Page 4

     Midnight.

     I'm sitting on the balcony watching the door of the address I gave to Marcus.  I set up my camcorder with the night and zoom lens.  It's aimed to cover the doorway.  The apartment in question stands perpendicular to the building I'm using at the moment.  The owner of the apartment across the way is out of town.  I know because I've been sleeping with her for the past month.  The apartment I'm using right now is vacant.  I wouldn't line up a free hit in my own yard.

     When I see two darkly clad men sneak toward the steps with a third hiding in the bushes, I make my move.  I climb over the railing and lower myself to the ground.  I'm wearing dark clothes like my would-be attackers and the guy in the bushes doesn't see me coming.  I pull my gun and place the barrel against the back of the punk's head.

     "You move," I whisper, "you die."

     I take his gun from him.  The kid shows a little more intelligence than I expect by not talking.  He doesn't make any attempt to warn his buddies that something is not right in Denmark.

     I push the kid to his knees and tie his hands behind him.  I don't want to shoot him yet since that would attract the attention of the two guys currently sneaking up the steps.

     I reach the stairway just as the idiots decide the best way to proceed is to break the door down.  I don't wait for them to try.

     "Hi guys," I say with a gun in each hand.  I can't shoot for shit with my left hand, but they don't know that.

     "Holy shit!" one says and whips out an AK-47.  Before he can open fire, I shoot him in the head.

     The other guy has his own assault rifle and he opens fire at me.  I dive to one side, roll and come up firing.  Bullets slam into the loser's chest and he slams backward against the door, then tumbles down the stairs.

     Lights are coming on in the neighboring apartments and I know the cops will be here soon, but I take the time to walk back over and put a bullet into the gangbanger I tied up.  I do it execution-style with a single bullet in the back of the head.

     I slip into the shadows and make for my car a few blocks away.  I'm upset about two things, though.  Number one:  Marcus is not one of the losers I killed.  That really sucks since he's still out there and I know I'll have to go get him soon.  And that brings me to number two:  I wish the gangbangers hadn't opened fire on me because I wanted to line them up ear to ear and fire one shot to see if I could kill all three with one bullet.

     Oh well, there'll be other nights.

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