by Connor Mccoy
The shadows were disappearing through the open doorway into Doc Sam’s garage. Now the two men were completely out of the bunker.
Jacob finally felt free to say something. “He’s doing it.”
Doctor Nguyen successfully had led Diablo into the garage. He scooted along the side of Doc Sam’s truck, not daring to show Diablo his back. Nguyen’s job wasn’t accomplished until he had lured this killer out of the garage entirely. That would give the Averys time to flee from the bunker and reclaim their children.
But Diablo did not start walking away from the bunker entrance.
“Why are you stopping? We have work to do,” Nguyen asked.
Diablo ran a finger along the edge of a nearby metal shelf. Suddenly, he grabbed it and tossed it down in front of the bunker entrance, blocking it. The gunman, returning his attention to Nguyen said, “That’ll keep the rats trapped.” Then he advanced one big step on Nguyen, so suddenly that Nguyen slammed up against the side of the truck. “Unless you want those two to get out and warn the town we’re here. Or didn’t you think of that?”
Nguyen twitched, but the darkness of the garage hid it. Diablo did have a point. Nguyen counted himself lucky that Diablo didn’t just plug Domino and Jacob on the same grounds. Only the fear that Diablo would be “reaped” kept him under Doctor Nguyen’s thumb, but there was no way to know how long that would last. The doctor didn’t expect that to last beyond the garage.
Nguyen decided not to acknowledge his “mistake.” Instead, he started walking toward the open garage door. “C’mon,” he said calmly, “If we get started now, we should make it out of Trapp with time to spare.”
He reached the open door. Diablo was trailing him, but slowly, and never without his gun drawn.
C’mon, c’mon, follow me out of the garage. Though Doctor Nguyen feared even more for the Averys, with the shelf blocking the way out, they were trapped in the bunker!
Domino finished loading the shotgun. Jacob looked at the gun closet. “If Diablo had seen this, there’s no friggin’ way he’d have left us in here. Hell, he’d have raided this closet himself.”
Jacob already had finished loading his shotgun from the stock. Now he and his wife were ready. That son of a bitch Diablo would not catch them off guard a second time.
“You sure that man is on our side?” Domino asked as she stepped out of the closet.
“Doctor Nguyen is. His brother is the boss of Diablo and those Lutz cousins, but Doctor Nguyen’s not with them anymore.” Jacob rushed to the stairwell. “We got to help him. I don’t think the doctor’s armed. He spent his bullets taking out Falcon.”
Jacob made it to the top of the stairwell before Domino, but as he pushed on the door, he found it blocked. Something was obstructing it.
“Damn.” He pushed harder. “Something’s wrong. There’s something on the other side. We’re trapped.”
Both he and Domino pushed. Together, they budged the door a crack, but no more.
Domino aimed her gun at the door. “Stand back. I’m going to blow it wide open.”
“Hold on. Diablo might hear us. And I’m not sure a gunshot’s going to do any good if there’s a shelf or something blocking the door.”
“Our babies are out there. I can’t stay in here a second longer while that monster is roaming around.”
“I know, I know. I hope those two know what Doctor Nguyen is up to and have the good sense to stay away from him and Diablo. Maybe the doctor has a plan.”
“Well, I’m still not sitting here waiting. Maybe Sam had something like explosives, something to blow the door open.”
Domino’s idea wasn’t far-fetched. Escaping from a sealed bunker was something survivalists would consider, even if all of them could not muster the resources for an escape plan. Even so, Jacob did not fancy the idea of using explosives unless they had to.
“Let’s check downstairs. Maybe there is something we could use as a battering ram.”
Jacob spun around to run back down the steps, but a familiar voice cut through the small gap in the door. “Dad!”
His eyes widened. “Brandon!” He rushed to the door, nearly bumping into Domino, who also hurried to the door crack. “Son, what’s happening? Jubilee…”
“I’m here, too!” the teen said.
“Jubes! Baby!” Domino pressed against the crack. “You have to get out of here! Diablo’s out there with Doctor Nguyen!”
