by Rhea Wilde
“Fresco,” I whispered to myself. “Fresco…”
“Are you talking to someone? I don’t think they’re gonna hear you. Not without this.”
He pulled out a small microphone from his pocket and held it to my face. The smile on his lips grew even wider, his teeth showing in a proud and triumphant display.
“Don’t worry. My men didn’t do anything obscene with you. They just wanted the wire.”
“What do you want?” I growled at him.
“Ah! Finally. You came to me last time because you claimed you had a proposal for me but you didn’t have one. I was the one with the proposal. Do you remember? Let me refresh your memory.”
He casually paced back and forth in front of me, waving the gun in his hand around as he spoke.
“I told you that it wouldn’t be pretty for you if we ever ran into each other again. And now… here we are. So, what do I want, Miss Cooper? You don’t have anything I want. At least, not directly.”
With his free hand, Castle pulled his phone from his pocket.
“I’ll explain it to you,” he said. “I want everything. I want all the evidence the DA has piled up against me. And I want a guarantee the DA won’t press any charges. That’s it.”
“What are you talking about? I can’t give you that. I can’t give you any of that.”
“You underestimate yourself. You’re the key to all of this. Because if I don’t get what I want, you’ll be the latest casualty. Some poor innocent woman who dedicated her life to helping people at the local shelter. Her brains splattered on the evening news. No… The people who run this city are incompetent but they wouldn’t let an innocent woman die. Not when they could prevent it.”
I seethed in my seat. My jaw clenched. The bindings on my wrists dug into my skin as I tried to somehow free myself.
Castle put his phone to his ear, his eyes still locked on me as he spoke.
“I have her,” he said. “I want the signed paperwork. You have fifteen minutes.”
I had no idea what he was up to. I couldn’t even begin to imagine what someone like him was capable of. I didn’t have to wait very long.
I heard the sound of something next to me. Like something was being dragged across the floor. When I rolled my head to the side, a sudden jolt shot through my body.
No…
Officer Dion was tied to a chair the same as me. His face was bloodied and beaten. One of his eyes was swollen shut and his lip was split. His head hung down around his chest. I couldn’t tell if he was conscious or even alive.
No…
I was in a nightmare I couldn’t get myself out of. I just wanted to wake up. I just wanted to go back to my plain, ordinary life.
I made a mistake…
“Don’t worry,” Castle said to me suddenly. “They’ll send the paperwork promising me they’ll drop any potential charges. Once everything gets confirmed, you’ll be free to go back home and I’ll be out of your hair. We both get what we want, Miss Cooper. Tell me that isn’t a generous deal.”
I wasn’t listening. My eyes remained on Officer Dion, waiting for him to wake up. I searched for any sign he was still alive but there was none.
“You won’t get away with this,” I said as I turned and looked at Castle.
“Hold on a second,” he responded. “Is that any way to talk to your host?”
“It’s not just me. You’ve taken this entire city hostage. You’re a sickness. You’re a sickness that needs to be cured.”
Standing a few meters away from me, Castle frowned at me.
“I’m sorry you can’t see things from my perspective. I’m just a man who’s just trying to make a living. If anything, I’m trying to help this city prosper. New Gardens needs more people like me.”
“No, that’s where you’re wrong. You’re the problem with this city. But you know what?”
“What’s that?”
“There are people in this city. Good people. Honest people. And they outnumber you. It doesn’t matter what you do. It doesn’t matter if you get rid of me right now. There will always be someone to stand up against you.”
I glared at him. The rage building up inside of me had finally spilled out. There was a heat in my stomach that rose toward my chest. Nothing mattered anymore. There was no reason to hold back.
Castle didn’t care. He just laughed and turned his back to me as he walked away.
“Very admirable,” he said. “So brave. Your last words. But there’s no reason for that right now. I’ll keep my word as long as I get what I want.”
“You get what you want and then what? You move on to a new city and pollute it. I won’t let you do that.”
“I don’t think you understand.”
He took a seat on a chair facing me and crossed his legs.
“You’re not in the position to make threats,” he said. “So I suggest you save your breath. I don’t have a problem with them but Bender over here is very sensitive.”
He pointed with his gun at the bodyguard standing nearby.
“I suggest you save your energy, Miss Cooper. It won’t be much longer.”
Castle sat calmly in his seat, his smile unchanging. I didn’t say anything more. I glanced over at Officer Dion sitting helplessly in his chair, searching for any sign of life.
Minutes passed. Each one was more agonizing than the last. I did my best not to look at Castle. I was sick to my stomach for so many different reasons. Even just being in the same room as him was enough to make me puke.
Castle suddenly rolled up his sleeve and looked at his watch.
“Hmm… It seems they’re taking longer than expected. I suppose I have to show them I’m serious.”
Without warning, he suddenly raised his gun up and fired.
The loud bang nearly shattered my eardrums. A wetness splattered against my face. I snapped my head to the side and watched as Officer Dion fell over in his chair from the gunshot.
