by A. C. Heller
“What's your name?”
He fishes into the pocket of his black cargo pants and pulls out the card I saw before. He stares at it for a moment drops it onto the floor just inside the window. Lookin' up from the card I see that he's gone. Crossin' the room I pick up my gun that he knocked out of my hand and put it in its holster. Once I reach the card, I see that it is in fact the very same card I saw before, only now scrawled on the back is a name and number. Angelo De Luca.
Even his name is hot. Son of a bitch.
Chapter Eleven
Angelo
Fuck! I need to calm down!
I don't know what the fuck it is about this chick that makes my blood boil. I don't know if I wanted to tear her apart or fuck her right then and there. But that's the last time I'm goin' after her. We're even now. She helped me, I helped her. She almost took my head off, I returned the favor. I gotta give her credit though, the girl's good. She's fast, agile, and beautiful. I mean brave. Fuckin' shit.
After I make myself comfortable at my computer, I look over to see Aiden leanin' against the door frame starin' at me with an eyebrow raised.
“Having a bad night?”
“Nah man, I'm good.”
“Yeah?” Aiden asked
“Yup.”
“Right. You say that, but you stomped up here like someone took your toy at recess and then you went about slamming shit around in here. Gotta say man, looked a fuck of a lot like a temper tantrum to me.”
“Fuck off, Aiden.”
He laughs and pulls a chair up and takes a seat next to me. He quickly checks his phone and I know he's lookin' to see if he got a message from Dora. It's fucked up that she's in the same building as him but locked up in a box. Worst part is, I know it's killin' both of them to be apart. I get it, I do.
“So did you see her again?” Aiden questions
“Yup.”
“She kick your ass?”
“Almost.”
Aiden chuckles at my honesty and the memory of Smoke makes me smile in return. I wasn't lyin'. If I hadn’t damn near lost my shit in a rampage she probably would have kicked my ass. It was hard to tell, but I'm pretty sure I scared her. Can't say I'm surprised, I'm fucked up. I don't have a temper, I got fuckin' issues. I get mad, everything goes black, people die, it ain't right.
“Is she gonna call?”
I shake my head no because I know she ain't comin'. She made herself clear and for the few minutes I got to see her ice blue eyes, I saw hard in them. Can't say I'm surprised. Someone who looks like her havin' skills like her and killin' people? She has to have a fucked up past to choose that life. I'd know. I find myself wonderin' if it would even be possible to reach what lies beyond the hard in her eyes.
“Sucks man. We could have really used her.”
“She's got my number. Maybe we'll luck out. Shit's gettin' worse.”
Aiden nods because he saw the same reports that I did. The Sapient seem to be organizing somethin'. We haven't figured out what, but we do know they pulled all their men from several locations we'd been watching. The only reason they'd do that is if they were plannin' an attack and when they do it's gonna fuckin' hurt. We just gotta be ready.
“So now that you got a better look at her, what's she look like man?”
“Long brown hair, ice blue eyes, slim, toned, bout' five sixish.”
Aiden's face blanks for a moment before he shakes his head.
“Sound familiar?
“Kinda sounds like... nah. Forget it man.”
Shrugging one shoulder I open up the file that reads Smoke and add the few details to it. Bringing up the database on my computer I add the same details in the image simulator and set it to run. It usually takes a few minutes, but the image it comes up with is never very far off.
“Think that's gonna help?” Aiden asks.
“Can't hurt, right? Figure maybe they can assign someone else to her. But I can't imagine they'd do any better. I mean c'mon, I'm such a likable guy.” Smirking at Aiden I laugh as he shakes his head and watches the progress bar on the simulator.
“Where's Takeo?”
“Took Chas out.”
“Date night, got it. How's your girl doin'?”
“Fuuuuuck man. It's terrible. If The Order doesn't answer me soon I'm gonna’ blow torch that fuckin' door off myself.”
My computer makes a noise and we both look over to see a pop up box that says Possible Match. Clicking the mouse several times while navigating the simulator, the simulated image pops up and I hear Aiden suck in a breath. Next to the photo there's a photo of a much younger girl. She can't be more than fifteen, but the resemblance is insane. Glancing over at Aiden, I now notice that he's standin'. Not only that, he looks like he's seen a ghost. He's whiter than usual and that's sayin' somethin'. On the right hand side of the screen there's a name. Maddix Ripley.
Holy. Fuckin'. Shit.
Aiden's not movin' and I'm pretty sure he ain't breathin' either. Slapping him hard on the back I step into his face and grab his shoulders.
“Talk to me brother.”
His eyes slide to mine, and then back to the picture, then back to me.
“She's.... alive.”
“Yeah, saw her twice. Know that.”
“Years...”
He kinda looks like he might pass out, so I pull up his chair and force him to sit. I watch as he scrubs his hands over his face repeatedly looking back at the picture.
“We gotta find her, Angelo”
“You want me too. I will.”
“No. We gotta find her.”
“Alright, we will.”
“Now,” Aiden demands.
“Now?”
“Right now.”
