#2 Shades of Gray: From Moscow, With Love
Page 72
Chapter Fifty-eight
Prelude to Book Three:
Cerberus Versus Pandora
11:55 P.M...
Hellenistic Sector, Cultural Vicinage...
Genesis Arboretum...
On the first level of the treehouse...
"Cerberus, why are you here?" Adam asked angrily. "Why have you come to my house?"
Stephanie answered, "I've been sent on a mission." She wore a different smiley face t-shirt; it had Xs for eyes, and its tongue hung out like a dead dog's.
"By whom?" he questioned.
"By the Council of course. Now..." Stephanie hit her fist into her own palm, and it smacked loudly. "Like I said, I need to complete my mission."
At hearing the dreaded name of the Council, Kat realized Stephanie wasn't a friend.
He questioned, "Why would the Council send you here? Why would they send you here after all these years?" Adam eyed Stephanie suspiciously and then questioned her, "Are you here to kill me?"
Katharine's view...
Stephanie laughs in a way that doesn't answer his question, and I consider if I'm wrong. Crap! She's after Mr. Greenhouse and not me!
I won't let her hurt him, not this gentle old man. I stand, looking for my backpack. I left my gun in it. The pack sets next to the stairs on the other side of her.
End Katharine's view...
Stephanie approached the table, and Adam stood and prepared to defend himself against her, so Stephanie laughed, rolling her eyes. "Mr. Greenhouse, I'm not here to kill you." She folded her arms, a little offended. "How could you say such a thing?" She motioned to Kat with her head. "I've been sent to terminate Pandora."
"Me?" Kat uttered.
"By all the sciences!" Adam exclaimed, "She's Pandora!"
Katharine's view...
I face Adam. He knew my name, and I'm not one of his organic-mechas, so...
My mind races, filling with possible answers. Does he have something to do with my project? Does he know my true identity?
End Katharine's view...
He glared at Kat as he said, "She can't be that foul project! No! Pandora was supposed to be iced!"
"I don't know about the iced part, but–" Stephanie glanced at the folder on the table and answered him, "–she's the one and only Pandora Project." She giggled like a school girl. "You mean you didn't know." She emphasized the next two words, "You... are... getting old, Mr. Greenhouse. How could you not recognize her?"
His demeanor darkened as he yelled, "You're Pandora!" He took a step toward Kat as his nostrils flared. "You dare enter my domain!" His eyes turned wild with rage. "My home!"
Confused and frightened, Kat took a step back. "I don't understand. Why are you so angry? You're the one who invited me here."
Adam gripped the cane and admitted, "I thought I knew your name when you came with the other sapling!" He took another step toward her.
Hopeful, Kat's eyes brightened and her fear vanished. "My name?" Her heart raced with apprehension. "Do you know my real name?"
He glanced at Stephanie then glared at Kat and raged, "I don't understand why the sapling tolerates you? Why does anyone tolerate you?"
Katharine's view...
I no longer see the grandfather figure I saw earlier. All I see is this angry man who's standing before me now.
I tell him, "Adam, you're scaring me." I look to Stephanie who holds her position, and Stephanie looks amused. I turn back to him and say, "Please tell me what's wrong? What has made you so angry?"
End Katharine's view...
With great animosity, he pointed the cane at Kat, and its silver tip glinted in the sunlight as if it were a sword and she was a dragon he would slay. "I should have remembered your name vile creature! Why didn't I? I have forgotten many things. Some because I wished it and others because of my diminished faculties, but I should have never forgotten you! And now this abomination stands before me! I should have never let you live this long! I should have destroyed you long ago!!"
Kat felt betrayed and heart broken. "What do you mean? Why would you say such things? Such hurtful things? What do you know?" she questioned.
Katharine's view...
Look how mad he is. I must have done something horrible to this gentle man to make him despise me. Look at the hatred in his eyes... it's like...
A resounding fear creeps up from the depths of my soul, and it's a fear that paralyzes my spirit and strangles my hope. It's like he knows who I am, and it sickens him. No, that isn't it. I search his hate-filled gaze as my next thought terrifies me. It's like he knows not who, but what I am.
End Katharine's view...
"Yes, I should have destroyed you!" Adam ignored her questions and charged faster than a man his age should have been capable of. He dropped his cane as his feet thundered across the wooden floor. Kat retreated a few steps backwards and out onto the balcony, but wasn't quick enough to escape his wrath. He yelled, "I must rip you out by your roots!" He seized her by the throat and bellowed, "You're a weed! A weed!"
Still holding the music box with her left, Kat grabbed his arm with her other hand.
Stephanie shouted, "Hey! I'm supposed to kill Pandora! She's my quarry! So lay off!!"
Adam ignored Stephanie as he yelled at Kat, "How dare you come to me. You're a vile wretched creature! You're a weed!" He squeezed, choking her as Kat dropped the music box and used both hands to try to pry his death grip from her neck.
Stephanie folded her arms and pouted like a child. "The Council sent me to kill her. I'm supposed to kill her." Throwing a tantrum, she kicked at the air. "Me... I want to kill Pandora."
Adam didn't hear Stephanie in the thralls of his rage and squeezed harder.
Kat had no luck prying his hands away. He was also stronger than he looked. She pulled her knees up to her chest and kicked with her feet. It did her no good and only made him even madder. He lifted her up and slammed her onto the balcony's railing, and the loose piece gave and fell to the ground. Her back hurt where he had slammed her, but she ignored the pain as she fought to survive. Kat started to lose consciousness.
Adam dangled her over the edge as he shouted at her, "Now the weed must die!" He dropped her.
Halfway down, Kat managed to grab a small root. It stopped her fall, but broke under her weight, and she fell, landing in the Koi pond. Water splashed up.
Stephanie looked over the balcony. "This isn't turning out how I imagined." She sulked. "Mr. Greenhouse ruined everything."
Below him, Kat's body surfaced face down as he glared at the pond then turned and headed for the stairs. It wasn't enough. He couldn't let this go, not again.
Stephanie followed behind him as she questioned, "Did you kill her?"
"No, but I will make sure of it this time."
"This isn't fair." She stomped her foot. "I came all the way here to kill her and you won't let me. Why are you doing this? I want to kill Pandora!"
"Let you?" He turned to Stephanie. "If you want to kill the weed, have at it. Be quick about it! Or I'll be the one to finish it!"
Less than a minute later...
Kat sucked in water and woke herself up, and she lifted her head and coughed. Dazed, she dragged herself out of the water to a patch of land not covered by lemon grass as she continued to cough and choke and after a few more minutes, she cleared her lungs. She crawled further up the bank. Kat panted unable to catch her breath, rubbed her throat, saw a shoe by her hand, and peered up; Stephanie stood before her.
"You..." Kat managed to say. "You were after me all along."
Stephanie ignored her statement, too upset with her. "Look what you did. You made Mr. Greenhouse go all lunatic on you, and now you're weakened. I was so hoping to fight you at your best, but no... You had to be all stupid and come to Mr. Greenhouse's home. I don't think you're even at fifty-five percent fighting capacity." She kicked Kat in the face, knocking her unc
onscious again, and the force of the kick sent Kat backwards into the water. Stephanie put her hand to her hip. "I guess we don't always get what we want."
The End-Next click here #3 Shades of Gray
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