Teddy was pleased to see everyone had guns, and that Sammy had let Gerard keep his. He wondered what would have happened if he had tried to take it away. Gerard wouldn’t have stood for it.
Mason Kimble was another story. He looked freaked out by the situation, which was actually perceptive on his part. Sammy Candelosi was not acting like a man who was taking a meeting, no matter how much he smiled and offered drinks. The conversation was stilted at best. Neither party had a business deal to discuss. Of course, Sammy knew there was no business deal, but Mason Kimble didn’t, and per Teddy’s instructions he was waiting for Sammy to bring it up.
The silence was excruciating.
Teddy figured it was time to get the party started. He took out the Ace Vargas gun, aimed it through the windowpane, and shot Slythe right between the eyes.
Pandemonium erupted.
As Slythe slumped to the table, everyone went for their guns. Gerard actually got off a shot before a hail of bullets cut him down. His gun spun away from him across the room.
Sammy Candelosi, late on the draw, pumped a round into Gerard as he fell. Mason’s lifeless body had already hit the floor, but Sammy and his goons were still firing at the corpses.
Under cover of the noise of their gunfire, Teddy smashed the glass in the window and shot Sammy Candelosi in the heart.
When the gunfire stopped, one goon realized his boss was down, and his yell alerted the others. They beat a quick exit, leaving the room empty but for the bodies.
Teddy tossed the Ace Vargas gun onto the floor between Mason Kimble and Gerard Cardigan.