Aiden jumps to his feet and rushes out of my room. She ain't gonna be easy to find. I just scared the fuck out of her. She's probably long gone by now. When I finally meet up again with Aiden he's geared up and pulling on his boots.
“Aiden,” I start.
“Let's go.”
“Aiden!”
“What?” he shouts.
“Brother, it's gonna take time. She's never easy to find. And... I fucked up and almost rampaged on her earlier. She was scared, she's gone.”
I watch as it happens. Aiden's face shifts between understanding to anger and I know it's his love for me and his love for her fightin'. He lets his boots fall to the floor and he stands and looks me dead in my eyes.
“Find her.”
“You know I will.”
He nods and walks back towards his room and minutes later, even from here, I hear the door slam shut. Well fuck. So 'Smoke' is Aiden's long lost sister. Now that I know, I can't help but feel like an idiot. They do look alike, their hair is the same color and they have the same nose. But her eyes are nothing like Aiden's. I'm gonna find her. I told Aiden I would and I always keep my word. Searching through my gear, I find my stun gun and my tranquilizer gun. This time she's comin' with me and I don't give a fuck if she's conscious or not.
Chapter Twelve
Takeo
Even as a child I was larger than most but that did not stop me from perfecting the ability to hide in plain sight. As my corruption grew greater, the shadows manifested themselves consuming me and making me nearly invisible at night. This has changed. My beloved ensured I would no longer walk with the shadows. This is why nights like this are a lot more fucking difficult.
The Sapient facility is before me and I know I have to stick to the tree line for now. I have to admit, it's rather strange that I've been out here for nearly two hours and there has been no activity; and I mean none. No lights turning on and off, no patrols, nothing. Surveying the area one last time, I slowly make my way towards a darkened bay door. This is obviously where they would have their various shipments delivered, but it also seems to be the most accessible point of entry.
Once I reach the door, I push it up just enough to slide the tip of my boot under it. The door is locked and the small space it raised is all it's
willing to budge. Inwardly sighing at how unreliable most locks are, I crouch down and grasp the bottom of the door with both hands. With one heave the locking mechanism snaps under the force and the door slides open. There are very few doors that I cannot break through or down but this was child's play.
Once I take a step into the facility I can see that my suspicions were correct. There's no one around. The really strange thing is that no alarms sounded when I broke in. I was fully anticipating having to take out several Sapient and I have to admit I'm a little disappointed. The barracks are just past the loading docks and after taking a moment to look around I can tell that they must have cleared out in a hurry. There's quite a bit of personal items left around. Pictures, clothing, even some computers. The computers will be coming with me when I leave. Angelo and the rest of our tech team will be able to find any vital information they might contain.
As I'm turning towards the door of the barracks a metallic glimmer catches my eyes before it quickly disappears. Running from the room I watch as a person rounds the next corner. As is protocol, I chase after the unknown person. We do not leave enemies behind. We either kill them or capture them and this would be no different. When I'm lead into an office like area of the facility I'm left with no indication as to where the individual has gone. The room is silent. If it wasn't for the moonlight pouring through the large windows it would be pitch black. The building has no power, so there isn't even the hum of electricity.
The one thing I do sense is that the air in this room is sweet, which is much different than the others rooms, or any other Sapient facility. There is always a faint rancid and unforgettable scent that I can only relate to death. This tells me that whoever I am after must be wearing a fragrance of some sort. Time for a scare tactic. Bending at the waist, I lift a wheeled computer chair as if it weighs no more than a feather and hurl it at the adjacent wall. The chair smashes into pieces sending various parts sailing across the room. There it is. A small gasp sounds clearly through room and it's obviously female.
“Show yourself. If I have to come get you, you're not going to like the way I do it.”
She doesn't say a word, but I hear the distinctive sound of a magazine being loaded into a gun. One, then a second. Shit. Through the moonlit room I watch a small darkened figure rise quickly, arms raised and weapons pointed directly at me. It happens quickly, but she pulls both triggers just as I hit the floor. Fucking bitch. With my ass on the ground I kick out with both legs sending the wooden desks in front of me into each other. A nice sliding domino effect caused by the force behind my legs. She grunts in pain and I hear her weapons hit the ground. The slamming of the desks has stopped. When I gain my feet I can't help but smile as I watch her attempt to squirm her way out from behind the desks.
As I come closer, I pick up her two guns off of the ground and shove them into the waistband of my cargos. She lets out a little growl and tries even harder to free herself. Someone doesn't like her weapons being taken from her. What a shame. Now that I am within touching distance of her I finally make the connection. This is the infamous 'Smoke' I've heard so much about. She's not as bad ass as they made her seem. She missed me and I got her locked down after only a short confrontation. She's wearing sunglasses so I cannot see her eyes, but her face is hard and her body is stiff. She thinks I'm going to kill her. Lucky for her I do not fight dirty.
“What are you doing here?”
“Don't worry about it.”
“Oh, I'm quite worried about it. You see, this is my mark tonight. You shouldn't be here. So I'll ask you once more. What are you doing here?”
“So you're givin' me shit for being in a vacated Sapient facility because you're here doin' what? Twiddlin' your fuckin' thumbs? There ain't shit here.”
