Uninvited Guests

Uninvited Guests
The moment Swell turned off the water she knew something was wrong.
She listened. A gentle mist caught her breath on the bathroom mirror in front of her as she leaned in to look at a blemish on her nose. Her ears, hunting for any sign of danger. She was naked and pulled the towel from the rack near the shower. It was still damp from earlier in the day, but she used it to dry off anyway. Stepping with light feet she adjusted herself from in front of the sink to the crimson plush rug nearer the shower. The bathroom was too small for anyone to hide without her knowing. The door would have been her alarm anyway.Its creak could be heard throughout the house. Good for alerting her, but bad when she needed to be discreet. It wasn’t often, but it did happen. Such as now. Because for the second time that night, an unexpected visitor was in her house.
An animal? Possible, though not likely. The feel was all wrong. Cutter and Junior? Too soon, and those two were much louder. Couldn’t keep a dead body from making noise. The sheriff looking for round two? Not a chance. Though, he could have forgotten something and come back.
It could be any or all those things. But the sordid pain of her overworking heart chambers told her there was something else amiss. She reached behind the toilet and brandished a silver snub nose .38 Special. She took the safety off, and cocked back the hammer while she opened the squeaky door.
Swell, naked, drips still tickling her as they left her hair and rolled down her back squinted into the darkness entering the bedroom. The only light was two rooms over in the kitchen. Even that wasn’t sufficient for the room it was in, nor the stove it sat above.
She dipped in and swiftly out of her bedroom doorway. She saw no one. Through the bullet hole she’d put there less than an hour ago she could see the darkening sky. Nothing more. Stepping to the bedroom door she peered down the hallway. The light flickered. It never flickered. Then it was gone. She was lost in darkness.
Shit.
She ducked down and felt mildly self-conscious as crawled on the floor with her bare ass up in the air. She sat the gun down on the floor, before she silently pulled open her lingerie drawer, and felt instant comfort once she slipped on some panties.
Footsteps sounded down the hallway as she pulled a t-shirt. She bent over to retrieve her gun.
“Do not move.” The voice came from underneath her bed. How long had he been there? The accent was familiar. She’d been introduced to him earlier in the day. As she lay there he began to crawl forward. His dark mustachioed face became clearer. Swell raised her hands, otherwise unmoving.
Another man came to the door keeping his shotgun on Swell as Arjun climbed out from under the bed. He was wearing a solid grey ensemble. Pale linen pants and pale linen button down down. Nothing fancy. Nothing in style. He didn’t seem like a man who cared. A third man came to the doorway.
“It’s clear. I don’t see Junior or the other guy.”
Swell spoke, “Arjun. Sorry we didn’t have much of an introduction earlier. Got busy, you know.”
The last man to appear pushed his way into the bedroom taking in a full admiration of Swell. “You must be SueEllen,”
She cocked her head. “Only one bitch on this earth calls me by my Christian name.”
He was dressed in a thin black silk long sleeve pullover and black jeans. His shiny cowboy boots had silver tips at the ends. “Yes, yes, I heard you prefer Swell.”
“I do. And you look like your brother.”
He held up a gun; a sleek black 9mm or Glock. Swell never could tell, especially with the muzzle aimed her way. “You speak so cavalierly about the man you killed.”
She should have seen it earlier. She hadn’t even realized that Arjun was killed in the shootout. It all happened so fast. The shootout was frantic. It was at night. Too much surprise. “I killed him? No my friend that would have been the Gastineau’s. They rained on your bros and my parade. They shot up the place and tried to take the money. They killed your brother.”
His gaze was cold. “You made it out alive.”
Swell sighed. “Your bro tried to be chivalrous. If you want the money, it’s in the backseat of the car. Go check out the garage.”
He jerked his head and the gunny in the doorway left the room. Swell’s eyes drifted down and saw her gun sitting on the bed. The man holding his gun at her was too busy staring at the nipples poking through her thin shirt to notice the sudden shift in her gaze.
“You will die here today.”
She shook her head. “Baby, the sheriff probably saw your asses comin’ down the road. The Calvary be here any minute.”
“’Fraid not,” his familiar drawl didn’t set her insides ablaze and when his handsome frame filled the doorway, she felt dread instead of desire. The sheriff was there with them. He was the last to step from the hallway and into the room. “Sorry, Swell.”
“You son of a bitch.”
“’Fraid they pay better than you.”
“What? My pussy ain’t good enough?”
“Oh it’s more than good enough, but come on. Swell, you and I both know I’d fuck you for free.” The sheriff paused and turned to Arjun, “In fact, if you don’t mind sir.I’d like another go at her.”
Arjun’s twin brother swung around and aimed his gun at the Sheriff, while the gunny in the doorway poked his weapon under the Sheriff’s nose.
