Grim Ambition

by Jennifer Reinfried

  “Well, if she were my bitch, I’d be worried, is all. It’s like, almost midnight.”

  Alex squeezed his fingers against his thighs. “Stop fucking talking. And don’t you dare refer to her like that again.”

  Nate straightened in his seat. “Yes, sir. Sorry, sir.”

  Less than ten minutes passed before Shawn’s front door opened and Emma stepped out. Alex straightened and moved closer to the window, peering at her actions through the glass. He and Nate watched as she turned back, Shawn stepping outside next to her. He felt a hot, burning sensation in the pit of his stomach as she wrapped her arms around the other man’s neck, pulling him into a close hug. Emma lingered, smiling widely, and had the audacity to rise on her toes and plant a soft kiss on Shawn’s cheek before turning and walking toward the gate.

  As she exited onto the sidewalk, gate closing behind her once more, she turned and walked toward her car, still grinning.

  “Pull up next to her.” Alex adjusted his glasses.

  “Is that wise, sir? She doesn’t know we’ve been watching. That will blow our cover.”

  “Do it. Now.”

  Nate did as he was told, and Alex rolled down his window as they stopped by Emma’s car.

  “Get in.” Alex’s voice was cold, reflecting the chill in his blood. She glanced up, face forming into first surprise then irritation.

  “What the hell?” she hissed.

  “Get in.”

  Emma glanced around the street, then hurried to the SUV and got inside, slamming the door behind her.

  “What the fuck are you doing?” she demanded.

  “The man’s blind. He didn’t see anything.”

  “He has friends. Ones that can see. And what, now you’re just leaving my car there? What the hell are you—”

  “You fuck him yet?” Alex stared into her eyes, searching for the slightest falter.

  Silence.

  “Answer me.”

  “I’ve been on this job two weeks.” Her voice was low and quiet, but harsh. “An infiltration like this takes months. Are you seriously going to tail me everywhere I go and potentially ruin everything I’m working for? Finding out who poisoned Vance? Trying to get information on who Grim is so we can take him down? All because you’re jealous of my target?”

  “I see you didn’t answer the question.”

  “No, Alex. No, I haven’t fucked him yet, okay?”

  “Good. And you better not. Now, I want you to contact Cassie instead. No more dates with this Shawn, and stay away from Jaxon, too. Take Cassie out for a drink, maybe ask her to—”

  “No.”

  Alex felt his stomach clench. “Excuse me?”

  “I have an in with Shawn. He’s been easier than any other target I’ve ever worked. I can have him melted in my hands in no time. I’m not changing this now. In a couple days, he and Jaxon—”

  Alex reached forward and grabbed Emma by the neck. He didn’t squeeze, but brought his face close to hers. “I am your superior. You will respect my orders.”

  Her eyes, wide and full of fear, stared back at him.

  “Do not disobey me.” Alex released his hold on her throat. “I care about you, but you know what happens when you make me jealous.”

  “You need to let me do my job. Vance will be furious if—”

  “Quiet, Emma. We have somewhere to be. Now act like an adult so we can—”

  “Are you joking? You know what? No. Fuck this. I want you to stay away from me, Alex. I never want to see your face again.”

  His lip curled at her words. She opened the door, then turned back to him.

  “You can do whatever it is you need to do tonight on your own. Follow me one more time, and I’m going to Vance, you prick.” Emma slammed the door and stalked away from the vehicle.

  “Want me to go after her, sir?”

  Alex watched her retreat, twisted around in his seat. “No, I...just give me a moment.”

  You went too far, and now look. Get her back. Now. He clenched his fists. “No. She’ll come back to me. Women are weak.”

  “Damn right they are.” Nate glanced up at him in the rearview mirror. “Give her some flowers, take her to dinner. She’ll come around.” The driver pulled out into traffic as Alex replayed her words in his mind.

  “Head to the drop off,” he commanded.

  She’ll come back to me.

  —-

  Shawn shut his front door behind Emma. Humming to himself, he walked around the familiar layout of his house, reaching the kitchen in a few strides. He gathered the wine glasses they had used, then hefted the bottle she’d brought over. Drank the whole thing, he thought with a smile.

