by Daniel North
Everyone looked to one another to see if someone was going to say something, then finally shook their heads.
“Good, lets get in positions. And don’t forget, play it safe, play it smart, and come back alive,” said Harris.
As soon as it was dark, we moved on the stadium. Everyone came at it from separate directions to reduce the chances of anyone spotting us. At the same time, everything had to be perfectly coordinated. We were severely outnumbered if something went wrong, but we could at least create the illusion of numbers by attacking simultaneously from different directions. That way, their force couldn’t concentrate on any one person, theoretically.
I tried to take deep breaths as I moved up the stairs to the main entrance. I was nervous. This could either go extremely well, or terribly wrong, and I was at the center of it either way. I also really hoped that nobody was over boasting about their skill. If any of Harris’s cops lied about how good they were, this plan would fall apart.
As I pushed the doors open, my eyes scanned every nook and cranny for signs of movement or the outline of a body. Nothing. The doors were unlocked, but not a single person was in sight. It looked like Craft and Harvie made sure nobody was going to tip off the ambush. They wanted me to lower my guard as much as possible before they struck.
I continued to walk into the lobby, and saw a television playing with on mute. A news reporter was talking on the screen with a picture of Hood bound to a chair in the corner. The caption under the reporter read, “BREAKING NEWS: VIGILANTE CAPTURED. POLICE TOLD TO STAY AWAY. WILL GREENMATTER INTERVENE?”
“Well, looks like they made their press release,” I muttered.
The baseball stadium wasn’t a layout I had memorized but seeing the blueprints earlier had jogged my memory. I came to see a couple games here when I first came to earth. I didn’t find baseball terrible, but it wasn’t a sport for me. Hotdogs though, that was a comfort food I could get behind. Made me wish the concession stands were open. I wouldn’t mind having a hotdog one last time.
I found the entrance to the ball diamond and walked through the tunnel to the field.
In the center of the ball diamond, was a small stage with Hood in the center of it, tied to a chair. A camera was pointed at him and a couple of the tower lights bathed the stage in light. Flanking the stage were two guards, each wearing body armour and wielding heavy automatic rifles. They watched me as I approached the stage.
“You made it!” I heard Craft say behind me.
I flinched.
I turned to see Craft at the railing over the tunnel exit above me.
“My name is Ethan-,” Craft began before I interrupted him.
“Craft,” I finished for him.
He looked a bit confused for a second at my interruption. “Yes, that’s right. It appears my reputation proceeds me,” he said. “Anyway, I’m glad you made it, and in such a timely matter. I only released the ransom tape to the press and hour ago,” he continued.
Right, he doesn’t know I was in on his meeting.
“What do you want?” I asked, playing dumb.
“We’ll you see, You’ve been making quite a mess of things since your arrival in that tight little suit of yours. You may not even know this vigilante, but Hood there, was so inspired by your actions, he put on a costume and started beating up-,” Craft said, then made finger quotations as he added, “-bad guys.” He then took out a cigar and lit it before continuing, “Now, many of my colleagues asked me to deal with you and Hood. Preferably, they want you dead, but I’ll give you a chance. I’ll release Hood to go help little old ladies cross the street once again, in exchange, you take off that mask and allow me to capture you. After that, you’ll swear allegiance to me, and work for me permanently.”
“And if I don’t?” I asked, continuing to play along.
The longer I kept Craft talking, the more time detective Harris and the others had to neutralize Craft’s army.
“Well, if you refuse, then I will simply have you and Hood killed right now. Granted, I’ll be disappointed at the loss of such a potentially valuable asset,” Craft said casually.
“You have my attention, but if I were to join you, I don’t want to be just another thug. I want to be a partner in your organization, someone important,” I countered.
Craft smiled with that large cigar in his mouth. “You’re a spirited one, I like that. Granted, you’re not in much of a position to bargain my dear, but if you were to prove your willingness to join me, then perhaps alternations to the deal could be made,” Craft said then rubbed his chin in thought. “Alright, if your serious about joining me, show me. I want you to kill Hood over there, live on television. Do that for me and you can be my second in command, privileged to all the freedoms and benefits the position entails,” He said.
