Gunfire rattled through the old castle, briefly pausing before picking up again, each shot stirring more fear among those inside.
A man, visibly shaking, stood up and nervously raised his hand, stammering, “I, I’m with The Silent Shadows.”
Not wanting to meet their end, others quickly followed suit: “Me too... I’m in it too...”
Before long, nearly seventy to eighty percent of the folks in the castle were on their feet.
The rest, mostly people The Silent Shadows had prepped as ‘assets,’ also stood, pleading, “Spare us... Colby, please spare us... we’re just hired hands, we don’t even know who’s running the show!”
The men and women who had been hobnobbing with the big shots got up as well. They were dressed in next to nothing, trembling in fear that Colby might just finish them off with a bullet.
“You claim to be with The Silent Shadows... prove it.”
Colby leaned back in his chair, eyes fixed on the crowd that had stood up.
His crew had their rifles pointed right at these people's heads, leaving no room for deceit or sudden moves. Fear of a fatal mistake kept everyone in check.
“Colby! I’m a member of The Silent Shadows, I’ve got proof! Here’s the badge! I swear, I really am one of them!”
As one person nervously flashed a badge, the rest scrambled to do the same, each holding out badges symbolizing their supposed membership with The Silent Shadows. The badges all featured a sun emblem.
Colby’s men gathered up all the badges, handing them to him. He glanced over them briefly, then asked, “Where were you the night before last?”
Comments
The readers' comments on the novel: Revenge is best served cold