Maxwell Cain 2: With a Side of Vengeance Read online

  “It seems like so much has changed in the ninety-two days since I met you,” Kate whispered breathily.

  “Ninety-two?” Max laughed. “You’re keeping track?”

  “Of course.” She met his gaze evenly, her blue eyes filling his vision. The reflected lights shone like stars in her eyes. “You’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me, Max.”

  Max kissed her, slow but with building urgency. When she gave back twice as hard, pressing the length of her body against him, Max broke for air with a laugh. “I ain’t gonna be able to wait if you keep this up. We’ve held off this long, may as well do it right and see it through to the wedding.”

  Kate pouted, but smiled. “I know it’s tough, but I’m glad you respect me, Max.”

  “Ain’t just about respecting you.” Max gave her a pat and then moved her back from himself, easing her body away like a loaded gun barrel.

  “Can I get you a soda or anything before you go?”

  “No thanks,” Max said, “Nick and I are gonna—”

  An explosion of shattering glass cut him off. One of the bay windows blasted inward and the lacy curtains shredded to cobwebs as a hulking figure smashed into the apartment. The gorilla in a white suit hurtled inside and barreled across the hardwood flooring, catching the stunned Max off guard. The intruder snatched Max by the throat and slammed his head against the stucco wall behind him, denting the drywall.

  The swirling stars filling Max’s vision cleared enough for him to recognize the greased black hair, caveman brow, and predatory eyes of Johnny Legion. Shock slammed through his body, eclipsed only by the blinding pain. “What the hell? You were dead!” His words choked off as Johnny applied pressure, strangling Max.

  “Didn’t take,” Johnny growled.

  Kate tried to yank a pistol from her purse, but Johnny backhanded her with a meaty paw. She spun and slammed against a wall, losing her purse in the process. The pistol went skittering away under the sofa, and the blonde baker slumped to the ground clutching her head.

  “Just you and me, Cain.” Johnny’s predatory eyes turned back to him, and as Max’s vision grayed at the edges, he struggled against the killer’s vicelike grip. Johnny’s beefy arms bulged through the suit, and his muscular body didn’t give an inch even as Max punched and kicked at close range.

  Kate hit Johnny with a flying leap, shrieking like a wildcat and clawing his face with manicured nails. Her raw ferocity set him back on his heels and gave Max enough space to gasp a breath. He shoved with his full strength against the hitman, driving him back a step, then broke the killer’s hold on his throat.

  Johnny used one arm to hurl Kate away. She twisted like a cat and landed hard on the sofa. With his other hand, Johnny yanked a nickel-plated .50 caliber pistol from his belt.

  “Time to die, Cai—”

  The rest of the bay windows exploded inward as two dozen soldiers in red fatigues with what looked like blunderbusses crashed the party.

  “Oh man,” Kate groaned. “There goes my security deposit.”

  Johnny turned to see the newcomers, and Max spun away. He dove for Kate’s spare gun she kept in an end table drawer and bellowed, “Kate, get out! I’ll be right behind you!”

  Kate obeyed without hesitation, springing from the couch and sprinting down the narrow hallway toward the front door. She threw open the locks in record time as Max yanked the drawer open and pulled the .357 magnum from inside.

  A violent electrical current slammed through Max’s body, sending a riot of agony shooting through his entire nervous system. Through his convulsions he tried to throw off a sudden heavy weight, but the electrified net completely enclosed him. In his peripheral vision he saw a red soldier fire his blunderbuss at Johnny. An electrified net launched from the gun and hit the hulking killer. Johnny fell to his knees, growling in agony but unable to control his body.

  Max collapsed to the floor, and his world went dark.

  Chapter 4

  Don’t Tase Me, Bro

  Hard metal decking ground into Max’s face and mashed his lips against his teeth. His body felt like a pile of jumbled bricks and he didn’t even want to move, content for now to lay on his belly like an old dog. A righteous headache prevented him from even attempting to speak. He tried to open his eyes but they revolted, leaving him in darkness. After a few more valiant attempts, he got them halfway open and looked around.

