by S G Read
‘We meet again but this time I think you will tell me all you know or you will get to know Barney very well!’ When she reached him, he put the barrel of his pistol to her head.
Grogan saw the bedspread and the three of them moved out in a hurry. Outside they saw Clo’s men entering the other side of the rest home. They ran to the door nearest them, this was the other door Cally had seen at the far end of the corridor. Grogan peered in, he saw the old man on the Zimmer frame, by now her had turned to see what was going on. Luke Weaver had followed Clo in and saw Grogan through the window. He fired through the glass. Grogan fired back and Weaver fell. With no one else in sight, Grogan crashed through the door and dived into the nearest doorway, it was the second door to the day room. Barney stepped out to investigate the gunfire Just as Benson followed Grogan in. Barney shot him dead. As Benson fell Barney fired at Toms, who was just behind Beeson. Toms cried out and ducked out of sight. As he did so Grogan stepped out and shot Barney. Larry came out of the kitchen having followed Clo in there and fired at Grogan, Grogan twisted sideways and slid down the wall, leaving a red stain.
‘Are you okay boss?’ Larry asked.
‘We’re fine,’ Clo replied, ‘and we are soon going to have a long chat with this young lady, about money and where I might find it!’
‘Leave that boy be!’ The old man on the walking frame ordered.
With bullets flying everywhere he still stood there leaning on the Zimmer frame.
‘Boy, old man, don’t you even recognize your own grand daughter?’ Larry declared.
Larry took two steps and kicked the walking frame away causing Archie to fall to the floor. He kicked the frame so hard that it bounced of a wall, hit Grogan then fell on Benson. Grogan groaned but Benson was beyond feeling.
‘That one’s still alive boss do I finish him?’ Larry asked.
‘Yes. You know the rule, no witnesses!’
Larry had only taken another step toward Grogan and the prone Archie, Cally’s grandfather, when Stone crashed through the door behind him, the same door that Clo’s men had come in. What Stone expected to find, will never be known but he took in the situation quickly and reacted quicker than Larry. Stone had his pistol in his hand and before Larry could turn and fire, Stone shot him. Larry was a big man but that one bullet dropped him to the floor. Clo took his pistol from Cally’s head and shot Stone twice. The impact of the bullets threw Stone backwards into the corner by the door, he had just come in. He slid down where the two walls met, his pistol still clutched in his hand. Captain Wells stepped into the doorway his gun raised but Clo shot him and he spun out of sight. With Clo distracted Cally squirmed free and ran into the day room. Clo started after her but Stone wasn’t finished yet.
‘My turn now!’ He said gritting his teeth, raised his pistol and fired.
Clo took two steps back, then fell backwards, his gun sliding toward Archie as it slipped from Clo's fingers.
‘Cally?’ Archie called from the floor.
‘She’s here!’ A voice replied.
Cally walked out of the day room with a knife at her throat. It was Baptiste’s knife, held by none other than Baptiste himself. Baptiste looked about at the carnage in the retirement home.
‘The man who promised me a lot of money to find you is dead but if he offered me fifty thousand there must be a lot more at stake and he seemed to think you had it girl.’ Baptiste declared. ‘I think we will go somewhere quiet and talk about it.’
‘That’s where you’re wrong!’ Pruitt said standing in the doorway. ‘You killed my partner and I’m taking you in! Put the knife down and let her go!’
‘Don’t be silly. If you shoot me the girl gets an extra mouth! The girl and I are walking out of here.’ Baptiste replied.
‘No you’re not!’ Pruitt retorted. ‘I’d rather risk her dying here, than let you go anywhere with her!’
To back up the statement, Pruitt fired at Baptiste but he was trying to make sure he did not accidentally hit Cally and he missed Baptiste as well. The bullet ricocheted off the wall and smashed a hither to unbroken bit of glass in the far door. Baptiste automatically flinched away from the on coming bullet and Cally used that flinch to squirm out of his grasp but the blade slid up her throat, as she did so and she ended on the floor holding her bleeding throat. Pruitt fired again just as Baptiste threw his knife. The second bullet hit Baptiste in the right shoulder, the knife stuck in Pruitt’s hand, the one with the gun in it. The pistol fell to the floor and Baptiste pulled Barney’s pistol from his pocket with his left hand.
‘I think I win again!’ He said.
He took deliberate aim at Pruitt's head.
‘I don’t think so!’ Archie said from the floor. ‘Drop it or I’ll shoot!’
Baptiste turned his head without moving the pistol and saw Archie. He had propped himself up on his left elbow with Clo’s pistol in his right hand pointing unwaveringly at Baptiste.
‘My legs may have gone but my arms sure as hell haven’t!’
Baptiste weighed up the odds and came to a decision. He decided to find out if that was true. He swung the pistol toward Archie in one last effort to escape and take Cally with him, Archie fired. This was his granddaughter and he was not about to let her die! The bullet knocked Baptiste side ways and his shot hit the wall. Baptiste tried to shoot a second time, so Archie shot him again; again Baptiste staggered sideways, the shot hitting the floor. Baptiste raised his pistol for a third shot and Archie fired again. Baptiste fired into the ceiling as he slid to the floor and did not move again. Cally was still sitting on the floor holding her bleeding neck. She looked up to see her mother standing halfway down the stairs. Barbara had been in the bath; she had quickly thrown on a cotton dress which was sticking to her wet body and wrapped a towel round her wet hair, when she heard the commotion downstairs.