“We know,” Brandon said, “Doctor Nguyen told us his plan. He’s going to try nailing Diablo in the house. We’ve got to get you out of there!”
“Sweetie, don’t worry about us! Get help!” Domino called back.
“We can get you out!” Brandon’s voice retreated a short way away. “This shelf blocking the door, it’s not so heavy.”
“You two can’t move whatever’s out there. Jubilee, you’re still too weak,” Domino said.
The sound of something screeching along the floor cut through the crack in the door. The two children were trying to move whatever was blocking the door. But if they could get the door open a little…
“Are you two armed?” Jacob asked.
“I’m still out,” Brandon said, “So is Jubilee. We couldn’t find any weapons in the house.”
Jacob fled down the steps. “Domino, help them out!” He hurried to the armory. Now that he was free to open it, he picked out two handguns along with some extra clips.
Once he returned upstairs he found the door crack had widened a little. “We’ve got some guns and clips. You’ll need them.”
With extra effort from Jacob, the crack was widened enough to allow Domino to slip the guns through it. Casting his wife a look, Jacob said, “At least they can protect themselves if Diablo shows up.”
Nguyen examined the windows of Doc Sam’s house carefully. Without proper lighting, it almost was futile to see inside from this distance, but the doctor wanted to detect any signs of movement. He hoped the children had left the house as the doctor had instructed. He was leading this brute into the abode, where he hoped he would have the advantage.
Diablo appeared less on guard as Nguyen approached the door that led into Doc Sam’s treatment room. Perhaps he accepted Nguyen’s story.
Project confidence. Keep projecting confidence. Showing weakness will tip him off for certain.
Nguyen reached the open doorway. The sight of the trashed treatment room, especially the blood on the floor, churned his stomach. A lot of it belonged to his friend. This was where Sam had suffered his fatal wounds.
He hid his discomfort. Time to get Diablo in here—and finish this.
However, Diablo stopped short of the doorway. He was looking to his left, then to his right, where he would be able to view the sides of the house. He was definitely curious about something.
“Why are you delaying?” Nguyen asked, “We have work to do.”
“The men,” Diablo said. “Where are they?”
“I told you, they are around here,” Nguyen said, “Keeping watch.”
“They don’t need to be keeping watch. I told you I’d help you haul the goods, so they might as well get their asses out here to help us. More men means faster work. Even your brother knows that.”
The jig is almost up, Nguyen thought. He knew he couldn’t bring out men who didn’t actually exist. If he just could get Diablo into the house, then it wouldn’t matter
But Diablo was not budging. “Hey!” he cried out, “If you’re the Middleburg reapers, get out here! I’m not hauling all this shit back to town myself!”
“You keep shouting and the rest of the town will hear you!” Nguyen motioned inside. “They’re keeping lookout from inside, through the windows. Now come on.”
“Really?” Diablo’s eyes narrowed even further, to the point where Doctor Nguyen thought the man’s expression did indeed resemble a devil.
Diablo backed up a few steps, aiming his gun at the living room window. Then he discharged two bullets through the glass.
Nguyen shi
vered. “What are you doing?” he cried out. He feared more for the Avery children, although he was certain they had fled from the house and were helping their parents at this very moment. But even so, he could not help but be terrified.
Diablo’s bottom lip curled up. “Well, I’ll be damned.” Turning to Nguyen, he said, “If you had reapers with you, I wouldn’t be standing here right now.”
Shit. Nguyen backed into the room.
Diablo advanced toward the doctor. “I was tailed all the way to Trapp? I didn’t see any sign of anyone following me, not even a speck on the horizon, and I never told anyone I was coming here. And yeah, I checked behind me.” Diablo patted the right breast of his jacket. “Have my own scope with me. If someone was keeping tabs from a distance, I’d have seen them.”
Nguyen backed up near the counter by the door leading into the rest of the house. He didn’t dare turn to the counter’s surface. The open door obscured the counter so Diablo could not see Nguyen’s “surprise” lying there unless he stepped inside the room.
“There’s no way reapers wouldn’t have responded by now.” Diablo was a few steps away from the threshold. “I’m guessing you never had any with you to begin with. It’s just you, isn’t it?”
