by C. A. Wilke
Concrete, steel and glass dominated the apartment. Few pieces of furniture decorated the area. Other than a few pieces of electronics, a couch and a small dinette set, the main livingroom was empty. To her left, though, Scarlett counted what looked like three large weapons lockers and wondered why someone might need that many firearms. She was surprised at the level of style. From the warehouse above, she expected more of a grungy, bachelor pad kind of place.
Neil stepped out of the elevator and moved toward a black leather couch in the middle of the main room. He removed his jacket, tossed it onto the sofa and held his arms out.
“Welcome home.”
Chapter 9
Escape
We are all prisoners, whether held by someone else or by our own destinies.
* * *
After just two weeks of isolation in Neil’s underground apartment, a realization struck Scarlett: She would never be safe. As much as she was starting to like him, and that it looked like he was starting to like her, she knew she would always be looking for another whiskey-breathed man in the shadows. Even worse, her family would never be safe. She could not live with that hanging over her head.
Scarlett watched Neil come and go at odd hours. His schedule was random and impossible to predict. Most of the time, he’d be gone for several hours, giving her plenty of time to get away. Once she figured that out, she knew what she had to do.
For fifteen minutes after he left, she sat on the couch facing the vidscreen with glazed eyes. Images and news clips flashed before her oblivious stare. Her mind thought of only her plan. Every minute that passed, her breath quickened a little.
When the clock finally ticked off the last minute, she dashed into her bedroom and retrieved the backpack she’d been living out of for the past month. Scarlett shoved her few belongings inside. From under her pillow, she grabbed the pistol Neil had left in case of emergency.
She made her way to the small elevator. Precious seconds dragged by in the tiny closet lift. The floor lurched to a halt and she waited. Listening for any sign of Neil’s approach, she heard only silence.
Scarlett moved through the offices and cubicles without a sound. At the door, she paused. This is it. No turning back.
She reached for the handle. The latch clicked and the door swung open. Instead of seeing the open expanse of the warehouse, she saw only Neil.
Her gaze moved up until their eyes locked. His jaw set and his eyes bored into her. “What do you think you are doing?” Neil’s flat voice showed no emotion.
She knew it was too late to lie; the backpack made her intentions clear. “I’m leaving.”
Neil seized her arm and shoved her back. “Like hell you are.”
Scarlett stumbled back a few feet. She righted herself and glared him. “I am.” She moved to sidestep her obstacle. He reached out for her arm again.
The moment his hand made contact with her bicep, she wrapped her own arm around and over his. Arms locked together, she swung around to shove him away.
But Neil moved too fast. He anticipated her attack and pulled her close. Pivoting around, he came up behind her. His flat palm slammed into the center of her back.
Air exploded from her lungs as she sailed over the nearest desk. The backpack flew from her shoulder and landed several feet away.
Scarlett climbed to her knees. Her eyes burned with rage. “Who do you think you are? My jailer?”
“Look, I made a promise to Cash to watch and protect you. But more than that, I have to make sure you don’t endanger his family... ever.”
She leaned on the desk and rose to her feet. “What the hell does that mean?”
“It means you stay where Universal Dynamics can’t get you. Means you stay here”
Scarlett chuckled and stepped over to pick up the backpack. “What are you going to do, tie me up?” She picked up the pack with a smile.
“I’d rather not.”
She’d figured out Neil’s profession shortly after meeting him. She knew he was little more than a highly-paid corporate thief and assassin. “And what if I don’t let you? Would you kill me?”
“If I have to.”
Her smile disappeared. “Try it.” Her hand made its way into the black bag and touched the cold metal inside.
Neil stepped into the room. The door closed behind him. His tone changed, becoming more relaxed and conversational. “Why were you leaving? Where were you going? What were you hoping to accomplish?”
His change in tone caught Scarlett off guard and his questions shredded her anger. “To end this. I’m tired of living in hiding. I can’t live like this for the rest of my life. And I don’t want to always be a danger to my family.”
Neil sat on the edge of the nearest desk. “But how... How were you going to end it?”
The question frightened Scarlett. In her heart, she knew the answer. She’d already done it once. She hoped she could do it again. If not, it would end one way or the other. “I’m going to kill Derrick Martins.”
“I’ll tell you what. If you can get past me and out that door, I’ll let you go.” The man smiled.
Scarlett’s eyes narrowed and she tilted her head. “Why?”
“Because,” Neil laughed. “if you can get past me then you can handle anything they throw at you.”
A deadly silence hung in the air. Her fingers flexed in the bag. The weapon’s textured grip comforted her. She gauged him through narrowed eyes. “Fine.”
Her fingers closed around the handle of the gun. She pulled it free of the bag in one smooth motion.
The weapon’s polished black metal glinted under the florescent lights. She stared down the side of the barrel at Neil. “Now, I’m going to walk out of here.”
A smile cracked the corner of his mouth. “Okay.”
Scarlett stepped to the side with the open backpack in one hand and the pistol in the other. Neil’s utter calm unnerved her. The weapon quivered in her hand. She stopped between Neil and the door.
