"He ain't gonna talk. I can see it in his eyes," said a young well-dressed, well-groomed man of medium stature.
"Oh, he'll talk alright," said another wiry man as he sent a swift punch into the gut of a third unlucky older fellow who was sitting, tied to a chair, in the middle of the dimly-lit room.
The bound man winced and let out a grunt.
"Shut up, the both of you," ordered a voice as an older, well-dressed man walked out of the shadow of one corner of the room. "That's enough, Jasper."
"But I only gave him one punch," Jasper disappointedly protested.
"Arthur...Victor and Jasper here...they're young...got a lot of energy. They can do this all night. Me? I'm getting too old for this. If I don't get 10 hours of sleep each night, I don't function the next day. And my watch tells me it's getting late," the older man stated, tapping his watch. "Do us both a favor, and just tell me where the plans are."
"You should listen to your son, Salley," replied Arthur. "Do us both a favor, and save your breath."
Moe Salley nodded to Jasper, and a right hook connected squarely with Arthur's jaw. Arthur groaned.
"The plans, Arthur," Moe requested again.
"This is ridiculous. Just beat him until he decides to talk. Don't talk to him until you decide to beat him," Victor said sarcastically.
"The kid has a point. That's the future right there, Arthur," Moe said, pointing at Victor and wagging his finger. "Dangerously efficient. So what's it going to be?"
Arthur remained silent and looked coolly at Moe.
"Well, you did say I should listen to my son. Have it your way," Moe said before turning and nodding to Victor, indicating that he wanted his son to follow him out.
Once outside of the room, Moe put his hand on Victor's shoulder.
"Just don't kill him, ok?" Moe said quietly.
Victor nodded in assent and then re-entered the room. Moe walked down a hallway to a doorway where Julius stood waiting. Moe nodded to Julius, and he opened the door for Moe. The two men left the building and walked to a waiting car. After ensuring Moe was safely inside, Julius got behind the wheel and drove away.
YOU ARE READING
The Adventures of Will Irving: Automaton Trouble
Mystery / ThrillerWill Irving is a mid 20's private investigator and mechanical tinkerer who was gifted an automaton by his father, who has since left home after becoming heartbroken over the murder of his wife. Will now lives with his 10-year-old sister, Emily, and...
