The Ballad of Mila by Matteo Strukul

Author:Matteo Strukul
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Osprey Publishing Ltd
Published: 2014-02-27T16:00:00+00:00

10.

Zou Kai smiled.

Tonk looked at him and started slowly shaking his head.

He was beginning to realise that when Zou Kai had suggested they kill themselves, he'd been serious. Deadly serious. The look in his friend’s eyes confirmed his fears.

The child, standing still in the doorway of his house, had tears in his eyes, tears that contrasted with the grin on his face. The night air was chilling. The garden looked like an icy wonderland, sculpted by the wind. The dogs were waiting, hungry predators desperate for something to eat. White drool dripped from their ravenous mouths.

“Destroy the Qing to restore the Ming,” said Zou Kai. He looked at Tonk one last time. A shadow of fierce resignation crossed his face, a flash of dark lightning that made his intention clearer than a thousand words.

“No!” shouted Tonk. “Zou, don’t do it!”

But his friend had made up his mind. He put the .357 Magnum in his mouth and fired.

A dull roar, muffled by the silencer.

A red explosion that destroyed his head.

The smell of burned meat filling the air.

Tonk managed to turn towards the back seat and throw up his fear and his pain.

He didn’t think Zou Kai was going to go through with it. But, he realised now, it was well and truly over. This last adventure was the final tragedy of their lives.

They had been through a lot together. They grew up in Wenzou, both cared for by their grandparents after their parents left for Italy. They'd lived a very comfortable life for several years thanks to Mum and Dad sending a monthly allowance far in excess of the average salary of a Chinese factory worker. It was a time of happiness, of joy. After leaving school, though, their parents sent for them to come to Italy. The impact of that new country was immense. They'd ended up in Padua, Tonk working in his parents’ minimarket in Corso del Popolo and Zou Kai in the bar across the road. They worked insane shifts, up to sixteen hours per day.

Little by little they grew up to be men and became friends with others in their circle. Finally they ended up in the Talking Daggers. They pledged allegiance, swore a blood oath and became killers together. They obeyed an inflexible, bloodthirsty master who could use them in whatever way he wanted, force them to do anything, no matter how bad.

And now everything was going to end here, in the garden of this blood-filled villa.

No, they didn’t deserve to die like this.

A choked, hysterical scream escaped from his mouth. He started banging his fists on the bulletproof windows of the car. Rage and frustration made him shout meaningless words against the glass, spraying it with his spit.

The dogs howled. Wolves waiting for their pound of flesh. Catching the scent of Zou Kai’s blood, they tried to dig their claws into the door of the Seat Leon.

The child called them back.

“Grau, Teufel, come here,” he said in a small voice that nonetheless didn’t leave room for a reply.

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