"What is… What is that?" I ask fearfully, my heart starting to pound in my chest.
I couldn't take my eyes off the brown sack that's turning red with each passing moment.
"Hahaha… Look at you. I've never seen a face turn this pale this fast," Reagan says, laughing loudly.
"Answer me!" I shout out, not even caring to act calm any longer.
Reagan chuckles again before starting to walk towards the center of the shooting range. Once there, she stands next to the sack in question and pulls hard on a thin jute string that's hanging out from it.
The next instant, the sack loosens up, falling down to the ground. On top of the pole, a man is tightly bound with his limbs tied up and his mouth gagged. As he's not wearing any clothes, I can see the exact spot on his stomach from where the blood is flooding out.
I… I shot someone…
Immediately, I start hyperventilating. My knees become weak and my stomach feels extremely sick. Unable to bear the weight of my body, I put my hand on the tree next to me for support.
W-Wait, but he's not dead yet… I can see him blinking… He's not dead… I haven't killed him…
"Ah, so you missed the vital organs, huh? What a pity… for him," Reagan says, shaking her head.
She strolls towards the shed where the guns are kept, picking up a shotgun and a tall stool from there. Then, coming back to the center of the range, she undoes the strings of the other two sacks along the way.
As the sacks fall off, the naked and tied up bodies of two other people appear. At the center pole, there's another burly man, while at the left pole, there's a young and beautiful woman restrained in a disgraceful way. Both of them look extremely frightened, their eyes darting towards Reagan and at the bleeding man constantly.
"Now, we have an audience for the show as well!" Regan declares with a smirk, placing the stool next to the shot guy and climbing on top of it.
She rips off the tape from his mouth and pulls out the piece of cloth gagging him.
"AHHHHHAH! FUCK YOU, BITCH! YOU MOTHERFUCKERS! I WILL KILL YOU ALL!"
The man starts shrieking and cursing in pain, his eyes so red and bulging that they threaten to pop any second.
"Wow, my ears… I don't know about the killing part, but you will definitely make me deaf. I guess I should make death extra painful," Regan says, looking amused as well as ruthless at the same time.
With her free hand, she pulls out her pistol and points it at the guy's crotch.
*BANG*
"AHHHA! AAAGHHH! NOOOO—"
*cough* *cough* *cough*
The guy screams so loud that he starts coughing out blood. Looking at this scene, my legs finally give out and I fall down to the ground. My entire body starts shaking madly and I can feel puke rising up my throat.
"Aaaaand off you go!"
Reagan puts away the pistol and lifts up the shotgun instead— pointing it towards the guy's face. And without a trace of hesitation, she pulls the trigger.
*BANG*
The guy's head literally explodes. Blood, bone, and chunks of flesh fly everywhere— falling on Regan and the remaining two captives. While Reagan is not even remotely perturbed, the captives start shrieking throatily. With the gags on, that's the most they can manage to do.
But neither of them are in a condition worse than mine…
"Aaegh… Ureghh…."
I start throwing up madly. As my mouth gets burnt with acid, tears appear in my eyes. I could feel my face turning cold— void of any blood. If this keeps going on, I might pass out at any moment.
"Haaa… Haaaa… Haaa…"
Finally, after a minute or two, my stomach gets empty and the vomiting stops. Breathing heavily, I slump back against the tree and look up.
"All done?"
To my slight shock, I find Regan standing right next to me, looking down at my pathetic state with a mocking smile. I open my mouth to say something, but no words come out.
"If yes, then come with me. You will be the one blowing the head of the next one. We cannot consider the last one as your kill," she continues, thrusting the shotgun towards me.
…
I look at the gun and then at Reagan with a hard gaze. Even though my hand is shaky and extremely weak, I still force myself to move it up and grab the shotgun.
"Oh? I thought you will beg me to not make you do it again," Reagan says, looking rather surprised.
Yeah… beg you… not even in your dreams…
Somehow, I manage to get back on my feet. Yes, I still feel sick and dazed, but I am also aware that I cannot show my weak side any longer— otherwise, everything I have done and am planning to do will be ruined.
"Let's go…" I mutter, suppressing the dread in my voice.
Walking ahead, I try not to look at the headless body of the dead guy. Instead, I look at the guy in the center— the one I am about to kill.
I am really sorry… but I have to do it… I don't have any choice… You will be killed either way…
I apologize to the guy in my mind. Before I could realize it, tears start falling down my cheeks. My body quivers even more fiercely and my palm becomes sweaty.
"Hehehe… You look as if I making you do something really horrible," Reagan says with a laugh.
"All three of them are spies from other gangs. They were caught trying to sneak inside Abigail's base and even refused to give us any information. I would've killed all of them myself but I thought that this might be a good opportunity for you to experience your first kill.
"Now that you've entered our world, it's just a matter of time when you will find yourself in a violent situation. And if you don't even have the guts to kill someone— you will be the one getting killed instead. And as the first kill is always the most difficult one, I want you to get past that hurdle as soon as possible," she tells me.
…
I continue to walk forward, not saying anything.
While I hate Reagan for making me do this, what she just said is true. Whether it be for protecting myself, my family, or Lily— sooner or later, I will have to kill someone. And if I am not prepared for it, then it will only result in my doom.
At the very least, these people in front of me are not innocent. They are criminals and have probably abused and killed a lot of people before. They entered the underworld knowing that they might be the ones getting killed someday.
Alright…
The guilt and fear inside my heart lessen slightly. Reaching in front of the pole in the middle, I look up at the man tied on top of it. His eyes are filled with terror and he's trying to shake his head.
I know that the longer I wait, the difficult it's going to get. So, I quickly take aim at the guy's head and look sideway— preparing to pull the trigger.
"No, stop. You're already forgetting what I taught you. Always look at your target while you're shooting," Reagan reminds sternly.
"Fuck… Fuck… Fuck…"
I start cursing under my breath, slowly turning my face back towards the guy. My hands are trembling but I know that the bullet will hit him.
"Sorry, I will make this quick…" I mutter.
*BANG*
The next instant, I pulled the trigger, and the guy's head explodes as well. No matter how tough I try to act, the moment I see this gruesome scene and feel the blood and flesh hitting my face, I start barfing out again— dropping the shotgun and falling down to my knees.
"Well done! Well done! Congrats on your first kill!" Reagan congratulates me, clapping lightly.
"Now, for this last bitch, I was you to repeat what I did to the first guy. Take out your pistol, thrust the barrel inside her cunt, and keep shooting until the bullets fly out of her head."
_________________________________________________________
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