Chapter 11: In Wolf's Clothing
The three New Order enforcers stood behind the Lovelaces with their weapons at the ready just in case any of them decided to try anything. Hawke and Alejandro were waiting behind the Wolf, their backs turned to him. Their eyes were on the gates, awaiting the arrival of whoever it was that had been called here. Soon, the one who wanted Wolf dead would arrive and he would be eliminated along with Roberta. They couldn't let that happen, of course, but they were all curious who this mystery person was. Wolf concluded that Ashur was an agent of this individual, having been instructed to set up the assassin and sew discord between him and the family. It had worked for only a few moments, but that was beside the point. They had more pressing matters, now. For example, it was now apparent that Rock was not present. He had been here when Wolf left but now it seemed like he was missing.
"Right on time." The voice belonged to Hawke. They all turned their attention towards the gates once he spoke. Indeed, a single black sedan pulled into the yard and came to a stop before Hawke and Alejandro. The windows were tinted, preventing them from seeing who was inside. Whoever was driving killed the engine. "I thought we were going to be here all night long, at this rate. Good to know I won't have to wait too much longer." Hawke was itching to kill Roberta, they could all tell. Even now, he was exercising remarkable restraint. Whoever his partner was, they must have been very clear that he was not to act until the Wolf had been turned over to them first. The door of the sedan opened and a man stepped out, one none of them recognised. He wore an impeccably clean suit and he was clean shaven. His skin was pale and clammy, and his hair had been cut neatly. He adjusted his tie before smiling at the scene before him, shutting the door of the car as he did so.
"My, my," he moaned. His words were calculated and precise. "Quite a job you managed here, Mister Hawke. I am impressed. You've really gone above and beyond."
"I was expecting your employer to be with you, Emmanuel," Hawke told him rudely. "That is why we're here, after all. If he's not going to show, then this was a huge waste of time." Emmanuel laughed.
"Have no fear, my friend. He is waiting in the car. This will only take a moment. Please, if you would, have your man open the trunk. What you find will interest you." Hawke gave the signal to Alejandro, who did as he was told. Once he had popped the trunk, he frowned and shot a glare Emmanuel's way.
"Who the fuck is this?"
"That is our leverage," Emmaniel explained. "Bring him here, beside me." Alejandro haphazardly grabbed whoever it was and lifted them from the car before shoving them to their knees beside Emmanuel. It was Rock. He had evidently been beaten and his hands, too, were bound behind his back. Alejandro reached into his jacket and produced an FN 5.7 calibur pistol, pointing it at the back of Rock's head. The weapon itself was white in colour and had an image of the Virgin Mary on the grip.
"I don't understand," said Hawke.
"They care about him," Emmanuel explained. "At least, one of them does. He was beaten to show just how serious my employer is regarding this matter. Should any of them see fit to try anything, your man is to kill him on the spot. That should be incentive enough for them to remain on their knees." As he finished speaking, the other door of the car flew open and another person emerged. "Lovelace family, Wolf, New Order…I'd like to introduce you to my employer. Master Ashur has been waiting quite some time for this moment. Please, let's not disappoint him." Emmanuel's words implied Ashur had been very secretive about his identity regarding this alliance with the New Order. Considering his first meeting with the Lovelaces took place moments after a shootout with some of Hawke's people, it was safe to say he had been banking on never having his identity discovered. That would have ended any such alliance. Considering Hawke did not appear particularly upset about Ashur's appearance, it was safe to say he was not aware of Ashur's role in the deaths of his people. The man who had orchestrated all of this stepped forward and took in the site in front of him.
"Well, it's nice to finally meet your New Order, Hawke," Ashur said smugly. He must have been loving the fact that he was getting away with playing both sides, here. If Hawke knew that his partner was so blasé about killing members of the New Order to build a false trust with the Lovelaces, he would likely not stand idly by during this. "You must be getting impatient."
"That's one way to look at it," Hawke grumbled. "We just want Rosarita, Ashur. After that, you can do what you like with these people."
"Just a moment," Ashur said quickly, almost cutting his associate off. "You'll get your chance soon. Be patient. For now, I have business to attend to." With that, he walked forward until he was just feet from the Lovelace family. None of them even looked at him. Considering they had allowed him into their home, their opinion of him had steadily plummeted once he stepped out of that car. "I'm glad you were so helpful, Garcia. Were it not for your cooperation, this wouldn't have been possible. I'm glad it didn't play out another way." They did not answer him. They were far too absorbed in thought regarding how easily he had infiltrated their home.
"What do you want from us?!" Fabiola demanded of him furiously. "Why have you done this?" Ashur regarded her curiously.
"I suppose explanations are in order," he began. "That only seems fair. Very well. By now, you've probably all come to the same conclusion. I wanted the Wolf. I knew of your connection to him, a connection I was eager to exploit. But, well, I'm just one man, after all. But then I learned about Hawke, about his New Order and their interest in your family, Garcia. That was my opportunity, my way in here to use you. So I brokered a meeting with Hawke. I sent Emmanuel to meet him and explain the situation. As it turned out, they were holding back. They didn't know about your maid's true condition. Well, I was willing to offer them my information. In exchange, of course, for their restraint. I still needed you, after all. So I had them instructed to order you to call in Wolf. That way, we could both get what we wanted."
