“Sheez... Haven't you been listening? I already told you I can't remember my past. So you know as much as me.” Kat wanted to wrap herself into a fetal position and shield herself from the frustrating questions that had been haunting her the past year.
She wondered, “Why can't Kimberly leave me alone? Why does she have to keep hounding me? First, she wanted nothing to do with me, and now... Now I don't know. I'm so confused. I still can't believe she shot me!”
"Fine! Don't tell me," Kim snapped and started to leave the room with the metal device.
"Where are you going?" Brian asked.
Kim paused outside the door. "To get rid of this thing."
"Wouldn’t it be better to keep it?"
"No. I think it’s caused enough problems." She went to a restroom, flushed the tracking beacon, and returned.
He finished the stitches, cleaned Kat's left palm, put ointment on it, and wrapped the burn in gauze. He gave her a tetanus shot. "I'm finished," Brian said to Kim. "As long as infection doesn’t set in or she isn't allergic to anything I gave her, she should be fine with rest." He took out a clean blanket from a closet and covered Kat. "I’ve given her a sedative, so she’ll sleep for a few hours." Brian motioned for Kim to follow him out, and he shut the door behind them.
"You and she can stay overnight. But you’ll need to leave early tomorrow morning. The work crew will be here sometime around 9:00 A.M."
"What am I supposed to do? Take her to my place?" Kim couldn’t imagine having the strange woman in her apartment.
"It will probably be the safest. Hey! Don’t look at me that way." He pointed at her accusingly. "You’re the one who saved her from whatever." He dropped his hand. "Did you really think you could leave her here?"
"I guess I never thought that far ahead."
His expression softened as he asked, "Would you like something to eat, maybe coffee? I’m heading to the cafeteria."
"Yes, thank you. I'll have a ham sandwich and that lemon-lime soda Crite if they carry it."
"My old office is right through that door." He pointed. "You can stay there till morning. There’s a couch. A pillow and a blanket are in the closet, if you need to rest. I’ll be back within an hour to check on your friend. I’ll bring the sandwich and drink then."
"She’s not my friend," Kim insisted.
"Well, whoever." He started to leave.
"Brian, wait." She tenderly grabbed his elbow, and he turned. "Thanks,” she said. I didn’t know who else to turn to. Actually, I don't have anyone else to turn to. With what I do... You understand."
"I do and you’re welcome." He smirked. "A small payment to the large debt I owe you." Brian studied her tired face. "You look distraught. What happened today?"
Down the hall, a shadow stretched from a corner to listen in.
Kim didn’t know if she should tell him and if she could trust Brian. "I received a message from my mom."
He was sincere and happy for her. "She is fine then?"
Kim shook her head, holding back tears. "I discovered she died. She never abandoned me and my father. She was murdered."
"Murdered?" Brian couldn’t believe the news.
"Yes, and I'll find who did it." Her expression darkened as she fisted her right hand. "And they'll pay."
"How did you uncover this?" he asked.
"I remembered. I was there outside the office when the fire started, and I heard gun shots. I had repressed the memory." She glanced back at the room where Kat slept. "Something triggered it."
"I don’t know what to say." He put a gentle hand to her shoulder. "At least, you know she’s dead, and she didn’t abandon you. Murdered though... Like I said, I don’t know what to say."
"Listening to me is enough." She started for his office. "I need to get some rest. I’ve had a long day." Kim entered the room, closed the door behind her, and added loudly, "A very exhausting day."
Brian stared at the office for a moment and continued down the hall.
Tired, Kim glanced around. She saw a desk, bookshelves full of medical references, a tall cabinet, and a couch. She opened the cabinet, took the pillow and blanket, sat on the couch, and placed the PPK on a coffee table. Kim lay back and covered up. She reached up, turned off a lamp at her head, plunging the room into darkness. "What have I gotten myself into? Mom, why did you want me to save Katharine? And what am I suppose to save her from?" She rolled on her side, trying to sleep. "Did I make the right decision saving her? Or have I only caused myself more problems? I guess only time will tell."
