Mercy For None

Life For A Life

The woman lunged forward, her bare feet slapping against the tiled floor, the IV stand clattering noisily behind her. Gasps erupted from the crowd, a ripple of fear surging through the hall. Chairs screeched and toppled as people leapt to their feet, some shouting, some fleeing toward the walls, while others froze in horror.

“Oh God, somebody help! She’s gone mad. She’s going to kill him!” a woman wailed, clutching her child tightly.

The old woman’s voice cracked with fury, trembling between grief and rage.

“How dare you ignore those emergency calls and let the only family I had left die!” she screamed, her tear-filled eyes blazing. “They called you over a hundred times! If you had answered, they would still be alive today. But you… you ruined their lives.”

Her chest heaved as she clutched the knife with both hands, the blade quivering in her trembling grasp.

“I will end your life today!” she cried.

But before the knife could reach Riley, two officers sprang into action. One seized her frail shoulders from behind, while the other stepped between her and Riley, his hands outstretched as he tried to wrest the weapon from her.

“Le… leave me!” she shrieked, twisting her head violently. In a frenzy, she bit the officer’s hand and he groaned in agony, his grip loosening as he staggered back.

The second officer lunged forward to stop her, but she lashed out with sudden ferocity, kicking him hard on his testicles.

He collapsed with a strangled cry, clutching his testicles with both hands as his voice cracked in a plea for help.

“I will kill him and anyone who dares to stop me! I must kill him today!” the old woman screamed, her voice hoarse with rage.

Then, seizing her chance, she lurched forward, stabbing Riley in the chest.

“Die!” she screamed, her voice echoing through the hall like the cry of a mother mourning her lost child. “Di… die the same way you killed my family! Die, you wicked soul! Burn in hell!”

The hall had already descended into chaos. Terrified cries filled the air as people surged toward the exits. In their desperate flight, they stumbled and trampled over one another.

Near the podium, the manager who had been addressing the crowd only moments earlier crouched low, shrinking behind the line of security officers like a frightened child. His body trembled as he peered out with one eye from behind the broad frame of a guard.

“St… st… stop her,” he muttered, his voice barely louder than a whisper, speaking more to himself than to anyone else. “Don’t… don’t let her kill him.”

Riley’s chest was already soaked with blood, dark stains spreading jaggedly across his shirt. The old woman let out a mocking laugh, a faint smile curling at the corner of her lips.

Riley’s mouth opened, struggling to form words, but only a rasp of air escaped.

“You’re not dead yet,” the old woman said, tilting her head in disappointment, her voice low and cold. “I’ll keep stabbing you until you die. I’ll kill you today. Die!”

With a sudden jerk, she pulled the blade from his chest. Blood welled up instantly, spilling down his torso. Without hesitation, she pressed her hand hard against his throat, her fingers digging mercilessly into his skin.

I’ll target your neck this time,” she hissed, her voice trembling with rage as she lifted the knife high above her head.

Just as she was about to strike, one of the officers lunged forward, shoving her hard to the side. She stumbled onto the floor, her frail body hitting the tiles with a dull thud. The knife clattered from her hand, skidding across the ground with a metallic scrape.

But before the officer could close in, she sprang back up. Her fingers wrapped around the handle once more, and in a swift motion, she was back on her feet. Moving behind Riley, she pressed the blade to his throat so firmly that a thin line of blood began to bead against his skin.

“Take one step closer,” she panted, her breath harsh and uneven, “and I’ll slice his throat open.”

Her eyes darted across the faces of the officers before her.

“Do you think I’ll fall for your stupid constitution? Do you think I’ll watch the murderer of my family jailed for a few years, only to be released later?”

She tightened her grip on the knife. “No. A life should be taken for a life. I would rather kill him right here with my own hands than watch him walk free after a prison sentence.”

“You need to calm down,” a policeman said. “You shouldn’t take the law into your own hands. Let the courts do their job. Please… gently put the knife down and surrender. You know you could face three years in prison for taking the law into your own hands, let alone killing someone. You’ve already stabbed him once, and if he dies… you will bear the full weight of your actions.”

The old woman’s eyes narrowed, a cold laugh escaping her lips. She moved the knife closer to Riley’s throat.

“It’s better to kill him here and spend a few years in prison,” she spat, “than to watch him imprisoned and released later.”

Riley’s face had turned pale, sweat forming on his forehead as his eyes darted between the old woman and the officers.

As the police officer stepped forward, the old woman moved the knife deeper into Riley’s wounded chest. He groaned, his body trembling as blood seeped through his shirt.

“Ah…” Riley gasped, his eyes fluttering shut as he began to lose consciousness. The old woman slid her arm under his neck, yanking his head back with a harsh twist.

“You will die today!”

Raising the knife once more, she pressed it hard into his neck, blood welling instantly from the wound.