“The bitch dies for killing my brother,” Arjun’s brother replied.
Turning their attention to the sheriff, the two men ignored the unarmed Swell for a moment. “Well,” she said from behind him. “Can I at least know your name before you kill me?”
The twin swallowed hard. Swell realized he’d forgotten about her for that split second. He locked eyes with the gunny who wrapped a meaty arm under the Sheriff’s chin. As if the sheriff mattered to her anymore.
“Now, I hope you don’t have a gun.” The twin said to Swell, careful not to move too quickly and spook her.
“That’s a long name.” She said.
But before the twin could respond back, his gunny mouthed the words, where is she? Swell disappeared. The gunny moved his eyes to the right and then down. The only place she could hide was behind the bed. The twin nodded, patient, not overreacting. The sheriff watched, familiar with Swell. Knowing she wasn’t going to just lay down and die.
“My name is Rafi,” the twin said. Arjun is my brother. We are… were partners… until tonight.”
“Well Rafi, now that we are properly introduced, take your money and get the fuck out of my house before I kill each of you.”
“You must be delusional. You are outnumbered. Our four to your one. And even if your partners come home…”
“Family,” Swell said. She was still on the floor, trying to keep something between herself and their guns.
Rafi paused. “What?”
“Family. That’s who they are. Partners suggests something less than. It suggests people who will screw you over. People who can be paid off. People who will not step in front of a bullet for you. I have family. You have partners.”
“My apologies. Even if you…”
“Just shut the fuck up. Get your cash and go before I get bored of the conversation and curry your ass to the grave.”
The gunny came stumbling back into the house. He was holding a duffel bag. He could see the argument in the bedroom and placed the bag on the ground. He pulled a gun from a chest holster to offer aid.
The gunny holding the sheriff looked at him and in an unseen signal had the man stop and wait. It was too late, Swell saw the signal. She saw the tip of the man’s nose come into view and then retreat. He was standing just beyond the doorway. The gunny with the sheriff was directly in front of her, though his view was obstructed by the bed. Rafi was between the two of them. From where Swell was hiding she could make use of the angles from the window reflections. She could see the mirror in the bathroom that gave her additional vision of the room. He intruders could only see a thick mattress. A thick mattress with hidden gun boxes behind and underneath. Silently, Swell freed the latch of one of those boxes. She didn’t know which gun she held, but she knew she was holding one, and it was loaded.
“I’m afraid the money is not enough. You must die SueEllen.”
The anger of hearing her full name sent a boiling fury through her. The fury heightened her senses. She looked in her two windows. The men were facing in her direction, but none as careful as they should be. Her next steps came to her almost as quickly as she implemented them. Without anymore thought Swell lunged forward to give herself room to aim. She fired a single shot that went through the wall striking the gunny who’d grabbed the duffel bag. She heard him collapse.
The gunny with the sheriff let go of his hostage, half-heartedly keeping his weapon pointed in the sheriff’s general direction. “Vihann,” the man called. The sheriff ducked low.
“I’ll kill that bitch.” the gunny called out and swung his weapon around.
“Leave the killing to me.” Swell let off another round and struck the sheriff in his leg. He crumpled over enough for Swell to loose a bullet through the throat of the gunny. He dropped his shotgun, clutching the mass of blood pouring from his neck. He tried to hold it in, but it came too fast as if someone knocked over a glass of water. There was no stopping the outpouring and the gunny collapsed to the ground.
Rafi sped from the room, stumbling across the gunny in the doorway. His ending was anti-climatic, if not brilliant. Swell took her aim. The bullet struck just below his skull sending the man forward where his head slammed on the wall and his body fell like a wooden doll dropped from a child’s hand.
The Sheriff was trying to take it all in, but by the time Rafi was killed he at least had his hand on his gun. It would do him little good. Swell maintained a barrier between her and her former lover. She crawled forward under a corner of the bed she’d retreated to.
“You’re out,” the sheriff said, noting her bare foot unhidden. He knew where she was. He positioned his weapon in front of him. Doubted she had a good view despite him being in the open.
“You sure about that?” Her gun was steady, unwavering. She lay on the floor which provided support for her shot.
“Yeah,” he said as his trigger finger applied pressure.
If he saw the spark of light coming from Swell’s gun no one would know. His head snapped back and then his chin struck the top of his chest. Even Swell let a single tear fall as she watched the man’s brains slide like gel from the wall.
She pushed herself up remembering the laundry she’d left in a duffel bag in her car. Walking to each man except the sheriff she popped a single round into their heads to make sure this night was over.
The last man she shot without ever seeing. He lay in the hallway. The duffel bag a few feet away. “Thanks for bringing in my laundry, Vihann.” And she fired her last round for the night.