Ricco watched them go into the café before returning to Mariko. “The information is correct. We have fourteen opponents. Three vehicles. We’ll take care of those first, just to ensure that no one escapes us and we have to give chase. It’s easier to contain them here.” And he had plans after.
Mariko stood up and stretched, easing her muscles into working order before she followed Ricco to the shadow that would take them both over the side of the building to the lot where the Demons had parked their vehicles, thinking them safe from any tampering. Ricco had chosen one of the slower tubes. It was wider and went over the side of the building and almost all the way across the parking lot. Thrown by the lamppost, the shadow touched the tube that reached out from the building itself.
The riders moved from one shadow to the next without hesitation. Ricco went under the hood of the first SUV and disconnected the ignition relay and then followed up with removing several of the other wires. He did the same in the other SUV and truck. Satisfied that it would take quite some time for the gang members to figure out what had gone wrong with their rides, Ricco and Mariko rode the shadows right up to the café.
The fourteen Demon members were swaggering around the café, taunting the waitress, who looked a little intimidated. She was older, her face drawn and tired. The cook could be seen throwing annoyed glances at the men, who were tossing napkins into the air and throwing spoons and forks at one another.
Two customers walked out. When they tried to pay, one of the men who had ridden in the truck grabbed the invoice from the waitress and tore it up, indicating for the couple to leave. He even opened the door for them. The couple hurried out, obviously afraid to stay and fight it out to pay the bill.
The same man who had let the couple go without paying sauntered over to sit on the table of another group of customers. Four men who looked like construction workers, big burly men with obvious muscles and tattoos that looked as if they might have gotten them in prison. The Demon member reached over and flipped a plate of food into the nearest construction worker’s lap. Immediately, the other Demons howled with glee and gathered around the booth.
The moment he’d sat down, there had been a mass exodus from the café. Everyone else who had been eating there jumped up and, without paying, rushed for the door, ignoring the taunting laughter of the gang members as they ran to their cars. Ricco watched them drive out fast. Not a single one was on their cell phone reporting a disturbance at the Harold and x’d-out Son Café. And no one would. The café was known to be a safe haven for the various gangs.
The construction worker trapped in the booth tried to jump up as hot gravy and mashed potatoes burned through his jeans. The table and close booth seating inhibited his movements, causing him to teeter there, while the Demon member tipped more plates at the others sitting. One made the mistake of trying to punch the Demon while they all leapt up to protect themselves.
Instantly the construction workers were dragged from the booth. The waitress tried to pull out her cell phone but another Demon caught her in a vicious hold, forcing her to drop the phone. He stomped on it repeatedly.
“This café has the mark on it. You don’t ever violate that mark, or we kill every one of you, bitch, your families, and then burn your houses down. You got that?” As he threatened her, he kept putting more pressure on her arm until he nearly snapped the bone.
She nodded over and over. The cook refused to watch, not even when sprays of blood went up and construction workers were piled up in the corner. One was dead, two well on their way and the fourth struggling for every breath but trying to crawl for the door. No one stopped him, but they watched as he made his way, using elbows and toes down the center of the café, leaving a bloody trail behind him.
The plate-flipping member of the Demons smirked and then paced along beside him, kicking at him with his boots. “That was just a little warm-up, baby. Don’t you want to play some more? I’m in the mood to play. You all are nothin’ but pussies in here.”
The gang member holding on to the waitress walked her over to the others. “Take their orders, bitch, and then get back here. Seems like you’re going to be the only entertainment we’ve got.” He leered at her and deliberately caught her breast and squeezed hard enough to bring on tears.