10-Karl Vs The World

10

Karl vs The World

As E put her clothes on she watched Karl dress out of the corner of her eye.  She felt a ping of sorrow for each piece of hard sculpted body he covered with his shirt and pants. It had been intense and attentive all at the same time.

It was two in the morning and they had to head out.  Karl had decided it would be the best time to ‘storm the castle’ after Sam and the cup.

I’m storming a castle.

E realized just how crazy that sounded and tried not to think about it.  She turned to Karl who had placed the guns in the back of his pants.  He then grabbed a Hawaiian print tourist style button up.  He put it on loosely to cover up the weapons.

The bright orange and blue’s of the shirt had a disarming quality that did not do Karl justice.  “That shirt is no good on you.”

Karl turned with a smile.  “Really?  I kinda like it.”

“Can we really do this?” E asked, unable to contain her concern.

Karl frowned.  “You don’t have to come.  I’ll be honest, the odds are not in our favor.”

“No,” E said quickly.  “I’m in it till the end.”

“Alright.”  Karl responded slowly.  He was not happy with that answer.  “While we are there, do everything I say when I say it.  I don’t want to get you killed.”

E nodded, butterflies of anticipation rushing through her.  This was it.  They were going to storm the castle and rescue Sam from a psychotic terrorist, obsessed with an ancient artifact.

Live or die, her life had become so interesting.

They exited the room and Karl locked it behind him.  They then walked down the stone hallway of the fifth floor toward the old elevator passing three other room doors on either side and pressed the elevator button and listened as the loud and old machinery kicked to life.

E frowned as the door squealed open.  “I don’t feel good about this thing could we take the stairs?”

Karl chuckled.  “Sure.”

Karl turned to the right down the first floor of the box stair case to the first landing when three men walked around the corner.  One was a smaller man covered in tattoos and wore a muscle shirt and torn jeans.  The second was large with broad shoulders and wearing an open Hawaiian button up, not unlike Karl’s.  The final man was fit and toned in a cut off tee shirt and basket ball shorts.

All three men were Mongolian.

The one with the colorful shirt had a Glock 9MM concealed under it.

“Shit,” Karl mouthed, then grabbed E and shoved her into the open elevator just as the doors closed.

“First floor!” He yelled at her as she hit the back of the small metal box in confusion.

As the door closed she heard gunfire.

****

Karl knew instantly that they worked for Hoi.  He also knew they saw him and in the time it took them to figure out who he was, he had to get E out of harm’s way.  She looked confused as the door shut but he knew she would understand in the next couple of seconds as his right hand went to one of the forty-five calibers.

He had the drop on them and the big man couldn’t get to his Glock fast enough.  Karl put two into his chest and the big man lurched backward toppling to the ground.  The other two men went for their weapons and Karl fired off three more quick rounds as he sprinted back down the hallway.

He heard them yelling at each other and looked back around the corner to watch them come around the corner.  One man had an evil looking hand gun, of which Karl did not want to be on the receiving end.  He shifted his momentum and put all his weight into the hotel door to his left.  The old door thankfully gave way and Karl toppled into the room as he heard the gun rattle of a chain of automatic fire.

Karl pulled himself to his feet as the gun stopped firing and he heard them chasing him down the hall.  He sprinted through the small room and covered his face as he threw himself through the glass window and onto the ancient fire escape.

He had to think quickly.  Still trying to put distance between himself and his chasers he climbed onto the railing and leapt across the four story drop to the fire escape across the alley.  At the same time he heard another chain of gunfire behind him.  This threw him off and he slammed into the railing of the fire escape across the way.

As Karl caught himself on the railing, the top bar gave way and the railing swung out. Karl managed to maintain hold, dropping the forty five into the alley to grab the railing with both hands.  The metal squealed as it spun him low and tossed him onto the fire escape one level below.

Karl hit the metal grating face first.  He reached his left hand back and grabbed for the other pistol.  A shadow sailed over his head as the fit Mongolian easily leapt the distance and landed on the level above Karl.

“Show off.” Karl mumbled to himself as he pulled the gun to shoot him.

Before Karl could pull the trigger, out of the corner of his eye, he caught the other Mongolian with the machine pistol stepping out onto the ledge.  Karl swept the pistol back toward the way he came and fired three shots.

The first two hit the Mongolian in the chest and the third in the eye.  The Mongolian lurched and tumbled over the edge of the railing and into the alley below.

Karl turned back to take out his last attacker but he was too late as the fit henchmen had already dropped to his level and kicked the gun out of Karl’s hand with a standing roundhouse.

The gun sailed into the alley way and the Mongolian wasted no time threw to quick and hard punches to Karl’s mid-section before he could react.  Karl staggered and the fit warrior finished the combo by striking Karl hard with a forearm to the face.

Karl fell backward into the edge of the railing and the Mongolian stepped in to finish him with a sidekick to send him over, but Karl had other plans.  Karl side-stepped the blow and hook punched the Mongolian in the thigh with everything he had.

The Mongolian screamed as his leg cramped.  Karl wasted no time grabbing the back of his head and driving every bit of his knee into the man’s nose.  The force shattered his face and put him out.

The man hit the metal grating and did not move.  Karl took a couple of deep breaths then began to move down the fire escape jumping down on the last story to the ground. He rushed out of the alley way then tried to fix his appearance as he watched police running into the front of the hotel.

Karl looked around trying to find E, starting to feel some relief that he just took out three of Hoi’s boys he might be able to pull this off.

The hope was short lived.

His eyes found E sitting on a bench across the street.  Next to her was Hoi, grinning with his shark teeth.  Sitting in his lap was a newspaper which was also covering his hand, without a doubt concealing a gun that was pointed at E.

Karl shook his head and cursed to himself.

He slowly walked across the street making his hands visible to the gun lord.

“Sorry, he was waiting at the lobby.”  E was the first to speak as soon as Karl was within ear shot.

“It’s okay,” Karl told her.  “Are you okay?”

“Neither of you are okay.”  Hoi decided to field this one.

Karl’s attention turned to the international criminal.  “How did you find us?”

“Bomani’s bitches where supposed to check in once they landed safely.  They never did.” Hoi spoke calmly.  “Now if you wouldn’t mind slowly walking to that public trash can and tossing your weapons, I have a car on the way.”

Karl frowned.  “Why keep us alive, Hoi?  Why not kill us now.”

E frowned at him.  “I’m just fine with the whole living thing, thank you very much.”

Hoi ignored her.  “Not my call.  Bomani wants to talk to you both.  If I had my way, you would be dead already.”

“I see, so what does he want with all of us?” Karl asked as the car pulled up.

Hoi smiled showing his broken teeth.  “Do not know, do not care, but after he gets done with the three of you, you’ll be all mine.”

TO BE CONTINUED…