His muscles looked completely relaxed. She knew he was not going to just let her walk away. Her eyes narrowed and she blinked.
Before her mind could register what was happening, Neil launched himself off the desk. His hands came up and tore the gun from her fingers with a sharp twist. Continuing his fluid motion, one hand shot to the back of her head.
Scarlett’s next breath caught in her chest. Neil’s fingers dug into the soft flesh of her neck. His other hand held the pistol under her chin. Fear of pushing Neil too far overcame her determination and she froze.
A bead of sweat trickled down her temple.
After a long moment, he lowered the gun and flung her back into the room. “Try again,” he said flatly.
She stumbled forward and crashed into another desk. Neil pressed a button on the side of the gun. The magazine fell into his other hand. “Oh, and next time, if you actually plan to shoot, take off the safety.”
Scarlett felt the heat rise to her face. She knew she had to confront him directly. I earned a blackbelt in less than five years, I can handle this.
The gun clanked onto the desk. She flung the backpack at her opponent launched herself at him.
Neil deflected the bag. He caught her fist and guided it away. The shift in direction threw Scarlett off balance.
He slammed his open palm into the center of her chest. She tumbled backward, over the desk and onto the floor. Scarlett struggled to breathe.
“Do you want to try again?”
Air came into her lungs in ragged and painful bursts. Words were beyond her. She raised her hand in surrender.
“Good. Now do you understand my dilemma? If I let you go, they will get you, and they will find out where you’ve been hiding. That puts Cash and his family in danger.”
She hated to admit he was right. She did not like it, but it made sense. “Then...” she coughed. She swallowed and tried to get a lungful of air. “Then what now?”
“You tell me.” Neil bent down and picked up the backpack. He pee
ked inside and tossed it to Scarlett.
“I don’t want to live here and I can’t stay in hiding forever,” she said, climbing to her unstable feet.
Neil laughed. “That’s good. I don’t want you living here forever.” He reloaded the weapon and held it out for her. “What makes you want to do this? What drives you? Think about that for a second, and then tell me what you want to do.”
Scarlett reached out and took the gun. The feel of the weapon’s weight and its pure killing potential, comforted her. It felt oddly natural.
She closed her eyes and images of Derrick, the accident at Universal Dynamics and her whiskey-breathed killer flashed through her mind. A tiny spark ignited in the void. She fed those images to the spark, turning it into a small flame.
In her mind she saw Derrick standing over the bloody corpses of her family. She saw the unmoving bodies of her niece and nephew and the tiny flame became a raging firestorm.
She opened her eyes and glared at Neil. “Teach me. Teach me to end this and keep my family safe.”
Chapter 10
Neil’s Mission
Time has a way of slowing down when our lives hang on a desperate need or hunger, like for revenge.
* * *
Scarlett rubbed her jaw. Neil’s last punch had knocked her to the floor again and was even more jarring than the one before. She could not figure out how he moved so fast and anticipated her best dodges and blocks.
“Ow.” Her tone was flat.
The last two weeks had been a blur of intense training and recovery. Beyond the physical pain, though, she had plenty of stress to release at her opponent. Asking Neil to turn her into a deadly killing machine resulted in her life being even less her own than before. Between the early, and sometimes random, waking hours and the simple physical abuse she was constantly on edge.
The connection between them had blossomed as well. They joked and talked more. Scarlett had even noticed more physical contact between them, intentional or not. She was even daring to think they could be friends, maybe even more.
Neil chuckled. “You still sure you want to do this?”
He asked that same question every time she made the slightest complaint. And every time he asked, it only solidified her resolve more. She was starting to think that was his intent.
One side of Scarlett’s mouth turned up in a breathless smile. “Please. I still think you hit like a girl.” Scarlett rolled backward and launched herself into a standing position. She landed, ready to block her opponent’s next attack.
Fifteen minutes passed as the two traded fast and unrelenting blows. Neil’s fists and elbows slammed into Scarlett’s hands and empty air. Scarlett’s fists met only air. When the timer sounded, Neil called them to a halt.
He dabbed a towel to his forehead. “Good. You’re getting better. I only made contact twice.”
Scarlett caught another towel Neil tossed to her. Her chest heaved and she struggled for a breath. “Twice is enough.”
“I thought you said I hit like a girl.”
“You do. It was just easier to avoid getting hit than to buy you a bottle of Midol for your girly little fist.”
Neil held his hands up and shook them. “Oooo.... Big talker. Let’s count how many times my girly hands pummel your jaw next time.”
She scoffed. “Psh... Next time, you won’t touch me. And, oh...shower’s mine.”
“We’ll see about that. Just hurry up and don’t use all the hot water.”
Scarlett strolled off with the towel draped over her head. “Or what?” She turned the corner before Neil could answer.
Her shower was quick and cold; she preferred it that way. She came out of her room, rubbing another towel against her stringy, wet hair to find Neil fussing with one of the weapons lockers. She grabbed a bottle of water from the kitchen. “We working on weapons today?”
“No. I have a job.” His eyes stayed focused on his guns.
Scarlett pulled the top on the bottle and squirted a long draught into her mouth. She looked over at the weapons locker. This was the first time she’d actually seen him open it. She didn’t even know what kinds of weapons were inside.
