Regards,
Teej
The Generosity of Mr. Boris
Steve placed a great amount of effort in making the second floor look spectacular. Lush with floral arrangements in every direction, it was bountiful with various fruits and vegetables. He even sprung for a manmade waterfall, trickling to a stream which supplied the room; it served as the piece de resistance to Gaia’s palace. Rain forced it upon him, or so he claimed. So calm, so scenic, it was the most beautiful and peaceful place in the whole city, hands down.
Silvia sprinted forward, soaring into the air, her foot pointed at her target. Em-Aych dodged her, along with her roundhouse kick after she landed. He proceeded towards her with a series of fists. Frantically blocking each, she unleashed fury in a punch of her own. Catching hers, he swung her around for a grapple. The offset female spun out of submission, tossing him over her shoulder as she twirled.
Em-Aych landed on his feet and bounced back; distracting her with a shadow kick, he hit her squarely in the side. Silvia recoiled, ducking another kick; she aimed for his other leg. He took a tumble, rolling onto his back to see she’d resorted to being airborne for a second time. Em-Aych lifted his leg and allowed her momentum to carry her to the other side of the room. Any efforts of catching herself was foiled as she crashed on to a potted plant; promptly smashing among impact.
The shattering of ceramic carried far further than her voice, softly vocalizing a moan. The commotion from above notified those below, causing him to fly up the stairs; in his own time to investigate. Em-Aych was caught in the act of assisting her to her feet.
“I told you guys to be careful. Oh, sweetheart, are you alright?” She turned to Em-Aych, “Hitting little girls again, are we?”
“Rain? Could’ve sworn it was gonna be Steve. I’m fine, just a little off balance.”
“He’s still in his ‘workroom’,” she chuckled. Rain was presumably Steve’s wife, if they were actually married had yet to be clarified. She kept her hair jet black with white streaks and pulled back one way or another. Obviously raised by hippies, she was a few years Steve’s junior, but similar in every way. The two were perfect for each other.
“A girl like you doesn’t need to be taking shots from someone like him. And you—“
“My apologies Rain. I’ll of course pay for the—“
The aging woman laughed, “You know I’m not going to let you do that. Hell, wasn’t it my crazy idea you kids practice up here? Just don’t make me regret that decision. I know Steven wouldn’t be thrilled if he knew what you kids were up to.”
“Don’t worry, we’ll be more careful,” Silvia reassured, dusting herself off.
“Well, why don’t you two take a breather and come down for some tea. C’mon; c’mon.”
The trio made their way down the spiral staircase to find Steve in a spot of his own, nervously situated behind the counter. A man had just exited and left Steve staring at a piece of paper, looking rather pale. Rain rushed forward to comfort him.
“They want me to sell the place love. They aren’t taking ‘no’ as an answer either. It’s that ‘Mr. Boris’ asshole again.” He sighed and then looked to Silvia. “I’m sorry Silvia, but I’m afraid I won’t be able to employ you much longer. I’ll do what I can to help you find another place…”
There was a defeated way about him; his dream would be crushed; everything he’d worked for, he knew it meant starting anew. Since Silvia had had begun, the store had started to breathe life for the first time in longer than Steve had cared to admit.
Silvia would agree on this aspect, the bookshop was the only source of balance in her life. She’d been able to meet several people running the little place, and, consequently gained business. Steve was a fantastic boss and she loved working and running the place.
“Why are they so adamant about buying?”
“They’re snatching up the block now. ‘Mr. Boris’ is taking over.”
Em-Aych gave Silvia a look at the mentioning of this. He didn’t have to say it. She understood exactly what was on his mind; not being able to know what was more frightening: The solution he was currently plotting in his head or the fact that she knew what he was thinking.
“Right; so that’s a fucker working for that ‘Boris’ then?”
“He just delivered—“
Em-Aych wasted not a second longer to sprint out the door. Rain placed her hand on Silvia’s shoulder as he did; the word ‘wait’ traveled on her lips. He wouldn’t jump into a fight that quickly; at least she thought not. Why risk it though? She owed him a favour anyway.
