LIAM
There had to be at least fifty people within the restaurant, all of whom were talking, laughing, and going about their business as though nothing could interrupt their special day. However, I was deaf to it all. I could see their mouths, filled with food, in some cases laughing outright. I knew they were there, but they didn't matter to me. Each step across the beige marbled floor led me closer and closer to him. I could feel my pulse quicken and my hands twitched with the need to strangle him. I wanted to rip his intestines out of his ass and shove them back down his throat.
His guards stepped aside, allowing me to come forth. Unbuttoning my coat, I kept my gloves on even as I sat in the last booth, right across from the scum who had killed my father.
Do not let your emotions take over, Liam. Mel’s voice rang out loudly in my head.
“Mr. Callahan.” He fought back surprise as he washed down a mouthful of his lamb with a glass of orange juice. “What can I help you with?”
I grinned and relaxed. “Have you ever seen The Princess Bride?”
“My time is valuable. I try not to waste it on movies, son.” He grinned as he cut into his bloody lamb.
“Shame. It’s a classic, and I would know, I’m a movie enthusiast. My favorite character has to be Inigo Montoya whose father was murdered. He swears that when he when he finds his father’s killer, the very first thing he would say is: ‘My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die.’”
“Really? And I assume that at the end of this fairytale, your hero murders his father’s killer?”
“But of course. What good is a son that does not avenge his father?”
He snickered. “The son should have never gotten his father killed in the first place. Or better yet, the old fool shouldn’t have retired. I’ve heard that it can be the death of some people.”
My hand twitched.
“Callahan, I’m trying to enjoy my lunch here. So why don’t you get to your point. Or better yet, get on your knees. We both know you have no cards to play here. This terrorist plot of yours was cute. But you’ve just started to scratch the surface on what it truly means to fight me. It could have easily been that mutt of a son of yours, or your mother, or that whoring granddaughter of mine. She reminds me a little too much of her father for my liking.” He was fishing for my anger, and one more comment like that would get it.
Easy, Liam. Don’t let him derail you from your plan. I heard Mel say in my mind.
Smiling politely in the face of stupidity and ignorance, I restrained myself from allowing him under my skin. It was only now that I truly understood how much effort it took to wait until the right moment.
Luckily, this was that moment.
“My name is Liam Callahan, you killed my father….and, well, I think death is too good for you. Isn’t that right, brother?!” I yelled the last part and at the snap of my fingers, Neal, along with seven of our men appeared. They were dressed in all black, with their faces covered, and their guns in hand.
Before anyone in the restaurant even had a moment to think, they opened fired. They shot every man and woman with precision, including the three agents assigned to cover Avian. Avian’s eyes widened as he stared at the chaos unfolding all around him; the blood that splattered across the walls, the people who screamed for their lives as they ran to doors that would not open for them.
I reached over and took his orange juice and toasted to him. “What where you saying about scratching the surface? I may not be able to kill you just yet, but I will make you suffer a thousand deaths before I gut you like the pig you are.”
Rising, I pulled out my burner phone and dialed 911.
“Help please…Rsamas…” I held it up so they could hear the gunshots.
“Sir! Sir! Where are you?”
“The Blue…Gard—”
I cut the call and kicked the phone over to one of the nearby bodies. It dragged through the pool of blood that covered the floor and came to rest inches away from the corpse.
“This is sloppy, you own this restaurant. Do you really think you can fucking get away with this?!”
“Actually, I don’t own this restaurant. We figured you would come here under the belief that we wouldn’t want to draw any attention to our business. Wait…” I paused dramatically. “Now that you mention it, you’re right, it would seem odd that the Director made it out without a scratch.” I pulled out the gun from behind my back and aimed downwards as I shot him in the kneecap. He dropped to the ground and bit down on his tongue to keep in the scream.
Squatting, I looked down into his eyes. “Remember my fucking face. Remember as you sit with their rotting bodies, that you did this. You unleashed this and there is no going back. A man cannot live by two names. You shall suffer death by a thousand cuts. Consider these the first two.”
Pointing the gun to the same kneecap I fired once again.
“FUCK YOU!” he screamed as he gasped for air. “I will rain down hell on your motherfucking head, Callahan! If you think this means that you’ve bested me, then you’re bloody fucking mistaken!”
“Save your energy, Director, you’re going to have to give a speech soon. Rsamas has just claimed responsibility for this. You’re going to be on the four o’clock news…after they fix you up, of course,” I said as I stepped over him.
“Until next time,” Neal muttered to him behind his mask. We walked out of there, knowing that there was not a soul besides Avian who was going to make it out alive, and I knew he wouldn’t talk. Not now at least. Mel was sure he had something, some last fuck you to give us if we killed him out right. I was willing to take the risk. She and Declan could back-hack whatever it was, couldn't they? Apparently she wasn’t of the same mind. She was right though…our futures depended on whether or not he had another shoe to drop on our heads.
MELODY
She entered my car, took off her sunglasses, and placed them on her head. Crossing her legs, she shifted to look at me.
“What can I do for the almighty Melody Callahan now?” She tried to joke, but I knew she was uncomfortable.
“Do you think you’re better than me?” I asked her as I flipped through my phone.
“No—”
“Would you ever wish to replace me?”
“I don’t understand.”
“Answer the question, Mina,” I replied emotionlessly.
“Replace you? No. Why would I want to do that?”
“You have a two year-old girl, right?” I asked her.
She froze before she swallowed. “If I’ve offended you—”
“You’re wasting words.”
“Yes, I have a daughter. Her name is Sayuri.”
“Her father?”
She shifted. “He never wanted to be in either of our lives.”
“Good, because I want you to get close to Neal Callahan,” I told her as her mouth dropped open.
“Excuse me? Get close to?”
“Fuck him,” I said more clearly. “Declan has his wife. Liam has me, and Neal needs someone. He’s running on pure anger and adrenaline, but once that runs out, I don’t want him going outside the family for comfort.”
“I’m sorry, are you trying to pimp me out to Neal Callahan?”