Chapter 15 – Eastern Promises, Part Two
Revy clenched her fists tightly, felt the fingernails dig in the palms. She still had them. She focused on Liling. The black haired woman's mouth hung open in surprise. On the right, the albino looked like the mouse in her mind had stopped running on the wheel. What was going on?
She rolled her head and looked towards the door at whomever the twins were staring at.
The man who stood in the doorway started clapping, exaggerating the swing in a mocking way. He was smiling, the smile did not reach the eyes. Shadows moved behind him, there were others with him.
Lifeng dropped the hacksaw.
"What the hell...c'mon in. Show's free," Revy mumbled. Her mouth was full of blood from her bitten tongue. No one heard.
"Don't stop on my account," said Jin Cheong adjusting his collar. "I had no idea the two of you were this... motivated. It really does run in the blood. Don't look so shocked - I know everything: Bombing my bar, shooting up the docks, getting into my accounts, setting up a phony meeting here with that Russian fry-face when I should be relaxing in Pattaya. All for a childish revenge scheme. Well done Ebony, well done Ivory."
"How?" whispered Liling.
"Fengrui, the family advisor," explained Cheong. "The useless old bastard was good for something after all -- no thanks to you Lifeng. I don't think he likes you."
The guns, her guns. Revy could just see the grip of one of the Sword Cutlass specials sticking out of the closet at Cheong's feet.
"This little thing took out Chulunn?" said Cheong stepping forward and pushing Lifeng aside. "You're Rebecca Two-hands? Not what I expected and not looking good." He reached into his jacket and took out a Sig Sauer P226.
Revy dimly registered that the hammer was not cocked, nor had Cheong drawn back the slide to chamber a round. She didn't flinch or blink as the barrel of the gun came down to rest between her eyes.
"Did you kill my aunt? Lijuan the Assassin, also known as Great White ten years ago?" he demanded.
"Yes," she said thickly.
"Do you want to live," he asked.
"Yes," Revy said.
Cheong pressed the cold barrel down hard. "Yes what?"
"Yes master."
Cheong chuckled. "Good girl. I couldn't stand my aunt. I'm glad you killed her."
Liling sighed. Lifeng burst into tears and crumpled to the floor. Cheong laughed and put the gun away. Gestured to those who stood behind in the hallway.
"I trust her about as much as I trust you two," Cheong said. He moved to one side as five of his men swarmed in the room. His face grew red and his voice rose. "You've put me out, but I can't go around killing my own family though at the moment -- it's not a bad idea."
He kicked Lifeng brutally in the ribs where she lay. The albino gave a shrill scream and scuttled away on hands and knees to the rear of the room. Liling lurched from the bedside and made it to the chair where she collapsed, one trembling hand raised to her mouth.
"Get her up," commanded Cheong harshly gesturing at Revy. "Keep her restrained, that one's dangerous. You, go round up the hired help – can't believe these two idiots didn't have someone on guard."
"I have the best ideas sometimes." he bellowed at the cowering twins. "I'll make something from this botch-up after all. Making her mine will be a constant reminder to you two dimwits never to cross me again. It'll also stick in that bastard Chang's craw. As far as that Russian bitch she works for – this will show them what happens when you can't protect my stuff. Not enough to piss them off and start a war, but enough to show them what happens to their associates. They don't need to know it was my damn sisters."
Revy lay limp keeping her eyes closed as she was released momentarily. She grunted as she was spun about and a knee driven into the small of her back. Her arms were pulled roughly behind her back and the handcuffs clicked. Even worse they were going to keep her feet shackled.
"I said get her up!" Cheong shouted. The men pulled her roughly...
--
... and I can't think worth shit. My thoughts are just blobby things of shivering snot, like some kinda retarded jello. The way these two guys are holding me tells me where this is going and they heave me on the floor at the motherfucker's feet.
Fuck, the carpet's opened up the cut, and I got blood drippin' in my eye again. I can hear them now -- the bastards – it'll be the talk of the town and the Yellow Flag for about a weekend – about how the bitch with the big mouth and the guns – well she just lay there with her naked ass in the air and cried for mercy. And they'll smile and they'll laugh and forget me won't they?
Cheong's laughing – he's kicking miss snowflake who's stuffed in that black leather outfit like a sausage about to burst. And all those shit ass thugs are looking at me. Let them see what they want to see, They don't deserve to live if that's all they trust in.
I gotta do somethin' – anything -- or he's gonna throw me to them once he's done kickin' the dumb ass sister...
--
Jin Cheong grinned, "Ah hell with it, let's get out of here." He swung round and grabbed a handful of Revy's unkempt hair and shook her head roughly. He looked at his men. "She's all yours."
"What'sa matter?" slurred Revy. She looked up with a shaky sneer. "Can't get it up can ya? Is my new master a limp dick?"
