Inevitable death

Inevitable death
Alessandro
I was aware that a smile remained on my lips as I watched Carrie follow my men out of the hall, but I could not deny the mix of nervousness and distress in my heart.
The hall was now greatly quiet, save for the angry curses our target kept tossing at the men surrounding them.
“Hello there,” Eduardo excitedly greeted the trapped men. He was obviously eager to draw some blood.
He showed the same enthusiasm while we were drawing our plan; it took a bribe to calm him down.
“Who are you?” One of the men snapped, his eyes almost bulging out of their sockets.
I identified the man from the many pictures we had of him, where he seemed to have a strange fetish for dead bodies.
If only I could recall his name…
But then, what use is knowing a prey’s name when they are destined to die either way?
“You should be bothered about the hell that awaits you,” Eduardo replied to the man.
“Who are you fucks?!” Another exclaimed, the discomfort all over him showing in the way his protruding belly danced. “This place is about to fucking blow off! Fuck!”
“Hey!” Jeez… Eduardo’s voice can be startlingly loud. “It was your choice to fix bombs here. Why are you screaming at me?”
“I…”
“There’s no need for much talk,” Eduardo said. “As you said, this place is about to explode.”
I took steps closer and took over. My appearance frightened the men more than Eduardo’s did.
“You have a choice to make, gentlemen,” I calmly announced.
“Wh-who are you to give us choices?” The man I identified as the leader of the trio group asked, and I decided to disturb him with my presence.
“I’m glad you asked.” My threatening smirk appeared, and I feasted on the fear he displayed. The man’s feet staggered, and he almost crashed onto the floor, but I caught him, my hands cupping his sweating armpits.
I used that proximity to my advantage.
I whispered, “I am the one you dared two years ago.”
“Y-You are?”
“Are you surprised? You shouldn’t be. After all, you thought it would be cool to kill my brother.”
“M… M… Mister V-Valante. Mister… I…”
“You want to escape death? Then accept my desire to expose your corrupt ass to the world. Everything will be out there, gentlemen. Including how you three conspired to plant bombs here for that government benefit you’ve been eyeing.”
“We… We…” Hesitation flashed in the man’s eyes.
“You can’t do that. Right? The clean image you’ve portrayed to the public cannot be stained?” The man dared to nod, and I dropped him to the ground. The pain etched on his face fueled my excitement as I stood over him and firmly ordered, “Then you can choose to die in the explosion. You have a minute to decide.”
It was delightful to see how uncoordinated the men became as soon as I dropped my last statement.
“You have twenty-five seconds left,” Eduardo informed the men who could barely have a meaningful conversation with each other. “Which will it be? Death by explosion or death by intense public humiliation?”
One of the men faced us, his feet and hands visibly shaky. “W… We will choose uhm… public humiliation.”
“Oops. Wrong answer.”
The man quickly dropped to the floor, his hands joined as though practising his last prayer. “Please… Please, spare us. We are… I am sorry. We weren’t in our right minds back then. I told them! I told them not to kill him, but they-”
“That’s enough,” Eduardo cut the man short, his voice calm yet laced with terror. “We are long past begging at this point.”
“Please…”
“In the Holy Bible, it is said that he who murders is to be killed.” Eduardo scoffed and faced me. He said, “Isn’t it ironic that someone like me is uttering that kind of statement?”
“Focus, Eduardo,” I firmly replied. And Eduardo’s sentence made me recall the discussion we had with Carrie days ago.
She asked if I deserved a gruesome death as punishment for the many things I’ve done. If Almighty God wishes me to suffer that kind of fate, why not? After all, I made a choice with my life, and I have to suffer the consequences.
So, with a small smile on my lips, I assured Eduardo that that wasn’t the moment to wonder about his inevitable death.
My friend got that message, and the brief gloom that befell him quickly disappeared. He faced the men who were now all on their knees and said, “This works better when we choose for you. I personally think burning to death on your way to inferno is a befitting departure.”
“Please… Save us.” The pleas fell on deaf ears.
Eduardo, the men, and I turned away and headed for the exit where…
The floor instantly rumbled, and a distant explosion startled me.
My eyes bulged, and I faced Eduardo, who vocally wondered why one of the bombs went off so early.
We took another step, and another bang followed, this one was closer.
And even though I wanted to think that my mind was playing games with me, the strong heat that overpowered the room assured me otherwise.
“Okay, what the fuck is going on?” A burst of maniac laughter replied to Eduardo’s question.
We turned to see our targets standing confidently, their eyes blazing with victory, as if they were sure that they’d survive while the rest of us perished here.
That can’t happen. Carrie is currently waiting for me to show up, and I must.
I cannot afford to let some measly human ruin the one good thing in my life.
“You must think we’re fools.” The leader of the men got to his feet, a black object in his hand. “How about we die together? I’ll press this two more times, and we’ll all head into the flames together.”
“Eduardo,” I sighed when I saw my friend already making a move. The nod he gave in response tightened my chest. “Do you have to do this?”
He dragged his jacket off his body. “We talked about this. Trust me, Alessandro.” The explosion device he strapped to his chest appeared, and I felt sweat build over my palms. “I’ve got this.”
While we were planning, we reasoned an alternative in case things went wrong.
Eduardo came up with an idea that I strongly opposed.
But he insisted that if our targets were to threaten us with a sudden explosion, we needed to do the same. And he decided to carry the burden of the alternative plan; he insisted on strapping the undetectable explosion setup to his body so we could use it against our targets.
His plan was bound to work.
But I can’t lose Eduardo, I can’t let him die.
“Ed…” He was already gone from my side and was now confronting the men.
“Don’t try to act stupid, gentlemen. If it will take you two clicks, all I need is one press, and this place will go poof.”
Why does Eduardo enjoy doing reckless things so much?
But then, I can’t leave him alone even though that was what he told me to do.
We have to survive together and walk to the final destination of our plans together.
So, after another sigh, I walked up to the heated scene and said, “You heard him. We can all die here right now. Since we are all standing close to each other, the explosion will be more impactful than yours. So, gentlemen, choose wisely.”
Eduardo glanced at me, reprimanding me for staying back.
I ignored him and focused on threatening the men with my gaze to ensure that Eduardo’s plan doesn’t go wrong.
“So…” One of the men spoke. “You’ll let us go if we don’t press our button?”
“That’s very right. So, which will it be?” I pocketed my hands to hide the slight nervousness that slid into my spine. “Shall we all die here, or will you live and try to survive the worst punishment ever?”
~~
Translation
Signores- Misters