“I know why I am here. My question still remains, what are you doing here?”
“Lookin' for someone, okay? Obviously they ain't here. And if you didn't come after me, my ass would be long gone by now.”
“Good. Now we're getting somewhere. Now tell me why?” I demand.
“Why what?”
“Why are you looking for someone here?”
“Cause I got a bullet with their name on it,” she retorts.
“Vengeance. I see. I am not the man to stand in the way of a vendetta but I will give you some helpful advice. Whoever it is that you are looking for is gone. All of the facilities in the area have cleared out.”
She stares at me for several long moments before a look of disappointment crosses her face. It only lasts for a second before her steely resolve takes over again, but I caught it. The last I knew was that The Order wanted her to join our team, and I know Angelo has been searching for her. Going against my better judgment and damn near every rule we live by, I reach into my pocket and pull out one of our cards. The cards are usually very vague with only our names and contact numbers on them. But on the back of the card I scrawl out the address to our compound and hand it to her.
“What's this?”
“This is where you can find us when you are ready to join us.”
“I'm not joinin' you.”
“We shall see.”
Reaching forward I grasp the desk pinning her down, and pull it back, freeing her. She rubs her hip bones and extends both hands towards me with her palms up.
“I want my guns.”
I pull her weapons out of my waistband and hand each one back to her, and watch as she slides each one into their holsters. I've said all I have to say, so I simply turn on my heel and walk towards the exit of the room. As I reach the door she calls out to me just as I figured she would, but her question surprises me.
“Are you all... like me?”
“Elioud?”
She nods and waits for my response.
“Mostly, though some of us are Nephilim.”
I do not give her a chance to respond. Walking out of the room I head back to the barracks, collect the personal computers and leave the facility.
Dora
Dark tendrils cascade down my body shrouding me completely in darkness. I try to brush them off but there's no use, I know what's coming. A deep man’s voice cries out in excruciating pain and I realize I know that voice. That's Aiden. Oh god! What have I done!
I tumble out of my bed and onto the floor. Oh sweet Jesus it was just a dream. I'm wide awake now and my heart is still pounding in my chest. I would never willingly use my abilities. The Sapient used to try and convince me that they were a gift from god. They would say that the darkness only proved that God wanted me to cleanse the Earth of something. This seemed to be anything, or rather anyone that they didn’t agree with. I always knew the Sapient were the bad guys. And I know it was obvious considering they kept me locked away, but they just didn't feel right to me.
Aiden felt right. Actually, everyone here did. There was something so genuine and so real about these people that for the first time in my life I have hope. Not hope just for things concerning myself, but hope for them, too. Even if I was to never see any of them again, I would still hope that they had a happy life. My life has been cruel and full of pain and guilt. I see the way they look at me. They wish I hadn’t endured any of it. Why? Because they are good people. Good people do exist.
A laugh bubbles up from my throat and I can't stop it from sounding throughout my cell. It isn't as if I'd want to try. It’s happy laughter, something else I've never had before. Climbing to my feet I turn on the light and sit down at the desk where the laptop is. No one seems to be online, but looking at the clock I can see why. It's only two in the morning. It's been two weeks since Aiden told me he was going to get me out of here and I know he is just as frustrated as I am. Well, almost. He's not the one locked in a box. He said that The Order has yet to answer him. He also said that it was strange because they are usually quite quick with their responses.
Something catches my eyes on the computer screen. I look down and there is a flashing icon that I've never seen before. After clicking the icon a box pops
up and I can see myself on the screen. Someone is taping me? Waving my hand in front of the screen I notice for the first time that there is a little glass eye at the top of the laptop screen.
Another box pops up, but this one has a message.
C: Do not be afraid child. We are merely keeping an eye on you.
Dora: Who are you?
Watching the clock I realize that it's been ten minutes and this mysterious and slightly alarming person is not going to respond to me. I close the chat box still wondering who this 'C' person is and awkwardly close the laptop, careful not to look at the camera. That's just weird. I'm already locked in this cell that has cameras of its own. Why watch me through the computer?
When I turn away from the computer, I can't stop the scream that escapes my lips. Standing just inside the door of my cell is Damiano. He's scary on normal terms but turning around to see that he somehow silently got into my cell is a whole different level... Not to mention the weird computer thing. Are these people trying to scare me to death?
“How did you get in here?”
Damiano turns his body slightly and tilts his head towards the door. His longish white hair is free and at the tilt of his head I can see his entire face. He really is very handsome, even if it is in a broody scary-man kind of way. His size alone is intimidating to me but it's his eyes that get me. They're black now, but the last time I saw him they were a different color. It's his gaze that keeps me rooted in place. It's as if he's constantly assessing the situation, or worse, assessing me. He remains silent, just standing with his hands in his pockets and staring at me. After a few minutes of this I absolutely have to break the silence. It's freaking me out.
“What do you want, Damiano?”
“I wish to speak with you.”
“Oh...kay. Then perhaps you should speak?”
At my obvious sarcasm Damiano's ever hard face breaks and a smile spreads across his lips causing my heart to stutter in my chest. He really should do that more often, it suits him.