Exiting the building, she loosened her joints; searching for the two. Em-Aych dove into a crowd, attempting to remain inconspicuous at a hurried pace. She tried keeping behind him while the mobster continued on the opposite end. His attention hadn’t been drawn.
They made it to the street corner when Em-Aych truly began his pursuit. Jumping into traffic, he cleared the hood of a taxi, barely dodging a van and causing a scene. The screeching of a sedan alerted the thug who predictably ran in the other direction. Naturally, Silvia joined the chase, leaping from vehicle to vehicle.
She’d nearly caught up to Em-Aych but their rival remained several strides ahead. For a brief moment, Silvia thought she recognized him. He looked strangely familiar. They turned the bend, slowly gaining ground. Pedestrian congestion was low, but it didn’t stop him from running into a middle-aged woman. The stumble nearly forfeited his escape; he made for an alleyway as fast as he could; the duo right on his tail.
As they followed him in, an unmarked van pulled in blocking their exit. The race ceased and the mobster laughed in between breaths as he slowed. The van doors opened and four guys got out, coolly, collectively walking towards them. More entered on the opposite side, a few carrying weapons; they all shared the same smug expression.
“Didn’t expect you to bring your little cunt into this. Fucking jackass, you and I, we got a score to settle.”
“You know, revenge usually gets better when I know who the fuck you are,” he laughed. “You know who these twats are?”
“What about that one time in front of the shop?” Silvia chimed.
“Eh, who gives a toss?” He smiled at Silvia, “Dibs on the staff.”
“I want the one who called me a ‘cunt’.”
The Alley wasn’t all that narrow. A pile of boxes took some space, but it widened around the fire escape. There wasn’t much light between the brick walls either. It was dry, secluded, and there didn’t appear to be a way out. The readied themselves back to back.
Silvia countered a punch with a knee to the gut, and spun for a roundhouse kick. She jumped back to evade the swing of another assailant. Coming in with his backhand, she nearly bent herself backwards in order to dodge. Securing her hands, she sent both her legs forward, cascading into his chest cavity.
Em-Aych caught up with the man with the staff who was fending him off with practiced skill. Every attempt he made to get close to the enemy was met with a strike from the stick. Bored and out of ideas, he performed a cartwheel. Thinking he had the upper hand, the villain attempted the offensive. Em-Aych snatched the bar with his legs, twisting it to gain possession. Still holding on, kicking him in the face worked nicely as he wiggled it from his opponent’s hands. Em-Aych turned in time to catch an attacker in the head, and then twirled around to smack the pipe’s original owner beneath the chin.
“You bastards are in trouble now,” he chuckled.
Silvia grabbed her foe’s arm to assist herself up. As soon as she had a foot on the ground, she used the other to boot him in the crown. The one who had recently insulted her approached her from the rear. He planted a solid blow to the torso. Managing to whip around, she deflected a fist with her leg. Letting loose a series of kicks, she tested his strength. Silvia was then nearly knocked off her feet with a swat to the face. She opposed his second fist, allowing it to overextend and threw him over her shoulder. Hurtling him to the ground, she planted a knee before moving to the next enemy.
Em-Aych was swinging as if they were piñatas. He caught one thug in the leg and spun him around. Disoriented, he was forced forward. “For the assist,” he yelled.
Silvia ran towards him, taking out his leg; then, her palm on the back of his head, slammed it into her knee. He crumpled like a ragdoll. She took the liberty of countering another punch, dislocating a different man’s arm and proceeded to slump his stature. Now in execution style she called to her companion, “Hey, batter, batter.” The villain let out a yelp before Em-Aych came around full force. Just like that, he was out like a candle.
All that remained standing looked nervous by this time. Silvia grabbed one man’s arm, then performed a heavy kick to the sternum. She met Em-Aych in the center of the chaos. He’d just finished off some poor bastard with a knife.