No…
My eyes widened. My mouth hung open. I was so in shock that nothing came out. The horrific sight of Dion on the ground nearly sent me over the edge.
“Hey! Hey!”
I turned my head as a pair of hands fell on my shoulders. Castle leaned forward in front of me, his face close to mine. He was no longer smiling, replaced by an angry stare that told me my nightmare wasn’t over.
“You don’t have anything to worry about,” he said. “Now they know I’m serious. You have five minutes left. If those five minutes go by and I don’t have the paperwork I asked for, then you have something to worry about.”
Castle took a seat in his chair across from me. As I stared at him, I finally started to realize it was over.
After everything I’d done, there was nothing more I could do.
Kimmy…
I wouldn’t be able to bring her to justice. Castle’s drugs would continue to pollute the streets. Women would be forced into a life they didn’t want. Nobody could truly feel safe in New Gardens.
“Four minutes!”
I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. I’d lost control. The only thing still left to do was to make peace with myself. If this was it, I didn’t want to come to my end as a horrible screaming mess. I wanted to go thinking about the people I cared about.
Mom… Dad… Penny…
My life flashed before my eyes. Everything was gone. Castle and his men. The warehouse I was tied-up in. I lost myself in my memories.
New Gardens… Noah…
I should have gone with him. I should have had a drink with him. I could be with him right now, in his arms. I could be safe.
My mind wandered to him.
“Three minutes!”
I drowned out the sound of the madman screaming in front of me. I just remembered him… Noah…
Noah…
I pictured his charming smile. I pictured the silly beanie he wore on his head to cover his messy hair. I pictured the grease and sweat he was always covered in from working all day.
I remembered the way he smelled and how much it reminded me of how hard he worked. I remembered him holding him in my arms and resting myself against his muscled chest.
I imagined his eyes… The way he stared at me. The way he looked at me like I was the only person in the world that mattered. The way he made me feel like I was special. The way he looked at me like he cared.
I just wanted to be with him.
“Two minutes!”
I could feel my emotions building up inside of me. A sickening knot twisting in my stomach and popping my insides.
Fresco… I wish I were at Fresco…
I chanted the words in my head. It was as if I was there. I could hear the music. I could hear the loud conversations. I could hear the loud sound of the motorcycles revving their engines. The exhaust was loud enough to startle anybody.
The low grumbling sound increased.
What is that?
The sound grew and my thoughts were clouded. I shook my head to try and drown it out but it was pointless.
“That sound!” Castle barked. “Bender, open the door and check it out.”
It wasn’t in my thoughts. I opened my eyes and raised my head. I could hear the sound of engines coming from outside clearly. I looked at the men standing around and their stoic demeanor was broken. Instead, I could see the concern on their faces as they started looking around.
I couldn’t see what was going on as Castle’s bodyguard walked behind me. I could hear him opening a large door. It sounded like gears turning and chains being pulled.
“What the—”
The sound of engines screeched in my ear.
“Shoot them!”
“Get’em!”
Bang. Bang.
The first shots rang into the air before it became unintelligible.
Gunfire filled the warehouse. I fell forward onto the ground with a thud, still tied to the chair. A hail of bullets rained over me.
I shut my eyes tight and listened to the sound of men shouting and yelling at one another. Through it all, the noisy engines of motorcycles I heard in my thoughts only became more prominent.
Suddenly, the gunfire came to an abrupt halt.
It’s over. Is this it? Am I… Am I dead?
I felt my hands being untied.
“It’s all right, Sheila. I’m here.”
I was in a daze from falling hard to the floor. My eyes flickered as I tried to keep them open.
I was in a dream again. A dream where he came to save me. A dream where he rescued me and took me away to a place that was safe. A dream where I could just be alone with him.
The knots around my hands went away and my arms fell to the floor.
“Come on, Sheila. Sheila, are you there?”
A pair of hands on my waist dragged me up to my feet. I barely had enough strength to stand up but the arms that held me kept me in place.
“Sheila. Sheila, come on. You have to walk.”
I tilted my head back and looked up. My eyes half-open, I looked at the man staring back at me. Blue eyes like bright diamonds shining in the sky.
“Noah…”
I raised my hand up and touched his face. He shook his head at me.
“There’s no time,” he said, a frightening concern in his voice. “We have to get out of here.”
My head dropped back down and I saw Officer Dion on the floor.
“Wait,” I said. “You have to help him… He needs… H-hospital…”
“Can you stand?”
“I… I can stand.”
Come on, Sheila. Snap out of it.
Noah placed me back on my feet. My knees buckled but I remained standing. While Noah did his best to pick up Officer Dion, I looked around the room. The scenery had changed. Castle’s men laid on the floor, motionless with splatters of crimson around them.
“Where… Where is he?”
I frantically searched for Castle but he was gone with no trace in sight.
I turned to Noah and watched as he carried Dion over to another man. The man wore a leather jacket, his head shaved completely and his arms covered in tattoos.
“Get him to the hospital,” Noah said to the man. “Now!”
The man nodded and carried Dion away. Noah turned his attention back to me.
“We have to get out of here,” he said.