‘Is that you Cally?’ She asked.
Cally tried to answer but nothing came out. Barbara stepped over Luke’s inert form and walked over to Cally.
‘Let me see!’
Cally took her hand away.
‘Oh that, it’s only a scratch,’ she said with a smile, ‘I thought I was going to lose you!’
‘What after I’ve been through,’ Cally declared finally finding her voice, ‘no way! Pa’s been hurt!’
‘Yes I know. I expected you to arrive here some time ago what kept you?’ Barbara asked.
As she spoke, she took the towel from round her head and mopped away the blood from Cally’s throat. What kept her! Cally could take no more! That was the last straw; she buried her face in her mother’s chest and started to cry. She cried and cried. She had waited a long time to cry on someone’s shoulder.
‘Are you awake, Zeke?’ Archie called from the floor.
‘Are you kidding? Someone’s fighting a war in the next room and you ask me if I’m awake! I’m not quite dead yet you know! Do you want me to call an ambulance?’ Zeke answered.
‘Yeah, better make it two!’
Pruitt pulled the knife out of his hand and examined Stone. Stone opened his eyes.
‘What hit me?’ he asked.
‘Only a couple of bullets,’ Pruitt answered, ‘and where they hit you I think you’re going to be okay.’
‘The captain?’
‘He’ll live, I reckon.’ Pruitt replied.
He wrapped a handkerchief round his bleeding hand.
‘I found Gerard dead, his throat cut from ear to ear, done just the same way as carter was. That was how I knew Baptiste was about!’
A figure loomed in the doorway and Pruitt spun round his pistol ready in his good hand.
‘Easy Pruitt!’ Captain Wells begged, holding a hand up in supplication. ‘I just thought I’d come and see the great Baptiste and a dead, Luigi Clo.’
‘Check on the others Pruitt.’ Stone ordered. ‘See if you can help.’
‘I’ll do that.’ Barbara said and freed herself from Cally’s embrace. ‘Go and help your grandfather up Cally.’
Cally looked at her mother. This was the second time she had called her Cally, not Calliaster.
‘Yes Ma.’ She answered with a smile.
She thought about keeping the towel against the wound but her mother had said that it was only a scratch and she believed her, so she dropped the towel on the floor. Another figure arrived in the doorway, a smaller figure, it was Jake.
‘Don’t shoot; he’s with me!’ Cally cried quickly. Even though no one had made any attempt to shoot him.
‘Do you want your key back yet?’ Jake asked, looking at the bodies and the injured people strewn about. ‘Who won?’
‘The cops of course, the cops always win.’ Cally replied. ‘I should have known that.’
She took the key and offered it to Captain Wells.
‘What’s that?’ He asked.
He did not take it, as his good right hand was holding the wound in his injured left arm.
‘I think there’s some money hidden where this key fit’s.’ Cally replied.
‘Have any robberies been reported lieutenant Stone?’ Wells asked.
‘No sir.’
‘What about you, sergeant Grogan?’
‘Can’t I bleed in peace sir?’ Grogan asked.
Barbara was trying to stop his bleeding.
‘Not while you’re on duty sergeant!’
‘Mr. Clo didn’t report any robbery to the precinct as far as I know sir.’ Grogan answered.
‘In that case if there is any money there, it must belong to whoever has the key. Make good use of it! This place looks like it could do with more than a lick of paint!’
‘Ma won’t take it!’ Cally declared. ‘She’ll still think it’s dirty money just as she thought Pa’s was.’
‘She’ll use it to do up this place, if she’s got any sense,’ Archie declared vehemently, staring at Barbara and trying to get up, ‘now do I get that help or do I have to lay in the hall for the rest of the day?’
‘Coming grandpa.’
It was a while before the ambulances arrived with it came the federal officers from the roadblock. They had heard who was involved in the shoot out and came to see, under the pretext of helping. The wounded were taken to hospital and as soon as she could Cally was in a hot bath. Not easy as the only method of heating the water was saucepans on the stove in the kitchen. When it was hot the water then had to be carried upstairs to the bath. It was first thing on the list for the repairs funded by the money, when they got it.
‘Ma?’ Cally asked from the bath.
‘Yes Cally?’ He mother answered sitting next to the bath.
She had not let Cally out of her sight since she saw her downstairs and she had not called her Calliaster.
‘With the money when we find it, will there be room for two more people?’
‘If you want them to stay here and they want to stay here, we’ll manage somehow, money or no money.’ Her mother replied.
‘But the money, you will use it?’
Barbara picked up the key.
‘Do you know where the key fits?’
‘No but pa does!’
‘That means we have to wait until he tells us where it is then?’
‘I suppose it does, unless we look for it ourselves.’ Cally replied.
‘Do you know how many banks and other places that you can store things in, there are in Chicago?’
‘No. Are there lots?’
‘Yes lots.’ Her mother informed her. ‘Do I get to know the name of the two new boarders?’
‘Yes, they are Drummond and Dan Craigrose. I don’t know Drummond’s other name but without him I’d be dead meat! That Baptiste was something else!’ She settled back in the water. ‘Still he’s history now! In fact they’re all history now.’
The end.