Outside at the corner, the Rogue peeked around. "Is that a fact? Theresa Griffin was murdered. Hmm... It might be something interesting to investigate. But first thing is first..." It started down the hall. "You are getting sloppy Ms. Griffin. You left Pandora all by her lonesome. Huh? Who is this?" The Rogue detected someone approached and ducked back around the corner. "Who is he? I do not recognize him. I am always being interrupted. But I will wait." It ducked inside a supply closet. "For a chance alone with Pandora, I will wait."
* * *
The new Sanctum...
Within the makeshift Chamber...
Several analysts activated the equipment. The computers and large flat screen monitors powered up, casting the dark room in a blue glow. Shadows cast across the faces of the Council as they sat in chairs in the middle of the Chamber and stared at the monitors. Four security personnel set up a rectangular table before them.
Ms. Nona looked over reports a supervisor handed her. "Still no word on Argus,” Ms. Nona said. “And no word on the Factory. I fear they may have been compromised. There are reports across Noir of T-3s hitting different facilities of the Factory."
"So, do you believe the Factory has lost control and that the T-3s have taken over?" Mr. Morta asked.
"Yes," Ms. Nona replied.
Mr. Decuma started his report. "The second project, Cerberus, has been activated. It will be operational in two days."
Mr. Morta nodded.
A supervisor handed Ms. Nona another Hand Held Computer.
Ms. Nona relayed, "We have a problem. The tracking device we implanted in Pandora is no longer functioning."
"What about her bio-readings? Are we still detecting them?" Mr. Morta asked.
"Yes, it appears to be sleeping,” Ms. Nona said. “Pandora’s stats have improved, but are not in normal ranges."
"Should we send a team to the last place the beacon relayed so they may extract the project?" Mr. Decuma asked. "We cannot have it running rogue."
Mr. Morta said, "Pandora is far from rogue. Let her continue as a sub-project. We still may acquire valuable information from her bio-readings. Let us see what she does now that she is on her own."
He then thought, "Enjoy your freedom while you can. See how much of your history you can find. For I will not be able to hold back the Hands of the Fates."
"She? Her?" Mr. Decuma wondered. "Are these merely a slip of the tongue or has Mr. Morta forgotten the project’s place?" The younger male member paused in his thoughts then decided. "This development must be monitored. We cannot have a project influencing one of the Council. I will make sure of it."
Chapter Thirty
When Everything Is At Its Bleakest
10:43 P.M...
Hellenistic Sector, Residential Vicinage...
The cold room smelled antiseptic, and the lingering dust made Kat sneeze. "Am I still at Etna Toys?" she wondered, blinking her eyes open. "I thought Kimberly..."
She noticed she lay on a bed in a hospital room and that the lights were off. Her left shoulder and palm hurt. A window, on the far side of the room, looked out on a dark parking lot. Light from a street lamp trickled in.
Kat tried to move, but her arms and legs felt heavy. "I remember. I’m in Asclepius Hospital. The doctor gave me some injections." She tried moving again. "I feel so weak. Has one of them not worn off?" Kat saw that a blanket covered her up to her chin.
A little less groggy, she moved her wrists and real
ized it wasn’t the medicine that made her arms and legs feel heavy. "Did Kimberly or the doctor do this to me? Why have they..."
The door creaked open and interrupted her thoughts. A man in a white lab coat walked in backwards, holding a clipboard.
"Here’s Brian now," she thought.
He flipped a switch, and Kat squinted as the bright lights flickered on. Brian walked over to a drawer, opened it, removed a plastic package, laid it on a tray, and removed a scalpel from it. He turned with the instrument in hand, and the small blade glinted in the light.
Kat gasped. It wasn’t Brian who stood before her, but the Rogue, the blackguard of her nightmares. She forced herself to exhale. "Why didn’t my heart pound the bio-mecha warning? Is it the drugs?" Her breathing increased as she was powerless to save her own life. Kat looked to the door, but no help was there. "I could cry out, but who would come? Is anyone even out there?"
"Alone at last," the Rogue said as it walked to the left side of the bed.
She followed it with her eyes, and it smirked at her like a devilish cat.
"I thought you would be singing with the angels after I left Etna Toys. But here you are, Pandora. I guess we were meant to meet again. Lucky for me."
