I didn’t even ask before turning to Shelby.
“St—Stop. Please stop,” he finally said, as he looked to his mistress. “I love her. I love her.”
“Your mistress?” I asked calmly.
“Yes!” he cried.
Before I could blink, a bullet struck his mistress between her eyes. Turning to Mel, I watched as she placed her gun down.
“Well that was a plot twist,” I said to her.
“I hate home wreckers.” She shrugged as she glanced at Scoot’s wife who sat in shock. “You’re welcome,” she added.
“AH!” Scooter screamed as he fought against the chair. “You no good fucking liar! Damn you to hell! You sick fucking bastards!”
“Wow, he really loved her,” I said, wishing that I’d tortured her more.
“He’s disgusting,” Mel muttered. “I don’t have to tell you what will happen if you ever think—”
“I know,” I snickered, as I dropped the knife to ground.
I pulled out my own gun and shot his wife in the heart, finishing the heartbreak that he had caused. That woke him up and he began to fight against his restraints, trying in vain to reach her as she bled out beside him. Her blood gushed out, sending a hot spray of it into his face. Fortunately for me, I remained a safe enough distance away to avoid any splash back, and I simply watched as she died.
“You know, I always saw this ending,” I told him calmly as he wept. Picking up my brass knuckles, I pulled my fist back before I slammed it into his face.
“In fact, I warned you,” I sighed when I heard the sickening pop of his nose.
“You came after my family.” The brass of my knuckles connected with his teeth and he coughed as they undoubtedly lodged themselves into his throat.
I held his blood-soaked face, looking to see if there were any bones that I hadn’t yet broken…there was.
“You had me sent to jail,” I sighed again, as I wiped his blood off my hands and onto his shirt. Pulling back once more, I struck and felt his jaw crack from the sheer force of my blow. “But it’s alright, because I’m over it…now.” Looking him over as though he was a fine painting, Mel walked forward before she poured gasoline over the bodies.
He coughed up a few teeth as he choked for breath.
“Any last words, Officer?” I asked him.
All he could do was struggle to breathe.
“I guess not. Funny since you had so much to say on the stand.” It didn’t matter, he was done. He was just the first of many who had to pay the price.
I exited the room because I hated the smell of gasoline. Neither Mel nor I said anything as we walked back to visit Roy and the idiots who were still cutting useless product. Monte, Fedel, and now Kain, stood at the exits with their guns clearly visible.
“It seems as though our business is done here,” I stated as I walked back towards the exit that led down to the grand staircase.
“I swear on my life, Callahan, I will repay everything,” Roy called out, as he used the arm of a naked woman to stand.
It was clear that he had indulged in a little too much of our product in the time we were gone.
“Oh no,” Mel smirked, as she pointed between the two of us. “We are done here. You…well you’re just done.”
“Kill them and burn this place to the ground.” I commanded. And before they could blink or even run, Monte, Fedel and Kain emptied their clips into them, making sure to double tap the heads.
MELODY
We sat at a beautiful diner, about a mile out from the old hotel and we watched as it burned. The fire department had been called, but they apparently thought it best to allow the building to burn out safely. No one else was in the diner but us, however, it wasn’t supposed to be open for another hour anyway.
“Do you think we’re pyromaniacs?” I snickered, as I gazed at the rising smoke that tainted the sky in varying shades of grey.
“Not at all. The fires we set have purposes,” he replied as he cut into the sausage links before him.
“True,” I said, as I reached for my phone. I wanted to check up on Ethan.
“No phones.” Liam glanced at the device in my hands.
“You’re funny.” I chuckled as I signed in and saw that Ethan was sitting with Sedric and Evelyn, the latter was reading something between them…I fought the urge to smile, and as I glanced up, I noticed that Liam was peeking over my shoulder to see them.
“Yeah, no phones,” I mocked. “I see what you’re doing, Callahan.”
“And what is it that I’m doing?” he asked from behind his coffee cup.
I waved my hand over the spread of toast, waffles, sausage and eggs in front us, and his eyebrow raised as my grin spread across his face.
“Oh come on, this is you trying to get me on a date.”
“No. This is brunch. I was hungry.” To prove his point, he grabbed a slice of French toast and took a bite.
“Callahan—”
“When I take you on a date, Melody, there will be dancing, the best wine in the country, and food that is ridiculously overpriced,” he replied.
“I don’t understand your obsession with romance. It’s like you’re a love child of War and Peace,” I muttered before I bit into my apple.
“What do you have against romance?”
“Nothing. It’s fine when it's not being directed at me. I’m understanding of love, but this need to buy flowers, and chocolates—”
“You do know love and romance are synonymous, right?”
“No, they’re not—”
“And you are aware that what you did for me today was romantic, right?”
I swallow slowly, unsure of how to reply, and he knew that he’d bested me. Leaning back, he pensively crossed his arms.
“Why did you do it?”
“I don’t know, I thought you needed it or at least wanted…” I muttered as I reached for my tea. I didn’t like where this was going.
“And it made you happy to do it?”
Oh God, must he drag this out? “Yes, fine. I was happy that you were happy. Can you just say what you mean now?”
“You, as my wife, anticipated my needs without having to ask or be asked. I, as your husband, wish to do the same.”
“But I have no need for restaurant wine, I have my own. Nor do I care for dancing, and if you want overpriced steak, then I’ll let the cook know.”
He rolled his eyes at me. “How do you know what you like if you’ve never done it before?”
His smugness was slowly killing me.
“Because I know myself.”
“I know you too, and you’ve already agreed so we’re going on a date and you’re going to enjoy it without being a bitch.”
“Now you’re trying to change my personality, Callahan? So controlling. I think this is an early sign of an abusive relationship.”
“You can bring your sarcasm and wit, I find it entertaining.”
Oh how he annoyed me.
“Can we talk business now?”
“Of course. It’s not like this is a date or anything,” he winked.
“It isn’t. Now how would you like to handle all those who testified you against you? And I meant that as a completely unromantic and platonic question.”