Ch.15Chapter 15. Downpour

The sound of rain pouring down would cover it all so well.

“Argh! Ughh!”

“Grrrrgh! Aah! Ugh!”

These men’s sweat-soaked screams and

Thwack! Crunch! Crack!

“Aaaagh!”

The sound of bones breaking and muscles giving way.

To be honest, it was below my expectations.

I thought if they had the guts to specifically come after me to cause trouble instead of just running away, they’d have the strength to back it up.

But the reality was…

“Kiaaaaa!”

“You fucking bitch. Why are you suddenly raising your pitch like that?”

Squelch!

“Kieeeee… hnngg… hnn… ughh…”

They were worse than little Tom right before getting his ass kicked, making one last desperate struggle.

Look how quickly the screaming stops after I break a wrist.

Their will to live must not be that strong.

If they really wanted to live, they would’ve screamed their lungs out until their vocal cords tore.

“Phew.”

Thud…

The blood-soaked wrench made a strange sound when I dropped it.

It should have made a clang.

“Ah. Shit.”

Looking down, I saw one guy’s skull was caved in.

No way the falling wrench did that.

Must have been from when I smashed his head against the doorknob and kicked his face a few times.

This one’s dead.

“Cough… cough…”

“Wow. Really?”

Still alive?

This makes things more complicated.

“This won’t do. I’ll have to leave you until you die.”

If I try to finish him off, I might get arrested for murder.

These days they use all kinds of investigation techniques to figure out when and how someone was killed.

It would be child’s play for medical examiners to determine if I killed a robber who was already incapacitated.

“P-please spare me…”

“Don’t you have any pride as a man? You came to beat me up 2-on-1 and got your ass handed to you? You should accept death with dignity.”

Broken nose.

Twisted ankle.

Broken left wrist and right elbow bent backward, he spoke in a voice like a little girl.

“Please… I’ll pay you back… double…”

“You came to beat me up because you didn’t have money to pay back in the first place. Am I wrong?”

“Ah…”

A man, you know.

Should have something life-changing to bargain with when begging for his life.

This guy was just a complete small-time thug?

“Your neck. I’ll just break your neck. Then you can go a little faster.”

“Aaah! There! Down the road about 300 meters! There are two black bikes tied up! You can have both!”

Now we’re talking.

“What models?”

“A Kawasaki M82 and a Harley-Davidson Nitro Racer.”

“What the fuck?”

Never heard of these models before.

“How many cylinders?”

“The Kawasaki has 8 cylinders…”

“Bullshit! When did Kawasaki ever make an 8-cylinder bike!”

Caught this bastard in a lie.

“They got shit on even when they made 6-cylinder bikes! What nonsense is this 8-cylinder? Talk sense.”

“Uh… they’ve been making 8-cylinder models for about five years now.”

“…Really?”

“Yes.”

I can’t believe this.

Has the world changed this much while I was in prison?

“Alright. I’ll take those two.”

“What?”

“You think I should spare your life for two bikes? Don’t you think you’re being too greedy?”

“Aah… Then, my wallet…”

“I already took that.”

I pulled out two wallets.

Let’s see, cash… only $500.

Pathetic bastards.

I’ll have to call Bob later to collect these and the bikes.

After the police investigation is over, I’ll get them back with a little extra for his trouble.

In the slums, secondhand deals often ignore identification numbers, so the police won’t be suspicious.

It’s not like I can’t afford to buy two used bikes anyway.

“What else you got?”

“M-my girlfriend… has a nice body.”

“What country is she from?”

“A-America.”

“No, fuck. What race is she?”

“Her father is Afghan, she said…”

“You fucking idiot.”

“Ugh!”

I stomped on his face out of frustration.

I can’t stand Afghan women.

When I was dragged to the war zone for labor camp, I happened to sleep with an Afghan woman…

I caught an STD and suffered until it was cured, so just hearing about Afghan women makes me sick.

“Something else. Another woman.”

“I-I don’t have anyone else…”

This guy looks like a cheap tanning-bed thug but only has one girlfriend?

What impressive devotion.

“Come on, you should at least offer your mother. Don’t you want to live?”