Her curiosity got the better of her and she walked over beside him. “A job? Okay. Need any help?”
“No. You’re still too green.”
She laughed. “Aw, c’mon... Nothin’ like a little OJT, right?”
Neil let the carriage on one of his weapons slide home and stopped. He turned to face her and looked right into her eyes. “Look. I get your enthusiasm and you’re learning faster than any of the Marines I used to train. But this job is down and dirty. I don’t have time for training or babysitting.”
Scarlett raised her hands defensively and stepped back. “No problem.”
He returned to checking over his weapons and started shoving several into a bag. “Good. I’ll be back in a few days. I have to trust you on this, so don’t go anywhere. Just keep to your workout regimen and practice schedule.”
A metallic reflection caught her eye, drawing her gaze from Neil to the weapons he was stuffing into the bag. Other than the small pistol previously owned by the man who had tried to kill her, she’d only ever seen guns on television and in the movies. Those weapons looked nothing like Neil’s.
The cabinet contained a rack with several firearms and a few empty slots. Many of the weapons looked like they could be rifles or pistols but were much sleeker in design. One pistol had a series of green LED lights. Etched into the metal next to the lights was the word “Charge.”
Another gun, maybe a rifle, looked like it was made of a single, solid piece of metal. The main body was a rectangular shape about two inches tall and ran from the tip of the muzzle to the empty magazine chamber. She could only describe its smooth surface as sexy. A small digital counter displayed double zeroes next to several other lights and buttons.
Neil held up his last weapon and looked it over. A large magazine inserted into the odd pistol’s back end. A small display on the side showed the level of charge as well as the number of rounds that were loaded. Scarlett’s jaw dropped when she saw that the gun held more than a hundred rounds.
She found it difficult to fathom the amount of firepower he packed into the bag. Sheer awe gripped her as she watched him fill the duffle.
Neil zipped the bag closed and locked the cabinet. “I’m going to get my shower real quick.” He walked away and called over his shoulder in a casual voice. “And don’t play with the guns.”
Scarlett headed to the computer, watching him from the corner of her eye. I would never play with the guns. When she heard the click of Neil’s door closing, she turned around. Looking at them, however... That I would do.
She unzipped the duffle and stared at its contents. On top of the other weapons sat the pistol he put in last. Its matte, charcoal grey surface was cool to the touch. The individual pieces of the weapons were angular with sharply rounding corners. At the back, where the magazine inserted, the handle became a loop. It looked like a rifle butt.
When she picked up the weapon, it was lighter than she expected. The weapon’s butt actually helped stabilize the gun against her forearm. On the right side was a small switch with three settings: safe, semi and auto.
Her amazement with the weapon only deepened with every centimeter she inspected. From the magazine size, it was clear the gun did not fire traditional lead bullets. She’d heard about charged plasma rounds but they were supposed to be just for the military. Even those she’d seen on television were much larger. The idea that something so small could manage full-auto energy shots astounded her.
“It’s called the XA-47 Wolverine.”
Scarlett yelped and jumped back a step. She turned to see Neil coming toward her dressed in a dark blue suit and adjusting his tie.
“Oh, I’m sorry. I wasn’t playing with it. I’ve just never seen anything like it.”
He reached over and took the weapon from her. “You wouldn’t. It’s custom.” Neil held th
e gun up for her to see. “Everything on this is custom made, including the ammunition. It holds one hundred forty-nine rounds and can send them all at a target in less than a minute.”
“Shit.”
He laughed. “Yeah. That’s why it’s my favorite. Well, that and the fact that the rounds are little more than slivers of nickel wrapped in a bit of the sun’s corona. It takes a lot to stop one of these.”
Scarlett stood with her mouth wide open. It seemed barely possible that this kind of weapon could exist. “That’s incredible.”
“Well, while it is my favorite, it is far from my most advanced piece. But we’ll save that for later. Right now I have to go.” Neil returned the Wolverine to the bag. “You should have plenty of food. This’ll be a bit of a break for you, but, like I said, keep up your workouts and training. I’ll be back as soon as I can finish this.”
“And if you don’t come back?” She wasn’t sure she really wanted to ask the question but she knew she had to. With his line of work, and the one she was training for, that was always a possibility.
He grabbed the duffle and headed for the elevator. “If I’m not back in a week, you grab whatever weapons and ammo you can carry. You call Cash and he’ll get you money. When he does, you go as far as you can, as fast as you can.”
He stepped onto the platform and reached for the switch. “You good?”
She nodded. Scarlett felt a strange emptiness at him leaving. The connection she felt to him was even stronger than she expected. Worry over his safety cut deep into her thoughts.
With a mental shake she shoved those thoughts down and buried them deep inside. The last thing she wanted was to put someone she cared about, even someone as skilled as Neil, in danger. “Yeah.”
“Good. Remember, three to four days tops.”
Neil pushed the button and the elevator lurched upward. Scarlett watched him rise up through the ceiling into the warehouse. She wasn’t sure what she was going to do next, but taking a break was not part of her plan.
