The Chains — Chapter 10 — The Hallway
A narrow hallway, three doors and four fingers until Kim finds out where the boss is.
Kim doesn't like telling stories. So Jack tells it with him.
JACK
When I got up there, Kim had already handled four.
KIM
Three. The fourth was the one I threw over. That one was you.
As soon as Jack gave me the boost and I dropped the first one, there were three left. All three came together.
Only it was a narrow hallway. A narrow hallway is an advantage for the guy who's alone. Three can't fit side by side.
I went with just my left arm, the one with the knuckles. With the right, I kept opening the doors as I walked into them.
Punch to the stomach. Punch to the chest. Punch to the shoulder.
The first one tried to hit me. I deflected his punch with a tap of my left hand. Kicked the inside of his leg, and it buckled. He fell to my left. Elbow to the back of the head, knee right with it.
He stayed there.
I kept walking. Opened the first door. Empty room.
Opened the second. There was a woman inside.
The second guy was already on me. I kept hitting him without taking my eyes off the woman.
Punch to the face. Punch to the chest. Punch to the face. Punch to the chest.
At the end, I pulled his head from behind into my knee.
I stood there looking at the woman for a while.
She was really scared. Really.
But she wasn't Helena.
So she wasn't my problem.
I moved on.
I opened the third door with the tip of the baton.
The third guy was standing still in the hallway. Looking at me. Scared to death.
I was going to deal with him. But first I needed to see the room.
As soon as the door opened, a woman came at me full force. Two knives, one in each hand.
I kept dodging. Slow. Calm. While I dodged, I looked over her shoulder, looking for anyone else in the room.
There was nobody.
— What the hell are you doing here, you psychos? I'm working!
I almost felt bad. This one seemed to be in the business for real. She was there because she wanted to be, working her hustle. We were the ones who'd barged into the middle.