"You want this man killed clean, then?" Nuit's smile broadened.
Again, Carlos only nodded.
"You don't want to do it? After all, they murdered your brother and your cousin and your friends."
"Just do it. Or - "
Before Carlos could lift his gun or finish his statement, Nuit had reached into the man's back with his bare hand. An awful, bloodcurdling scream came from the victim, and the sound of bones and ligaments tearing echoed past the trees as Nuit's hand came away from the body dangling an entire spinal column. Carlos was paralyzed by the gruesome sight, his voice lodged in his throat as his eyes quickly shifted from the twitching body on the ground to the dripping cord of bones in Nuit's fist. A deep gully had been carved in the back of the jerking dead man, his glassy-eyed stare fixed upon Carlos's shoes.
Carlos could not move as he watched Nuit break sections of the spinal column off and toss them to the headmen who were now7panting as they grabbed the dripping bones. Nuit glared at the big cat again as she tried to approach the fresh kill, and the panther backed away with a sullen growl. The henchmen were sucking the bones, licking between their fingers. They now gathered around the body, knelt at the open gully in it, and lowered their heads. Only slurping sounds could be heard. Carlos turned away, and dry heaved.
Listening to it without seeing it was worse. "What the f**k was that shit?! Oh, goddamned ..." Carlos's voice failed him as he turned around again, unable to keep his eyes from watching the grisly sight. Transfixed, all he could do was hold his gun. No, f**k it. This was too ill. He was out. Panic claimed him. He'd never seen no bullshit like this in his f**king life!
"Calm yourself," Nuit crooned in a reassuring voice. His eyes were steady as they held Carlos, his voice alluring.
For a moment, Carlos couldn't move. To get out of there, he'd have to mow down the big cat, then what? These motherfuckers might eat him!
"No one will lay a finger on you, my friend, I assure you," Nuit murmured, his eyes closing to half slits. "We have much bigger plans for you than that. Plans that involve an increase in territory, much more money than you could ever spend in one lifetime." Nuit chuckled. His voice now held a seductive resonance, like the way a man might speak to a difficult woman to talk her drawers off. "Think of the money that is out here in the woods. These men might have a perversion, but they are filthy rich and very protected ... not even the feds can touch them. You want that, and you know it ... to travel the world with a seal of protection ... to operate with impunity, laughing at the authorities." Nuit stepped closer to him and leaned his head back with an expression of ecstasy. "Tell me you don't want that," he whispered. "Tell me ... from way down in your soul."
Perspiration soaked Carlos's nylon jacket and made it stick to his skin. Beads of sweat on his brow became a quick trickle down the sides of his face. His hand trembled from gripping his gun so tightly and his fingers twitched as they remained glued to the trigger.
Nuit lifted his head, opened his eyes, and allowed his gaze to rove over Carlos, sending a ripple of carnal pleasure through him. "You can't even find the words to tell me ... because it's not in you. You want what I've described, and you covet what I have, n'est pas?"
"But, goddamned ..." Carlos's sentence derailed as the words lodged in his throat.
"It is damned, and it is power." Nuit inhaled deeply.
As each of the bosses stood and wiped their mouths, Carlos stared at Nuit, paralyzed by the grotesque, transfixed by the se-
ductive, while this madman licked blood from his own hand, and sighed.
"You ripped a man's back out ... then - "
"Martial arts." Nuit smiled. "Did you know that many old cultures ate of the remains of their enemies after a battle? To the victor go the spoils. It is an old custom, designed to give you the power that the other side once had over you. Just a small ritual - you don't have to participate, unless you are so moved. We accept diversity, as you can see." Nuit chuckled. "And, we can teach you how to protect yourself from a gun, or anything else more dangerous ... if you want to go to the next level - and if you want to really get to the bottom ... or should I say, the top of who did your family."
Skeptical, Carlos didn't move, but also didn't nod. "I'm not doing the blood shit."
"But you are intrigued? Take your time. Think about it. We have all night."
He didn't answer Nuit. Two men that had done his family had indeed died horrible deaths. All these years he had been protected by these men and given safe passage. He had a million dollars sitting beside him, plus his own hundred Gs still intact. They were going to show him how to expand, gain more power, and be untouchable by the law. He'd never have to watch people close to him die at the hands of violence. He'd never have to worry about having children - his would be safe from what he and his brother and sister endured. He could protect his people and all that he'd built for them to enjoy. For the first time in his life, the madness would end and he'd be in a safe camp - a squad with unlimited power.
Nuit studied him with a sly smile. Carlos mulled over the options. He had everything to gain and nothing to lose.
Hmmm ... Freaky rituals of revenge notwithstanding, there was some merit to the consideration.
"If I say yes, that I'll go after the rest of them - what else do you want from me? I want it all laid out, no after-the-fact negotiations."
"A true businessman," Nuit murmured, his voice cool as he continued licking the last of the blood from his hand. "I respect that." Nuit cast his gaze in the direction of the panther. "She's an excellent way to ensure that our way of life is preserved. She sends a powerful message to those that get in our way ... tends to turn them to see things from our perspective." Nuit chuckled low and sinister. "So effective."
"You want me to keep that in my house?" Carlos laughed nervously and shook his head no.
Nuit chuckled from a place deep within his chest. "No. She's a lot to handle and hates the sun. We'll house her. I just want you to train her and control her."
"I don't know jack about training a beast like that." Again Carlos shook his head, and he laughed.
"We'll teach you how - just look how easily she came to me."
"So, when I do a hit, I'm supposed to make that thing - "