“You know what we’re doing, right?” Dante whispered.
She nodded. “Yep.”
They laid in wait for the seven men to come closer. There was a glass panel on the door, which Dante positioned himself to see through while remaining behind cover. He watched as their friends walked by first, followed by Brandt, and then the shotgun officer and two others.
Dante nodded to Lily, and she returned it, ready to roll. He peered out towards the gate, watching as Brandt unlocked it. As soon as it was open, Dante motioned to Lily, and she opened the door.
He moved swiftly, stepping out into the hallway and firing twice, hitting the two officers in the back, striking their vests and knocking them to the ground. The shotgun-toting officer turned and fired, prompting Dante to keep rushing across the hall and crashing through the door.
He hit the ground hard, forcing the gun out of his hand. He scrambled to get it, but the light darkened behind him as the shotgun-wielding officer stood in the light.
“You just fucked up, buddy,” he declared, and raised his weapon.
Dante took a deep breath as he stared down the barrel, but then the officer’s face exploded, and he slumped to the floor. Lily stood behind him, holding her handgun.
“Get ‘em!” Brandt screamed, and a few bullets hit the doorframe, forcing Lily into the room.
Dante scrambled across the floor, grabbing his gun, and ducking out the door at the wounded officers approaching the door.
They retreated, firing blindly, forcing Dante to slide to cover across the hall.
“I don’t know who you are, but I’m assuming you’re with these three assholes!” Brandt screeched down the hallway. “You have five seconds to throw out your guns, or else I’m going to blast a hole through this motherfucker’s head!” He cocked back the hammer on his revolver and pressed it against Maddox’s head.
The redneck chuckled at the massive size of the weapon. “Compensating for something?” he drawled.
The Sheriff shoved it into his temple even harder with a growl. “One. Two… three…”
“Okay, we’re sliding out the weapons,” Dante called, shoving both handguns out the door.
The two officers, still nursing the bruising they’d taken when they were shot in their vests, moved up at the motion from the Sheriff.
They moved cautiously, together. The first one reached the door and turned towards Dante’s room. “Let me see your hands,” he demanded, finding Dante sitting up against a desk casually. “Let me see your hands!”
The large man casually raised his arms, looking past the officer for his friend to make the turn into Lily’s room. As soon as he did, Dante curled his hands around, giving two middle fingers to his attacker.
“Motherfu-” the officer cried, but was cut off by the blast of Lily’s potato cannon. The officer at her door fell as the shrapnel ripped through his face, the rest smacking into the back of Dante’s officer.
Dante didn’t waste time as his attacker doubled over in pain and rushed him. The officer tried to recover and raise his weapon, but Dante grabbed his wrist and pushed it down, sending a bullet into the floor.
He delivered a sharp uppercut, catching the officer under the chin and stunning him. He reached back, grabbing him by the back of the head and pulling him close, sending a headbutt to the bridge of his nose, the impact causing his attacker to drop his gun.
Staggered, the officer was helpless as Dante choke slammed him into the floor, his head smacking against the cement and knocking him woozy.
As this happened, the other three in the hallway took on Brandt. The blast startled him, giving Tate an opening to shove his arm away from Maddox’s head. Maddox ducked as well, but Brandt still pulled the trigger, missing but partially deafening his captive.
Tate held the gun arm in place, and Ace wrapped his arms around the Sheriff’s neck, cutting off his air supply.
“Let go of the gun,” he snarled, “and I let go of you.”
Brandt struggled to hold on, but finally relented, dropping the revolver. Ace held on for another few seconds, just to prove a point, before finally letting go. Tate shoved the Sheriff against the wall, holding him in place by the throat.
“You move, I squeeze,” he said firmly. “And I’m not as nice as Ace here. I won’t let go.”
The sheriff nodded jerkily.
“Jesus motherfucking tap-fucking-dancing christ that hurt!” Maddox bellowed, rubbing at his ear viciously. “I think my eardrum is gone!”
Tate rolled his eyes. “Suck it up, brother,” he drawled, “one less ear to hear that nagging girlfriend of yours with.” He spotted Dante emerging from his room, and called, “You two all right?”
Dante ignored him, focusing on Lily as he walked across the hall to her. She sat against the far wall, staring off into space in shock.
“Are you okay?” he asked gently, kneeling down in front of her. When she didn’t respond, he put his hand on her shoulder. “Lily, you did good,” he said. “We’re safe now.”
She looked up at him and then wrapped her arms around his shoulders for a beat, taking in a deep breath before getting emotional. “I’m good, I’m good,” she assured him, and looked past him at the mess in the hallway.
“You saved my life back there,” Dante said, snapping her away from looking at the dead bodies. “Twice.”
She smiled. “I figured if you were going to make me save that asshat, I was going to save you as well,” she said. “Give me some good memory of today.”
He chuckled, and she joined in, dissolving the tension in the room.
“Hey, are you two all right?” Tate called again.
“Come on, we’re not done yet,” Dante said, standing and holding out a hand to her.
Lily took it, getting to her feet, and they headed out towards the others.
“We’re good,” Dante called to the others, “you boys okay?”
“Yeah,” Tate replied. “We’re gonna have to listen
