Page 5 of No Merciful Corruption

Moans of agony echo across the empty park as Rian rolls over in the snow and attempts to get to his feet. Blood oozes from an injury in his thigh at an alarming pace. No matter how many times Rian tries to stand, he collapses onto the ice. Oh my God…Li must’ve hit an artery.

On cue, he yanks me back by my hair and presses his bloody lips against my cheek as he speaks. “It’s a pity both of your lovers couldn’t be here. I’d have loved to see the look on Narvaez’s face when I blow your fucking brains out.”

“Fuck you,” I spit in his direction. “I’m coming for your other eye next.”

At that, he manages to laugh. “Oh really?”

Li spins us around and aims his gun.

“Because I think we just entered the final act.” He yells across the bridge, “Drop the gun, Narvaez!”

Alejandro stops in his tracks. In the commotion, he managed to sneak onto the bridge undetected but was likely unwilling to take a shot when he knew he risked hitting either Rian or me. With a clenched jaw, he lowers his weapon and lifts his hands to demonstrate his surrender.

“I’m going to give you the choice between life or death.”

“Li…” I plead quietly.

But he already has his gun pressed against my temple.

“Gun to your head: Alejandro or Rian?”

GUN TO YOUR HEAD

Alejandro

“Choose quickly,” Li says. “Only one of them is leaving this bridge alive.”

Dahlia takes a steadying breath. “I⁠—”

“And don’t be noble either because I’ll lose my patience and kill everyone instead.” He glances over his shoulder. “The Prince of Manhattan is rolled up in a ball over there which means he has at most another five minutes before he bleeds out. Less if he isn’t applying pressure. Hey Rian? Are you applying pressure over there?”

Maniacal laughter fills the air as Li finds humor in his own twisted joke. Dahlia slowly closes her eyes and a single tear rolls down her frostbitten cheek.

“Or I can just kill this one. We never really got along. Rian played favorites in college and I felt thwarted by my only friend.” He laments. “Isn’t that right Narvaez?”

My options are nonexistent. I’m unarmed and even if I wasn’t, Li has a gun to Dahlia’s head. There’s nowhere to go, no ace up my sleeve. And Li’s bleeding out of his right eye which means that Dahlia already played whatever hand she had and lost. There’s Lyss who’s still hiding down by the base of the bridge but the last thing I want is to put her in the line of fire. She could serve as a distraction but to what end? Li has us cornered.

“The melodrama isn’t lost on me,” I remark.

He lets out a wicked laugh. Then as if remembering where he is, knocks his gun against the side of Dahlia’s head. “Hello? Anyone up there?”

She grinds her teeth.

“It really shouldn’t be that hard. Rian or Alejandro? Alejandro or Rian?” He caresses the trigger with his finger. “Or I could just kill all of you?”

I’ve never seen Li so unhinged. He’s on the brink of insanity.

He gasps like a thought just occurred to him. “You know what? I’ll just choose for you.”

“Don’t!” She exclaims.

He turns and aims his gun. “Oh Rian?”

“Li, don’t!”

Li twists the hand gripping her scalp and thrusts her across the bridge. She slips across snow and ice and lands on her knees.

“Actually,” he smiles. “I changed my mind.”