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“Yes, please.” His voice is low. Meek.
“I’ll take care of it.” Javier moves to the wall behind him where there’s a knob and he turns on the overhead irrigation system for this section. This one works with stinging pressure, pelting the walls and ground for cleaning purposes, while the dirty water flows toward the center of the room where a large drain sits.
When the four of us step back, Jimmy gives us a perplexed look. It doesn’t last long when that first jet of cold water hits his beat-up face—the pressure stings—reopening the cut above his eyebrow—causing blood to flow down his face in rivulets. His companion in idiocy screams, now awake and freaking out when he realizes that he’s strung up and without an escape.
We let them cry it out until all that’s left are shaking bodies and weak pleas.
Carmelo looks at me then, and I give a minute nod. He leaves the room to retrieve something for me.
“Please make it stop.”
“This is a mistake.” They speak in unison, tones hoarse.
I step beneath the water and head straight toward Frank’s body. Look him in the eye. “You want it to stop?”
“Yes.”
“Then tell me a story.”
“What kind?” You can see it on his face. The resignation. He’s realizing that this is his end.
That his only choices are brutally or quick.
“The kind that’ll make your last minutes on this earth bearable.” If it weren’t for how angry I am, I’d find this somewhat amusing. Walking over to the switch, I shut the water off and then level Jimmy with a glare that dares him to move. “Can you do that, Frank? Can you surprise me?”
“Yes.”
“Good answer. Now, once upon a time…” I trail off so he can continue.
Fat tears run down his cheeks, his lip trembling. “Can I please have a mercy kill?”
“That’s up to you.”
Frank takes in a deep breath and lets it out slowly. “Once upon a time there was a young innocent girl who was hurt by the men in her life. Those men wanted the riches that belonged to her by birthright.” His eyes remain on mine as I circle his body, listening to the bullshit I already know. What I want is confirmation to my investigator’s findings. To get the answer to the last piece of this puzzle. “Her evil stepfather and brother were planning to…what’s that?”
“What’s what?” I say taking a syringe from Carmelo and removing the cap. Since he’s taking his time, I’ll force his hand and speed this up. “It’s a special cocktail I have just for you. You see…” I sink the needle into his thigh and press down so every last drop enters his body “…when I met up with an old friend in Miami not long ago, he gave this to me when he hugged me goodbye. A token, if you will.”
“What is it? Why does it burn?”
“It’s rattlesnake venom. Raw and pure from a milking farm in Florida.” At my words the panic begins. The more agitated he becomes, the faster the toxins travel through his bloodstream. Soon, he’ll begin to feel some numbness in his limbs and begin to sweat. There might be some nausea or loss of sight…maybe even some bleeding as his organs begin to shut down. An unattended rattler bite is deadly. “Now, what were you saying about her twenty-first birthday? What are they planning to do?”
“Kill me,” Frank slurs a bit, some spit escaping from the right side of his mouth. “Please. Just end this.”
“Tell me what I want to know, and I’ll gift you some mercy.”
“What about my wife—”
“She’ll keep the bar and be taken care of. Not that you ever gave a shit about her to begin with.”
His head lolls back. “Tell her I am sorry.”
“Done. Now say it.”
More tears fall, and he has a tough time swallowing, so I offer him water from a bottle Carmelo thought to bring with him. The hemotoxin is working faster than I anticipated. That, or he’s having an allergic response to it. Either way, I’m getting what I need from him.
“Thank you.”
“None needed. Carry on.”
