Dying Days 5 by Armand Rosamilia

what she was doing when the world went to shit. He nodded when he had to, laughed when she did, and didn't hear a real word she was saying. It didn't matter to Jeff.
    "I'll get the glasses and you get any bottle you want from behind the bar," Jeff said once they'd gone inside. He quietly locked the door behind him.
    "Where? It's dark in here," Lola said.
    "I'll turn on the lights. The bar is to your left," Jeff said.
    He didn't go to the light panel, instead following Lola and scooping up one of the wooden barstools as he moved.
    Just as she rounded the counter Jeff struck, slamming her over the head and back with the chair, careful not to kill her just yet.
    Lola fell to the ground and Jeff pounced, putting his full weight onto her back and covering her mouth once he was in position.
    She struggled but she was still stunned by the attack. Jeff pulled out one of his knives with his free hand and touched it to her face.
    "If you scream, I will carve you up, do you understand?"
    Lola nodded.
    "We're going to have some fun and then I'll let you live," Jeff lied.
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
    Chapter Twelve
     
    "I didn't catch your name," Mitchell said to the loud guy as they sat behind a couple of abandoned cars in the mall parking lot. They'd taken their time, circling the block and coming in behind the mall. The food court was towards the front but, if they could find a back entrance, maybe they could get inside and see what they were dealing with.
    Mitchell knew he needed to tread lightly if he wanted to survive today. He was positive Jeff had put a hit out on his head, judging by the way Red Shirt wouldn't look at him and answered his questions slowly. The guy was unnerved and Mitchell was sure he'd been given the ultimatum: come back to Main Street alone or don't come back.
    Instead of simply shooting both guys and being done with it, Mitchell decided it would make more sense to use them to get inside the mall and use the pair as human shields if need be.
    Mitchell hoped he wasn't being stupid and underestimating the pair.
    "I didn't give you my name," the loud guy said. "And I don't want to know your name. Who gives a shit? Let's just do what we gotta do and get back to the group."
    "Great to meet you," Mitchell said. "This is going to be fun. Let's just get this over with so we can get moving."
    "What's the plan?" Red Shirt asked, not looking at Mitchell.
    "He Who Has No Name will go and make sure the coast is clear," Mitchell said.
    "No fucking way. I'm not going to get shot in the back."
    "Wow. You don't trust us? After all we've been through?" Mitchell asked with a smirk. "I don't fucking trust you, either. This could be a trap. Maybe your butt buddies are inside waiting to kill us... or worse."
    The guy looked pissed. "I'm not a gay."
    "You can be anything you want, Princess. But if you try to mess with us we'll put a fucking bullet in your head. Get it? This is your deal, not ours. So stop the pansy shit and go open the back door before we're spotted. A sniper on the roof will kill all three of us in seconds," Mitchell said.
    His tough words seemed to work because the guy got up, stayed hunched over, and ran across the parking lot to the back loading dock of Sears.
    Mitchell casually moved a few inches to his right, keeping Red Shirt in his peripheral vision. Now he had two foes spread out and didn't want to have either of them get the jump. And who knew what was hiding in the mall.
    He swore, when he returned, he was going to find a way to eliminate Jeff.
    "Your turn," Mitchell said to Red Shirt when the other guy got to the back door and opened it, waving at them to come to him.
    "After you," Red Shirt said.
    "Do it or I'll be forced to tell The Lich Lord you didn't follow an order. You forget who's in charge today," Mitchell said.
    Red Shirt got up slowly, looking around