The last foe standing quivered before the two. Needless to say, it was no surprise when he dropped his drainpipe and took off. Em-Aych stopped her, not allowing her to react.
“I’ll tail the twat. He’ll be going to tip off ‘Boris’ no doubt. Send you a line once I got an idea what we’re dealing with. Why don’t you go suit up,” he smirked.
Once again he bolted out of sight, but she didn’t follow this time. Sean had their gear ready for them within a few weeks and it’d been hiding in her closet ever since. Were they really going to do this? Turning around, she climbed the van and deserted the alley, pausing only to give her foul-mouthed friend one last shot. The rest were left moaning.
Silvia surfaced the gear from the depths of her closet upon arriving home; the concept seemed so much more ridiculous. Her outfit was mint in the box, looking crisp under a ratty incandescent bulb which swung from the interiour of her closet. No matter how much it might have though, she needed to be prepared. Tired from the last battle, closing her eyes for a moment was first and foremost in her mind.
It was getting darker when she returned to the world. Not a word from Em-Aych but she refused to worry; a message from Rain was left on her machine though. “Just making sure the two of you are alright….Gave me a Steven a heart attack running out.” When she tried phoning back no one answered. Explaining that everything was fine and she’d see them tomorrow, Silvia hung up. Having forgotten earlier, she chose to gather the mail afterwards. A note awaited her downstairs in the ominous hall, tapped to her box. ‘For Sil’ read on the envelope.
Sil,
We’re stopping Boris tonight. It’s an easy shot to his window; relatively low security. It’s not far from the warehouse. Meet me at eight.
MH
She left it all in a pile on the counter, examining her clock; still plenty of time. Hesitating slightly, she knew what she had to do. Venturing back into her bedroom, she donned her suit for the first time.
Eight brought darkness and when Silvia arrived ten minutes beforehand, she wasn’t surprised to find she’d beaten him. The room lay bare again. Any sign of a fight, a brawl, or merely a struggle had been erased. A new wooden chair, replacing the one broken in their scrap, stood alone in the cleanliness of it all. Taking the liberty of the provided seat, she eagerly awaited his appearance. Neither a light nor a sound present; the glow of the moon was all there was.
As if an apparition, he entered from the window without a peep, smiling as he drew near. Still dressed in his trench coat and top hat; his outfit from Sean under it all.
“A tailour of talent, wouldn’t you say?”
“It fits well, but it doesn’t distract from the fact that I look and feel preposterous.”
“Aye, you’re just being paranoid.” She gave him a skeptical look. “Serious. We’re talking the element of badassery with a hint of sex appeal. Could you ask for more?”
“You don’t think it’s over the top?” She tried stopping herself, but it came out anyway. She’d forgotten she was talking to an individual who dressed like an eccentric on a regular basis.
“Field-test it before you pass judgment, yeah?”
“What did you find anyway?” She still wasn’t keen on the costume.
Em-Aych took a seat on one of the sills. “For starters, his crew looks rubbish after running into us. I say we kick ‘em while he’s down. We rush the window, bring the fight to him, it’s that simple.”
His coyness didn’t convince her, but it’d be all she’d be receiving. “So just head on over?”
“No time like the present,” he grinned, rising to his feet. “Just a few blocks, we can take the roof.” He gestured up and then proceeded out the frame and on to a fire escape. Silvia followed close behind.
A couple of twists, turns, and gaps, he paused, perched on a ledge. He held up a fist before pointing forward. Silvia squinted at the window when he handed her a pair of binoculars.
“That’s our ‘Boris’ in the chair. Like I said; easy pickings.”
The man must’ve had a small fortune. His desk and seat looked solid mahogany and beyond it laid a more luxurious rug. Silvia counted four guards, two of them armed with Uzis. Outside stood two scouts they’d have to take care of in order to reach the window. Alone, armed, they remained on the perimeter. The strategy sounded worse and worse in her mind.
