April Foolishness: Execute Operation

Tropical Tiki was deserted. It usually was, at 10 AM on a Tuesday. Even the regulars wouldn’t start trickling in until 11, though technically they only opened at noon.

Sydney, the bartender, was adjusting the plastic flowers on her lei, steeling herself for the grim job of hosing out the men’s room, when a stranger pushed through bamboo curtains.

“Sorry, we’re closed,” she called to the man in black.

He ignored her and stepped up to the bar, placing a black briefcase on its seashell-covered top.

“Don’t open ’til noon,” she said, pointing to the colorful clock, which now read 10:01.

The man opened the briefcase, and pulled out a revolver, which he aimed at Sydney. She stepped backward in surprise.

“Whoa, hold on a minute, mister. I think you’ve got the wrong–”

A bullet sliced through Sydney’s chest, and she slumped to the floor.

“Gal,” she sighed. It was her last word.

The man in black put the revolver back into the briefcase, latched it shut, and strode out of the bar without a backward glance.

The curious koi fish in the tank behind the bar silently mouthed “oh oh oh,” as they floated down to observe the scene.

Sydney’s blood slowly drained from her body, adding a garish crimson smear to the pastel mosaic tiles below her.

Don’t miss a single story!

Follow along with my April Foolishness series of stories (in alphabetical order, of course) by checking here for previous posts, or sign up for my mailing list to get an entire week’s worth of stories sent to you all in one weekly update.

The post April Foolishness: Execute Operation appeared first on Buttontapper Press.