Shit. I should have known it was going to go in that direction. I needed more time to stall, I needed Craft to keep talking.
“I’m waiting, Green Stuff. Or am I going to have to have Hood killed myself,” Craft taunted.
“Deal,” I said.
Craft’s eyebrows raised in surprise but lowered again, as an evil smile washing over his face. “Good,” he said, then pointed at one of the guards flanking the stage. “You give Green Stuff your knife, she’ll do this the old-fashioned way, with a good old throat slitting. It’s best to put on a show when you’re on television, after all,” Craft said.
I walked to the Guard and took his knife then walked onto the stage behind Hood.
Hood was an even bigger man than I thought. His arms looked like they were as thick as my legs. Sweat glistened over his exposed chest and made the light do interesting things over his chiseled abs. I wanted to touch him, to feel how hard this guy’s muscles were.
I needed to get out more. At this very inappropriate moment, I was starting to imagine what Hood looked like under that mask, and without that costume.
“Getting cold feet over there?” Craft asked.
I took a deep breath and place the knife against Hood’s throat. This was not part of Detective Harris’s plan.
Suddenly, I threw my hands out and willed the ground under the two guards flanking us to explode upwards.
The guards let out yelps of surprise and launched twenty feet into the air. They wind-milled their arms as they arched through the sky, then crashed back into the ground.
I then quickly slammed my hands onto the ground and pushed.
A circle of the stage around Hood and I, sheared off from the rest of the platform and fell to the ground. I grunted from the fall’s hard impact, but wasted no time making a dome of earth and bedrock form around us. I left a tiny hole at the top for air, and a bit of light.
From outside, I could hear multiple guns open fire upon my dome. Bullets pelted the dome, which sounded weird from the inside, like hail showering over the roof of a car.
My heart was racing, but I patiently waited for my eyes to adjust to the dim light of the dome. When I could see, I used the knife to cut Hood’s bonds to the chair. Hood slumped forward to the ground and I moved to catch him. Hood was a big guy, and I nearly got pinned underneath him trying to stop his fall, while also trying not to poke him with the knife. There wasn’t a lot of space in the little dome, so I had to straddle his legs to get the leverage needed to push him back against the chair.
I froze as I realized the position I was in, and who I it was in it with. I needed to touch him. I moved my hand from Hood’s shoulder and placed it on his chest, then gently moved it in over his ribs, feeling the muscles under his skin. My breath quickened and I could feel myself start to get warm between my legs. I grabbed the edges of Hood’s hood and pulled it down.
Hood had a strong square jaw, and supple lips, although his bottom lip was spit and covered in dried blood. There was a stubble over his face and a bruise on his cheek bone, but he was undeniably gorgeous. There was a black fabric mask around his eyes, giving him a bit of a Zorro look. He had jet black hair and it was cut short but sticking up in
some places. He had hood hair from wearing it up for a couple of days straight.
I placed my hand on his cheek and moved my thumb over his cheek bone, feeling the course stubble through the material of my suit.
Hood’s green eyes fluttered open and focused on my own. His hand came up and lightly grabbed the hand I had over his cheek. “It’s you, you came for me,” he said.
“I had too,” I said quietly. I was mesmerized by hoods eyes, even in the dim light, I could look into them forever.
Hood closed his eyes and kissed the inside of my wrist. “Thank you. I’ve wanted to meet you for a long time, but not like this. I’m sorry,” he said.
Another shower of bullet hail continued to pelt the outside of the dome.
I laughed. “Don’t be. It’s not the most ideal place to meet, but for the moment we’re safe. It’s a bit loud, but their guns can’t get us in here,” I said.
Hood looked around at the walls of the dome. “In that case, I’d like to do this,” Hood said, then put his hand behind my neck and pushed my lips to his.
