worry.

  “Shit. Fuck. We need to get to Seth and Mark. Now.”

  Dana pulled her stiletto out of Paolo’s hand with a hiss. “What did that stupid fuck do? We had a good plan going!”

  Domenico charged at her and pushed her back at the wall. “Fuck you! You’re not untouchable just because you’re pregnant! It’s my husband you’re talking about!”

  Dana showed him her teeth like a rabid dog but shut up at least. “Fine. But we can’t storm that villa. You know how well secured it is. And you can’t pretend-take me hostage, because that’s not getting Seth out, it will only get you killed, because Toro holds all the cards on this side of El Encanto.”

  Domenico took a deep breath, trying to force air into his lungs when his head started spinning. “But... but he’s there. And Mark too. They are in danger, and they aren’t as competent as you and I. We need to get them out!”

  Dana looked to the narrow entry into the alley. They were lucky that no one was coming through here just yet.
Her blue gaze was cold and calculating. “They have been sent here to take you. No one knows I work with you, so I could pretend that I managed to run away. Play Toro somehow.”

  Domenico leaned back against the wall and grabbed his head, as if squeezing his own skull could somehow contain the storm raging inside it. What if Seth was being tortured again? Sometimes he still had nightmares of the ordeal unleashed on Seth by Vincenzo. “Shit. You’re right. You could. And I’m gonna be too obvious of a target. There’s too many of them now, and they know they’ve got a breach. The security will be on high alert, and I won’t be able to slip through with all those cameras.”

  Dana rubbed her temples. “Don’t get angry, but... are you sure you need them?”

  Domenico looked up, and fury sank its claws into his flesh. He was feeding a serpent with his own blood. “If something—anything—happens to them, I am going to find you and gut you alive.”

  Dana’s pupils widened, but she grabbed his hand and pulled it to her stomach. “If I do this, if I get him out, will you treat this baby as your own? Will we be family?”

  Domenico blinked, surprised by her plea. His gaze trailed to the tiny bump that was only now starting to show. Was Dana in love with him, or something? Either way, at this point, he’d do anything she’d ask for. “Yes. Yes, I will. Get our family out of there, Dana,” he said in a softer voice.

  She nodded and looked at Domenico with pristinely clear focus. “Get a car. There’s an old, disused graveyard out of town, to the West. Go to the mausoleum of the Mutis family. It opens with code 1929. If they are not kept together, I might only be able to get Seth out, but I will help him through the tunnel. I’ll pretend I managed to escape from you. I’ll get tranquilizers into the water supply and handle whatever security is in the way. I know how to disable to electricity for a short while, so the cameras will be off. You just wait in the tomb.”

  Domenico took a deep breath and stepped closer, pressing his lips to her forehead. Just in case she was in love with him. “Yes. I trust you, Dana. You are the most competent person I have. Please, get them out,” he said, but it remained unsaid who was higher, and who was lower priority at this point. After all, Mark hadn’t yet been exposed, so maybe he’d be safe somehow if bad came to worse.

  Dana flashed him a vicious grin, and didn’t seem to expect any more tenderness, so that was a good sign. She turned around and walked off toward the end of the alleyway, but seconds later, once she was off the cobblestones, her gait changed into a run.

  Domenico glanced at the bodies, still shell-shocked after the realization his family had been in danger while he walked around, ate cake, and overall had some good fun. He swallowed, looking at the corpses, but there was nowhere to hide them, no ditches or trash bins in immediate proximity, and he had no time to drag them anywhere. Especially since upon Dana’s arrival, Toro would already find out the fate of his lost soldiers.

  So without any more deliberating, Domenico chose to follow in Dana’s footsteps. He needed a car. That was all that mattered. Out of the mansion, and knowing that he wouldn’t be invited inside any time soon, he could even call Miguel for backup. It was about time to use the man. Hopefully, after the weeks between the forest and El Encanto, Miguel hadn’t become a complete hermit.

  Stealing a car had never been a challenge for Domenico. It was among the first skills he’d learned while apprenticing with Tassa, but he needed information about the graveyard as well, so he made his way to the backstreets and looked for people parking or approaching vehicles. He didn’t have to wait long as a bearded man in his early thirties pulled into a vacant space at the side of an empty street faced by walls leading to people’s backyards.

  Domenico knocked on the door and leaned in through the open passenger window with a smile as polite as he could muster while his feelings played high-strung music. He made himself sound as natural as he could in his Spanish, even though he was certain he sounded more like a man from Spain than South America.

  “Hi. I’m looking for an old graveyard. My great grandfather is buried there. It’s supposed to be out of town.”

  The man frowned and took a few seconds to think. “Oh, yes! It’s not used now, I think. I don’t even know if the road that leads there is still accessible by car, but it’s worth a shot if you don’t mind ending up having to walk for a while. You have to follow the road by the riv—”

  The man’s mouth was left hanging open when Domenico pulled out his gun and sat in the passenger seat, pointing the muzzle at him. “I really want to see that grave. Drive me.”

