Laughing Eyes: Bittersweet Familia (3) (19 page)

Danny

My body became numb as his body lay still. My breath was shaky, unlike the boy who had taken his last only minutes ago. It was my hand, my gun, my bullet.

I had killed him.

‘When you kill an innocent, it’s time to leave.’
Anna’s words resounded in my head.

My thirst for revenge overshadowed the sorrow I was feeling for both lives lost today. Nicolas Blanco didn’t deserve to remain on this earth. He didn’t deserve the right to live while the all the others had died.

Nicolas Blanco deserved to be brought to his knees.

I silently made my way down, my own protection meaning absolutely nothing. It was just me and him now. No one in between. No innocent held in the way. There was a score to settle. But first, I needed to see the boy. I needed to confront my new nightmare. A sensor light flicked on behind me and there, under the soft glow, stood the self-righteous bastard I needed to end. He looked at me then down to Tomas’s lifeless body.

“See, you are just like me,” he snickered, wearing a self-righteous smirk. The back light casting his face in shadows like he was the devil himself.

“That bullet was meant for you.”

He considered me for a while, this new glimmer of humor lighting his eyes. “And here I thought you were the best. Isn’t that why you were sent for me? If anyone could do it, Danny Peters can?”

“What can I say? You don’t fight like a man using women and children as shields.”

“I see. You are still caught up on Anna.”

“Don’t fucking say her name you miserable sack of shit!”

“I would have liked a bit more time with her, I have to admit. After watching her for so long, the way she smiled, the care she gave to others I had destroyed, the tears she shed, the way she fucked.” Emphasising the last word, he waited for my reaction. “I have impulses that just get too much for me. Anna was like a drug. A beautiful, intoxicating drug that left me crawling on my knees for more. But, like every addiction, one must rid themselves of temptation. She did things to me not even I imagined. She was my downfall. She was just as much my destruction as I was hers.”

“The blame for all this is squarely on you,” my voice was quiet, an evident threat lacing itself into every word.

Nicolas took three steps toward me, his demeanour not that of the worried man he should be.

‘Marine,” all emotion faded from his eyes, a cold nothingness returning. “This is why a man like you could never reach as far as I have. Too involved, too emotional.”

I remained silent, deciding not to take the bait.

“It bothers you doesn’t it?” His lips twitched at his own apparent humor, “It crawls over your skin and digs into your flesh, eating you from the inside out every time you look at me. All you see is everything I did to her.” He tilted his head. “She fucking loved it, marine.”

Assessing the damage, he broke out in a deep laugh, his head thrown back, a smile reaching his eyes.

I was beyond through with the fucker. It was time to finish what I had come here to do in the first place. His laughter quietened when I raised my Glock. His response was swift in an attempt to knock my arm away but not quick enough. My left fist connected with his jaw, sending him off balance. Before he could recover, my knee ploughed into his gut.

“Fight like a man, marine and put your gun away,” Nicolas quipped, blood spitting from his mouth.

“Really? An arms producer telling me to put my weapon away?”

He laughed that mocking tone that grated my nerves.

“Don’t be a fool, marine. Put your gun down.”

“Fuck off and get down on your knees.”

“How about you get down in the dirt, fucker,” came a gruff voice from behind.

Nicolas’s smile was broad, blood staining his teeth as he suddenly gained the upper hand.

“Fight like a man, hey?” He was the type of man who had never dreamt of a fair fight.

He closed the space between us, his face only inches from mine. We were the same height and weight. It would be an equal fight.

“You shoot me, you’re dead. My man here won’t hesitate to lodge a bullet in your skull, so give me your fucking gun and get down on your fucking knees, marine.” His ghostly eyes darkened, his lips thinning, “Now.”

He looked victorious as I sank to the ground. His smirk was the last thing I saw before everything disappeared. The sensor light flicked off leaving the world in darkness. Not wasting my opportunity, I dropped to the left kicking my foot out, connecting with the man behind me. He grunted as he too fell, his Glock landing with a dull thud on the ground in front of me. Reaching out, my urgent hands raked over the dry dirt in search of it, my clumsy fingers knocking the gun further from my grasp. After a moment of scuffling my hand landed on the coolness of the metal, reigniting some hope in the situation. Staggering to my feet I ran to where I knew the shadows would be if the light switched back on.

