Thomas's Death

The old man would be waiting for him at a restaurant in a park on the west side of town. He knew he had no choice but to comply, so Thomas took out his wallet.

As he turned around with it in hand, a pair of hands grabbed his arms from behind and pushed him into an alleyway.

The man was dressed as a priest and his eyes were shining with malice.

The smell of cheap wine and rotten meat lingered in the air around them. Thomas could barely see him through the dark shadows cast by the buildings, only a pair of red gleaming eyes. His pupils dilated. It was a face he knew well. A face that looked like his own…

"What are you going to do about it, Father?" Thomas asked with a cold voice. "I think we've gone too far this time! They know who we are! And I won't let my family suffer any more, not even because of you!"

For one split second, the red glimmering eyes flickered. Then they hardened and a cold grin grew on his lips. "You don't understand me," Father said calmly, though his hands squeezed tighter on Thomas's arms. "This is not just about money.

This is about the people who need protection from their enemies. You can't fight these battles alone, but you have no idea what it is to be a part of a family."

His hands loosened and he held Thomas's shoulders with an icy firmness that felt like an ice pick piercing right through his skin. "Now, let's finish our business. If you make things hard on me, then maybe the world will be a little harsher to your brother." He paused for a beat. "I wonder if he still believes that his parents loved him, after they abandoned him due to his father's greed."

His fingers slid down to Thomas' collarbone and pressed harder until Thomas felt the blood rushing to his head in pain. Father tightened his grip to the point where there was almost no movement left inside his throat.

" Tommy, I know I've been harsh on you but believe me, whatever I do is because of you. I can't lose you Tommy, I can't lose you...I just can't afford to " Father said as his grip loosened.

Suddenly a fist smashed against Father's face and sent him flying backwards, landing several feet away from Thomas.

With his hand pressed over his mouth, Father coughed up blood.

His assailant stood tall among the rubble and dust of the demolished street corner. A tall woman wearing a black mask "glared" at him through her thick black bangs. She wore ripped pants made from leather straps, black boots with spikes, and a blue jacket that came halfway down her thighs. Her long blond hair was tied in a single ponytail behind her head and she held a long, thick whip.

Father stood up quickly and brushed some dirt off his clothes before turning towards her, glaring back at her. "And why did you attack me?" He snarled. "I haven't done anything to you!"

"No offense," she said slowly as if talking to a stupid child, "but it seems like you're a real dickhead! Do you really think I don't know who you are? I know what you guys do and I'm tired of listening to the excuses." She took off her sunglasses and stared at him coldly with piercing blue eyes.

" Ohhh Maggie!" Father said as realization struck him .

"It might look nice to be innocent, but we both know you're all evil shitheads with bad hearts. I'd be doing the world a favor if I just cut you all open instead of letting you live".

" Look, how about this, spare my life and I'll give you a cheque of ..." Father's plea was stopped midway by a hard kick to his ribs.

" Aaaah!"

" I came here to finish you all, you are ruining the secrecy of this Organization." the woman said.

" Your dumbass relative here" she said pointing to Thomas, " kidnapped a lady right infront of fifty-five onlookers. And you, you are the worst, you lead the cops right to our den in two cases.

Boss wants me to put an end to your lives, I'm sorry ".

She lifted up a short, metal pole from somewhere behind her back. She whipped it upwards and hit Father squarely in the chest.

There was a loud thud and a burst of dust.

Thomas took one step forward, ready to intervene, but another hit caught him straight in the stomach and he doubled over.

His attacker swung again, this time to the left. Thomas stumbled sideways into a wall, but managed to grab hold of it. When the pain subsided, his vision blurred and his heart rate increased.

He felt something wrap around his neck. The woman stepped closer and leaned over. She smiled cruelly as she tightened the cord.

Thomas choked desperately. She grinned wider.

"Goodbye Thomas. I hope you burn in hell… " With a final tug, she yanked Thomas down with her. He felt himself falling backward and the last thing he heard before hitting the floor was a sickening crack as his head cracked against concrete bricks.

He was gone.

The woman then turned to look at Father whose expression was that of pure terror.

His legs seemed to give way and he fell to the ground. He sat there silently, shaking uncontrollably. His glasses slipped down his nose and landed in front of him. He didn't take notice. His gaze remained fixed on the spot where Thomas used to stand. His breathing began coming in ragged gasps. 'How long has this been going on?

" I devoted my entire life for this Organization and...and you kill my Tommy just like that "

He broke into a sob.

" You had been planning this for a long time...just waiting for me or Tommy to make a mistake and lash out on us. "

" Go ahead Margaret, kill me , let me join my Tommy ".

His voice sounded distant even to himself. She raised the silver pole once again and brought it down. " I deserve death and I'm okay with that ", He thought, looking at the bright lights that were growing steadily brighter above him. He closed his eyes and waited for death to greet him …

Margaret raised her long whip one more time. The sound of flesh breaking echoed throughout the empty alley. She raised the staff once again and swung it forward, aiming for the body of her prey.

" Final whip " she said as she swung it one last time, putting an end to Father's life.

She tied the whip to her belt and ran away from the alleyway, leaving behind Thomas's and Father's lifeless body lying in the street.

For about an hour and half, only the low trickling sound of blood could be heard in the alleyway... and the sounds of rodents scavenging through piles of trash and broken bottles nearby.

Then suddenly, the sound of footsteps approaching. The person was walking fast and hurriedly without paying much attention to their surroundings.

He held a white cane in his right hand . He wasn't alone.

Two other figures followed closely behind. One had brown hair, and the other had light, blonde locks. Both had pale complexions that could scare children...and some whimpy adults as well.

" Two dead bodies, hmmm... perfect !" The person with brown hair exclaimed.

" Shhhh, lower your tone" the leader said sternly.

They arrived at the alley and peered over the dumpster to find the two corpses. They approached the two dead men and looked them over.

" We can take them back to that old witch, we can finally pay our debt to her without shedding any blood" The one with blond locks said.

" Yeah. I was quite scared about this mission...you know...going to kill innocent folks all for that creepy witch! Thank Heavens we found these" the brown hair guy said pointing to the corpses.

" Alright, get to work then, we have to be quick " The leader ordered.

The two followers brought out a large sack from their bags and

placed the two corpses into it before tying them together and putting the sacks onto their backs.

" Alright, I'll go ahead and bring the van here. Wait for me " The leader said as he started running back to the direction they had come from .

Silence engulfed the alleyway for about five minutes.

Then, a honk came from the distance.

" Ahhh, that's Boss " the brown haired man said.

" Let's get going then"

They carried the bodies stealthily into the van and left the alley.