  The man’s knuckles went white when he gripped the steering wheel in panic. “I don’t want any trouble. Please.”

  “You’ll be fine, I promise,” Domenico lied as he buckled his seatbelt, just in case the man wanted to crash into something to get the upper hand. “Get me where I want to be. Now.”

  The man crossed himself before turning on the ignition. Domenico glanced at the wooden rosary hanging from the rear-view mirror and crossed himself as well. God would be on his side in this car, but would He also be with Dana, Mark, and Seth?

  The drive felt like an eternity in Purgatory. The man sweated profusely, only adding realism to the nagging visions of Seth tormented with knives. To his credit, the driver acted like a rational person and didn’t make any sudden moves or attempts to fight Domenico. He might get his life and car back soon enough. They left El Encanto behind and turned west, into a smaller, mostly overgrown road that led all the way into the thick forest. Vehicles were likely a rare presence here, but the route must have been used often enough to prevent any trees growing out of the unsurfaced road.

  Domenico couldn’t bring himself to think of much but the constant itch all over his body. It was as if some invisible force was intent on slicing up his organs while they were still inside of him.

  He made the man drive all the way to the old, flimsy gate that hung on a single hinge. Domenico kind of felt bad about the prospect of killing a man who helped him get here, so he knocked him out, and then used some of the tape he always had on him to hogtie the poor guy. He left him in the car, with the windows lowered, but the car was in the shadow, so he supposed it would not bake his prisoner alive.

  Searching for the right mausoleum was another matter though, as the graveyard was much more extensive than he’d imagined it to be. Worse yet, half of it had been taken back by nature, the stones covered in moss, bushes grew everywhere, and he even spotted a young tree springing out from under a broken headstone. Most of the graves were made out of light brown stone, not very well visible in the thick greenery, and slaloming between them quickly started making Dom dizzy. Only when he thought about it logically, he realized that it wasn’t a normal reaction for him. His skin was burning, and his throat was as dry as woodchips. The constant chirping of birds in the trees, combined with monkey calls were so loud it felt as if they were inside of his head.

  He walked in the tall grass, trying to make out the broken shapes, some of which had a greenish hue while others bore traces of someone’s infrequent care. For several minutes, Dom tried to read the barely-there letters on the headstones ahead of him, only to realize that Dana had spoken of a mausoleum. A mausoleum. He needed to find a small building with a door that would open with the code 1929. He could do that much easier than search for a forgotten grave in the bushes.

  If he found the right place, he’d soon see Seth again, and that was what counted. Breathing harder with each passing second, Domenico stepped over a fallen branch that knocked over two gravestones, and he narrowed his eyes as he looked between the trees, searching for familiar structures.

  In the far-off distance, covered by thick mist, beyond an expanse of ferns, he spotted shadows that looked like small buildings, and his heart soared with recognition. A flock of colorful birds flew up to the sky in panic when he started running, skipping over the stones and nonexistent walkways. As if this day wasn’t bad enough, the sunlight became dimmer, and clouds began gathering abo
ve his head. Considering that he sweated so much his body was already as damp as if he’d come out of the river, he chose to ignore it and just push on through the thick coating of grass and ferns.

  Domenico’s brain itched from the heat that must have suddenly appeared because of the impending rain. He found it difficult to breathe, especially with the way his heart thumped in a never-ending crescendo. He soldiered on despite the difficulty in moving even when his focus waned, as if he’d returned to the ground after hanging head-down for too long.

  Something moved, slipping just beyond the edge of Dom’s vision, but he was certain that something was there, following him in the shadow of the trees. Had Toro’s men managed to track him down? Had Dana betrayed him after all? She’d seemed dead serious when she made her promise to bring Seth over, and she had helped Domenico in that back alley. But if not her, then who was it?

  He was approaching the mausoleums, so his focus was split between the necessary awareness of his tail and engraved letters, but with safety being the priority here, he slid his hand under his armpit to take hold of his Beretta... only to grab at nothing.

  He’d left it in the car. What was wrong with him? It was such a deep-seated instinct to never go unarmed, so how the fuck did this happen? Domenico licked sweat off his upper lip, lowering his whole body as he looked around the deserted area. Maybe it was a monkey that he’d noticed, since he saw a few more rush away to the tall trees when he approached.

  Domenico exhaled, confirming that he had his knife on him at least. For a moment, he contemplated going back to the car, where he must have left his firearm, but he ultimately decided against it. He wasn’t sure where the cemetery was in relation to Toro’s villa. Who knew, maybe Seth was already on his way, safe and about to fall into Domenico’s arms? Maybe he would be fine.

  Domenico pulled out his phone and quickly chose Miguel’s number, making his way through the thickening undergrowth in hope he wouldn’t step on a snake or anything poisonous. His head throbbed with the psychedelic bird songs as he approached the first mausoleum, but it was marked with a different surname, and he groaned, switching off the phone when a robotic voice told him Miguel’s number was unreachable.