As if surrounded by tiny active land mines, the ground exploded with bullets with every step I took.

“Run, marine,” Nicolas’s laugh filled the now otherwise quiet night.

I knew from the angle taken that I was somewhere near the driveway. Just as I had earlier, I fell to my knees, my hands searching for a large rock. Seconds passed before I had what I needed. The size of a tennis ball, it would surely do the trick. Gripping it tight, I sent a short prayer to anyone listening that it would find its destination. Hurling the rock through the air, I poised my Glock at the ready. Only a breath later, hope made its surprising return. The sensor light flicked on with the sudden motion illuminating the area once again, the man himself locking eyes on me. We fired at the same time and despite the searing heat raging through my stomach, I absorbed every second of him falling to the ground. My free hand clutched my midsection, feeling a hole through my vest courtesy of one specially made bullet.

The other man who had been behind me lay dead on the ground a few yards from Nicolas. He was a victim of the one of the bullets fired earlier. Blood was now seeping from my wound, my legs suddenly weak.

The pain was incredible, but I also knew that if it weren’t for the vest, the shot would have already killed me. Half stumbling, I made my way to the fallen man who stared up at me wearing a satisfied smile. He was on his knees, his Glock still raised.

“Well played, marine. However, not good enough,” A snarl twisted his lips, his finger squeezing the trigger. There was no blast, no impact from a bullet, just the sound of a click. Realization dawned, clearing his smug face. A neat red stain was forming on his chest and I knew he wouldn’t last much longer.

“El Leon,” I said dragging out his alter ego name in the most patronising tone I could muster, “You should know better. This is your business after all. You should know how many bullets each magazine carries.”

“Fuck you, marine,” Nicolas shrugged a defeated laugh.

Stepping behind him I unsheathed the large hunting knife at his belt, its cool metal glinting in the light.

“That’s the one!” Nicolas stated with pride. I knew what he was referring to. This was the very blade that killed Anna.

“Move,” I ordered, hooking my arm through his, bringing him to his feet.

We staggered past Tomas’s lifeless body and into the house. The lights were all off except for the small glow of one lamp. With what energy I had left, I threw him against the wall, taking pleasure in his raspy breathing, all color draining from his snide face.

“What?” He spat, knowing his time was coming to an end, “Killing me won’t bring her back.”

“This is justice, Nicolas. Justice for all the lives you stole. Justice for the boy who lies dead outside and justice for Anna.”

“Wrong, marine. You killed the boy and Anna and that’s something that will follow you till your dying day!”

Rage bubbled inside, my fist clenching the knife. All the grief I had experienced, all the hurt and all the anger, the toxic hatred that consumed me, bubbled to the surface in an instant. Before another word could spill from his mouth and further infect the world, I lunged forward, the knife blade penetrating straight through his neck, pinning him to the wall. He hadn’t expected it, so there was no fight from him. He gargled, a mix of blood and saliva running down his chin. This wasn’t a fitting death. He deserved worse. But as his ghost eyes returned to nothingness, I could walk away knowing they were no longer laughing.

Danny

Aiden was there waiting, pacing outside the gates of Nicolas’s house. Worry was etched across his tired face. He looked worn out, but carried surprisingly few injuries.

Pulling the truck to a stop I looked at Tomas’s body next to me. The door opened, but I was too tired to move. Aiden’s concern turned into a frown as he looked into the cab.

“Who is this?”

Sighing, I could feel my heart breaking into tiny pieces. “This was the boy that Anna was looking for. He saved my life.”

“Where is Anna?”

I couldn’t meet his gaze, my eyes prickling with sorrow.

“The fuck Danny?”

My throat tightened as I nodded to the mansion where she lay alone in the main bedroom.

“He slit her throat in front of me and I could do nothing. I’m a fucking trained marine and I could do nothing to save her. She’s dead Aiden.” The last three words choked in my mouth.

Aiden stood back, muttering a string of quiet curses, his hands raking through his hair.

“This isn’t your fault, Danny,” he said in the most reassuring voice he could muster. “None of this. We were dealing with a psycho who had his own private army and arms production line. We did the best we could.”

