ABCs regarded her calmly. “You’ve failed.”
Jackie could only bare her teeth and growl at him through the pain while cutting a searing stare at his hideous red eyes. She did not look away, waiting for him to move the aim of Clay’s .38 away from Michael.
𓂓
Soon after hearing several reports from the AR15s, Sean slid out of the SUV, opened the passenger side doors, and perched on the roof with his Winchester rifle, much like his brother did. Through his night scope, he scanned the opening to the courtyard and watched as they huddled along the wall. The flash of red light filled his scope and he pulled it away, rubbing his eyes. When he opened them, bright red beams reaching up to the sky filled his vision. “Martha, are you seeing this?”
The bright red flash had caught Martha’s attention too. She was watching closely when the beams reached up from behind the compound. “I see it,” she said.
Sean grunted and returned to his scope.
Troubled by the display, Martha drew in a deep breath as she adjusted herself in the seat. She sat in Michael’s SUV, spine straight, hands resting on her thighs, eyes closed, a soft orange glow emanating from the seams of her eyelids. She reached out with her mind, searching. Powered by her newfound connection, she could sense the red mass of malevolent energy nearby, even at this distance. She found the expanded sight of her mind’s eye amazing.
She heard the pishtaco in her mind, faint but distinct. “I see you, witch.”
Martha did not reply, only searched for something to latch onto—a way to distract it once again.
“I will not let you tug at me again,” it said. Martha heard sinister cackles as if from a distance. She maintained her search. No responses. No warnings. No talking shit. Let it brag. It will give me something I can use.
A sharp report from Sean’s rifle shook her focus. “Sean, everything okay?”
“Looks bad,” he said. “My brother’s down.”
And with that, Martha turned inward, determined to find a way to disrupt The Alphabet King and his demon. But at that moment, she couldn’t see a way to distract the demon. Maybe I could reach out to Michael. In her mind’s eye, she saw the dim white glow of his form, lying unconscious in the courtyard. With her metaphysical energy, Martha directed her intention toward him and focused on one thought: Michael, you must rise and be our protection from the wickedness...
𓂓
ABCs glared at Jackie. “You’re tough, I’ll give you that,” he said. Then he turned back to Michael, looking as if he was about to pull the trigger when he heard a crack just before a bullet struck inside the compound. He turned back to look but the sound of a gunshot from a distance made him snap his head back around. Startled, then confused that he had heard the gunshot after the bullet struck, he instinctively ducked and moved for cover toward Jackie.
Jackie saw her opportunity, saw that ABCs didn’t understand how rifle fire worked, that the bullet traveled faster than the speed of gunshot report. He doesn’t have combat experience. She reached for the Sig, tried to pull the handgun out, but a metal edge caught on her pocket.
The sound of the gun, or something, woke Michael with a start. He gasped violently, trying to catch his breath. From the depths of his painful injury, he recognized the report of the rifle Sean used—a Winchester 70. Knowing Sean had joined the fight jolted Michael from his haze. He reached down and pulled out his Glock and swung it around, trying to focus his eyes so he could take aim. But ABCs had already reached Jackie, took her, and pulled her back into his chest, using her as a shield, one arm wrapped under her arms and the uninjured hand holding the .38 to her head. Her AR15 lay nearby but neither one could use it.
“Dammit,” Jackie grunted, remembering she had made the last-minute decision to give Clay the .38, thinking he knew how to handle a revolver. She looked over at his lifeless form. His legs still grotesquely bent under him.
Michael lay on his back, fatigue making his arms shake, but somehow managing to steady his aim. “Put down the weapon.”
Red eyes glowered back at him, illuminating a wicked smile as he sunk in tighter behind Jackie. ABCs taunted Michael with words he didn’t want to hear. “You have failed. Now I have them both.”
Michael coughed. His arms shook noticeably. He struggled to hold his head up. He couldn’t risk a shot. He felt the warmth of fresh blood soaking his shirt front and back.
“You,” ABCs sneered at Michael. “You took my drug shipment.”
“Damn right,” Michael said before his head fell back and his arms slowly dropped. His Glock tumbled to the ground.
The Alphabet King dismissed his comment with a huff. Basking in his power, he turned his attention to Jackie. “Your buddy, Luke, was right... You are a hot-ass woman.” Under the soft red glow of his eyes, ABCs searched the taut curves of her body with his free hand, cupping her breast as she struggled beneath him.
Jackie grunted in disgust. “Luke was not my buddy.”
“Sure he was,” ABCs said, raising his pitch as he continued. “He only wanted the best for you when he sold you out. You should be nicer to men who want to help.”
Jackie squirmed but didn’t respond.
“You know he was just another junkie. Liked my women too. He came to me with a deal to trade you and the girl for more of what he liked. I imagine you enjoyed killing him,” ABCs said.
Jackie, struggling against him, said, “No. I don’t enjoy hurting people. I’m not like you.”
“Yet those closest to you, betray you. Sell you out. You think these men with you now aren’t thinking the same thing Luke was. They just want to get in your—”
“Fuck you!” Jackie shouted. “Get your hands off me.”
“Maybe it’s best you just give in, be useful somehow. You sure do have the ass for it. You’ll be a queen among the whores.” ABCs laughed a sick low rumble from his gut.
With that, Jackie freed an arm and elbowed him in the ribs. Unfazed, powered by his demon, he laughed again. “I like your spirit. I will enjoy breaking it personally before I sell you to my clientele...” A faint rustling from Clay’s direction interrupted him. He scanned the courtyard, but nothing caught his attention.
ABCs tightened his grasp on Jackie. She let out a sharp cry of disgust. “You and me... we are going to take a trip,” he said, then he lifted the gun and struck her in the back of the head, completely knocking her out.
Ignoring Michael and Clay, ABCs stood, stuffed the .38 in his waistband, and dragged Jackie by the legs toward the broken glass of the main room, heading toward the corner near the kitchen. The Sig had slipped out of her pocket and fell in the dirt unnoticed.
As ABCs moved by the windows, he shifted his red eyes to the door of the room, which contained the entrance to his tunnel system. He didn’t see the faint glow of light through the cracks of the doorway. The motion sensor light was off. Unless he had frozen in place, he knew Dewey must have found his keys, unlocked the inner door, and fled into the tunnels. If so, ABCs would enjoy hunting him down in the maze of dark passages. Only a few knew how to navigate them.
𓂓
Clay inhaled abruptly. His eyes shot open, and he rolled over to his side, freeing his folded legs from beneath him. He looked over and saw Jackie’s lifeless form being dragged through the dirt and broken glass, her left thigh soaked in blood.
ABCs paused, burning red eyes lifted slowly to regard Clay. A devious smile crossed ABCs’ lips as he said again, “I have them both now.” He glanced down at Jackie. “When I’m finished with her, I’m coming back for you,” he said, pointing a bloody hand at Clay.
“You’re not going anywhere, asshole,” Clay grunted out as he rolled himself over to all fours and got one foot underneath him, facing ABCs.
