Page 50 of Carter's #Undoing

As he continued to talk, I felt an immense rage build within me that started from a place so deep, I was certain I’d never felt it before. To hear the woman you love get disrespected by a merciless man so obsessed with her she’d became nothing more than a pawn in his chess game was unbearable. I felt like I was at my wit’s end. They were going to kill me before I had to listen to them spit any more bullshit.

It was at that moment that I saw a glimmer of hope out of the corner of my eye—Scotch and Cap moving in the quiet darkness of the basement. Out of my peripheral, I saw the basement window was open that hadn’t been prior, and had Rodney and Kevin not enjoyed listening to the sounds of their own voice so much, maybe they would have seen the knocks to the head coming.

I sighed in relief as Cap took off the duct tape and Scotch got off the chain. “Where’s Hennessey and Jackie-D?”

“Taking care of the goons upstairs,” Scotch explained, his eyes glancing over at my fresh wounds. “You a’ight to do this?”

I brushed the rest of the chains from my legs and put on my torn shirt they’d tossed to the ground. “Hell yeah.” I was still hurting, but they’d had their little fun. Now, it was my turn.

“How is she?” I asked.

“She’s fine, and so are your parents,” Scotch said. “Turns out, the person who was helping Rodney out was his bastard son who worked at the hospital near your neighborhood. Caden found him lurking around the B&B with a gasoline can. He’s been arrested.”

I nodded. “Is the house secure?” I asked Jackie-D when he and Hennessey arrived.

“It’s all ours.”

“Good. Let’s chain them to these damn seats and wake they asses up.”

We worked swiftly, years of experience making it where we didn’t even have to do that much talking. They hadn’t even bothered to hide my pistol, proof that they were getting sloppy.

Hennessey tossed some water at them to wake them up. As expected, both men started spitting out nonsense about what they would do to us when they got free.

“That’s where you’re mistaken, fellas.” I leaned down to Rodney’s level. “Listen to me very carefully, Rodney. I want you to remember how it feels to get outsmarted by someone who has studied your moves, waiting for his time to strike. I want you to taste the bitterness as you watch your business fall and your operations cease.” I leaned even closer. “But more importantly, I wanted you to never forget that your hatred for the woman I love … and all women, is what ultimately failed you in life.” I wasted no time shooting him in one leg, and since I wanted to get back to my woman soon, I shot the other.

I looked at Scotch, the only other friend in the room who had first-hand knowledge of just how many women Kevin had raped when we were in the military. Didn’t matter if they were from Iraq or from our own camp, Kevin would leave them either too beat up or too scared to talk afterwards.

Scotch followed suit, both Kevin and Rodney wailing at the top of their lungs.

“Quick cryin’,” Jackie-D grunted. “Bullet wounds heal.”

Scotch glanced at me, the same thought in both our minds as we aimed our guns at their crotch and shot, the men bawling even more than before.

“Damn,” Jackie-D said. “But that shit won’t heal.”

I stuck my pistol back in my pocket and looked to my friends. “Can y’all finish up here while I get back to her?”

Scotch nodded. “We all good here, bruh. We took care of Vince in the junkyard too. But let JD take you to our medical contact so you can get patched up.”

“I’m good, man,” I said, my feet wobbly. Glancing down, I realized that puddle of blood didn't come from Kevin and Rodney, but instead, was dripping from my wounds.

Turning to Jackie-D, I nodded. “On second thought, yeah, let’s go.”

“This isn’t over,” Rodney slurred “I knew your little bitch ass could never kill me. You think shooting at my dick makes you a tough guy now? Boy, ain’t you learned a damn thing after all these years? If you ain’t got the stomach for the business, move aside so the grown folks can make shit happen. I’ll hunt your little girlfriend, Serenity, down if it’s the last thing I—”

I knew I’d hit him dead in between the eyes without even turning around. After all, I was a sniper. A hitman. A contract killer known for precision.

“Sorry, fellas,” I stated.

“You good,” Jackie-D said, helping me up the stairs. “Muthafucka talked too damn much anyway.”

---