Higher Times
Vaas slices through a mango with ease, his mind running rampant.
"Hola, Raoul." He greets his comrade. Raoul grunts in response, polishing his gun.
"I found some of the rejects, Jefe. What do you want me to do with them?"
"Where did you find them?"
"In the caverns. They were mass producing a byproduct of the Amanaki mushrooms."
"Huh. What did you do with the product?"
"Locked it away, waiting for you to give the order, sir."
"I'll inspect it. I need to see whether or not we could use that…byproduct. Hoyt's men aren't the smartest when it comes to knowing the mushroom's properties. They probably created a toxin."
"What about the rejects?"
"Bring them to me. I got an idea."
Dominique was busy sweeping the floor off of hair when someone is thrown face down at her feet.
She screams.
In walks Vaas with two prospective victims held tightly under his arms. He enters the hut and throws the bodies down.
"Dominique!" he announces with a grin. "Meet Traitor #1, 2, 3, and…"
A pirate throws down two more.
"…#4 and 5!" he claps his hands together. Dominique notices the victims are bound and gagged and almost drops her barber's knife.
"Don't be shy, motherfuckers. Don't you know how to act around a lady?"
"What the hell is going on…?" she mutters.
"These fuckers here need to be taught a lesson." He pulls out his gun.
"Tell me, Dominique," he asks, "which one do you want to die first?"
"What?"
"You heard me. Pick one of these motherfuckers you want to die first."
"I…I can't do that…"
"It's easy." He wraps his arms around her from behind, "Eenie, meanie, miney…moe."
Her arm is forced to point. It's one of them in the middle; she cut his hair three days ago. Before she could respond, Vaas fires.
Time seems to slow down; she watches the body collapse, blood pouring out into the ground beneath her.
"See? Easy." He beams up at her.
"Oh, fuck." Dominique feels bile rise up.
"No, no, sweetheart…we still got 4 more to go."
Dominique sits in the corner in fetal position, shaking like a leaf. Vaas lies back in the chair, hands laced together behind his head.
"That wasn't so hard, now was it?"
"…"
"What's the matter? You too good to talk?"
"…You…you just shot 5 people in front of me."
"4. You shot the first one, remember?"
"I didn't do anything—"
"—You did. You picked out the other three, so that's…1 person I killed."
"I…You…" she deflates and tucks more into herself.
"It feels good getting rid of some fuck-ups. Matter of fact, I could do for a haircut. I feel some stubble coming in."
She grabs the barber knife and prepares the shaving cream.
"You're awfully quiet. Well, quieter than normal."
"I'm more of a…listener, than a talker." She replies softly. She guides his head back.
"I like that…no, I respect that. That's how you win some clients, yeah? You keep your mouth shut, do your job, soak up all the clients give you?"
"I…I guess." She leans over and runs her fingers over his jawline.
"Your clients…you listen to whatever they say, yeah? What would they tell you?"
"I'm sorry. The relationship between hairstylist and client is confidential. I can't tell you everything that's said between—"
The barrel of Vaas' gun presses against her jugular.
"You tell me everything that's said between your clients. Give me names, motherfucker."
"Hairstylist and client policy. We protect that to the grave." Dominique recites. The barrel jams itself into her neck, the gun cocked.
"Last chance…"
"Hairstylist and client policy, Vaas."
Time stands still.
The gun slowly leaves her neck.
"You're willing to carry your clients' secrets to your grave? I like that. You're loyal. You can keep a secret and you know when to keep your fucking mouth shut." They lock eyes. Dominique gulps.
"So, whatever happens in here stays in here, yeah?"
"That's the code between hairstylist and client. What happens here, stays here."
The gears are turning in Vaas' head. He nods his head.
"Please lie back, Vaas. I need to get that hair like you wanted me to. And can we please…get rid of the…bodies? It makes a…hostile work environment."
He laughs.
There will never be a dull moment with her.
Vaas lies back in the shadows, the jungle being his comfort zone. He's on the prowl tonight; his threats are at their most vulnerable. They are drinking, partying, living la vida loca due to their recent connections in Yemen jumpstarting their human trafficking ring once more. A new boss has become bold enough to come to his island, but Vaas doesn't know who he is. He takes out the jefe, weakens the trafficking ring, dispatches of the remaining traitors, and the last remains of Hoyt's influence will be wiped away from the island. The islands can start over with a clean slate, Vaas can slowly become his old self once more, and the Rakyat can finally live in peace.
The aftermath, however, is up for determination.
He sees his prey, staggering drunk across the village, defenseless.
He swoops in for the kill.
It was pretty easy; sneak up from behind and jam the dagger into the back of his skull. When the body hits the ground, he vanishes back into the darkness.
He feels invigorated; a fresh kill always gives him a rush that cocaine or heroin can't give alone. He needs to take down three more.
The man he killed has been known as a soldier guarding the new boss; the other three are the head honchos of the proposed Yemen human trafficking ring. He's going to have his hands full.
He likes a challenge.