  Emma’s laughter at his simple goofiness had kept his face warm the entire evening. He recalled how soft her lips had been when she’d kissed his cheek outside. I almost kissed her right there. I should have. Shawn’s mind wandered and fretted, slightly buzzed at the wine he’d consumed.

  Once the kitchen was clean, he stood by the stairs to the second floor. Instead of heading to bed, Shawn turned to the basement and descended the steps. He punched his code into the keypad on the wall, and listened as a hidden door slid open. Reaching forward, he felt the fabric of his Grim suit, trailing his fingertips along the padding that covered his joints, spine and vulnerable areas. He pulled his mask from storage and over his head. Activating the lenses, he pulled out his cell phone.

  When his vision cleared, he opened the photo album app and stared, as he had countless times before, at the photo of Emma that Cassie had sent him. The two women had taken it the other night, when they had all been out for drinks, giggling as they tried to take a perfect picture while tipsy. They’re getting along better than I expected. His gaze trailed along Emma’s wavy hair, her pink lips smiling as she posed for the photo, and came to rest on her eyes, blue and glittering in the light of the bar.

  He stared a moment longer, then put the phone on his workbench. Knowing he shouldn’t after drinking, Shawn pulled on the suit.

  Screw it. I won’t be able to sleep anyway. And I haven’t had any of those weird dark spots lately. If I don’t go out as Grim soon, Vance’s men might forget who wants them dead.

  Opening the cellar door, he saw the darkness of his backyard, framed with heavy woods. He stepped into the night and sprinted away from his house, the dark gray of his suit letting him blend into the blackness. No lights illuminated his home or the surrounding area. He flew into the trees, feet barely touching the ground.

  Shawn relished the lightness he felt inside from his time with Emma, from the wine, from the ability to simply see again. A misting rain had begun, but that did not deter him. He made his way downtown, careful to stay to back streets and alleys until the buildings were close enough to travel by rooftop. Exhilaration shot through him, and he couldn’t rid the grin from his face.

  As he searched for someone to help, he remembered how Emma smelled. I wish I had kissed her. I save all of my courage for my time as Grim, and none for my personal life. Way to go.

  After half an hour of scaling buildings and jumping from roof to roof, Shawn noticed a shady group of men outside of an expensive looking SUV. Hello, fuckers. What are you up to, hmm? He watched them talk for a few minutes, then they hopped into the vehicle and headed away from downtown. Keeping to the shadows, Shawn followed them.

  Moments later, he landed on top of a laundromat and stilled. He was in a questionable area of the city, and ahead of him, three large vehicles sat in a semi-circle pointing outward, exactly like the night of the weapons deal. A quick glance around told him no one waited outside, and he switched his view to infrared. There were four men in each car. What are they doing? What are they waiting for?

  Crouching down and inching forward, Shawn was considering creating a distraction when another vehicle pulled up beside the alley. His view showed only two men in this car; one driving, one in the backseat. Flipping back to regular vision, Shawn watched as Alex exited the SUV. Oh yeah. Best night ever.


  The man was on his cell phone, demanding that someone meet him at the drop-off.

  Good. The more the better. With the rain worsening, Shawn waited on the roof as an envelope exchanged hands, Alex handing it over to another man in one of the waiting vehicles. He spoke with the driver for a moment, then the car drove away. The second and third followed suit, until Alex stood alone with his SUV. As he was walking back toward his vehicle, Shawn pounced.

  He landed behind Alex and reached for him. The man must have seen movement in the reflection of the SUV, because he flinched to the side at the last minute, and Shawn’s punch broke through the vehicle’s window instead of Alex’s skull.

  A pistol was pointed at him in moments. Shawn feinted to the left, reaching out and snatching it out of Alex’s hands. The report of another gun shot through the air, but Shawn didn’t feel a thing as he turned on the driver of the SUV, sweeping his legs out from underneath.

  “Turn back, now!” Alex screamed.

  Shawn paused. Within moments, he was surrounded by other vehicles. A trap a trap a trap. He turned to run down the alley when a fifth vehicle approached. Stunned citizens exited the car, and he screamed at them to turn around and flee. Then all hell broke loose.