My eyes went wide in surprise, but I eventually closed them and gave into the kiss. It was obviously a strange place to for a kiss and Hood was a complete stranger, but with the adrenaline of the situation and my attraction to this man, I wanted it.
Hood’s tongue brushed against my lips and I opened my mouth to allow him in, then slid my tongue under his own. I wanted to devour him. I felt Hood’s erection push his pants up against my crotch. I whimpered in arousal and started to rock my hips back and forth, rubbing him against me, feeling him. He broke the kiss and brought his lips to my neck. I moaned pushed my breasts against his chest as I arched my back.
A whistling noise sounded from outside, then suddenly everything was loud and painful. The dome shattered around us and the force of whatever hit it, sent me bouncing and tumbling hard across the ground.
Chapter 7
I blinked multiple times and groaned. That hurt. I pushed against what I thought was a wall, the ground, or maybe the ceiling. My body was having a difficult time trying to figure out where up was. Someone wrapped their arm around my waist and ushered me forward.
“Come on!” Hood shouted from beside me.
Okay, maybe making out with Hood during a firefight wasn’t the best decision I ever made, but in my defence, he started it.
As I managed to get my bearings, I could see Hood was steering me towards the tunnel leading out of the stadium, while keeping his body between me and the men shooting at us from the stands. He staggered, and almost pulled me to the ground with him, but I managed to push against him to prevent his fall.
We made it halfway into the tunnel before Hood took his arm from around me and used it to steady himself against the wall.
“I took a couple shots back there. The jacket’s armoured and should have caught them, but if one of them managed to penetrate, it’s going to complicate things,” Hood said.
I looked to the tunnel opening, making sure no-one was coming around the corner to gun us down. Satisfied we were safe for the moment, I checked Hood’s back.
There was one squished bullet stuck in the jacket, but as I looked for the second shot, I found a wet spot. Pulling my hand away, I could see that blood transferred to my glove.
“Your bleeding just above your hip, take off your jacket,” I said to Hood.
“There’s no time. We have to keep moving,” Hood said.
I focused on the opening of the tunnel and slapped my hands together.
Like crude blast doors, cement and rebar broke free of the walls and slammed closed over the entrance. The only light left in the room came from the electric lights spaced every meter or so down the tunnel.
“We have some time now. If I can see the bullet, I can get it out,” I said as I started to tug Hood’s jacket off his shoulder.
“Stop. We need a medical kit, we don’t have time for this,” Hood protested.
“Shut up and trust me. I am the medical kit,” I barked as I got the jacket off Hood.
Hood wasn’t wearing a shirt under the heavy jacket, and his back was… impressive.
I tried not to focus on Hood’s beautifully muscled back, and instead on the bleeding hole above his hip. I extended my hand and willed the bullet inside him to form into a perfect sphere, then had it float out of his wound.
Hood grunted in discomfort from the bullet’s movement but otherwise didn’t complain.
To prevent the bleeding and keep the wound covered, I cannibalized some of the fabric from Hood’s jacket lining and shaped it into a bandage. Pulling the elements I needed from my surroundings, I combined them to form a small amount of strong adhesive to hold the bandage in place. I didn’t have time to make more, but this would hold for now.
Hood looked over his shoulder at my handy work. “That was fast,” he said.
“Told you,” I said with a smile.
“My jack though,” He said frowning at missing fabric on his jacket.
“Make it out of here alive, and I’ll make you a new one,” I said, with a wink.
The chatter of gunfire continued to sound from different locations around the stadium.
“Come on. I have to get you out of here,” I said and tried to drag Hood down the tunnel.
“Who are they shooting at?” Hood asked, concerned.
“Our backup, but they won’t be around for much longer if I don’t get you out of here quickly,” I said, tugging on Hood’s arm.
“We can’t leave them,” Hood said.