C’mon, c’mon, I’m not sure this will work at this range, Nguyen thought.
“I suppose you also doubt that I’m the brother of our potentate?” Doctor Nguyen said.
“Like it matters. If I shoot you, who’s going to tell him? He’s miles away.” Diablo took one more step as he raised his gun. “And there’s nobody who’s going to see me do it. So, you going to spill what your game is, or should I just blow your brains out and be done with it?”
Diablo was just two steps away from the door. He was standing still. Odds were he was not going to walk inside the room. In fact, Diablo was far likelier to pull the trigger at any second.
Nguyen had seen one too many men in his lifetime brandishing a weapon just before they opened fire. The tension in Diablo’s face told Nguyen he was about to do the same. There was no mistaking what would happen now. Nguyen only had one chance to make this come out in his favor.
He seized his weapon from the counter. Just as he pulled it from the counter, Diablo opened fire.
Sudden pain pierced his upper left shoulder, but by now Nguyen could not be stopped even if his whole body was riddled with bullets. He aimed and squeezed the trigger on his little “surprise,” which sprayed the open doorway with a jet of flame.
Chapter Seventeen
Fire is exactly what a devil needs. In the end, all devils burn in Hell.
Nguyen had rigged up a crude but effective flame thrower in the few minutes he had dared to take before he went after Diablo in the garage. He had fitted a small propane bottle with a trigger and a nozzle and left it here to spring upon Diablo once he had lured him into this room.
He had considered bringing it with him into the bunker, but he wasn’t sure it even would work, and in any event, its weight made running or rapid turns difficult. Bluffing Diablo with his gun seemed like the safer course. Even so, it was a hell of a gamble. Diablo could have called his bluff in the stairwell, shot him, and then finished off Jacob and Domino. Besides, spraying fire in an enclosed place was a recipe for disaster. He might have ended up killing Jacob and Domino in the process.
The flame cut out. Nguyen had managed only a few seconds. He squeezed the trigger again, but the nozzle spewed nothing but smoke. Then, the handle quickly grew hot. Strength already was ebbing from his hands. Diablo’s gunshot already was doing a number on him.
Nguyen dropped the flame thrower. Outside, Diablo fled from sight, the back of his jacket on fire. Nguyen could not see the extent of the damage done. Did he strike Diablo full in the face? Did Diablo turn in time and only get sprayed in the back?
His breathing grew heavy. Diablo’s shot was taking its toll. Soon it would be impossible to stand. He looked around the room for anything he could use as a weapon. He had to finish the job if Diablo still was alive.
Finally, with his vision blurring a little, he took a scalpel from a small tray that had been knocked onto the floor. It would do.
Nguyen staggered out the door. The smell of smoke coated the air. He looked around for Diablo, but all he could see was a smoke trail leading to the house’s front door—which was now open.
Nguyen tried to run but found he only could shuffle toward the door. He gripped his shoulder. It bled. Judging from the burning pain in his upper chest, the bullet had caused some serious internal damage, and he would not be long for this world.
Jubilee grunted. The door budged an extra few inches. “Careful, Baby!” Domino cried out. “Don’t hurt yourself. My God, this is taking too long.”
“I can do it! I’m almost there!” But all of a sudden, Jubilee screamed in pain. She fell backward, only missing the floor because Brandon caught her.
“Jubes!” Brandon steadied her.
“Jubilee, are you alright?” Jacob cried through the door opening, with Domino screaming out a similar plea.
Jubilee panted hard. She grabbed her wounded shoulder. “It hurts!”
Brandon pulled up Jubilee’s shoulder sleeve. “I hope it’s not bleeding. I hope it’s not bleeding.” He looked at her bandage. It still was white. No sign of red stains. “Okay. It looks good so far. You didn’t break the stitching.”
Jubilee gritted her teeth. “Shoot! Shoot! I thought I could do it, but my arm suddenly went crazy.”
“You need to take a break. I’ll find something for…” Brandon snapped his fingers. “Leverage! I’ll pry the door open!”
