Page 43 of Hatter

Come on, you bastards. A feral grin crossed my face as we crashed through the front door and spilled into the entrance of Eddie’s lair. Let’s see if you can handle the heat.

The stench of fear filled the air, mixing with the gun smoke and blood as we opened fire.

“Time to paint the walls red,” I called out to my brothers.

Eddie and his men didn’t stand a chance, not this time. I knew men like him. Even with the gunfire and the sound of our bikes, he’d be overly confident that he’d win. Hell, he might have thought the engines of our motorcycles were the club from North Carolina. We hadn’t seen them, even though they’d been close before. I didn’t know if they had returned home or were just keeping their distance to watch how things would unfold.

I’d brought hell right to his doorstep, and I wasn’t going to leave until I knew he was roasting in the fiery pits, keeping Satan company.

“Over there!” Rabbit yelled, pointing to a cluster of armed goons trying to take cover. I nodded, then charged straight into the fray. Fists flew, bullets whizzed past my ears.

“Think you can hurt my family?” I demanded, slamming one man’s head against the wall. He crumpled to the ground, senseless. Dodging a punch from another asshole, I drove my knee into his gut, watching as he doubled over, gasping for breath. Before he could recover, I used my handgun to put a bullet in his brain.

“Is that all you got?” I taunted Eddie’s men, throwing a right hook that connected with another thug’s jaw. He went down hard, and I put two bullets in him -- one in his chest and one in the head before I moved on to the next. There was no time for mercy or hesitation -- this was war, and we were fighting for our lives.

“Nice work, Hatter!” March called, shooting a man who was about to get the drop on me. I nodded, acknowledging the save, before turning my attention back to the enemy.

Where’s Eddie? I ducked under a wild swing. The bastard had to be around here somewhere, hiding like the coward he was. But it didn’t matter -- we would find him, drag him out into the light, and make him pay.

I didn’t know how Eddie had gotten so many men together in such a short amount of time. Even if he’d had men from the mafia sent in, hired some local thugs, and even bought people from other organizations, I wouldn’t have thought it possible for him to mobilize such a large force, much less this fast.

Didn’t matter. We might have lost before, but today we’d win. We’d come prepared.

“Keep pushing, boys,” I shouted, my voice hoarse with exhaustion and fury. “We’re almost there! Just a little more blood, a little more pain, and this nightmare will be over.”

My brothers roared in agreement, the sound echoing through the building like the growl of a pack of hungry wolves. We were relentless, unstoppable. And when we left this place, not a single soul would remain. We’d make sure to snuff out all their lives.

Blood splattered across the floor as I heard Cheshire’s maniacal laughter ringing through the air. I glanced over, my eyes widening, as I saw my VP slicing open some fool’s gut like he was carving a turkey. The poor bastard screamed, clawing at his spilling innards before collapsing to the ground.

“You can’t fuck with us, you hear?” Cheshire spit, kicking the body away from him. His excited grin was infectious, and I felt a dark satisfaction swelling within me. We had taken back what was ours, showing these pieces of shit they didn’t run this town.

“Damn right!” I yelled, slamming the butt of my gun into another thug’s face. He crumpled, blood pouring from his smashed nose. Before he could stand, I shot him in both knees and hands. Bastard wouldn’t be walking, or crawling, out of here, and he wouldn’t be holding a gun.

I turned toward March, watching as he expertly took down one man after another, each one falling under his unyielding onslaught.

“Keep it up, brother,” I shouted, gritting my teeth. My heart hammered in my chest, adrenaline and fury coursing through my veins. The one pissant I wanted to exterminate had been nowhere to be found. I scanned the place again, determined to locate him.

Then I saw him. Eddie. Standing there in the midst of the carnage, wearing that sick fucking smile like he was enjoying every second of it. Our eyes locked, and I felt a cold shiver run down my spine. The silent challenge hung heavy between us, an unspoken promise that only one of us would walk away.

“Come on, then!” I shouted, my grip tightening on my gun. “Let’s finish this!”

“About time,” Eddie sneered, his eyes glinting with malice. “I’ve been looking forward to this, Hatter.”

“Trust me,” I growled, my every instinct screaming for blood and vengeance. “The feeling’s fucking mutual.”

The bastard didn’t appear to be armed, and I wasn’t about to make this easy on him. I launched myself at Eddie, my fists flying. Rage and a sense of justice fueled me, making me an unstoppable force.

“Is that all you got?” Eddie taunted, dodging my punch and landing one of his own on my ribs. I grunted in pain, but it only served to stoke the fire within me.

“Fuck you,” I spat, ducking under another swing from him and returning a vicious uppercut to his jaw. I could feel the impact all the way up to my shoulder, and satisfaction coursed through me as he staggered back.

“Big mistake, Hatter,” Eddie growled, regaining his footing and coming at me again. We traded blows, neither giving an inch, our punches fueled by hatred and desperation.

I pictured Jo’s beautiful face and the fierce loyalty of my brothers. It gave me the strength I needed to keep going, even as my body screamed for relief.

I’d been distracted just long enough for Eddie to pull a knife from somewhere. He laughed as he attacked me, slashing with the blade. He sliced along my stomach and caught my upper arm. I danced back and watched for an opening.

“Enjoy your last breaths, fucker,” I snarled, unleashing a flurry of punches that caught Eddie off-guard. He tried to counter, but I was too fast, too determined. My fist connected with his temple, sending him crashing to the ground.

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