It didn’t wear its shades, and she could see its robotic eyes. Its eyes showed a hint of pleasure.
"You amaze me again, but this time it was not your skills that saved you, but Ms. Griffin's." The Rogue chuckled. "Well, saved you the second time." It made a gun with its hand and aimed it at her. "The first time, she did not really help you, did she?" It poked her wounded shoulder with the barrel of its imaginary gun.
Kat winced, too afraid to say anything.
"I am still not sure why the Chairman’s daughter is involved. What does she have to do with you?"
The Rogue stroked her cheek with the blunt side of the scalpel, and she shrunk from its touch.
"I can investigate the reason in the future. Once our game has come to an end, I will need something to do. Though, I will have to say I love the time we spend together." It scanned her. "I detect your tracking beacon has been disabled. Did you finally remove it?"
At first, Kat didn't understand what it meant, but then she remembered the small piece of metal Brian removed from her shoulder.
It studied her expression. "What? Did you not know? How do you think the Un-Men always found you?" The Rogue stroked her Tainted Rain stained hair. "How I keep finding you?"
"What do you want?" she asked. “Why are you always toying with me?”
"What do I want? You women, you both ask me the same thing. I am surprised you do not know. I want what I have always wanted. Your death by my hands." The Rogue glanced around the room and out the door’s small window. "And here we are all alone. And you without your gun. It is a shame. Not that a gun would have helped you. You have not been able to directly hit me in all our battles. Though, I have been impressed with them in the past." It grabbed her chin. "So how are we going to play this time?" It glanced at the scalpel it held and threw the instrument across the room, embedding the blade half way into the wall. "Let us not play doctor again."
She tried to move her right wrist and thought, "Why did it have to be now? Why did the Rogue have to find me like this?"
It removed the lab coat that covered its suit and unsheathed its Bowie. "This is much better." The Rogue placed the blade against her throat. "Pandora, you are the driving force that gives meaning to my existence."
Kat whimped as the blade slightly cut her. She forced herself to stare at the Rogue as a trickle of blood ran down her neck and she whispered, "And you're the bane of mine."
"So let us begin this final battle. Your move Pandora. What are you going to do? What attack or tactic will save you this time?"
Outside some distance away...
Brian ran down the hall, shouting, "Kim!"
Startled, Kim sat up, searching his office over the barrel of her gun. It took a few moments before she realized she was at the hospital. Brian burst into the room.
"We have a problem," he shouted almost out of breath.
Down the hall in the other room...
“Your move Pandora. What are you waiting for? Do something! Do not look at me with that helpless face of yours! Attack! Counter my move! Why are you not doing anything? Why have you given up?” Her submissiveness frustrated it. "Do you want to die?" The Rogue cut her neck a little deeper and a red trail of liquid flowed down its blade. "Fight me!"
"I can’t," she admitted. "I can’t."
"What?! No! You cannot deny me!" The Rogue threatened, "I will kill you if you will not fight me! I will bring a halt to our Endless Waltz."
Kat remained silent, knowing there was nothing she could do. Her eyes burned as trepidation boarded her brain and hijacked control. Fear soaked through every action she took, making it difficult to move even the slightest bit. Her head jerkily turned like a robot's, and Kat had to force herself to breathe.
"Fine then! I will gut you!" It threw back the blanket ready to cut her open and halted. "What is this?"
In Dr. Chiron’s office...
Kim stood, lowered the gun, and asked, "What problem?"
Brian was nearly out of breath. "One of the doctors... was over here with a nurse... and well, you can imagine why. Anyway... He found the woman you brought in. Come on." He started for the door. "My colleague remembered seeing her picture on one of the bounty shows they have on TV, and he turned her in. Noir Civil Police Force will be here any moment. You have to get her out of here."
Back in the other room...
"What is this?" the Rogue demanded as it looked down at Kat with her hands and feet in restraints. "Who did this? Ms. Griffin? ASCII!" it screamed, waving its Bowie around. "How are we to fight when you are like this? I knew your shoulder wound would be a problem, but I was going to go easy on you to make up for it." It motioned to the restraints with its open hand. "But this..." It thought a moment and said, "It is not like I put you in them." The Rogue raised the Bowie and paused. "But does that make it fair?"