  Dim light filled a metal room shaped like a long tube. Jump seats lined the walls, with metal bars and hanging nets up above. Max counted six soldiers in red combat fatigues milling around the long room, checking their rifles and talking quietly.

  Johnny Legion lay unconscious nearby, his white suit smudged with dirt and his meaty hands bound behind his back with zip ties. Max realized through his haze of pain that his own hands were bound as well.

  Max worked his sore jaw and his ears popped with a muddled explosion. Some of the pain in his head diminished. We must be high up for that kind of ear pressure, he mused. Probably a cargo plane. But where are we headed?

  “You awake?” a gruff male voice asked. Max raised his head weakly to see one of the red-clothed guards standing over him with a rifle. The guard slammed the butt of his gun into Max’s forehead.

  Max’s world went dark again.

  Chapter 5

  The Call Goes Out

  The phone picked up on the second ring and Nick’s voice came through the phone. “Yeah, Kate?”

  “Nick,” Kate gasped. Her shrill voice echoed inside the metal dumpster where she was hiding. It stank like moldy food, but she was too upset to care. “They took Max!”

  To his credit, Nick’s voice sounded sharp but in control. “Are you safe? Where are you right now?”

  “I’m in a dumpster in an alley six blocks south from my apartment.” Kate sobbed. “I lost them, but… Oh Nick, they took him!”

  “Share your location with me and I’ll pick you up immediately.”

  “Okay.” Kate hung up the phone, opened the CDF app, keyed in her PIN, and activated the secure Reaper Team beacon. Three minutes later, she got a text from Nick that read: Come out to the road and get in the black SUV. She eased open the dumpster lid, slipped out into the filthy alley, and scurried thirty feet to the street where she hopped into Nick’s armored SUV. She slammed the door behind her and huddled down in her seat, looking wretched.

  Nick pulled smoothly away and accelerated fast, headed further south away from her apartment. “Do you need immediate medical attention?”

  “No, I don’t. Max ordered me out before they could hurt me. He said he’d be right behind me, but they must have taken him prisoner. They chased me through the streets. It took me half an hour to lose them and get into that dumpster.”

  “Who was it?”

  Kate drew a shaky breath. “It was Johnny Legion.”

  Nick’s stoic expression didn’t change, but he damn near swerved the car into a telephone pole before regaining control of his twitchy hands. “Impossible.”

  “I know! But it was him, Nick. Huge and brutal and terrifying. He broke in through the window and started strangling Max. I tried to fight him off but it was like being swatted by a bus. I was about to grab a weapon when the windows busted in again and a swarm of goons in red army fatigues broke in. That’s when Max ordered me out. He said he’d follow, but…” Her voice trailed off and her lip quivered.

  “Blood Sparrows,” Nick said. “And somehow, a dead hitman. Are they working together?”

  “I don’t know,” Kate sighed. “It happened so fast. Maybe Johnny looked surprised to see them? I can’t say for sure.”

  “Perhaps they figured out it was us hitting their shipments. If so, Max is in for a world of trouble.”

  Kate clenched her tiny manicured fists on her thighs, and her blue eyes gleamed with determination. “Whatever’s going on, I won’t stop until I get
Max back. No matter what it takes.”

  Chapter 6

  Are You Not Entertained?

  Pain exploded through Max’s abdomen as someone kicked him. “Hey,” yelled a frantic voice, “you’d better get up if you want to live!”

  Max coughed, spraying sand away from his face. His throat felt like a mile of desert, his entire body ached, and a loud roar filled his ears. But he found his hands unbound, and he used them to push off from the sandy ground and wobble upright.

  The loud roar proved to be a well-dressed audience of both men and women lining a twenty-foot-high concrete wall ringing the wide sandy pit where Max stood surrounded by three ragged men in stained loincloths. Johnny Legion was rising groggily from the sand nearby. The other men looked terrified, staring across the sand at a point behind Max.

  Max turned and looked where the terrified men were staring. An enormous iron portcullis blocked a dark tunnel mouth. Another matching tunnel and portcullis lay on the opposite side of the wide arena behind him. Max guessed the entire circle was about a hundred feet across from wall to wall.

