Barely Legal

106

David stopped the cab two houses down from Cousin Lou’s. He watched as Herbie and the men went up to the front door. As soon as they went inside, he began creeping up on the house. He’d just reached the front lawn when there was a single shot, followed by a hail of gunfire.

David jerked his cell phone out of his pocket and called 911.

Herbie dived for the floor, rolled over, and came up by the stairs. He crawled up them on his hands and knees as gunfire exploded all around him. He reached the top, stood up, and glanced around. Down the hall was a closed door with the key in the lock. He raced to it, twisted the key, and opened the door.

Melanie was quivering in fear as she heard a cacophony of gunfire from downstairs, but she wouldn’t let herself succumb to panic. She had to defend herself, now more than ever.

In the midst of the shooting, she heard a heavy tread in the hallway approaching her room. She positioned herself in a loose crouch, hands up in fighting position, her whole body coiled and ready for action.

The key turned in the lock.

The door opened.

She reacted with as much speed as she could muster, kicking the man in the balls. He doubled over in agony. She recognized him just in time to stop from decking him with a haymaker.

“My God, Herbie! What are you doing here? What’s happening?” Melanie said.

Herbie tried to answer but couldn’t. He held up his hand, gulped for air. He managed to croak out, “We’ve got to get out of here.”

David snuck up on the house, carefully, as shots were still ringing out. There was a window on the side where he could risk a look. He crept up to the house and raised himself on tiptoes.

The window exploded in a hail of glass as a body hurtled through it and landed in a heap on the lawn. It was a thug. He had a gun in his hand. He struggled to his feet and took off without a backward glance.

Mookie ran down the street full-tilt with his gun in his hand. He was lucky to be alive. He knew his men probably were not. He’d seen Gus go down. And Cousin Lou was right out in the open, too dumb to duck. But Mario Payday, a fucking loan shark, what the hell was a loan shark doing there anyway? And with the goddamned lawyer who was supposed to have given up and taken a dive. Jesus Christ, how did this all go south so quickly? Even if he got out of it, Tommy Taperelli would kill him.

A police car hurtled down the street, straight at him. Mookie raised the gun. Before he could fire, a second police car roared up. And a third. And a fourth. All stopped with their lights on him.

Policemen poured out of the cars. And a bullhorn, a fucking bullhorn, blared, “You’re surrounded. Drop the gun.”

Mookie’s mouth fell open. My God, did cops really say that?

His gun fell from nerveless fingers.

Mookie raised his hands to the sky as cops swarmed around him.