“What’s going on? Where did you come from?”
“There’s no time to explain. We have to leave. Now. Sheila, please.”
I looked into his eyes as he begged me. I couldn’t make any sense of what just happened but I didn’t care. He was here with me.
“We can’t leave,” I said. “He’s still out there. Castle…”
“Sheila—”
“No. If he gets away then this will all be for nothing. We have to stop him before it’s too late.”
My mind was clear. I knew what I was thinking. I knew what I was saying. I knew what this meant.
I could see the hesitation on Noah’s face. I could have easily just went along with him. But this was about more than him and me now. This was about the entire city.
“All right,” Noah said. “Come with me.”
I wrapped my arm around Noah’s shoulder and he walked with me out of the warehouse. When I stepped out of the warehouse, a dozen blinding headlights shined right at me. I put my hand up to block the light and I could barely see the men sitting on their choppers staring back at me.
A man with a familiar face walked up to me. It was the same man Noah had introduced to me earlier at Fresco.
King.
“Let’s ride,” King said to Noah and me.
“No,” Noah said. “We have to get him.”
“What?”
“We’re going after him. We’re going after Castle.”
King looked at Noah then turned to me. He hesitated for a moment before nodding to me.
“All right,” King said. “He couldn’t have gotten very far. Let’s ride, boys!”
Noah walked with me toward his chopper and hopped on it. I got on behind him and squeezed him tight. He hammered the gas down and we shot off like a rocket. I kept my head down as I watched the docks pass by me in a blur. All around me, King and his biker gang rode along with us.
“Over there!” I heard someone shout.
I could barely see forward when I saw several bikes surrounding a limo in front of me. They began firing at the wheels. I put my head back down as sparks began to fly. The loud screeching sound of rubber and metal filled the sky and stretched all the way to the other side of New Gardens.
I kept squeezing Noah tight as the limo slowed to a halt. Metal squealed into the night before coming to a silent stop.
“We got him.”
The sound of Noah’s voice made me exhale a deep sigh. I released him from my grip before stepping off the bike. The limo stood motionless in front of me, its wheels blown out and its windows shattered.
“Surround it. Nobody gets away.”
King shouted to his biker gang and they all surrounded the limo, pointing their weapons at it. I stood behind Noah and watched. I swallowed nervously, waiting for something to happen. There was no telling if there were even someone inside.
I got my answer when the door opened. Bender, the massive man who always stood by Castle’s side, stumbled out. He glared at everybody surrounding him. But there was little he could do. He was outgunned and outnumbered.
He stepped to the side and fell to the ground. He leaned up against the limo, unmoving as he sat there.
I looked back at the door and then I saw him. Castle jumped out and raised his gun to fire. But before I could even react, a gunshot cracked into the air. A bullet pierced his hand and his gun fell to the ground. Castle screeched in pain as he grabbed his hand.
“Fuck… Fucking shit…”
He muttered to himself as the blood dripped down from his wound. He looked around at the biker gang that surrounded him.
“This fucking city,” he said. “I try to run
a legitimate business and a bunch of thugs get in my way. No wonder this city is going to shit.”
“I don’t think so, buddy,” King responded to him. “I think this city is going to do great once you’re gone.”
Noah turned to me and smiled with his hands on my shoulders.
“It’s over,” he said. “It’s finally over.”
I looked at Castle. He was on his knees, bleeding and helpless. He stared back at me, a sadistic glare like he was trying to put a hex on me.
“No,” I said to Noah. “It’s not over.”
I moved away from Noah and walked toward Castle.
“Sheila…”
I ignored Noah as I moved closer to Castle. I stood just a meter in front of him.
“This is your fault,” Castle said. “All because of some stupid woman. You’re gonna pay for this.”
“No, I’m not the one that’s gonna pay. You’re the one who’s gonna be brought to justice.”
I reached down and raised my jeans. I pulled the small pistol from the holster around my shin then loaded it with the magazine in my back pocket. I raised the gun up and pointed the barrel right at the man responsible for what happened to Kimmy.
“Sheila!”
Noah’s voice filled my ears. I could feel him standing right beside me but I didn’t look at him.
“Sheila, what are you doing?” he said.
“I’m doing what needs to be done. New Gardens is sick. This is the cure.”
“Sheila, don’t—”
“You gave me this gun for a reason. You gave it to me because of people like him. And now I’m going to use it.”
“I gave it to you to protect yourself. You don’t need to protect yourself anymore. Look at him. He’s not a threat to you.”
“Go ahead, bitch!” Castle interrupted me. “Do it!”
I raised the gun up a few inches and tightened my grip on the handle, my eyes locked on the space between Castle’s eyes.
“Sheila, please. You don’t have to do this.”
“I have to. It’s not for me. It’s for Kimmy. She deserves justice.”
“What about me?”
I swallowed and turned to Noah. He looked into my eyes pleadingly.
“This isn’t you,” he said.
“This is me.”
“No, it isn’t. You’re a good person, Sheila. Don’t let him turn you into anything else.”
