Weekend Special Short Tales California 2.4 Chapter 12

 12.

 

It was 0159hrs when the doctor lifted the last of the stitch line off Charlie. She smiled for with her efficiency in surgical touches, she had done the task most surgeons will find difficulty in doing. Charlie was shot in the chest but it missed his heart. It was to the upper left near the shoulder.

Charlie will live on.

It was then the doctor saw the amber light was turned on. It meant the Hotel was under lockdown once more. She pulled off the surgical gloves and walked to the nearby console. She called up the screen and voiced out the command code.

“Tiffany Twisted.” That was the code to lift the lockdown at Hotel California.

“Code not recognized. Lockdown to proceed.” The song was played then.

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

“Fuck you. It was my song. Work on my code or I will----” The doctor tried several times but it won’t worked. She knew that it was to end. The Syndicate had deserted her.

“Nurse, can you hear me?” The doctor called the nurse.

“Yes, Doctor. I am at the Ground Floor. I am clearing the bodies.”

“We are in lockdown? And my code won’t reverse it.” The doctor told the nurse. “It’s a Total Lockdown. Danny Delagi threatened the Hotel and that triggered the new lockdown. We are all trapped here until the lockdown is lifted.”

“Or we die here. That lockdown will bring about the Syndicate Terminators. They will kill even my son here.” The doctor was upset.

“Doctor, you said so yourself, you don’t have any sons.”: The nurse recalled the Doctor’s words. “How---”

“Don’t play with my emotions, Nurse. Charlie is my son. I am his birth mother while Robert belongs to the other lady. Anyone who wants to kill my son will have go through me.” The doctor was upset. “Join me here in the Third Level. It’s time they know why I am named Tiffany Twisted.”

“Can I play too, Doctor?” The nurse asked.

“Yes, you can. Just be nice to the others.” The doctor replied to the nurse.

“Yes, Doctor.” The nurse smiled.

Glenn heard it all, and looked at the nurse.

“I am okay. You will be too if you find cover. I will suggest you take the hidden lift. That was added on recently and the remote is here.”

“What about you?” Glenn asked the nurse.

“I got my task here. The lift can take only two persons. You decide then.” The nurse told him. It was not a hard choice.

“Randy, let’s go.” Glenn called but Danny beat him to it. He shot Randy in the beck and then aimed his rifle at Glenn.

“I heard it all. If you move, I will shoot both of you. I heard your conversation.” Danny glared at Glenn. It was then the nurse tossed the remote into the chute. It went down to the incinerator. Danny open fire but both Glenn and the nurse had ducked behind the dead bodies on the cage. Glenn had the shotgun slung over his back had it aimed at Danny’s direction and fired it. The bullet from the shotgun was the ball shot type and the dispersion of the small balls hit Danny on the chest. He went down still firing the automatic from the wall to the ceiling.

Glenn rushed over to check on Randy. He was dead from the point blank shot by Danny. He looked at Danny who was still breathing. The latter tried to reach for the rifle when the nurse stepped on the throat of Danny’s.

“You are dead.” The nurse stepped down hard on the throat. The sound of the choke and then the breakage of the bones could be heard.

“I will suggest we move. The Syndicate will be here soon.” The nurse called out. “They don’t take prisoner.”

“We can take the guns here.” Glenn told the nurse.

“It won’t penetrate their armor. You need armor piercing rounds. I got it upstairs.”

Meanwhile, Cooper sat in the passenger seat of the armored vehicle had taken the second turning leaving the Hotel. He saw the two dark vans that went by him in the opposite direction. He knew who was inside, there was no names of them there was known for they were all masked but their reputation was whispered in the corridors.

“Launderette: Syndicate killer squad. It makes no difference to what they wore for no one survives their incursion.  Cooper disliked walking from a gun fight but he had his orders. He knew the Syndicate ruled the city there. If he disobeyed them, he was finished. He would end up in the unnamed burial spot.

“James, we are going back. That was the Commissioner.” Cooper told the officer. “And call me Captain Cooper from now.”

That was a command.

It was 0212hrs when the vans arrived at the Hotel. The road to it was deserted. It was an ungodly hour to be seen there, more so when there was the cemetery at the rear. The dark vans had its passenger disembarked. There were twelve of them, and they all carried the Colt 14 with the laser beam on the top rail of the rifle. They had on full body armor on the chest down to the shins with the hoods over their face leaving the eyes and mouth exposed. The gun on their belt was the Magnum .375.

“It’s a laundry.” A term they all knew. It was their task.

“We are here. Lift the Lockdown now.” The call was made by the leader to the command center.

“10-4, Boys. Do your laundry now. We will be watching you. And don’t forget it’s Tiffany you are dealing with. She is ---”

“Old and should had retired.” The leader remarked. “Keep the camera running. The Elders will want to see this.”

The cameras in the Hotel were activated and seen remotely by the Command Center.

“You are cleared. Find the rats.”

Unknown to the Command Center, the rats were at their holes. The nurse donned on the body vest while Glenn was admiring the line up of guns.

“The vest we have is reinforced with Teflon inside of the fabric. It will stop some shots but not all. When it does, you shoot fast and precise.” The nurse told Glenn while he buckled on the Magnum Taurus. “This is the Raging Bull, modified to hold the black tip ammo. Each clip is eight rounds on these models. Fire with both hands or lose your fingers. It got a strong recoil.”

“What were you, Nurse? I mean your understanding…” Glenn asked.

“Sergeant at Arms, Special Forces, and then killer of sorts. I have been to places where your mama will utter prayers if you are there. I have taken down many scums in my days.”

“And you save them now.” Glenn smiled while he buckled on the belt with the Taurus.

“Redemption is a beast.” The nurse replied while he picked up the IWI Tavor Tar -21 Bullpupm rifle. “My version of the Pit Bull. Short and deadly. Fires the 5.56; my own with the black tip on it. It fires ---”

“Thirty rounds. I know. I was with the Army for stint. We were Recce units.” Glenn smiled. “I liked that but I prefer the FN P90. Its more to my style.”

The FN P90 fires the 5.7. I have ---” The nurse looked for the gun but Glenn has it.

“I got it. And the clips. I make sure I fired close up that they can smell by breath.” Glenn chuckled. “Any ammo for my Remington?”

“The 870 you are holding. Top shelf may have some 12-gauge cartridges there.” The nurse told Glenn.

“Why was I not invited?” It was the Doctor. She was still in her scrubs with the apron on. It was bloodied on the fabric.

“Your weapons, Doctor.” The nurse handed to the chest vest with the twelve scalpels at the pockets. She took the vest and wore that. he later handed her the belt with the eight more scalpels on it.

“I doubt you could penetrate their armor with that.” Glenn commented.

“Not if you know where to stick it.” The Doctor said to Glenn. “Each scalpel is weight to give me the throw I needed and the edges are all coated with poison named ricin for effectiveness, and tetrodotoxin for the sudden stop. Mine are added with enhancement to be deadly on contact. On the for the duller edge, I have my twin daggers. Its called ‘kaiken’ and in used by the women warriors for generations. I had practiced with it since I was five.”

“I am older now but my training had not aged.” The doctor smiled. The nurse heard the metal gates lifting.

“It’s time for the registration of our guests. Or be a dear, and hand me the short stub revolver. It was from my husband on our wedding night. He told me it was for my personal protection. I should had known it was not protection from his. I was a mother giving birth to Charlie Sang.”

The short stub .38 revolver with the five rounds went into her apron pocket.

“And my crossbow please.  Give me one of those explosive arrows. I am going to bring down a chopper.”