128 (Operation Armageddon: Book 1)

Chapter Ten: The Contagion | Part 2

"B-Ben? Why did you throw her over? You should have known better to let her go down at her own pace rather than impatiently thrusting her down!" Daniel scolded.

"Detective, I don't want to hurt anyone, so please, shut up," Ben replied nonchalantly.

"What... what do you mean? What are you saying—," Daniel questioned before getting cut off.

Cut off by the sound of Ben pulling something out of his pocket. Something that no one had expected him to possess and wanted to see in the hands of a student.

"T-that belongs to Emma!" Daniel quivered. "W-why do you have it with you?"

"Ben. Put the gun down. Right now," Jane ordered Ben, attempting to threaten him to keep away the dangerous weapon.

Unfortunately, this made him shift his aim towards her this time around. "Don't tell me what to do," he warned. "Or you'll be dead."

"Ben, what are you doing? We came here to rescue you and... and now you're trying to kill us?" Daniel heaved a heavy sigh.

"I had plans to escape on my own should the plot fail. And it seems that it hasn't," he chuckled, delighted.

"What do you mean by... plot?" the confused detective asked, curious to know what was up the student's sleeve.

"You don't need to know," Ben replied briefly. "Now, if you don't chase after me or do anything funny, I won't have to hurt you all. But, if you refuse to comply, you'll all be gone," he threatened.

"You know what?" Jane asked. "You're worth trying to stop, you rotten piece of sh—," she said, sprinting towards the armed student before getting cut off by a gunshot. And a bullet had gone right through her left arm, which she had intended to use to punch Ben in the face. She groaned in pain, breathing heavily from the sudden sharp pain.

"Oops," Ben said, watching Jane cry in extreme distress. "That was an accident," he said, chuckling sarcastically.

"Jane! Are you okay?" Daniel said, running over to the once-again wounded student.

"I-I'm f-fine..." she stammered, still shaken by the shock.

Daniel stood up and turned to face Ben. "I know you're a minor, but if you're going to be like this, then I'm sorry," he said, raising his gun and aiming it at Ben. Despite this, he didn't quite get the response he expected from the student. Instead, Ben stood rooted to the spot, not even fearing the pistol pointed at his face.

"Okay," Ben retorted. "Shoot me."

Daniel struggled to find the courage to shoot the student. He tried very hard to pull the trigger, but he couldn't. His hand began to shake violently, and he began to hold back the urge to shoot the boy.

"I said, shoot me," Ben repeated. "Shoot me already. Shoot me!" he screamed thunderously this time.

And so, Daniel pulled the trigger for real this time. At first, he thought that he didn't. He didn't hear anything, nor did he see any difference in the scene. The murderous boy was still standing before him, perfectly fine and well.

And Ben began to cackle and snicker viciously.

"Can't shoot me? That's funny," he snickered. "Of course, you can't. There aren't any bullets in it in the first place, you blockhead," he chortled, facing upwards to the sky.

And all of a sudden, he turned his head back down to face Daniel. "Your chance is over. Do you want to be shot now? Do you?" Ben threatened him, ready to pull the trigger at the helpless detective.

"Wait!" Daniel cried, pleading to preserve his and everyone else's safety.

As a result, the merciless boy stopped. He kept the gun up, but Daniel could tell that the student's grip on the weapon had relaxed a little, making everyone a little more at ease.