“M-my mom… she’s really fat and has wrinkles. But if that’s okay with you…”

“Would that be okay? Huh? Think before you speak.”

“Ack! Argh! Yes sir!”

I was trying my best to spare him.

But this fucker is dropping tactical nukes on me.

“T-then… my younger sibling is really cute and innocent…”

“Pretty?”

“Yes. Very pretty. He’s my little brother, but everyone says he’s the best after they’ve had a taste…”

“You fucking idiot.”

“Urgh!”

Oh fuck.

He’s a homo.

If I’d known that, I would’ve killed him right away, murder charge be damned.

Thud… Thud… Crack…

“Oh.”

At some point while stomping, the screaming suddenly stopped.

Looking down, his ribs were broken and his right chest had caved in.

He’s not dead yet, just unconscious and foaming at the mouth.

He’ll die soon if left like this.

“Hmm.”

I checked the pulse of the guy with the caved-in skull.

This one’s really dead now.

I took cigarettes and a lighter from their pockets and staggered outside.

“Fuck…”

My body is in tatters.

A dagger went into my calf, leaving a large wound.

I made a quick tourniquet with my pants elastic, but blood is still seeping out because of my clumsy work.

Cuts from knives are all over my body…

Especially my hands. My palms are completely wrecked.

“Ah. Ow, fuck.”

My shoulder still throbs from being hit with a wrench.

I wonder if I’ll end up with a crooked shoulder.

With trembling hands, I struggled to put a cigarette in my mouth.

Ting…

It’s been a while since I’ve seen this kind of old-fashioned oil lighter.

These days you only see plasma lighters.

No, that was ten years ago.

Now I rarely see people using lighters at all.

Didn’t they say cigarettes light automatically when you tear off the sticker?

Anyway, lots of innovative products have come out.

“Huff… Hack! Cough! Cough! Kheugh!”

After one puff, an unbearable acrid feeling rose with phlegm.

What the hell is this? Did I light the wrong end?

“Ugh… damn…”

That wasn’t it.

I ended up throwing the lit cigarette into the rain.

“Ha…”

How long has it been since I quit smoking?

Seems my body can’t handle cigarettes anymore.

When I first quit, I thought I’d live and die as a cigarette addict.

I guess my willpower was stronger than I thought.

But I hope this doesn’t make me crave cigarettes again.

That would be troublesome.

There’s a kid at home.

“…Shit.”

Listen to me.

Why would it be troublesome?

What do I care if Cuss gets lung cancer and dies?

The real trouble is the cigarette money going out every month.

Maybe I’m thinking nonsense because I’m in too much pain.

Thinking nonsense?

You mean talking nonsense, idiot.

Even my vocabulary is pathetic now.

Not that it was ever impressive.

“Let’s wrap this up.”

I need to finish this properly.

I have to get the order right.

If I mess up, I’m screwed.

First, contact Bob to tell him I killed these guys, and leave the bikes and wallets with him.

Don’t forget to mention that I remember exactly how much money was in the wallets.

Of course, I need to carefully check the condition of the bikes too.

No telling what parts Bob’s gang might steal.

Then I call the police.

I’ll tell them I was in a bloody fight with two robbers, passed out from blood loss, and when I woke up, they were dead. That way, it’ll be hard to prove I did anything illegal.

After reporting, I’ll be transported straight to the hospital for basic treatment.

Of course, I won’t stay admitted.

Damn, I’ve been going to the hospital a lot lately.

Maybe I should get health insurance.

My salary is about to be wiped out by medical bills.

Anyway, after that, I’ll get Cuss back from Juliane.

I think I asked her to watch Cuss until tomorrow morning.

But I might go past morning if I’m getting treated at the hospital.

That’s a bit unfortunate.

I’ll have to compensate her later.

Otherwise, a Justice Department employee might conduct a retaliatory investigation.

Hmm… do Justice Department employees even conduct investigations?

I’m not sure about that.

“Anyway… this ended well without complications.”

I had a bad feeling about those guys when I left the abandoned factory.

It’s better to be attacked on the first day than to live in fear of when they might come.

Now I can relax after taking care of them quickly.

I slid down through a puddle of blood and sat leaning against the wall.

I really handled this well.

Cuss wasn’t here…

Thank goodness.