The Kings Of Cool

75

Chaos in the compound

(foxes in the henhouse) as women shriek, children scream, goats bleat.

No chaos for the team-they know exactly where they are and where they’re going: up some stairs to the second floor.

Bullets zip past them as the AQ fight back.

Chon moves the rifle around smoothly Target, shoot

Target, shoot

Target, shoot

He makes it to the door and heads up the stairs.

One of the AQ shot out the lightbulbs at the sound of the explosion and it’s black and tight in there.

Chon feels someone come out of a doorway beside him and he swings the rifle to take him out and sees it’s a kid, can’t be twelve in the traditional vest the waskath

(from which Chon knows we got the word “waistcoat”) and skullcap big black eyes

Shoot every male is the order but Chon isn’t going to follow that order so he shoves the kid back in the room and moves up the stairs into a room that becomes a charnel house as the team shoots everyone inside and Chon sees

Mahmud.

Who doesn’t want to become a martyr this night.

He puts his hands up to surrender.

Chon drills him twice through the chest because

Chon wants him to be a martyr.

(Paradise is Paradise, but it’s also expensive.)