“The contract is up.” He backflipped over a long silver table, landed, grabbed several pots, and slung them at me. “No talking.”
One hot pot hit me. I knocked it away. My skin singed from the heated metal. It held soup. When it crashed to the floor, red boiling liquid spilled out. More steam rose. The scent of beef filled the air. He threw more hot pots full of sizzling food. I ducked from each one, making sure I didn’t get burned. Plates came next. They smashed against the wall behind me.
Maxwell and the rest of my men entered as Naveen recovered.
“Where is he?” Maxwell waved away the steam and pointed his gun in my direction.
I hurried forward. “I think he went to the back.”
The lights shut off.
“Damn it!” Dima took out his lighter and turned it on.
Maxwell did the same. “He’s a resourceful motherfucker.”
Dima found a light switch and flicked it.
The lights returned.
We rushed off, shoving tables and plates of food to the side. A door appeared in front of us. Pointing his gun, Maxwell opened it and rushed up the stairs. We headed forward with him, keeping up a good speed. When we got to the second level, the door was locked.
“I hear him going up still!” Naveen raced forward.
Mr. Hat’s feet stomped past the third and fourth levels. My lungs burned as we hurried after him. Exhaustion came. I pushed through it.
When we arrived at the fifth level and opened the door, a massive room greeted us. It must have been the Xecutioners’ sleeping quarters. The space looked like a military bunker. At least ten bunk beds lined the wall. Suitcases were across from them.
All of the Xecutioners stood before us, ready to fight. Some gripped swords, katanas, and one even had a large ax. The whole group glared at us. Hiro stood in the center, wearing a button-down white shirt with a bright yellow sunflower on the front. Black pants and boots finished the outfit off.
“Relax.” I raised my hands. “We only want to talk.”
“The contract is up.” Hiro inched closer. “I gave you several chances. Now there is no more talking.”
I held my gun his way. “Why get blood on your pretty shirt when this can be handled with a few words?”
A guy stepped out of the shadowed corner.
Who the hell is he?
The big guy was tall, round, and looked extremely heavy.
“Misha, we have a problem,” Naveen whispered.
I growled. “What?”
“Other men are coming up from the back and they’re not ours.”
Hiro smiled. “As I said before, we are a large group.”
I kept the target of my gun on him. “Give me five minutes.”
“I have none to give.” Hiro gestured at the big guy. The man charged my way, head low, and hands out to grab me. Maxwell pointed to shoot. Fast, the blond Xecutioner jumped for him.
“Holy shit!” Maxwell staggered back.
The blond slashed his sword at Maxwell. It zipped in the air so fast. Maxwell didn’t have time to shoot him.
And then we all fought. Hiro was the only one who stood by. The big man came for me, exploding through the battling bodies.
Tired of this bullshit, I rushed for him. “Come on, you fat piece of shit!”
For such a big guy, he was fast. He dove for my chest and slammed into it. I smashed the butt of my gun on his spine. He dropped to the floor. I shot at his head and missed. The big guy rose from the floor in a blur and charged again. I turned sideways and shot him in the gut. That time I didn’t miss.
When I checked the space, ten of my men lay on the floor, sliced and diced like shards of meat.
What the fuck? How did they kill them so fast?
I looked for Naveen. He shot one guy in the neck and kicked another in the face. Blood smeared across the side of his face.
I searched for Maxwell. Blood covered his face. He’d definitely killed a good bit of people. But he still hadn’t dealt with the blond Xecutioner. Maxwell shot at him. No bullet came out.
“Fuck!” Maxwell rushed off. The blond chased him with a sword. Maxwell leaped over the bottom of a bunk bed, grabbed a pillow, and slung it at him. The blond dropped to his knees and slid under the bed.
“Yo!” Fast, Maxwell grabbed a chair and slammed it into the blond. That got him good, but not for long. It didn’t matter. Maxwell used those few seconds to grab another chair and hit him with it. This time, the blond was wise to the move, swerved out of the chair’s way, and cut Maxwell’s thigh.
Right as I was going to help Maxwell, I turned to catch Hiro right next to me. Shit! He grabbed my shoulders. I shoved my knee into his groin and then punched him in the gut. While he was close enough to shoot, I needed him alive.