Human Nature (Book 4): Human Nature IV by Borthwick, Finlay (book recommendations website .TXT) 📗

nice to meet you!” Rajan intervened, forcing Michelle’s threatening hand down as he stepped in front of her. “I’m Rajan.” He offered his hand out for a shake.

Benji exhaled a sigh of relief. “Good evening there, Rajan…” Within the blink of an eye, he reached out to grab Rajan before pulling him into his grip.

“Motherfucker!” Michelle raised her cleaver again.

“Ah-ah-ah!” Benji taunted negatively at her as he pressed a blade of his own against Rajan’s throat. “Drop it, little missy. Then, drop your things.” He commanded her before turning to look across the rest of the procession, “All of you! Drop all of your things right now! Or Rajan here,” he intensified his grip as he threatened him, “Will die…”

Michelle hesitated for several moments, still holding her cleaver up. Then, reluctantly, she sighed, “Do as he says.” She ordered her allies.

Rajan remained silent, feeling as though his mediation would be rather useless given his position.

Like Michelle, the rest of the group were reluctant to stand down as well. Though eventually, the majority of them did so.

“We can take him, ‘Chelle!” Nate suggested enthusiastically as he kept his harpoon up.

“Nate’s right!” Vivi backed him, “There’s nine of us and only one of him! We can do it!” She too kept her harpoon raised.

“Final warning! I’m serious!” Benji bellowed at his unrelenting foes.

“Nate, Vivi! Please!” Michelle pleaded with them, “Just drop your fucking weapons already! Look around; everybody else has already done it!” She pointed out.

Now, without any eyes on him, Rajan took his chance. Using all his might, he ripped his right arm free of Benji’s grip, and then quickly elbowed him in the abdomen.

‘GOWH!’

Benji scowled in agony, clenching his now-winded abdominal area.

“You dead son of a bitch.” Michelle mumbled as she stormed over to the injured Benji with her cleaver raised again.

“Michelle, leave him!” Rajan ordered as he stood in front of her.

“He just threatened to kill you!” Michelle was astounded by how forgiving Rajan was.

“I know… But once upon a time, so did you.” Rajan pointed out, giving a slight indication of what the two’s past had been like.

Although Michelle could not deny this, she looked past Rajan and down at the winded Benji who was cradling himself on the ground. “It’s your lucky day pal.” She sternly informed him before retreating.

Rajan turned and crouched down in front of Benji, “I’m sorry I had to do that.” It was ironic that he was the one apologising here. “You left me no other choice.”

Benji coughed as he sat upright, “Oh, you will be sorry.” He grinned as he cryptically mocked the group, “You and your merry little band here.”

Although she was walking away from the situation, Michelle stopped dead in her tracks as she listened in on Benji’s heckling. Slowly, and with a face like thunder, she turned around once again.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Rajan asked him.

Whilst remaining silent, Benji continued to cryptically grin at him.

“Come on, you’re seriously gonna threaten us and then not follow up?” Rajan put on a confused expression; though in truth, he knew exactly how people like Benji worked.

“…You’re in our territory.” Benji enlightened the group. “The Bandits will do with you as we please—”

“Bandits.” Rajan mumbled to himself, completely ignoring whatever else Benji would have to say.

There were distinct murmurs among the group upon hearing these words; it no longer mattered that Rajan had neglected to tell them the full extent of Garry’s dying words.

“Who the hell are The Bandits, then?” Nate further questioned as Yelena shuddered behind him in fear.

“We’re your worst nightmare, kid.” Benji was elated to say this to the group. “You and your little girlfriend back there?” He heckled as he noticed Yelena hiding behind Nate, “You’re both gonna die on these streets. You’ll never—”

‘SQUELCH!’

All of a sudden, a cleaver had sliced deep into Benji’s head. As the blood splurged up, it covered Rajan’s face, startling him as it did so. Still squirting out blood, the corpse fell backwards into the dirty and damp road.

After wiping several blood droplets from his face, Rajan turned around and saw Michelle bent down in a throwing stance; she was the one who had just executed Benji.

“…We’ll never know what his last words were gonna be.” Michelle comically finished her victim’s sentence for him, in a way that felt more appropriate.

Rajan didn’t even comment to Michelle about what she had just done. Instead, he allowed her to walk past him and pry her cleaver from Benji’s corpse.

“Hey, guys?” Maylene had noticed something through an alleyway between two buildings. “We’re looking for a gigantic concrete wall, right?”

Rajan answered in befuddlement, “I don’t know why you think it’s concrete, but—Yes. Why?”

Maylene nodded down the alleyway, “I think I’ve found it.”

And indeed, there, at the opposite end of the alleyway, there was a large concrete wall that was perhaps thirty to forty feet high.

As Rajan moved to Maylene’s side, he smiled. “That’s it. That’s our safe zone...”

Unknown to the group, the entire ordeal with Benji had been witnessed by two men on a rooftop.

“That bitch just killed him.” The man without the binoculars remarked, having witnessed Michelle throw the cleaver straight into Benji’s head. “I’m gonna fucking kill her myself, Euan.” He vowed vengeance.

Peculiarly, however, Euan was smirking. “I’d counted on something like that happening.”

“What?” The other man was baffled by this comment. “Euan, our friend is dead down there. You mean you wanted him to die?”

Still grinning, Euan affirmed, “Precisely, Johnno. Precisely.”

Johnno gasped and shook his head in disgust, “Why?”

Euan lowered the binoculars. Turning to face Johnno, he placed his hand firmly on his shoulder, “Because now—Well, now we have a reason to take all of those fuckers out.” Euan asserted, suggesting that he was beginning to grow a