“But she’ll know who you are before you know who she is, so how are you supposed to hide and find her at the same time?”
He told her he and Pyotr played that game for centuries and knew how to find seemingly invisible people. “We will find her. It is nothing more than a matter of time.”
Rachel nodded and walked with him for a brief moment before she asked how old he was. Vladimir told her he didn’t want to speak about his past and prompted her to hurry along.
---*---
9:35 AM
Seattle, Washington
The bus Nick and Lauren rode to Seattle hardly concealed the roar of the engine and the collective cacophony from the traffic to and from the Emerald City. Nick felt somewhat relieved at the level of noise, simply because it eliminated any possibility of a conversation with Lauren. He felt his heart shake his entire being as it slammed into his chest and he worked to stave off tears as best he could. Lauren only stared vacantly out the window and paid him no mind.
Nick thought he needed to say something to her, some sort of apology, or at the very least a reminder that he wanted to support her as best as he could, but every word clung to his throat. Lauren hadn’t looked at him, said a word, looked at her cell phone, or cried since they left the apartment. She remained in a catatonic state until they arrived at their stop.
Bruce met them and after a brief greeting and introduction he walked with them the four blocks to the warehouse Mizuno told Nick to meet him at. The warehouse stored dozens of industrial shipping crates, one of which upon opening revealed a narrow staircase that led into a small safe house.
The room was only as big as the classroom Mizuno taught in during his time moonlighting as a teacher. The ceiling only stood nine feet high and made Nick feel claustrophobic. A few ceiling lights were erected and dangled on little more than a chain and a power cord. Two tables stood at the entrance to the hideout with boxes of passports, multiple forms of identification, credit cards of every color, cell phones, and stacks of currency from the Euro to the South African rand. And four cots stood in a row against the wall on the opposite side of the entrance.
Kyle sat at the end of one of the cots, his arm in a sling, while he tried his best to type as furiously as he could with one hand. Strom reclined in the furthest bed from Kyle but Nick couldn’t tell if he was awake. The remainder of the group stood or sat waiting for Mizuno’s direction. However Mizuno was not with the group.
Nick frowned and asked Bruce where Mizuno was, but before Bruce replied, Lauren recognized David and called out to him, “
David walked over to her and took her by the hand when he gave her his condolences. “”
“
He shook his head, “”
Lauren wiped a few tears from her eyes and asked why he was there. “
David scratched the back of his head and told her about the group. “
“
“
She nodded, “
David apologized for keeping his abilities from her, “
“
“
He walked down into the room while he adjusted his gloves and examined Lauren and Nick. His eyes flashed before he continued, “I’m sorry to interrupt you two, but there are more important matters that need tending to than your reunion.”
It took Lauren a moment to recall where she’d seen Mizuno before, but when she did she looked between him and David and asked, “
“Yes,” Mizuno answered for David, “Now please, in English from now on so I don’t have to translate everything you say for Nick.” He turned to Jian and Long and thanked them in Cantonese for their help. “
The twins nodded in understanding, received a sum of money from Mizuno, and took their leave.
“Bruce, David, Ke, and Alisa, you’re free to go as well. Your money is already in your bank accounts and you can expect to hear from me in about a week,” Mizuno told them. Ke and Alisa started for the door, though Bruce and David remained. Mizuno continued and addressed Mithra, Melanie, and Afifa, “Head back to the hotel, we’re leaving tomorrow for the next operation. Mithra, if you don’t mind please translate what I’ve said to Afifa and take them back.” Mithra nodded and walked the girls out while he explained the situation to Afifa in Arabic. Mizuno waited until they left before he asked Kyle how he felt. “I did my best to patch you up but obviously it’s going to take time for you to fully recover.”
Kyle stopped what he worked on and admitted that he wouldn’t mind some rest. “Yong and I could return to Seoul, unless you need him for the next operation that is. You know I can fully play my part from our place.”
Mizuno nodded and said Yong wasn’t needed. “Head home and rest and Yong,” he made eye contact with him, “Take care of Kyle, okay?”
Yong nodded dutifully and said it would be his pleasure. “Is there any chance we can fly home in first class seats?”
“If you get the hell out of here then I don’t care.”
Yong grinned and helped Kyle with his belongings. The boys were nearly out of the room when Yong stole a few stacks of South Korean won and stashed it away before Mizuno could take notice. He then rushed Kyle outside in hope that Mizuno might never realized the money was stolen.
Mizuno asked David why he lingered. “You’re not needed here anymore.”
“I’m going to hang around for Lauren.”
“Really?” Mizuno’s eyes gleamed, “That is so kind of you David. Are you going to be there for her like you were for your mutual friend Reine Forestier after her best friend overdosed on heroin? If I recall correctly, you two drank a little too much and one thing led to another and the next morning you woke up in her bed with her in your arms.”