Cheong froze, his hand clawed into her scalp. There was silence in the room.
"What? You're gonna do me after they do? Nothing like ... aaaack!"
Cheong gripped the end of the noose still around her neck. He pulled Revy by the bed and to the bathroom as the men shifted out of the way. She was dragged gasping and choking by the bed, to the entrance of the bathroom. The guns within inches away. They were so close, so unattainable.
"I'll be a moment," said Cheong coldly. He heaved Revy in with a thud and stepped inside "Get the boats ready."
The door closed.
"Almost done," whispered Liling.
--
Jin Cheong flushed the toilet and took his time washing his hands. "I feel any teeth and Ebs and Ivory get to go fishing," he said jovially. He turned and looked stared down where she lay on the tiled floor.
Hard to believe the infamous Rebecca Two-Hands was at his mercy. Even with the blood, bruises and burns from the taser she was pretty in a filthy way. That she was handcuffed, shackled and wide eyed with apparent fear made the moment more delicious. The man grinned and fumbled at his pants.
"Come here girl," he said. Revy shook her head, panting heavily and slid towards the corner. The wall was on one side, the closed door on the other as she inched into a sitting position.
"It's not like you're going anywhere," he jeered and lifted both his hands up. Revy awkwardly swung her legs beneath and placed the flats of her bare soles against the wall.
He leaned forward, the palms of his hands gripping the side of her head like a vise and pulling it back. Revy let her mouth open. "You're too damn low," Cheong grunted and started to lift Revy up onto her knees. The man twisted his neck and rocked back on his heels.
Revy lunged with no warning, drove up into the exposed neck. She sank her teeth into the windpipe of his throat. The trachea of a human is tough and flexible but she felt it give way as she bit down. The man had already been leaning back but now too late his startle reflex made the man recoil away from the unexpected assault.
For a moment they were off the floor, Revy extended straight as an arrow her mouth buried in his throat. Then they smashed into the toilet, the back of Jin Cheong's head breaking the rim of the seat with a crash. The impact rolled Revy over the man, pinned her against against his thrashing body and the panels of the sink counter.
Revy released her bite and spit out skin and gristle. Jin Cheong was still conscious, blood gushing from his torn scalp. He was trying to sit up, pushing Revy away. Any moment now his men would break down the door and see the two pumping at each other like sadistic lovers. The man's mouth was moving, but nothing came out.
"No, god, fuck no!" it burst from her battered throat finally, not as a shout – but as a cry and realized it's worth. "Please, oh god, no, don't hurt me..."
Cheong almost grasped the end of the noose, but Revy spun on her shoulder on the now wet floor and threw her hips and legs over his chest. Bracing her back against the panels of the sink counter she ground the chain of the leg shackles tight against his crushed larynx, Revy straightened her legs and pushed as hard as she could, pinning him.
Jin Cheong's face was turning purple. His hands clawed at her thighs as he thrashed desperately as she bore down with the pressure.
There was madness blazing in Revy's bloodshot eyes and her lips were drawn up over her teeth, nostrils flaring. Still the screams kept tumbling out.
"AAAAAAgh! It hurts, it hurts, please no master..."
--
Liling shuddered. There had been a minute of silence and then a horrific crashes and thuds followed by pathetic wails of distress. Whatever older brother was doing, it was causing greater agony to the Lagoon girl than anything the twins had done. All the resolve and hate drained away to be replaced by a familiar sympathy. My brother's hurt you now also, she thought dully and stood up favoring the injured ankle.
The men were shouting and laughing in approval. She hobbled over to the sobbing Lifeng huddled on the floor. "We have to go, let's go to the boats. It's over."
Lifeng stared at her and gulped, "He's taking it all away from me. My dreams, my..."
"Shut up," said Liling bitterly. She bent over and then threw herself to the floor beside Lifeng. Outside on the porch facing the beach, a shadow had moved up to the glass sliding door. She saw a gun being raised.
A spray of bullets raked the room from end to end blowing the sliding door into a thousand glistening fragments. There were screams. Liling pressed against the floor for all she was worth and held Lifeng down. The exposed side of her face stung from the spray of glass splinters.
"Follow me! Crawl damn you!" she screamed as the plaster and debris rained down on them. Cheong's gunmen belatedly returned fire, the noise was deafening. The attacker fell through the remnants of the door, impaled on the shards of glass jutting up from the frame. There were others out there on the porch.
The room went abruptly black, either the light fixtures had been shot out or turned off, then the strobe like muzzle blasts of gunfire lit the room. "Go for the hallway, we'll grab her guns."
--
"That's our signal!" Eda shot out the lock and kicked the door open. "Move it Rock! Don't shoot me in the back or anything stupid. Dutch! We're going in!"