  Bullets zinged through the air, narrowly missing him as he bounded upward, leaping higher than a normal human, and grasping onto the windowsill of a building, using it as a hand hold. He instantly jumped upward again. He scaled the brick wall until he pulled himself onto the roof. Gunfire still sounded, and he saw tufts of smoke and debris shoot up alongside the building’s edge as he lay flat on his stomach.

  Shawn could hear Alex shouting orders to have the men get to the roof, to keep firing, and for the first time as Grim, Shawn felt panic burrow in his gut. The building was open on three sides, other roofs too far to leap to, and with the constant gunfire, they had him trapped. The only option he had was to leap across the alley to get away, but he’d for sure be shot at if he tried.

  Glass shattered below, and he knew they were in the building. It was a matter of moments before they stormed the roof and apprehended Shawn.

  Suddenly, the bullets stopped. He could hear Alex screaming, but he didn’t wait to hear what was being said. He jumped to his feet and, risking the fact that this, too, was a trap, flung himself across the alley. As he cut through the night air, he looked down, expecting to see the automatic weapons trained on him, but instead saw that Alex had ordered some of his men to take unfortunate witnesses hostage. He recognized one, and botched his landing on the other roof, stumbling to his knees. One of the men had Emma.

  —-

  Rancid breath washed over Emma, and she felt the muzzle of a gun pressed against her throat.

  “Are you fucking joking?” she screamed.

  “You’ve been infiltrating Cassie’s friends for weeks,” Alex murmured under his breath. “If you’ve met him, he’ll save you.” His eyes stayed focused on the building before them.

  “You tricked me. You said Vance wanted me here.”

  He glanced at her. “After your outburst in the car, what choice did I have?”

  “I told you I never wanted to see your face again. Vance will hear about this, about how you lied to get me caught up in this trap.”

  “Contact our employer, and you’ll be the one who’s punished. And trust me, Emma.” Alex grabbed her hair and pulled back. “You won’t enjoy it this time. Now play along like I told you.” He released his hold on her and stepped away, moving closer to the circle of men with weapons trained skyward.

  Struggling, Emma turned her eyes up to the rooftops just in time to see a dark figure leap from the building before them. The man holding her must have had his attention on Grim as well, and she felt his grip loosen. Emma wrenched free of his grasp and elbowed him in the nose, then took off running. A shudder tickled her spine as she ran, and for a brief moment, thought she’d feel the thud of a bullet in her back. They wouldn’t, they can’t, we’re on the same side. She rounded a corner, adrenaline fueling her forward. When rough hands grabbed her from behind, she screamed.

  “They’re coming after you,” a growling voice said as she was lifted off of her feet. Grim tossed her over his shoulder, turned, and darted into a side alley. Emma was breathless, terrified. The ride from the street, to a dumpster, up along a fire escape and onto the roof was jostling and painful.

  Grim lowered her to her feet and she instantly stumbled backward, away from the terrifying figure before her.

  “Get away.” Emma’s heart thudded.

  His head tilted to one side, sending goosebumps along her skin.

  “What were you doing there?” he demanded in his disguised voice.

  “What? I...I was driving home. I just wanted to go home.” He won’t believe you. Alex called you to the scene, said Vance ordered you there. He tricked you. He tried to trap Grim using you. How could you be so fucking stupid? She sat on the rooftop, eyes still glued to the superhero who was notorious for not only killing criminals, but for his yearning to take out anyone associated with Vance. Like me. I went back because I want to please Vance. I should have ignored Alex’s call after how he treated me, but I couldn’t. I went back for Vance. Never displease Vance. Her breaths came in quick gulps, and she scooted away from him, hands slipping along the rough roof slicked with rain.

  “I’m not going to hurt you.” He stepped up to her and crouched, sending another jolt of fear through her stomach. “You were in the wrong place at the wrong time.”

  “I...I didn’t know...” She stopped backing up.

  “You couldn’t have.” Grim stood and held out a hand, rain dripping from his gloved fingertips.

  Emma paused, still fearful, then reached up and let him pull her to her feet. Her clothes stuck to her body, wet and cold. Grim stared at her. She wrapped her arms around herself, wary.

