Kill The Luna

41

The bleeding guard stared up at the dark opening of the gun barrel, and a sudden, deep flash of pure terror washed over his wide eyes. His aggressive attitude completely vanished into thin air, and he raised both of his shaking hands high above his head without a single second of hesitation, pinning his back flat against the floorboards of the moving vehicle.

A cold, dark smile touched my lips as I tightened my fingers around the heavy metal grip of the weapon, keeping it locked directly onto his face. "Oh... so tell me, how exactly does it feel to suddenly be the helpless prey?" I mocked, my voice dropping into a harsh, steady whisper that made him flinch. "I honestly never knew a massive, muscular warrior like you could have this kind of pathetic fear in your eyes. You are only doing this dirty job because you are hustling for a quick paycheck, right? So you better cooperate with me perfectly right now, or else I swear you won't be alive to see a single cent of that money."

Without breaking my gaze from his face, I gestured slightly toward the second weapon lying on the floor. "Ella! Pick up the second gun right now!"

Ella didn't hesitate. She scrambled forward across the vibrating floor of the van, her fingers reaching out desperately to snatch the heavy firearm from the floor. But just as her hand was about to wrap around the cold metal handle, the first guard—the one who had been groaning and clutching his crotch on the opposite bench—suddenly snapped his eyes open with a look of pure rage.

With a wild, aggressive grunt, he lunged forward across the small gap. He reached out and violently caught Ella by her long hair, jerking her head backward with a brutal yank that made a sharp scream of agony tear from her throat. Before I could even swing my weapon around to stop him, the man wrapped his thick, muscular arm securely around her neck, pulling her small body tightly against his chest like a human shield. He snatched his dropped gun off the floorboards with his free hand, pressing the cold barrel forcefully into the side of her neck.

The massive man slowly forced his body up into a standing position, dragging a sobbing Ella up along with him. He pressed the heavy weapon even harder against her head, his eyes burning with a crazy, dangerous fire as he glared down at me. "I don't have a single damn thing to lose in this life, princess!" he spat, a mean, twisted grin spreading across his hidden face. "But trust me on this one—before you even think about trying any more of your little stunt moves, I am already ten steps ahead of you."

I froze in my tracks, my fingers trembling on the trigger as my heart dropped straight into my stomach.

The man’s grip tightened around Ella's neck, making her gasp for oxygen as he narrowed his eyes at me. "So if you are thinking about doing anything crazy that is floating around in your mind right now... let me tell you how this ends. No matter what you try to do, no matter how fast you think you are, this girl dies first. And from the exact way I see things, you really care about her safety. So if you genuinely want this pathetic little girl to live through the afternoon, you are going to drop that weapon right now and do exactly as I say."

Ella’s face turned bright red from the pressure against her throat, but she stubbornly lifted her chin, tears pouring down her cheeks as she screamed at the top of her lungs. "No! Luna Fedora, please just run away! Don't worry about what happens to me, I will be completely fine! Just get away from here with that gun, and don't believe a single word this horrible man is saying to you!"

The guard’s face twisted in pure annoyance at her shouting. Without a second thought, he brought his heavy elbow back and slammed it hard into the side of Ella's head. A painful, muffled scream left her lips, and her eyes fluttered as the brutal impact almost knocked her completely unconscious.

"Can you just shut the hell up?!" the man roared, shaking her limp body roughly.

The sight of her head snapping back made something break inside me. "Stop! Stop hurting her!" I cried out, my voice cracking with absolute terror. I opened my fingers instantly, letting the heavy gun fall from my hands. It hit the floorboards with a loud clatter, rolling away toward the front of the van. I threw my hands up in the air, rushing forward a step to hold Ella. "Look, I dropped it! Just leave her alone!"

With the weapon gone, both of the massive men stood up to their full height, the heavy tension inside the vehicle instantly shifting back in their favor. The guard who had been lying on the floor scrambled back to his feet, picking both weapons up from the ground with a triumphant grin. The first leader reached up with his sleeve, aggressively cleaning the smear of blood away from his mouth where I had punched him earlier. He let out a dark, bitter chuckle as he looked at his partner. "Well... that was one hell of a show these two put on for us."

He turned his cold gaze back toward me, his expression hardening into a ruthless scowl. He jerked his chin toward the front cabin. "Go bring the heavy ropes from the storage box."

The second guy nodded quickly, stepping over to the front divider to grab a thick bundle of scratchy nylon ropes. They rushed us both at once, shoving us down onto the hard benches. They grabbed our wrists behind our backs, pulling the ropes incredibly tight until the rough fibers dug deep into our skin, cutting off our circulation. They started tying both of our hands together with brutal, professional knots that left us completely helpless.

Once they were completely done securing the ropes, they didn't even bother putting us back on the seats. They aggressively pushed us off the benches, dropping both of our bound bodies directly onto the cold, dirty floor of the vehicle while the heavy engine continued to roar and shake beneath us as we sped down the highway.

The minutes ticked by in a heavy, painful silence, the old van bouncing violently over the uneven road. I lay there on my side, my mind racing as I tried to think of another plan. But right beside me, Ella was staring at the man who had hit her with his elbow, a wild, reckless fire suddenly exploding in her eyes. Even though her hands were completely tied behind her back, she suddenly let out a loud, furious scream of pure rage. She scrambled to her knees and rushed the massive man with everything she had, violently pushing and slamming her entire body weight against his legs to knock him over.

"You monster! Let us go!" she screamed, thrashing wildly against him.

The guard’s expression changed from surprise to pure, uncontrolled fury in a split second. He easily caught her swinging shoulders with his large hands, his face twisting with a terrifying darkness. With a loud, angry growl, he used all of his massive strength to shove her away from his body, throwing her straight toward the open glass space where he had just cracked the side window open to vent the heat. The sheer force of his brutal push sent her flying, and she crashed right through the window frame, disappearing into the rushing air outside.