Her eyes drifted back to ‘Boris’ now who had just snorted a sizable line of coke off his desk. That was when, what she assumed to be, a prostitute was brought forward. Slapping her across her face ‘Boris’ forced the coke upon her. Squirming and fighting his aggression, her protests didn’t last long. She slowly slumped to the ground. Any frozen feet Silvia might have considered thawed.
“You got a plan?” She asked, infuriated.
“It’s called keep low, stay silent, make every move count.” After offering this advice, and wasting not a moment longer, Em-Aych advanced from his position.
Silvia used the scaffolding to bring herself to street level. Sticking to the shadows, she approached the wall barricading ‘Boris’s holdout. Mimicking Em-Aych’s movements, she executed a wall run in order to scale the obstacle. Sinking into the depths of his property placed her in a topiary garden; just short of her target. Leave it to the wealthy to find a way to waste money.
Spying Em-Aych from afar, her disposal of her victim was retard. She crept nearer, avoiding detection, using the foliage for cover. The guard rested in order to light a fag. He managed a single puff before Silvia loomed ever so close. With a glove concealing his mouth, she kicked out his leg, forcing him to kneel, and brought down her elbow. Easing the scout to the ground, her handiwork was under the shroud of silence. Sliding the corpse off the pavement and out of sight, Em-Aych whistled her over. She dove rolled out of sight to join him, crouched under some bushes.
“Now what?” She conserved to a whisper.
“Scramble over the terrace and storm the place?”
She refrained from raising her voice. “Are you fucking crazy? They have guns.”
He made a face. “Check it.” He pointed to the terrace which now held one of the armed guards; smoking.
“You’re aware you got lucky, right?”
He felt no need to acknowledge her. Sneaking from the few shadows he could, the mobster failed to notice anyone sneak under the balcony. A one-foot plant got him to the ledge which triggered Silvia to chase after him, applying the element of stealth. Several lights made this so much more of a chore. She clung to the wall, watching Em-Aych shimmy across until he hung directly under the sentinel.
Waiting for Silvia to catch up permitted him the time to pickpocket the lookout’s knife. As she began on the wall, Em-Aych cat leapt up and grabbed the thug, pulling him over the side. He managed to nab the gun from his hand during his fall. Catching Silvia’s eye as she scampered across the terrace , he tossed her the knife afore her breeching of the window.
Silvia kicked the back of ‘Boris’’ head as she vaulted over the desk. With much concentration, she disarmed the other gunman by throwing the knife. Piercing through his hand, it stuck deep into his abdomen. She landed and continued forward, knocking him clear off his feet with a roundhouse kick.
Em-Aych entered, gun drawn. The two unarmed henchmen raised their hands, stopping in their tracks; then continued towards him, laughing.
“Oye, I’ll shoot you shits if I have to.” He went for the lever, but all that registered was a repetitive clicking noise. His eyes danced to the clip, which appeared missing. “Stupid prick.”
The two enemies approached. Out of options he chucked the Uzi at one of them. Starting with a slide tackle, he rose to receive a kick in the teeth. Recoiling backwards, he stumbled to the door, securing it, and then rejoined the fight.
Silvia prevented ‘Mr. Boris’ from leaving while Em-Aych removed his jacket; neatly placing it on the ground. One foe started throwing jabs which were easily defended. A distraction, the call girl, unconscious and bloodied on the floor, brought a new energy to his fighting.
Another punch came his way which was snatched. Pulling him closer, Em-Aych snapped his arm with an elbow before kicking him to the floor. His partner fended him off with his feet. Proving useless, he delivered a full range of motion with his left. Em-Aych narrowly escaped and used the effort to flip him backwards, bashing in his skull in as he swung around. The thug landed in a heap
Banging could now be heard from the opposite side of the door now while Silvia held ‘Boris’ at gunpoint. Em-Aych calmed himself as he strolled over. Unfolding his knife, he slit a package of coke on his desk open and shoveled ‘Boris’’ face in it. He had no questions.
