Nighthawk

37

Present day...

Chicago, 8:40 PM

Erasmus walked further on across the pavement, smoking his pipe, when suddenly, he bumped into someone. Before he could apologise, his eyes widened at who stood in front of him. Lirrazz Maximilliana stood there, inches away from the detective. She held a smoking cigarette in her mouth. Her waistcoat was back in pristine condition, save for the small stitch where she had been stabbed. She did not seem pleased to see him. Before Erasmus could open his mouth, she drew out a Colt Buntline revolver from her trousers, complete with a 16 inch barrel and pointed out at him. She pressed the barrel to his chest, threatening to pass the bullet right through his back. Erasmus held his hands out, backing away from her. "Woah, woah, woah!" He yelled. "Easy! It's me! Erasmus!"

"I know who you are," Lirrazz replied coldly, still aiming at him. "Erasmus Levitt, private detective."

The private detective took the pipe out of his mouth. "Why the gun? What did I do to get on your bad side?"

One of Lirrazz's eyes quivered, almost on the verge of closing while the other became as wide as a ball. "What did you do? What did you do, you ask?!" She suddenly shouted. "I was dying in your arms and you sat there and watched! You did not even bother to do anything! You did not even think to check for a pulse as I fainted! You literally just left me there on the floor! Have you ever felt compassion?! Have you ever felt remorse or even the slightest hint of regret?! You are nothing but a sociopath with an alcohol addiction!"

He put his hands down. "And I am sorry for that. Truly, I am."

"You really think that sorry is going to cut it? No, no, no, no."

Erasmus shook his head slightly, almost seeming sad. "Please, don't ever put me in a situation where I have to show you just how heartless I can be."

Lirrazz spat out the cigarette and trod it into the ground with her foot. "I don't care. You ruined my life. I am not going to back down from this."

Erasmus sighed, almost in sorrow. He put the pipe back into his mouth and drew his pistol out. Lirrazz dived for cover as he fired at her. She fired back and Erasmus also jumped behind a shield. A duel ensued. "Please!" Erasmus yelled over the gunshots. "Listen to me! We can work this out! Neither of us has to die today!"

Lirrazz let loose a bullet that pierced through Erasmusʼ pipe, shattering it. The detective looked at what was left in his mouth and spat it down onto the ground. He snarled. Jumping up, he continued to fight with her, nothing else mattering to him. Suddenly, a bullet passed through his shoulder and he collapsed to the ground, bleeding out. Blood pumped out onto his suit with every beat of his heart, it having nowhere else to go. Lirrazz slowly walked up to him and then pointed the gun at his forehead. Erasmus suddenly laughed, despite the pain that he was in. He grinned at her, even though there was a barrel aimed point blank at his brain.

"Go ahead. Kill me. Then I will be free from this accursed life and Chicago."

Lirrazz's gun hand shook slightly. A tear ran down her face as her bottom lip quivered. "Why is it that, of all people, I happen to stumble upon you? If I left you, then I wouldn't be in this ordeal. Everything that has happened to me is your fault. This is all because of you."

"You could have left me then and there when you discovered me. After all, you're the one that said that you wanted to help me, remember?"

Lirrazz took the barrel away from Erasmusʼ head and shot him in the chest. "Shut up!" She screamed at him, her gun hand shaking uncontrollably. "Just shut up!"

Erasmus faced his prospect, realising that he had no choice. Rolling over, he fired his last bullet. Lirrazz fell to the ground as it pierced through her chest. She coughed painfully, some blood coming up from her mouth. Her own dark lifeforce began to pool around her, slowly emptying away. Her eyes were wide and her bottom lip quivered uncontrollably as she faced the horrible prospect that she was going to die. Erasmus shakily stood up and put his empty gun into his suit as the hot blood slowly pumped out from his mortal wound. Limping over to his friend, he collapsed to his knees and grabbed her by her waistcoat which was sodden in blood. "I trusted you." He told her quietly, betrayal in his eyes. Lirrazz managed to control her shock and wavered her eyes over to him, giving him a cold look.

"So did I." She spat her blood at him and delivered a headbutt to his face. Erasmus released her and she stood up, pointing her gun at him. Without wasting time, she aimed and fired. Erasmus instinctively shielded his face and head with his arm and the bullets tore into him. Lirrazz went to fire again and her gun clicked, the chamber being empty. Erasmus looked at her as blood soaked into his suit and his left arm dangled, on the verge of becoming gangrenous. Blood poured down his hand, dripping from his fingers like treacle. He wiped away the small blood spatter from his face. Lirrazz threw her gun away and charged at him. They both proceeded to trade blows. Lirrazz punched him in the chest and Erasmus doubled over, his breath forced from his lungs. He quickly recovered and put his arm up, blocking a punch. He swiftly pushed it out of the way and delivered a fist to her throat and she choked, her airways jammed for a second. He delivered another, brutal punch and Lirrazz choked once more and coughed violently as blood erupted from her mouth. She staggered for a couple of seconds before collapsing onto the ground. Blood poured out from her mouth. Erasmus collapsed to his knees, a single tear running down his face.

"What have I done?" He said to himself. Erasmus bent over, placing his hands onto the ground and lamented over his loss.