“I should have sent her packing when I first knew. I had that gut vibe, you know. She was connected to this asshole from the very start and I should have got her on the first flight back to the US and now… now I can never bring her back.”

Danny

We flew out that night. We were lifted from the blood stained earth, floating in the air above a place I could never return to. The sarge sat opposite, his worried eyes rarely looking away. His face wore a mix of elation that the mission had achieved an end result and a sadness that so many military men strived to bury in the depths of their minds. Aiden had fallen quiet, his own mind struggling to come to terms with all that had happened. Luiza sat as far away from any of us as she could, her heart shattered into a million pieces over the loss of her best friend.

The last three days, especially the last twenty four hours, had been the hardest I had ever faced. After finally reuniting with Aiden, we went back inside to claim Anna’s body. Aiden had stopped at the door and stood motionless at the blood bath that lay before him in the main bedroom. His eyes flicked to Anna on the bed, then to me. A vice-like grip strangled my throat, its unforgiving fingers digging deep.

“I’m so sorry, Danny.”

Aiden and I had been through a lot together. We had witnessed the depths of a depraved humanity, evidence that would question ones belief in any higher being. But this was so close to home, that even my typically stoic best friend struggled with the concept presented to him.

If I had wanted to answer him, I couldn’t. Quiet tears ran down each cheek as I took in her now pale skin, eyes closed as if sleeping but now void of all soul.

The next fifteen minutes passed in silence. Pulling the sheets free from under the mattress we stood on either side. With my free hand, I touched her cold cheek, stroking gently, willing the woman who I had envisaged spending my life with back to life.

“Danny,” Aiden prompted.

“I know,” I replied, my voice hoarse. We had to leave. Our flight out would be arriving soon and I sure as fuck didn’t want to miss it. Gently lowering the sheet over her beautiful face I did my best to ignore the torment raging in my head.

Cradling her wrapped body in my arms, we made our way down the stairs, past the devastation and dead bodies belonging to Nicolas’s army. My stomach wound was bandaged but the pain still stabbed like a motherfucker. I held Anna close as Aiden drove us the long journey to the airport, where we would meet Luiza and the sarge.

The chopper was there when we arrived, two grim figures waiting expectantly for us on the tarmac.

Putting aside the sadness I felt, I had to focus on the woman who stood squinting through the sunlight, waiting to get a look at her best friend.

“Do you want me to talk to her?” Aiden asked quietly, as we pulled up a small distance away. It gave us some extra breathing room for what was about to happen.

“Thanks, but it only feels right that I do it.” I climbed out of the truck, my hand under Anna’s head as I lowered it to the seat.

With one grim but reassuring glance from Aiden, I made my way over to Luiza. She squinted harder against the harsh sunlight, taking a few steps towards me, a look of curiosity on her face. I watched it morph into concern, then panic. Her eyes looked past me to the truck until they met mine. She stopped mid-step, her arms down at her sides, shoulders slumped.

“Danny?” her voice was already trembling.

I knew what she was asking and despite having prepped myself earlier, I just couldn’t bring myself to answer. My heart ached for both women.

“Where is Anna?”

That fucking lump was strangling me.

“Danny, where is Anna?”

“She-”

“What? She what?”

“I’m so sorry, Lu.”

I watched her bottom lip start to quiver, my eyes watering at the sight.

“Sorry for what?” Her voice was a choked sob.

“Nicolas killed her.”

Luiza sucked in air, a wounded expression taking hold of her delicate features. She took a hasty step back as if someone was about to hit her before collapsing to her knees on the tarmac.

A devastated wail closed in around us as Luiza covered her eyes and mourned for the loss of someone she held so dear.

Closing the gap, I fell to my knees taking Luiza’s trembling body into my arms. She didn’t fight me like I thought she would. She didn’t scream or curse. Instead, the broken woman wrapped her arms around my neck and sobbed on my shoulder. A good ten minutes passed before she quietened, her sodden cheek wetting mine as she lifted her head slightly.

“Did you kill him?” She asked, obvious disdain lacing her voice.

“Yes.”

Luiza didn’t need to say anything. Her long silence followed by a heavy sigh, told me that her heart had found the slightest bit of peace knowing that the monster has seen his end.