Lauren frowned and asked David if it was true. “
David swore and told her it was a mistake, “”
“
David stopped. He rubbed his eyes and admitted to those incidents as well. “
“
“
“” Lauren quietly to leave.
Mizuno seconded the request and ordered him to leave. “I’ll let you know when I need you again, but please leave.”
David tried to get another word in but Lauren would not listen. She backed away and returned to Nick’s side. Nick remained still through the whole conversation and watched David finally relent and leave without another word.
Mizuno turned to Lauren and asked what she wanted out of him. “Normally I wouldn’t offer any assistance, but since Nick managed to escape with you wh
en he fled the hotel and because you now know about this organization I feel somewhat obligated to compensate you for what happened.”
“What do you mean?”
“If you’d like, I can arrange to send you back home or to your family in Quebec, though I imagine whichever you choose there will be a great deal of aftermath from your parents’ death. You’d no doubt inherit their home and wealth once you and a few lawyers sort through your parents’ will, but you could live a decent life either way. So let me ask again, what would you like me to do for you?”
Lauren let out a tense breath and said she wasn’t sure.
Mizuno rubbed his eyes and told her it was simple, “Make a decision. I wouldn’t even offer you one if Nick hadn’t made such a mess.”
“What are you talking about?” Lauren glanced at Nick and back to Mizuno. “Nick didn’t know someone was going to kill my parents, what could he have done?”
“He could have done what I asked and delayed your parents and would have been able to act as guard against the assassin who killed your mother and father. But he dawdled and chose to contact you first. Not to mention he should have shot the killer and saved your father’s life and spared you of becoming an orphan.”
“It wasn’t his fault though.”
Mizuno scowled and asked her how long she’d known Nick for. “You met him at six forty-one last night and all you know about that timid young man is he saved your life and is a part of this clandestine organization. What you don’t know is that I’ve spent the past four weeks training him to be able to handle that exact kind of hostile situation, should it ever occur.” He turned to Nick and asked why he failed.
Nick kept his eyes fixed on the floor and only offered an apology. “I…I don’t know what happened. I just froze. I was scared.”
Mizuno didn’t look away from him. “What did you think all of that training was all for Nick? I wouldn’t have even wasted my time if I knew you were going to choke at the last second and not only let the man you’ve wanted to apprehend kill more people, but escape as well.”
Bruce stepped forward and tried to get Mizuno to back off, but Mizuno sharply told him to stay out of the conversation. “Why the hell wouldn’t you just pull the trigger and kill him?” Mizuno waited a moment for Nick to respond, but the young man remained silent. “You could have killed him, avenged your brother and dozens of others, but you didn’t.”
“I was scared,” Nick admitted.
“Scared of what?” Mizuno barked. “What could he have done to you Nick? You were twenty feet away from him. He couldn’t shoot you, he couldn’t attack you without giving you sufficient time to defend yourself, and you could killed the charlatan and saved her father, so why didn’t you?”
Nick trembled where he stood and after a few reassuring breaths he admitted that he was afraid to kill someone. “I-I don’t want t-to kill anyone.” He confessed that he worried that if he had killed the charlatan that he worried he might become a murderer too.
Mizuno rolled his eyes and told Nick to stop stuttering. “I understand that you don’t want to become a murderer, but there is a difference in killing one man who will harm many and robbing an innocent man of life. If you really wanted to preserve life and keep blood off your own hands you would have killed the charlatan, because Nick, it’s your fault her dad is dead. In fact every single person he slays from now on is your fault because you were a coward and unable to do what was needed.” He waited for Nick to respond, but Nick remained quiet and braced himself for the rest of the scolding. Mizuno massaged the bridge of his nose and muttered that there were worse things he could do than kill someone. He turned back to Lauren and repeated his query, “What do you want to do? Would you like me to send you back to Paris, or to your relatives in Canada, or what?” He waited for nearly ten seconds before he added, “I’m perfectly fine with leaving you here to sort it out on your own, so if you want to go home or to your family, what’s left of it, you’d better speak up.”
Bruce finally intervened, “Mizuno, you need to go easy on them.”
“Why?” he snapped. “Because she’s just lost her mother and father and Nick’s completely incompetent?” Mizuno glowered at him and said it was a mistake to think that Nick held any potential at all.
“He made a mistake.”
“No,” Mizuno corrected him, “A mistake is an unintentional error. Nick let an assassin escape without even wounding him.” He glared at Nick, who continued to look away, and told him he screwed up.
“And what about us?” Bruce asked. “We did just as poorly as he did.”
