“I am saying that perhaps his real goal was to damage the havoc so that it could not continue.”
He looks at me hard.
“Was that your real motivation, Mr. Pitts? To destroy us and our holy mission?”
Daja gets up and pulls her knife.
She says, “Answer him, Pitts.”
I take out a Malediction and light it.
“No. First, you go fuck yourself. Second, if Charlie Manson here is as crazy as I think he is, nothing I say is going to matter, so you two better make your move because we’re not all walking out of here.”
Daja goes for me, but she’s more wasted than she knows. I can take her down before her knife gets close to nicking my pretty face. It’s the Magistrate that worries me. He’s not counting on her to do his dirty work. She’s just a distraction. With the wound in my side, I’m not as fast or as strong as I need to be right now. There’s nothing to do but play this out.
I throw myself out of the way as Daja’s blade comes down. It hits hard, but all she kills is my chair. I kick her legs, knocking her over backward. By the time she scrambles up, I’m behind her with the Colt in my hand. The Magistrate hasn’t moved.
I wrench Daja’s arm up behind her and put the pistol to her head. Whatever stitches were holding me together are ripped to shit. Blood flows down my side and onto my boots. The Magistrate glances down at where I’m messing up his carpet.
“Father?” says Daja.
He holds up a hand.
“It is all right, my dear. Mr. Pitts will be killing no one,” he says.
I cock the Colt.
“Actually, I had a bigger body count than that in mind.”
He picks up his wine and takes a sip. Clears his throat.
“Let’s play another game,” he says.
I shoot the glass out of his hand. Someone tries to open the door, but it’s locked. They pound on it. From outside we hear, “Magistrate. Are you all right?”
It’s Wanuri.
“I’m fine. We are all fine,” he says. “Please wait outside while we conclude our business.”
He looks back at me.
“One more game,” he says. “Obviously, you can kill both of us, but where will that leave you?”
“It leaves me alive and driving this heap out of here.”
“And leave the father behind? I doubt that. Besides, unfortunately one of the battery cables has come loose. I doubt you could start the engine.”
Yeah. He has this scene figured probably more ways than I can count.
“Then I’ll just have to be satisfied with killing you and as many of the others as I can.”
“Or you can play the truth game with me one more time. Do it and I will guarantee your safety no matter what happens afterward.”
“How are you going to do that?”
He twines his fingers together.
“You’ll have to play to find out.”