“I’m not going to, but I can’t help them until I get you to safety. That’s the plan,” I said
Hood zipped up his jacket and put his hood back up, then said, “Fuck the plan.”
I huffed in frustration and said, “Hood your hurt. You’re a liability out there, and besides, if we’re going to help them, running out into the stadium again is a death sentence. We need to come in from the back, where there’s cover. Plus, I’m pretty sure they have rocket launchers, seeing that my dome blew up.”
Only Hood’s mouth was visible under that hood, but I could see his lips press tightly together. “I’m thankful you came to save me, but I became a hero to save lives, not to have people sacrifice them in my name. So, Like I said before, fuck the plan,” He said, then ran down the tunnel.
I gapped at Hood with my mouth open. I shook my head and muttered, “Stubborn ass,” then took after him. I was angry at Hood for throwing a wrench in Harris’s plan, but I had to admit his determination was a little sexy. Wounded and held captive for days, the guy was still going to try and save people.
We ran to the end of the tunnel and stopped just before going through the doors into the main hall. An exchange of gunfire could be heard on the other side.
Hood pushed the door open slowly and peaked into the hall.
“Shit, get down!” Hood hissed and slammed the door shut.
Bullets panged against the steel door. Most of them denting the metal but a few broke through and ricocheted off the tunnel wall.
I yelped and put my hand to my arm as something hot sliced it. I looked down to see a tear in my costume and a red cut on my arm above my elbow.
Hood immediately turned to examine my arm. “Sorry, that was my fault,” He said. “Looks like the bullet grazed you. Can you move it?” he asked in concern.
I flexed my arm a couple times, and said, “Yea, it stings, but it’s fine.”
“I kind of expected you to be bullet proof,” Hood said.
“Nope, I just good at staying out of their way. It was working until now,” I said.
“I got shot on my first night doing this. Maybe I should take lessons,” Hood said.
“I’m a great teacher,” I said cheekily. “Now move, this time I’m going through the door.”
I swung open the door and kept my eyes open.
A gunman jumped up from behind a concession counter and fired.
I swatted my hand, causing the steel door behind me to curl and ha
rden over and in front of me. Bullets pinged off the door. The moment the gunman’s rifle stopped, I stretched the door in an arch towards the gunman, like a giant metal ribbon.
The gunman’s eyes grew wide in disbelief as the metal ribbon wrapped around him, effectively turning him into a human sized burrito.
I looked around for my next potential target then spun and raised my hand when glass crunched to my left. A woman with piercings, short hair, and holding a gun, came up from behind a bullet riddled ATM. I was just about to have the ATM slam into her but recognized the woman.
“Michell,” I said.
“Greenmatter! Thank god. That guy had me pinned behind this thing until you came,” Lieutenant Michell said.
“Where are the others? Are they safe?” I asked, lowering my arm.
Gunfire sounded from somewhere in the stadium.
Michell looked in the direction of the noise, then back to me. “I doubt they’re safe in here. I saw Harris and Frost near the entrance, but I couldn’t join up with them,” she said.
Hood stepped out of the tunnel behind me.
“Wait, why is he still here?” Michell asked, pointing to Hood. “Harris said to get Hood out before coming back for us.”
“Harris, as in Anthony Harris?” Hood interrupted.
“Uhh, yea Detective Harris is who put this whole operation together,” Michell said.
I looked to Hood. There was a hard frown on the visible portion of his face.
“I need to get to him. He’s too old to be doing this kind of shit anymore,” Hood said angrily, then started to jog to the entrance.
“Wait, It’s still too heavy over there! We need to get the others before we go, we don’t have the manpower to push the entrance!” Michell called to Hood.
“They can’t stop me!” Hood shouted back and continued to the entrance.
“Hood, wait!” I shouted. Growling in frustration I turned to the lieutenant and said, “Michell, cover Hood and slow him down if you can. I’ll head the other way and get the others, then meet back with you.”
"Shit, okay, but make sure you don’t take your time, I doubt we’ll last long over there,” Michell said.