  “Good morning, sleepy heads!” The jocular male voice rang through the domed building above the pit, echoing even over the cheers of the audience. The voice sprang from everywhere, so Max guessed someone was using an audio system and scanned for the speaker.

  A raised platform stood above the lip of the concrete wall, designed exactly like old Roman movies where Caesar would sit and observe gladiator matches, complete with marble columns and scantily-clad models waving palm fronds. A tall throne draped in red velvet sat empty, as the ruler of this gladiator pit stood out on the lip of the platform with his arms raised high. He wore a decadent red velvet trench coat with black turtleneck and baggy pants beneath, and gold chains rattled across his body as he gestured dramatically.

  “Welcome to the Blood Pits!” The ruler’s slanted black eyes flashed with passion as he pointed at Max. “You’re our special guest today, so say hello to your fans!” He gestured wide at the crowd, who cheered with zeal. The speaker raked one hand back through his thick blonde hair with long black roots and grinned madly at his audience.

  Max staggered toward the platform and raised his hand to point at the man. “Andy Wong, leader of the Blood Sparrows. I’ve been hunting you. I’ll kill you, I swear it!”

  Andy put one hand to his breast as if wounded. “Such venom!” He turned to the audience, gesturing dramatically again. “Let me introduce our guest, my friends, lest you mistake his rancor for rudeness. You see before you the terror of San Pajita, Maxwell Cain, also known as Bloody Rain Cain!”

  The crowd roared, stamping their feet on the floorboards. The sound echoed off the dome above as Max’s stomach clenched.

  How the hell does this guy know who I am? We were so careful.

  Andy shot Max a knowing smile. “Surprised I uncovered your identity? The ship you hit was packed with jamming-resistant cameras. You took out enough of our shipments, I felt it was time to pay you a home visit.”

  The revelation struck Max like a slap. “You leaked the ship’s location and cargo. It was a setup.”

  “Bingo!” Andy guffawed. The audience laughed with him, and their collective disdain pressed down on Max’s shoulders. Instead of sinking under it, Max’s rage flared to new heights.

  “You kidnapped two dozen women as bait for me? You’re a psychopath, Andy. A perfect captain for the Blood Sparrows. And I’m gonna kill you myself.”

  Andy smirked. “Good luck with that, Max. First, you’re gonna need to survive the gladiator pits. Speaking of which…” He lifted a remote control and grinned madly.

  Max was suddenly tackled from behind with tremendous force. His breath whooshed out of him and he collapsed to the sand with a heavy weight on top of him. He rolled over to find Johnny Legion straddling him, the huge man’s meaty hands clawing for his throat. Max fought back, squirming his legs through the sand, but Johnny’s huge mitts grasped Max’s neck and began squeezing, choking the life from him.

  “What’s this?” Andy Wong asked, sounding delighted. “We caught ourselves a Johnny Legion wannabe. The terror of the underworld is dead, but they say imitation is the highest form of flattery. Let’s see if this knockoff can fight as well as the legend he’s copying!” Andy pressed a button on his remote.

  The iron portcullis nearby raised up to the air, exposing the tunnel mouth, and two massive tigers charged from the darkness. Their bodies gleamed with metal parts: cybernetic implants including prosthetics for missing legs, lashing bladed tails, and glowing red eyes in steel helmets with cutaways for their ears to poke through. The cyborg tigers rushed into the sandy arena, charging at the five unarmed men.

  Guards in red fatigues standing atop the cement wall chucked five spears into the arena. The weapons stabbed into the sand near Max and Johnny, standing upright.

  Johnny glanced back and forth between Max and the tigers. “Dammit!” He released Max and lurched to his feet. The hulking killer snatched one of the nearby spears and fell into a defensive stance, eyeing the nearest tiger.

  Max coughed and rolled to his feet, grabbing another spear. He put some distance between himself and Johnny, watching both the hitman and the approaching cyborg beasts.

  The other three men in loin cloths grabbed their spears and tried to make a stand, but a tiger bowled into one of the men and bore him to the ground. Metallic claws sliced into the man’s flesh as he died in screaming agony. The other two men broke and ran, but the tiger pounced again and tore a second gladiator to pieces.