“Hardly,” Mizuno objected. “We managed to save a dozen people despite the fact that we went into our mission without knowing about Jeremy Dalton or the bombs he’d placed throughout the building. And we walked out with minimal casualties and injuries.”
“And Nick didn’t know this other assassin would show up.”
Mizuno admitted that was true, but reminded him that Nick could have killed the charlatan and averted the entire crisis. “All it took was one shot Nick, that’s all, and you would have accomplished everything you wanted to when you joined this group.”
“He hasn’t ever done anything like this before Mizuno. He hasn’t even shot a living thing, let alone another person,” Bruce reminded him. “You need to be more understanding.”
“No I don’t,” he barked. “I’ve spent the past four weeks breaking him from being such a damn coward but apparently he isn’t willing to take the most necessary step forward. Nick,” he waited until he had Nick’s full attention and then asked, “What makes you think you could ever become anything more than your stepfather’s footstool if you aren’t willing to change?”
“Mizuno–”
“Everyone else has made an effort to move on from whatever hellhole or setback they originated from except for you Nick. Even Afifa, who only speaks Arabic and extremely rudimentary French, managed to step outside her agoraphobic comfort zone to join this group because she wants the money she earns to go back to help get her family out of the Middle East. Yong, who is an utterly inept waste of sperm and egg has managed to stop harassing women and he’s slowly starting to respect them. He’s still a thief and degenerate, but even he’s progressing. You aren’t Nick.” Mizuno waited for Nick to say something, anything, but Nick only remained despondent and silent. Mizuno finally let out a tense breath and told Nick he wasn’t going to help him anymore. “I’ve wasted far too much time trying to help you grow up.”
Nick finally looked at him and asked what he meant. “Y-You can’t–”
“Quit stuttering!” Mizuno yelled. Nick flinched as Mizuno approached and seized him by the jaw and forced him to look him in the eye. Mizuno told Nick he was done, “I helped you find the man who killed Victor and you’re the one who let him go. I tried to help you and I wanted you to grow up and take one damn shot but your inane beliefs caused you to falter. As far as I’m concerned, Lauren is your problem now considering you’re the one who failed her. You can figure out the next step on your own.”
Mizuno walked away and out of the hideout without a word to Bruce or Strom. Bruce apologized to Nick and Lauren and started out of the room as well.
Nick walked over to a wall and slid down to sit on the ground and tried his best to remain calm. He shook and felt lost. Lauren folded her arms across her chest and asked if he was alright. He wiped a few tears from his eyes and said he wasn’t sure. “I-I…He’s right.”
“What are you talking about?”
Nick rubbed his eyes and admitted that he could have shot and killed the charlatan. “I’ve never shot anyone, let alone killed someone, so…” he cried for a moment before he apologized to her and said he should have saved her dad.
“Nick,” Strom finally intervened, “Stop crying.”
Strom pulled himself up to sit on the edge of his cot in what appeared to be a great effort on his part. His right shoulder, left bicep, and both legs from the ankles up to his knees were in bandages
and Nick could tell that even a simple movement caused him pain. Strom struggled to get his glasses off of a book next to his cot, put them on, and introduced himself to Lauren. “You don’t need to worry about anything, as you can see I can’t even get out of this bed at the moment.”
Lauren moved behind Nick and asked how Nick knew him. “You do realize who that is, don’t you?”
Nick nodded and assured her he wouldn’t harm her. “He isn’t all that bad once you get to–”
“He’s a murderer Nick,” she blurted out. “He’s just as bad as the guy who killed my parents, if not worse.”
Strom admitted he was quite the villain but told her to relax, “I’m not a homicidal maniac.”
“But you–”
“I kill people for a living,” he stated. “Some people work for law firms or corporations as thieves, others peddle drugs, and some live off of welfare and don’t do a damn thing. I kill people for money and only for money. I don’t get a kick out of it, I don’t relish it, and I don’t kill because I enjoy it.” He took a breath and repeated that he wouldn’t hurt her. Lauren didn’t relax though. Strom continued, “I once told Nick about a girl I killed accidentally in London a few years ago. I had my target in sight but I missed and a little girl named Katie died because of my recklessness. After that I never took a shot if there was a chance, even in the slightest, that I might miss. I remember her each and every day and I don’t think I’ll ever forget her. I’m sorry she died and if there was ever a way for me to take that day back I wouldn’t hesitate to do so. But I remember her and that changed me enough to make me question what I do…which is why I’m here now.” He paused for a moment before he reiterated that he would not harm her.
Nick cleared his throat and asked why he was injured.
“Dalton blew out one of the floors of the building and I got pinned down. He stuck me in the shoulder and bicep and even managed to start strangling me before Mizuno found us and took a shot at him and got me out of there,” Strom reported.
Impact (Book 1): Regenesis Page 54