She wondered, "What's the Rogue doing? Why not kill me and get it over with? Why does it always play these games?" She tried to muster some anger, but she couldn't find the strength to rebel against her fate. She had forfeited her life to the bane of her existence.
The Rogue paced the room. "What to do? What to do? I guess I will kill you." It walked over to her to cut her throat and looked into her frightened eyes. "ASCII! I cannot. This is so unfair. I have waited all this time to kill you in battle, and you had to go and get yourself tied up." The Rogue tapped the blade on its pale chin. "What to do?"
Confused, Kat watched it pace the room like a mad man. She looked to the door, hoping for help. "Where’s Kimberly? Did she abandon me? Or did she make a deal with the Rogue? Has she left me here to die?"
The Rogue had an idea and said, "I know. I will release you then we can fight."
It wondered, "But how do I do it so you do not attack me before I can get clear?" It detected two people approaching the room. "Not now! Our battle has not even started."
With her gun at the ready, Kim and Brian burst in.
"ASCII!" the Rogue cursed and turned its Bowie on them.
Kim opened fire on the Rogue twice, but it was too fast for her. It moved out of the way of the speeding projectiles as if they were wads of paper she had thrown at it.
The Rogue glanced at Kat. "Another day." It ran for the window, crashing through it. A few shards pinged to the floor as the majority of the glass fell outside.
Careful of the broken glass, Kim rushed to the window to fire at the Rogue again. "It’s gone!" She turned back as Brian started to release Kat.
Kat looked at Kim and accused, "You tied me up and left me alone."
Only her mother ever gave Kim that look, and it caught her off guard. “I...”
"She didn’t tie you up." Brian finished releasing her. "It was one of my colleagues. Now, both of you must leave. I’ll try to stall the police."
"The Rogue could've killed me," Kat thought as she wiped the blood from her neck. "Why didn’t it?"
Kim removed her black jacket and threw it to Kat. "Here put this on. You running around in your bra might draw some attention."
Kat, with Brian's help, pulled the jacket on and zipped it up.
"Here." He handed Kim a bottle of pills. "Have her take these as directed, and she needs to stay immobile for about two weeks. If there are any problems give me a call." He motioned to the wheelchair. "Now, get out."
She wheeled Kat out to her car, helped her in, rushed around to the other side, and started up the vehicle. Kim drove down the road, leaving the hospital and turned onto Healing Way. A few moments later, two N.C.P.F. cars passed the Corvette with their sirens blaring, and they headed into Asclepius Hospital.
Kat leaned her head on the passenger side window as she felt deeply betrayed by Kim and her own weak self. "I gave up," Kat thought. "What's wrong with me? Don't I want to live?" She looked to Kim. "Or have I embraced my fate? Do I believe there's no hope for me? Do I believe I'm destined to be alone and hunted to my last gasping breath?"
With growing impatience, Kim glanced at Kat as she wondered, "What have I gotten myself into? And what do I do now? Hades... This is a real mess."
Chapter Thirty-one
The Factory
11:48 P.M...
Hellenistic Sector, Trade Vicinage...
At the boundary of Hellenistic Sector...
Peters and Maxwell arrived at the gate leading into the Factory. No one manned the guardhouse, and the chain link gate stood open like it had been run over by a large truck. Their van’s diesel engine rattled as it idled, and smoke rolled from the vibrating muffler.
Unsure himself, Maxwell asked, "What do you think? Should we go in?"
"I don’t know. I haven’t raised anyone on the radio." Peters gravely stared at the dashboard as if the answer would appear. It didn't. "Where else can we go? If the T-3s have gone rogue, what we need to stop them is in there." He pointed to the buildings in the distance.
"I was afraid you were going to say that." Maxwell stared straight down the road as sweat speckled his forehead. "Until we know who's behind the T-3 attacks, there’s no one we can trust." He released the brake, slowly pressed his foot on the gas, and the van crept down the road toward two large concrete buildings.
Noir, City Shrouded By Darkness Page 17
