CHAPTER 8 - THE CAVEMAN

Linn took a sip from his sixth beer. He kept the beverage in his mouth savoring every bit of it. It is really crappy and tastes like crap too.

Probably it is coloured piss. With everything that people do to make the ends meet he wouldn't be surprised if they develop a way to make a drink out of piss.

He is slightly getting light headed. He didn't mean to drink this much, but what else could he do? He is in a fucking bar, if he didn't order beer what should he order? Bottled water? Coffee ?

He is pretty sure that it is his sixth beer but the barmaid who keeps the tabs said it is his seventh one. She left him a disapproving look as she turned to serve other customers.

He doesn't know why she gave him that look. Maybe because he drank too much or maybe it is because he insisted that it is his sixth beer.

He is not sure anymore maybe it is his seventh but what does that have to do with her. It is his money and he will waste it the way he likes. What does that have to do with her.

“Just do your shitty job” Linn muttered through his gritting teeth.

He knows that he is losing control of his thoughts, he is tattering on the edge of losing the battle to his instinct. The battle that is always going on in his mind. A battle between bloodlust and sanity.

It has always been like that. At least it has always been like this since the moment he could remember. He always fought against that bloodlust and aggressiveness inside his mind. It is a battle between his instincts and his intelligence.

Linn sees his basic instinct as a wild primitive caveman. He lurks in the shadows, gritting his teeth and waiting for his prey. If the prey reveals itself then he will act, he will charge in to have a bloody fight. He will charge in there and rip the throat out of his enemies. He will relish in the showering blood !!!

‘Why lie down when others offend you ? Killing off the root cause of any problem will completely make the problem disappear. Isn't it more simple, more direct ? Why wait and consider things if you have the power to make them all disappear ?’

‘No. Making problems disappear is not the same as solving the problem’ his intelligence will always reason with him. The refined man inside him will tell him to lie low, keep a clear head and observe. ‘Observe until you know everything about the situation. Observe until you could formulate a plan for every possible scenario. Act when you are ready and act only when odds are in your favor. Until then stack up the odds in your favor.’

But lately the primitive caveman is gaining more and more ground in this battle. Bloodlust is dominating him more and more nowadays. He knows it is because of his losses, he misses his brothers, he misses his unit. He misses the bonding that makes him feel like he belongs somewhere.

“Not here, not now when he is this much close to closing the deal for his mecha”

A terrifying memory came into his mind. A night six months ago…..

“Fuck….I told them to leave…..I told them to leave with what they got in their hands.” Linn gritted his teeth. But no….they have to be greedy, they wanted the mecha, they saw the mecha as their way to get out of their wretched vagrant life ....

“Fucking fools….I was screaming for you to leave fools….”

On that night Linn was screaming for them to leave him alone. They thought he was afraid of them.

Afraid? Yeah he was afraid but not because of three vagrants with some crowbars and iron pipes. He was afraid of himself. Afraid what the caveman is going to do.

Linn closed his eyes shutting that memory down, he don't want to remember that night. He shook his head and looked towards the men sitting two tables away.

Linn noticed them. He noticed them one hour ago. They have a tattoo of a coiled cobra in their biceps. Linn could see the tattoo in two of them clearly because they are wearing sleeveless t-shirts, their jackets hanging on the back of their chair. The group seems to be very close to each other by the way they are talking to each other. It is safe to assume that they are part of the same gang.

They entered the bar together. More importantly they entered the bar just after Linn sat down.

Coincidence? Maybe. After all, the place is a popular one.

One or two gazes were given in his direction as if sizing him up.

Suspicious, but not clearly a tell that they are here for a hit or he is the target.

Then why is his instincts screaming at him that something is wrong? Why is he feeling edgy? Linn knows very well not to ignore his gut feeling. His gut feeling and instincts are what helped him to survive out there among the predators when his whole team was wiped out.

He knows that gut feeling, instincts, sixth sense whatever they call it, it is his subconscious mind trying to tell him something. His subconscious mind has noticed something and it is trying to draw the attention of his conscious mind towards the matter.

Your conscious mind wouldn't pay attention to matters that do not have meaning like the sound of fans rotating, scraping of chairs. They do not have meaning so they are lost in the background. They are heard and noticed but deemed unimportant.

“What am I missing…..what is it….” Linn is in deep thought when the waiter comes to ask whether he needs anything else.

“Is it all sir, should I bring the bill”

“Yeah, bill please” Linn replied as he took his wallet to pay the bill.

There is no more point in waiting for the buyer, he waited for one hour.

Waited…ehh....wait….that is it. He got it. He realized what was nagging him. They are waiting. The five guys are waiting.

Waiting for what? Linn’s mind worked at top speed. Different possibilities went through his mind.

Other members of the gang? No, that is not right. Five is enough to make a hit.

Waiting for the right time? Not likely. The more you wait the more there is a chance that the target will notice you.

“Ehhh? Time.....” Linn quickly checked his wrist band to see 7:57 pm displayed brightly in red.

“7:57 pm …..3 more minutes…. 8 pm…. Shift change” Linn whispered as his brain worked at lightspeed. Linn realized that they are waiting for the shift change time. Police department in the bunker works in four shifts. Morning shift, Noon shift, Night shift and Lights out shift.

8 pm is the time for Night shift to start. There will be handing over of duties. Cops relieved of duty and new guys taking charge. A lapse in response time

It is the perfect time to make a hit.

Normally there will be a window of 2 minutes to make a hit and escape the scene. But at the shift change time there will be a window of at least 5 minutes. 3 more minutes to get the job done.

Linn clasped his hands together tightly, his nails digging deep into his flesh. Pain…. He needs pain now. Pain causes release of adrenaline and that is what he needs. He needs adrenaline to wipe away his lightheadedness because of alcohol.

He should be ready when they come. He doesn't want to hurt anybody, but they asked for it. And he is going to deliver it.

Linn lifted his head to look at the men. There is a light grin on his face.

He grinned. He grinned wide showing his grinding teeth.

Come….the caveman is ready for you….there is a lot of space inside his cave to bury you all.