Lori Armstrong - Mercy Kill

Anna cuffed him in the mouth. “Shut the fuck up. Jesus. Show some dignity.”

Enough. When I moved closer the back of my shirt got hung up on a nail, releasing a loud riiiiip.

“Show yourself, whoever you are,” Anna said.

Shit. I tried to press myself deeper into the wood.

“I know you’re there, and if you don’t come out, I’ll use the shrieker here for target practice.”

I rounded the corner, weapon drawn.

“Mercy. Guess I’m not surprised to see you.”

My gaze dropped to the mutilated body at her feet. Guilt punched me in the gut. If I’d turned her in to Dawson last night, that kid would still be alive. “Put down your gun, Anna.”

She aimed at me. “No can do. This little shit-ass loser will be begging for me to kill him before I’m even close to done with payback.”

“Enough.” Two more steps. “Anna. Let it go. It’s done.”

“I can’t. I have to finish this.”

“You did finish it. You found the knife. You found out who killed Jason. He wouldn’t want you to go to jail.”

“Too late. I doubt the cops will believe I shot this punk because he tried to escape my custody after a citizen’s arrest.”

“Don’t make it worse for yourself.”

“How could it get worse, Mercy? The man I loved is dead. We’ll never be together now.”

Jesus, I was sick of hearing her whine about lost love. Probably wrong to taunt her, but I did it anyway. “How is that different than not being together for the last five years?”

“You know we had no choice. But we both believed we’d be together someday the way we were meant to be.”

“Don’t bet on it. There were things you didn’t know about J-Hawk, Anna. Things he told me the day before he died.”

“Nice stalling technique. But I know all your tricks, remember?”

“Not stalling. No tricks. Go ahead. Ask me about it.”

Her demeanor changed. “Tell me, or I’ll give him a new set of H &K piercings.”

The kid whimpered.

I knew she didn’t bluff. “Jason had cancer.”

“Bullshit.”

“It’s true.”

“How do you know? He was here, what, two weeks? He just confessed that to you?”

“No, I read the coroner’s report. The tox screen came back with high levels of a cancer-treatment drug called Nexavar. Several bottles were found in his motel room.”

Anna’s resolve didn’t waver. “What kind of cancer?”

“Liver or stomach or esophageal, all incurable. Then I knew why he looked so bad. He probably only had a few months left.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

“You were already grieving, and it wouldn’t have changed anything.”

“So regardless if Jason had been murdered, he’d still be a dead man.” She laughed. “So why did you continue investigating his death, Mercy?”

“J-Hawk deserved better than to be left to die in a field in the middle of fucking nowhere by a bunch of drunk rednecks.”

“Which is why this guy has to pay.”

“You already made Victor pay.”

“Victor was a fucking prick. After he convinced me that he hadn’t killed Jason, it was too late. I was already pissed off.”

“So you shot him.”

“Uh-huh.”

If Anna knew Cherelle had lied to her to serve her own means, and a man was dead by Anna’s hand because of it? Anna would waste Cherelle without a moment’s hesitation. “Did you kill Cherelle?”

“I would’ve if I’d found her. But that weasel’s gone to ground. No matter. Saro will kill her.”

I took a step closer. “Put down the gun. Let me help you.”

Anna fired by my right foot, and dust puffed over my boot. “Stay there, Gunny. Don’t move again or I’ll shoot you.” She grabbed the kid by his hair and jerked him upright.

The kid shrieked. He probably couldn’t stand with the hole in his leg. Anna jerked hard enough the second time she ripped hair from his scalp.

“If you wanna live, you’ll get up.”

While the kid struggled to his feet, I tried to focus, but I constantly adjusted my hand position on the gun. “Stop.”

“You don’t sound very convincing, Mercy.”

“Let him go.”

“I will. Just as soon as I’m in my Land Rover.” She had one hand in his hair; the other held the gun under his chin as they slowly moved sideways.

What are you waiting for? Shoot her.

Every muscle in my body cramped. My breathing was erratic.

Take her out.

Images of our past floated through my mind, blurring my vision and my purpose. I gritted my teeth and forced the words out. “Stop or I’ll shoot.”

“This punk’s life is worth more to you than mine?”

Don’t listen. Don’t negotiate. Don’t hesitate.

Before I could repeat “Drop the gun,” I heard movement through the grass. Which meant Anna heard it, too.

“I can’t believe you called the cops.”

“What you’re doing, this vigilante justice, is wrong.”

“Then why didn’t you turn me in when you figured out I’d killed Victor?” Anna demanded.

“Shut up.”

“You knew. I sensed the change in you yesterday. You realized I’d done it. So why the sudden bout of conscience?”

“Shut. The. Hell. Up.”

“The Gunny I’ve known for years, the soldier I fought side by side with for a decade, never would’ve done this. We protect our own first. Remember that?”

My hands were dripping sweat. I tightened my grip, and the gun wobbled. “I’m not the same person I was, Anna. Neither are you. So put down the goddamn gun.”

“No way. If any of these country bumpkins shoot at me, chances are good they’ll hit the civilian. And it’s all about protecting this lowlife scum, isn’t it?”

I fought the shame and panic that I’d fail my training. That I couldn’t pull the trigger. She knew it. She used my fear against me.

“You’re the one person here who could make the shot, Mercy. One click.”

“Give it up, Anna.”

“You could kill me. Even with compromised vision you could take me out. Even though we’re friends you could do it.”

I ground down on my molars so hard I swore that chips of my teeth sliced my tongue.

“Take the shot.”

“Stop talking. Stop moving.”

“Why won’t you shoot me? Afraid to show everyone your true self? Mercy, the merciless killer?”

“I’m warning you. Stand down.”

Anna kept blabbering. “Show them how a sniper snuffs out a life without a second thought.”

“Last warning.”

“Really? But you are having second thoughts, aren’t you?”

Yes. Make her shut up. Make this stop.

“You can’t kill me, can you?”

Yes, yes, I can.

“I remember a time when your cold-blooded efficiency scared even me, Mercy.”

You can put an end to this.

“Those days are long gone. You won’t do it.”

“You sure?” The fog of indecision lifted. My purpose clicked.

Site.

Adjust.

Aim.

Breathe.

Fire.

“Yep. You’ve lost your edge. You’ve gone soft. Sentimental. Useless.”

I fired. Twice. One in the chest. One in the face.

Chunks of blood, bone, and brains splattered across the hostage’s face. He screamed as he and Anna crumpled to the ground.

I didn’t bother to check to see if I’d made the kill shot.

Law enforcement shouts of “Move in. Go, go, go!” filled my ears.

How many times had I heard those orders after I’d cleared the obstacle in my crosshairs?

Too many.

But I was glad I’d called the sheriff’s department.

I let my chin fall to my chest; my gun sagged by my side. I backed up. Ten, twenty, thirty steps. I didn’t care if I fell on my ass. I needed distance. In mind and body.