  The blood-stained tiger charged Max next. He leaped away and thrust with his spear, but the blade bounced off the beast’s helmet with a harsh scrape. The sound startled the creature, who hesitated. Max thrust again, piercing the tiger’s neck and drawing blood but failing to cut deep enough to strike an artery. The beast snarled and retreated, circling him warily.

  Across the arena, Johnny puffed up and roared at his foe. The tiger backed away uncertainly. It turned and bolted at the final running waif nearby, slamming him with both bladed front paws and crushing him to the sand before savaging his back with its fangs. With its mouth dripping blood, the tiger turned and started back toward Johnny. The hitman raised his spear and prepared to thrust.

  Max dodged a charge, then lashed out with his spear tip when the tiger spun about to pursue him. He feinted and roared, trying to drive the tiger back through sheer ferocity, but the big cat chased him relentlessly. Max backed toward one of the dead men.

  When he reached the man’s dropped spear, Max hurled his own at the tiger’s chest. It stabbed into the tiger’s shoulder, rolling off the bone but tearing a bloody gash. The cat screamed and flinched. Max scooped up the fallen spear and rushed forward with a brutal thrust.

  His attack took the cat in the throat, cutting deep but once more failing to do enough damage to mortally wound the beast. The tiger responded by raking its claws across Max’s chest, leaving four bloody gashes in Max’s pectorals. He screamed in agony but thrust again.

  This time his spear stabbed into the tiger’s chest and slipped between its ribs, piercing a lung. The beast coughed and sputtered, backing away as blood bubbled up into its mouth. The great beast lurched across the sand, trying to circle away from Max, but its steps faltered.

  Max rushed in. The tiger couldn’t spin fast enough to protect its flank, and Max drove his spear into the beast’s side, piercing its other lung. The cat fell to the sand, gagged, and died.

  Max spun to see Johnny charging at him, bloody spear raised for the kill. Max braced his own weapon to counterattack, but Andy Wong caught his attention. The crime lord raised his black remote and pressed another button. Instantly, the spear was ripped from Max’s hands and flew up toward the ceiling. Johnny lost his spear as well, and the other three spears hurtled upward into the air. Even the two cybernetic tiger corpses launched skyward, smacking the dome’s ceiling far
above.

  Unarmed, Max and Johnny faced each other, both glaring at the other while keeping an eye on Andy Wong.

  The crime lord laughed. “Such sport on your first day! I confess I’m impressed, but perhaps I should have expected no less from the infamous Maxwell Cain. And you, Legion wannabe, lived up to the hype of your hero! Well done, gladiators.” He clapped his hands in mock applause.

  The portcullis behind Max raised up, exposing the second tunnel mouth opposite where the tigers had entered. Ten guards with submachineguns entered the sandy arena, stepping carefully around the shredded remains to take aim at Max and Johnny.

  Andy Wong grinned down at them. “My employees will show you to your quarters, gentlemen. I suggest you make yourselves at home. You’ll be here for the rest of your lives.”

  Chapter 7

  Meet Your Fellow Contestants

  The guards were not gentle with Max or Johnny. They seized the men with rough hands and dragged them across the sand into the tunnel mouth. Darkness fell over them, lit only by dim light far ahead down fifty feet of concrete tube.

  They emerged into an underground concrete room, long and sparse like a storeroom and lit with bare bulbs dangling from the ceiling. Iron cages lined the walls on the left and right with a wide hallway down the center and a steel door with no doorknob at the far end. The cages held men in ratty clothes who glanced at Max and Johnny before looking hurriedly away.

  The guards walked Max to a cell, opened it with a key, and shoved him in. The iron door clanked behind him and the lock clicked. The guards did the same to Johnny, parking him across the hallway from Max.

  One of the guards, a greasy fellow with yellow teeth, sneered at them both. “Now you two can spit insults to pass the time, eh?” He and his fellows laughed as they tromped to the steel door in back and knocked. The door opened and the guards hurried through, slamming the door behind them and leaving the gladiator barracks in pregnant silence.