CHAPTER 9: Girls

 

Palace of the Doges

 

A crowd had gathered in the room where the items were held. Someone had reported the fire and the police were questioning people.

Karen suddenly found herself flanked by two suits. One of them pressed a gun into her side. The other took her purse away from her.

"It is silenced. We'll be gone before anyone knows you're dead. Come with us."

They walked Karen away from the reception area, down a set of stairs to a small room where Erin Lisa waited. her entire lower jaw was swollen where Delta had socked her.

"Oh. You again." Karen's voice reflected her disdain.

One of the suits slapped her. She glared at him. "I'll enjoy killing you."

"That, I would like to see you do," Erin said. She opened Karen's purse and took out the Glock-20. "Where is that black bitch?"

"Probably powdering her nose."

The suit slapped her again, harder. This time Karen said nothing, but her eyes were hard and filled with death.

"Take her out and kill her," Erin said. "And find the Chancellor bitch."

The suits marched Karen out. Over the balcony, she could see people leaving the Palace of the Doges, many with valets pushing boxes on hand trucks. It looked as if the function was ending early. She wondered why.

One of the suits pushed her, causing her to stumble and she whirled, fists clenched at her sides. "All right, you assholes!! was that really necessary?!"

"Ain't she cute when she's mad?" one of them commented with a lopsided leer.

"Yeah. Be a shame to waste her and not get any. Wouldn't you like to get some?"

"Yeah..."

"What the hell," Karen said, running her hands up the inside of her thighs. "It's been awhile since I last slept with a man," she said with a slow smile. "Think you two can handle me?" The two gunmen glanced at each other with lusty grins. Karen's hands remained high on her inside thighs.

Suddenly, one of the gunmen took a step back, grabbing at his throat, which was now spurting blood around the throwing knife buried to the hilt in his windpipe. He fell straight back with a wet gurgle, arcing blood from his throat. He was the one who enjoyed slapping Karen.

Karen was already sprinting towards an open doorway, and made it through, just as several bullets chewwed the jamb.

"You bitch!" the survivor yelled, following at a run. Just as he passed through, Karen slammed the door, catching him full in the face. The gunman toppled backwards, hitting the back of his head on the marble floor. He was out cold with blood splattered across his nose. Karen collected both of the gunmen's weapons, retrieved her knife, wiped the blade clean on a corpse, and returned to Erin Van Der Berg's room.

"You want something done right, do it yourself."

Erin Lisa sat up, surprise registering on her face. Karen pointed the .22 at her.

"Don't bother getting up. I should 'waste' you just on general principles, but I'm not like that." Karen retrieved her Glock 20, cleared the chambers of her captured guns and removed the clips. She tossed guns and clips in the corner. "Pretty soon, this place is going to be crawling with cops. I suggest you get out of here."

"You'll regret leaving me alive," Erin said, standing.

"Probably. But the next time we meet, I might not be so generous. Now, get out of here, bitch."

Erin Lisa left with hatred in her eyes. A few moments later, Karen took a different route to rendezvous in the plaza.

Delta and Kevin were just stepping out of the hydroplane when Karen reached the plaza. The auction reception was basically over and crowds had thinned some.

"What happened to you?" Karen asked.

Delta laughed, glanced down at herself. "Doing urban combat in debutante mode."

"There some place we can go to talk?" Karen asked.

"I have to change clothes, why not my place?"

"Lead the way," Karen said. "Nice boat," she remarked seeing the hydroplane.

"Fast, too," Kevin said, and proceeded to show her.