Beauty And Her Beast

18 - Gunshots and Burning Casinos

Ray swore, blood coming out the corner of his mouth as his body jerked and collided hard into the wall behind him. The world was spinning with black dots and the pain in his shoulder would have been unbearable had it not been familiar. The burn, the sting, the throbbing ache when he tried to do so much as breathe... It was all a feeling strong enough to make the average person cry but, for Ray, it was welcome.

Not even a gunshot wound could hinder Charlie Brown.

-two hours earlier-

"An ambulance would be nice. I met up with Freddy. And he may or may not have shot me."

"What?"

Ray had a calmness to his voice like no other but Danny could see the way his muscles tensed and his eyes darkened. Like water spilling slowly from a vase, tension flooded the room and a chill raked down her spine. She didn't know him, Charlie Brown, but if she had, she'd be able to understand why everyone was so afraid of him now. Ray didn't put fear into people with yelling or threats or even the physical violence. No, the fear was natural.

It simply radiated off him like waves.

For Ray he didn't have to make threats because all it took was one look in those cold eyes to be convinced that this man wasn't an ordinary gangster. You couldn't reason or beg or plea with him if ever you were on the wrong end of his gun. For him, he simply didn't care.

And a man indifferent was worse than any man angered.

Danny swallowed and tried to move from Thomas to Ray but he was up and moving before she could get to him.

"Ray!" She called, stumbling to keep up with his long strides. He didn't slow as he cut through the house, ignoring both Danny and her parents calls.

"Where are you?" He asked Gage quietly, already pulling the uncomfortable tie off and fumbling for his car keys.

"Ray wait!" Danny screamed onto death ears. Ray would say it time and time again but to him there were no such thing as friends. Friends were nothing but false fairy tales told to little boys and girls who were afraid of being lonely.

But.

If Ray ever did consider the prospect of having friends, Gage would be the closest thing to one he had. And so as much as it pained him to walk out on Danny like this, he didn't even spare her a glance as he slid into his stolen Lamborghini and sped off down the street.

Gage had told him where he was before their conversation was cut off by the sound of screaming and more gunshots. He was on the north end of town by a rundown casino he liked to visit every now and then. While Sammy pretty much ran all of Chicago The Outfit mainly operated out of the south side. East and west were manageable and easy to get along with and control, but, despite his influence, not everyone on the north side of Chicago followed by his rules.

Ray had told Gage time and time again not to go to there, especially not alone, but the bastard was a stubborn fück who didn't listen and had a serious gambling problem and so now here Ray was, speeding down the highway to go save Gage only so he could beat his ass later.

By the time Ray arrived he'd stripped of his father's button down and instead wore the white undershirt he had on beneath and a vest he always kept handy in the backseat. He'd changed shoes as well and there was an automatic in his hand along with two handguns hidden in his waistband.

Up here his name was known but not his face. He wanted to keep it like that too. So, pulling it from the glove compartment, he slid his jewled mask on and stepped out of the car, the sound of bullets assaulting his ears.