His eyes fell on the kneeling assassin, then. "I preferred the idea of killing you myself, of course. But that didn't stop me from trying to turn your friends against you. I thought if I could convince them to kill you for me, Hawke could be on with his business and I could leave this behind me. I suppose that was too much to hope for. But it worked out, in the end. At least this way, I get to kill you myself." So Ashur had planned all of this. He needed them all at the mercy of the New Order so he and Hawke could kill Wolf and Roberta simultaneously. And now, they had the perfect opportunity to see that goal through. Still, they knew why the New Order were after Roberta, that much had been clear from day one, pretty much. But Ashur's stake in this was still quite mysterious. As far as they knew, he had no reason to want the assassin dead. There must have been some reason for him to go to all this trouble just for one man, a reason that surpassed money or glory. No, Ashur's reason for pursuing Wolf was much more personal, they could tell that instantly.
"I wish you hadn't wasted so much time." It took them a moment that the hoarse, cracked voice they heard belonged to Rock. Ashur turned to face the kneeling Japanese man.
"I didn't catch that," Ashur told him mockingly. "Say that again."
"You won't get away with this," Rock told him confidently. "You just wasted all that time and effort for nothing. You might have come out of this alive, Ashur. You might have been allowed to walk away in one piece. But that's not gonna happen anymore." Emmanuel's master did not take that seriously. Instead, he managed a chuckle, pointing at Rock as he did so.
"I think maybe we beat you around too much, kid," he said. "Because there's obviously a screw loose somewhere. This is happening, whether you like it or not. I just hope you have the good sense to stay down there. Otherwise, a lot of people are going to die." When he finished talking, he turned back to the others and came up in front of Wolf. He grabbed the front of the assassin's jacket with one hand, lifting him until he was almost at eye-level with the man who wanted him dead. Ashur seemed to take a few moments just to take all of this in. This was obviously a special moment for him.
"I can't believe I have you here. After all this time…you're finally going to pay, you fucking asshole." Without warning, he pulled back his right arm and sent a single meaty fist into the side of Wolf's face, knocking the assassin back to his knees. Ashur did not release the front of his jacket. Instead, he continued with the assault, unleashing another relentless punch. Then a third. The flesh around Wolf's left eye was already becoming raw. Ashur was not casually beating on him like he had done Rock, he was using calculated, precise right hooks to really do damage. And Wolf was feeling it. He was torn between that intense urge to counterattack, the survival instinct within him that screamed at him for not fighting back, and his desire to keep Rock alive and well. If any of them tried anything, the Japanese man would be killed and this would continue anyway. Before Wolf could even finish that train of thought, another punch rocked his senses.
"Just stop this!" Garcia screamed. "Leave him alone!" Ashur ignored him. Wolf tried to peel open his left eye only for it to be forcefully shut by another hard punch. He could feel red hot pain spreading through his face as his own blood trickled down to land on the ground below him. After this, the rest was mostly a blur to him. He could hear Ashur saying something, but he couldn't make out any words. While Garcia's attention had been solely focused on the beating Wolf was receiving, it wavered as soon as Hawke cocked his rifle and came forward. This was it. He was going to execute Roberta. It had been long enough already and he was not a patient man. Garcia instantly came to his feet and stood in front of his maid, outstretching his arms as though to shield her from harm. He was aware that any interference may lead to Rock coming to harm, but he did not care. He would not let them touch Roberta. Hawke raised his rifle and began to slow his pace as he neared the Lovelaces.
"Get out of the way, kid," he said loudly. "I won't ask again." Garcia did not move.
"Stay back," he yelled. His voice was uncertain but far more confident than the others expected in this situation, considering what could still happen. "I won't let you hurt her!" Hawke seemed to think about his next move carefully. But he spent the better part of the last year waiting and hesitating and deciding on the best move. If he didn't act now, Roberta might escape his wrath. He let off a shot, one that caught Garcia in the shoulder. The boy was sent tumbling backwards onto the ground, blood flying from the fresh wound. They all instantly turned to see what had happened. Save for the Wolf, who appeared to be only moments away from unconsciousness. Roberta immediately scrambled towards Garcia and grabbed his shirt.
"Young Master!" she exclaimed, panicked. The shot had not been fatal. That was likely intentional on Hawke's part. He did not appear to wish any harm on Garcia if it could be avoided. But that didn't exactly reassure the rest that the boy would be fine. "Master Garcia, speak to me!"
"He's fine," Hawke told her apathetically. "Can't say the same for your friend, over there." Indeed, the Wolf appeared to have been knocked out cold. However, that hadn't stopped Ashur from wailing on him mercilessly. If he was allowed to continue his assault, Wolf would not survive. "Or you, for that matter. Your time is up, Rosarita. Say your fucking prayers, you fucking animal." He cocked the rifle once again as the others looked on. Rock was watching intently. But he was not concerned. No, he was smiling. He knew what was going to happen next, even if the New Order didn't. He had seen them moving in the estate's interior garden a moment ago. They must have snuck in elsewhere once they heard the commotion. Then there was the silhouette, followed by the moonlight glinting off of the Cutlass.
The first shot caught Alejandro in the chest, knocking him to the ground beside the car. Rock's life was not in any immediate peril, anymore. Revy had seen to that from the get go. Next, the brains of one of the three men behind the Lovelaces were splattered across the ground. After that, a blade flew from the shadows to cut down the second. And lastly, the teeth of Sawyer's chainsaw massacred the third man. Ashur instantly ceased his attacks and rushed back inside his car as an injured Alejandro crawled into the passenger seat. Hawke was the next one to duck into the back seat, followed by Emmanuel. Revy loosed off as many shots as she could, but they only served to shatter the glass of the vehicle's windows. None of the occupants sustained any further injuries. Instead, Ashur reversed out onto the road and took off away from the Lovelace estate. The New Order were gone. It was over.