Brandon scrambled to find something to feed through the gap and pry it open. Ideally, he wanted a long metal pipe or a bar. If not that, maybe a long chisel. Something steady and strong.
Jubilee’s cry cut his search short. “Brandon! Someone’s coming!”
Indeed, someone was coming. Footsteps were crunching across the soft soil of Doc Sam’s yard. They were approaching the garage’s front door.
“Is that Doctor Nguyen?” Jubilee asked with dry breath.
Brandon spun around. “The door. Get in there!”
“What?” Jubilee asked.
“It might be wide enough for you to fit. Take cover!” Brandon kept pointing to the open gap. “I’ll be behind you!”
Jubilee sprang over to the gap. After sucking in a deep breath, she began squirming to get through. Jacob took hold of Jubilee as soon as she fished some of herself into the passage.
“I got you!” Jacob said.
“Daddy!” Jubilee started crying. “It hurts.”
“It’s okay, Baby!” Domino pushed hard on her side of the door to inch it open. Brandon pulled hard on his side.
The door jostled a little. Jubilee slid in some, but then caught. “Ow!” she cried out.
“Damn this thing!” Jacob released Jubilee and ushered Domino off the door. “Here, trade places.” Then he grabbed the door hard and pushed with all of his strength.
A dark shape crossed the garage door threshold. Brandon’s eyes widened. “It’s Zell!”
“Shit!” Jacob pushed even harder, releasing spasms of anger and pain all at once. The effort might be killing his back, but he didn’t care. He would move Heaven and Earth to save his family.
Brandon released the door. The moment Zell came into view, he knew they were in deep shit. Of course, he would try to watch his language around his mother, but it was certainly true.
His hand flew around his gun handle. He had no choice. His sister was stuck in the door. Zell was brandishing a gun. Jubilee’s back and right side were exposed. Zell might be slowed down from his wounds, but a wounded man still could shoot a mostly stationary target with little trouble.
Brandon aimed his gun. He had to do this. He had to shoot this man. He had to kill this man.
He opened fire.
Nguyen could not stop huffing loudly. His lungs ached to suck in every last drop of oxygen that was available. All he
had been able to do was tie his shoulder with a scrap of his shirt, but it only slowed the bleeding. He still leaked drops of blood as he staggered down the hallway.
Diablo had come this way. Not only could Nguyen smell the freshly burned air down this way, but he spotted smoldering specks of what probably was Diablo’s burnt clothing. Nguyen hoped that Diablo was bad off and that the man’s retreat was a sign that he didn’t think he could put up a fight.
Up ahead, the door to Doc Sam’s bedroom yawned open. A few wisps of smoke drifted through the opening. He’s in there.
Fresh anger boiled through Nguyen’s veins. He moved Sam’s body in there. Now this bastard was using it as a hiding place? Nguyen vowed to make him pay.
As he crept toward the open door, he spotted Sam’s body on the bed, covered with a blanket. Grief mixed in with his anger. Nguyen was chasing after a product of his legacy. Diablo, like the other reapers, was a creation of his brother. Though Hien Nguyen never had encouraged his brother to descend to this level of brutality, he knew he had pushed him in that direction, to become a strongman for Middleburg. Trang had taken it too far, and now the blood of those people was on Trang’s hands and by extension, Hien’s.
Blood that included Sam’s.
Nguyen stopped short of the door. Diablo could be lying in wait. He could be in the closet. Or he could be behind the door.
Behind the door…
Nguyen mustered his last reserves of strength. Fending off the pain, he raised his leg to give the door a swift kick. The door hit something—or someone—behind it.
“Diablo!” Nguyen cried as he launched himself through the doorway. With the scalpel raised, he intended to gouge Diablo’s throat the instant he spotted the murderous brute. But instead Diablo sprang up and grabbed Nguyen by both of his wrists, forcing him against the wall.
Diablo had pushed Nguyen into the line of the nearby window. The new moon provided enough light to see Diablo’s complexion. Nguyen’s eyes widened. The man truly lived up to his name now.