  His growling voice sounded again. “Do you have somewhere to go? Someone you can stay with that you trust?”

  Her mind leapt to Isaac, but she dismissed the thought, the memory of him fleeing her place after spending the night still fresh in her mind. He hasn’t talked to me since. “Y-Yes. I think so.” Grim doesn’t suspect I’m with Alex and his men. I can just go home. But what if Alex...?

  “Good. Go there. Stay with them tonight.” Grim turned, facing the scene of the crime.

  “Wait.” What are you doing? “There’s too many. You’ll get killed.” Emma stepped forward, fear fading.

  “Please, miss, get to safety.” Grim sprinted across the roof and jumped off the building, disappearing over its edge.

  —-

  Although it pained him greatly, Shawn didn’t go after Alex again. Instead, he raced along the city blocks until he landed in front of a idling police car.

  “There’s a shootout at Burnside and First. The alley behind the Salvation Army. Go!”

  Turning, he sprinted away as fast as he could. A grin came to his lips at the sound of the car’s siren, until he realized they were approaching him. He risked a glance over his shoulder as he heard, “Stop, now. Or we will shoot.” With a groan of frustration, he pivoted and jumped over the car and ran in the other direction, ducking behind a building before the cops could turn their vehicle around.

  So much for being a trusted superhero, he thought bitterly. Save the city and still get chased by cops.

  He lost them easily and, ignoring his brain’s urgings to try and slaughter as many Vance employees as possible, turned and ran home. Jaxon’s right. I can’t just jump in blindly and get myself killed.

  Shawn reached home and slipped into his basement from the back. He had just locked up his suit when his doorbell rang. He froze. No way...

  Taking the basement stairs two at a time, he stopped just shy of his front door. Another trap...? He moved forward cautiously.

  “Who is it?”

  “It’s me. Emma.” He grinned in relief. Just the opposite. Shawn mussed his hair and squinted his eyes in an attempt to look as if he’d
been roused from sleep, then opened the door.

  “Shawn?” Emma stepped inside and hugged him.

  “Emma, what...what’s the matter? You’re soaked.”

  “I...I was...I was attacked, Shawn.”

  He feigned outrage. “What? Come here. Sit on the couch.” He shut the door behind her and locked it.

  “No, I’ll ruin it.”

  “Okay, upstairs then. To the bathroom.” Shawn held her close as they walked upstairs, feeling the tremors that shook her body.

  He loaned her a t-shirt and some sweatpants and let her dry off while he waited, sitting on the edge of his bed, listening to her move behind the closed door. When she finally came out, he rose to his feet quickly.

  “Emma, what happened?”

  He felt her come close and he reached out, touching her face.

  “I was driving home. There was something stopping traffic. I couldn’t turn around, I was blocked in by other drivers. I should have hopped the curb, but I didn’t know at the time there were people with guns, that they’d start shooting. I’m such an idiot.” She rested her face against his chest, still shaking slightly.

  “Shooting? At you?”

  “No, it was at Grim. The vigilante. I don’t know, I just...I panicked, got out of my car. They stopped shooting at Grim and grabbed me, a few others.”

  “How did you get away?” He stroked her damp hair, frizzy from the towel.

  “I fought. I thought they were going to shoot me, but I got away. I don’t know how. Then Grim took me.”

  “Took you?”

  “Got me to safety. He...he said the men were chasing me, and he took me away from them.” Shawn smiled against her hair. “I was so scared.” Her arms squeezed his torso in a tight embrace. “He told me to stay with someone I trusted. I...I’m sorry, I just ended up here. I didn’t mean to wake you.”

  “Hey, don’t be.” He tilted his head down toward her, completely focused not on her well-being but how close she was to him. “I’m here. I’ll keep you safe.”

  Chapter Fifteen

  Emma spent the next two weeks alternating between sketching portrait after portrait to calm her nerves, a couple awkward hang outs with Isaac, who refused to bring up the time in her bed, and fearing for her safety. Alex, however, never showed his face. Ever since the night of his trap for Grim, he had contacted her only for updates on her infiltration. Her mind finally at ease with one aspect of her life, she focused on Shawn, whom she’d seen often since spending the night at his house.