Harmony - the Secret War
Copyright© 2020 by Harry Pye
Chapter 1
Laying on a cot in his jail cell, Marco sucked on his swollen lip like a blood-flavored lollipop. When the door buzzed and slid open, he sat up quickly with a pained grunt and tucked his elbows in tight along his flanks. There are some beatings in life you cannot avoid, but a man can still protect his organs.
A trim bald man in his mid-fifties stood in the doorway, wearing a cheap yellow plastic raincoat that smelled like a sex toy. Captain Bruder greeted Marco with a dismissive nod. The raincoat made Marco think of a flasher, which lent a comic framing to the way Bruder stared at Marco, like he was trying to build up the courage to expose himself. He was certainly building up his way to some flavor of indecency. Marco couldn’t help but smile at the insistently crude picture in his head, and Bruder didn’t like the smiling one bit. The Buzzard entered the cell and slid the door shut behind him. He stood staring at the blank cell wall, hands clasped behind his back, making like he would be about as helpless as a baby bird if Marco decided to spring to the attack.
“We all agreed amongst ourselves to leave you be. That it wouldn’t be right for your father to suffer one whit more on your behalf. We agreed to leave you be. So long as he was alive.”
Satisfied that Marco wouldn’t take the bait, Bruder turned and shook his head. “You never did look one last bit like him. Makes this a notch easier.” With that, he reached inside his jacket and drew a small automatic pistol out of his belt. He tossed it on the cot beside Marco, then dug in his pants pocket and held up a single bullet, twisting it between thumb and index finger like a magician about to perform a trick, studying it closely. “Hardest thing I ever did, not putting you down the day you turned Judas.” He tossed the bullet onto the bed. “Now that he’s gone, it’s time for you to settle up.”
The Captain turned and rapped on the door, then waited stoically in front of it. Marco picked up the pistol and single round, and loaded the weapon. Bruder seemed oblivious to the potential threat. “You get one chance at an easy way out. Out of respect for a great man. Reject it, and honor has been served as far as I’m concerned.”
Marco racked the slide on the pistol, pointed it at the ceiling, and fired. Bruder shook his head in a mock display of sadness. The door slid open, and he walked out without looking back. Marco tossed the gun out after him, sending it skittering along the corridor floor. If they’d just wanted gunshot residue on his hands to make the coroner happy, he’d know soon enough, but there are some people you cannot back down from.