"I don't think that's Revy." shouted Rock running over from the edge. "A whole bunch of cars just pulled in the parking lot – I recognized Biu..."
"It doesn't matter, move!"
--
"Time, I'm outta time," whined Revy. The barrage of gunfire was hardly impeded by the thin walls – fragments of tile and shards of mirror from the cabinet rained down upon Cheong and Revy.
Cheong's hands slid limply down her calves. His head lolled back. Revy convulsively pulled her knees to her stomach, curling as tightly as she could manage in the enclosed space. With a grunt she thrust her restrained arms down past her buttocks – the steel edges of the cuffs carving a bloody gash. Then she was pulling the handcuffed wrists below her feet and her hands were in front. Immediately she got the noose off and flung it aside.
The light blinked and died. She was in the dark.
Revy rolled over Cheong and fell against the closed door. She reached up for the door-knob and fumbled at it. Her hands were slick and shaking with the effort. Spit and phlegm dripped from her mouth "I'm not gonna make it..."
She opened the door.
--
The twins scuttled between the bed and dresser towards the entry and the motel hallway. Two of Cheong's gunmen were down impeding their escape. Liling pushed Lifeng over the bodies and then flattened as bullets snapped into the dresser. Cheong's remaining three were crouched behind the mattress shooting back at the attacker.
"I got one!" cried out Lifeng shrilly. She scrambled ahead. Heedlessly she stood up and bolted out the room into the lit hallway, one of Revy's guns in hand. Lifeng was gone.
"Wait for me!"Liling wailed. Liling flung herself over the dead men to the open closet. She scrabbled for a gun, any gun, throwing aside Revy's torn clothing. Her hand wrapped around the grip of a Beretta as Revy came down upon her.
--
Eda jacked the trigger four times from the landing and then charged down the steps. Rock followed close behind. The sound was deafening in the enclosed stairwell. The two men below dropped.
At the bottom of the stairwell Eda stopped and straddled the fallen opponents. One couldn't afford to be too careful, if they were pumped on coke or ya ba. The nun put a shot into each head "Mozambique" style. Unknown to Eda she had taken out the last of Luak's marauders.
Rock took the lead. He had been through enough the last year that he could fake a calm he certainly didn't feel. He flung open the steel fire door and stepped through into the main corridor of the motel to confront the worst possible sight one could come up against in Roanapur. An enraged woman in black leather was running at full speed towards him. The albino from the G Spot cafe.
The gun in the albino's hand lifted and she fired. Flinching away and shouting, Rock stabbed out the gun with one hand and he felt it kick and buck. He kept squeezing the trigger. Their shots blended together fast and wild. Then Rock's gun locked dry. Surprised he dared to look.
The woman stood barely five feet in front staring at him with a stunned look of disbelief. She appeared to be unharmed. Rock realized he also was untouched. A small cloud of gun smoke drifted in the space between them and the walls of the hallway were scored with bullet holes. It was an awkward moment.
A Glock was thrust between Rock's legs where he stood. It was Eda coming up fast behind him from a sideways roll and she shot the albino twice in the chest.
Lifeng gasped. She lurched sideways against the wall and slid slowly down before toppling forward with a thud, the white hair covering her face at the last moment. Then she was an inert object in a spreading pool of red.
"Without a doubt, the worst spray and pray I have ever seen," said Eda breathlessly. She stood up, so close she was leaning up against Rock shaking back. The nun peered around his shoulder. "Shooting isn't your idiom is it? Oh shit, that's the monkey's gun she's got..."
--
Liling and Revy wrestled for the remaining Sword Cutlass. They were fighting within arm's reach of the Cheong's remaining bodyguards barricaded behind the bed. The men were barely visible as shadows, their heads whipped about in alarm.
Liling was tiring. Revy had leverage and with both hands twisted the barrel towards the nearest as Liling pressed the trigger. The man crumpled as blood and brain parts sprayed over his comrades.
"Shoot her, shoot her," Liling sobbed. Revy slid her hands down and corkscrewed the gun out of Liling's grasp, breaking her thumb as she tore it away.
The two remaing men desperately tried to bring their weapons to bear. There were two flashes of blinding light, the two shots crashing in the enclosed area as Revy dropped them both with dreadful accuracy.
Liling squirmed away, sliding over the wet sticky bodies of the fallen away from Revy. How could they have failed so badly? Minutes ago they had toyed with their captive and now there was but stench and filth and failure. The light flickered back on at the worst moment. There was a silence.
"Tzao gao," moaned Liling. She stood up slowly and turned to face Revy. Raised her hands in defeat. "I give up. Mercy."
"No," replied the killer in a cold flat voice. Revy twisted on the floor and swung the gun around.
The last leaf fell from the tree. Liling closed her eyes.