Silvia didn’t know what to do. Keeping an eye on the subdued, she searched the desk for tape. Retrieving it, she instigated the binding of his arms. She finished with slapping him around a bit to bring his attention to the present.
“Gah, you fuckers! Wah— What’s going on?! Waddya want?! Do you know who I am?!”
Silvia hit him again while Em-Aych searched ‘Boris’’ pockets, producing a phone.
“I know people around here know you as ‘Mr. Boris’. I know you’re a piece of shit git who gets thrills out of intimidating civilians and beating up women and I don’t care to know anything else.” Pacing away, he dialed while approaching the bar.
“You two! Arg, you— You guys should really think about this. You’ll never get away with this. Who— Who’s paying you? I’ll double—“
“What makes you think you’re in the position to buy us off?” He chuckled
“I wanted to hire you in the first place!”
“Ambushing us is the way you plan on doing that?” Pure contempt lit Silvia’s face
He erupted in nervous laughter. “It, it was a test. After hearing what you did to those cops, I had to be sure.”
“You can forget about it.”
“I’ve got money, I’m a generous man.”
Is that an example of your generosity?” She gestured to the crumpled whore in the corner.
“She’s been embezzling money. She’s nothing but—“
She punched him again.
From the bar you could hear Em-Aych impersonating an accent, “Hey man, seriously, we got this fire over at the…’Boris place’?” He shrugged as he returned with a full bottle, emptying what he could on the floor and continuing to the carpet. “Yeah, like shit’s getting’ real, ya know?”
He signaled Silvia to fire. Two rounds went off and the gun danced out of her hand. The banging on the door paused.
Em-Aych cringed, trying not to laugh as he continued. “Whoa, whoa. Damn! You hear that? Yeah, send the fuckin’ cavalry!”
He closed the phone and pitched it after that. Taking a swig, he offered to Silvia. “Top of the line,” he toasted to Boris, but she still refused; so he proceeded to dump the rest. He handed Boris the empty after carelessly dumping more cocaine on him.
“Who the fuck do you think you are? I’ve got friends you know. You can hide, but you and that cunt can—“
Silvia kicked him sending the chair sideways then placed her boot over his bonce. “You teach that one dickhead to call me that? Fucking asshole!” She turned and crushed his nuts and pecker. Boris belts with a scream.
“Now, you really shouldn’t’ve called her that.” Em-Aych reclaimed his coat and withdrew a match. Lighting it, he let it drop on the carpet setting it ablaze. Disappearing out the window without another word, Silvia wasted not a moment longer. The garden remained vacant still. Only after circumventing the wall a second time was the faint chatter of sirens overheard. By the time of their arrival, the two were long gone.
Once the desire to place more distance between them and the scene had been satisfied, they stopped running. They stood on the rooftop, several blocks away. After a chance to catch a breath of oxygen, Em-Aych began in hysterics. “I think that went well”
“I had no idea what you were going to do! Give me a heads-up, will you?!” Silvia was still having difficultly grasping all that had just transpired. “What did we just do?”
He was still giggling. “We just beat the shit out of some ‘up and coming’ dickhead. With any luck, 5-0 books him. They’ll set him straight either way.” He paused to catch a few more breaths. “That was brilliant, yeah? We’ll only get better,” he beamed.
Silvia was uneasy about it all. “We’re going to get ourselves killed! Em-Aych, you’re crazy and this is just not the sort of thing I need to be getting myself into.”
“Aw, c’mon Sil. Think about it? Because of tonight Steve won’t have to move, the neighbourhood is that much safer, maybe even saved a prostitute.” He tried to grab her arm but she twisted away. “Where are you off to?”
“Home. I…I could use a drink.”
“Well, let me—“
“Nope.” She kept walking further.
“Sil!” he called after her.
“I need some time to think.” She waved back to him, but refused to turn around. He wouldn’t follow her. Taking the roof exit, she left to find some much needed rest.
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