Weekend Special Short Tales California 2.4 Chapter 11

 11.

 

Charlie was down to eleven men including him on the Ground Level and stairs. He had three of them remaining on the stairs while the others joined him at the Ground Level. He has four on the left and three on the left when the power went off. They were all blinded by the darkness.

“Turn on your handphone lamps if needed.” Charlie called out to his brothers.

On Bugs’ side, he was prepared. He took out the thermal scopes and put it on. His team did the same. They could see everything in the green halo environment.  He saw the head popped out from the cover and shot at it.

“Chan down. Damn!’ The brother next to Chan leveled the automatic rifle to fire blind above his head. He almost got his hand blown off but something came on then which was unexpected.

The lights came on at the Ground Level.

“What the –-?” Daffy called out and moved to shoot but his sight was still blinded by the sudden flash of lights. His half-raised body exposed him to the shooter. The shot impacted on his head on his exposed face.

“Daffy!” Bugs called out but the other was dead. And the lights went off and on. It was a murder, and Bugs won’t take an answer for that. He lost his control and rushed out. It was followed the leader. Coyote and Runner

It was 0040hrs.

Coyote was first, and then Runner before Bugs got hit at the legs. The leader fell to his knees and was shot in the face.

It was all over by 0041hrs.

And none of the Triad Members fired at them.,

The Melody Men were shot with arrows. There were arrows seen on the floor.

Charlie was still cowering behind the overturned settee. He was stunned when the lights went on again. He crouched up and saw the dead Melody Men.

It was baffling.

The voice came on the communication speaker once more.

“Leave while you can, Tee Chan. I don’t want your life wasted here.”

Charlie stood up with his remaining brothers looking stunned.

“Who did it?” One of the brothers asked Charlie.

“My ---” Charlie was shocked when the bullet impacted into his chest. He looked to the shooter. It was a lady dressed in armor and held a rifle. It was the Dyke.

“Fuck you all.” Dyke roared as she rushed in. She emptied her clip on the others there. She got three of them including Charlie before she was gunned down. She took one last shot at her shooter before she went down.

“Dragon, are you well?” The brother held Charlie in the arms. They were down to six standing, including the three still on the stairs.

“Call the Doctor. I am shot. Call her. Tell her CS01.” Charlie had his right hand over his chest. There was no waiting when the wall diagonal to the stairs slid open. It was a hidden compartment that was a narrow lift inside enough to fit two persons. A figure with the apron appeared.

It was the Doctor.

The Doctor was holding two guns with silencer in her hands. She shot the three of them with a single shot in her face. She rushed over to Charlie.

“Tee Sang, you were always a fool.”

“I know, Onii-san but it’s nice to see you again. How--- are you?”

“Shut up! I got to get you to the Third Level.” The Doctor did not have to call at all for the nurse was down at the Ground Level with the gurney.

“I saw the shootout. Let me get him up.” The nurse carried Charlie over the shoulder to the hidden lift. The Doctor stepped to the stairs and shot the remaining three Triad members. She then re-joined the nurse. It was tight inside but the lift worked.

“I want the Ground Floor fumigated. No one gets in. I will do the surgery by myself.” The doctor gave her instruction. Charlie was moved to the surgery table and the nurse went back downstairs.

On the First Level, Danny was getting impatient. He had heard the explosions and the shooting but no one arrived at the First Level.

It was 0102hrs then.

“I am not staying to wait for them. I am going down by the lift tunnel.” Danny was crazy and he took his man along. Glenn stood up from his cover and followed with Randy behind. He went for the stairs and saw the metal door was opened. He stepped out with the shotgun and saw the dead three Triad Members. He motioned to Randy who followed him down. They reached the Ground Level and saw the massacre there.

“What the ---” Randy called out. It was then Danny had rappel down by the cables.

“Someone did them in.” Danny stepped up to the Melody Men. “The Men are dead.”

It was then the wall to the left of the stairs slide open and the nurse appeared with the tall vertical laundry cage. The nurse was surprised by the sight of the four men there. He had forgotten to seal back the metal doors. He was caught in the act.

“I ---” The nurse was to move but Danny stopped his movement with the rifle levelled at the nurse.

“Move and I will shoot you.” Danny warned the nurse. He turned to the last men of his.

“Get to the lift. I want to see my father.”

“Danny, you can’t go up. Its forbidden.” The nurse told Danny. “You will break the rule and not only you but your father will die too.”

“I don’t care. If my father’s dies, all of you die too.” Danny glared at the nurse. “Now get out of my way.”

The lift door closed then. A metal door came down over the opened doorway. A humming sound was heard.

“You done it, Danny. Your call had threatened the Hotel. Now, the system takes over. You are soon to die. We all will.” The nurse looked to the dead bodies there. “There is no escape. Not even me.”

“I ---- don’t understand. You are the nurse here. You must know how to get out.” Danny was panicking then. “Tell me or I will shoot you.”

“Shoot me then. I will be dead soon.” The nurse approached the dead bodies. He began to load them onto the cage. Glenn moved forward to assist and then Randy. It was a gruesome task but it was done. As for Danny, he was pacing around and collecting the guns as if he was to do the last stand.

“Take them with me to the basement. There is the incinerator there.” The nurse told Glenn. They pushed the cage to the lift but the nurse motioned to the other side of the stairs.

“We can’t use the lift. It does not go down. There is a chute there. Tossed them in to drop to the incinerator. It will start once the bodies are piled there.” The nurse told Glenn.

“There is a basement here?” Glenn asked.

“Yes. It’s sealed from the outside. The incinerator will burn the body when it reached certain weight and it will be even to crisp powder the bones, and the fans will pull the ashes out to the cemetery.”

Meanwhile outside at the Police perimeter, Sergeant Cooper was getting frustrated. He tossed the communication to the ground.

“The Commissioner is not taking my call. Neither is Mayor.: Cooper looked at Max. “Do you know the President’s number?”

“At this hour, I doubt he will pick up even if Kremlin called.” Max chuckled. “Or was it Beijing now?”

“You find it funny, huh? We are freezing here and we don’t know what is happening in there. Mad Dog did not reply my calls. I assumed he is dead too.” Cooper voiced out in anger. It was then he was told that a metal door had appeared over the entrance to the Hotel.

“Can you call in a M1 Tank or better still a drone? Then we can all go home.” Cooper sounded out with sarcasm. The call came through then and it was not the Commissioner or the Mayor.

“Sergeant Cooper. This is the Syndicate Rep. Call off the siege. Get your men to drive the stranded vehicles to the Yard. We will take over from there.” Cooper does not know the caller but the call request was genuine and cannot be disputed. “And Cooper, congrats to your new rank as Captain.”

“Stand down. All personnel to leave.” Cooper called out and then to Max. “Get me some of your men to drive the stranded vehicles off the grid back to the Yard.”

“On whose call?” Max asked.

“Mine, Sergeant and its Captain Cooper to you from now.” Cooper then walked to his assigned vehicle.

“Shucks, how come they never call me? I could be Commissioner by now.” Max grunted out his frustration.

And it was 0120hrs then.

The protection was over.

In Macau, The Godfather died of a heart failure precisely at 1320hrs. Someone fed him Viagra into his drink. He turned stiff then. He was listening to the song.

Welcome to the Hotel California
Such a lovely place (such a lovely place)
Such a lovely face
Plenty of room at the Hotel California
Any time of year (any time of year)
You can find it here