Explosive Dreams

by Hadena James

  My back was exposed and I felt vulnerable in this position. I stood and moved to the wall, leaning against it. This earned Gabriel more kudos. He moved the table so that I could sit with my back against the brick building. There was a lot of grumbling over that, but a flash of his Marshals’ badge stopped it pretty quickly.

  It didn’t take a genius to figure out why Gabriel was our team commander. He knew all the right and wrong buttons to push. Lucas and Xavier were my friends and went out of their way to accommodate my idiosyncrasies, but Gabriel went the extra step. He didn’t baby me, like Lucas or try to make me happy like Xavier. He just let me be and made it easier for me to be me.

  “Don’t I know you?” A woman in shorts two sizes too small and tank top three sizes too small walked over to us. She looked like someone had shoved a sunburnt hippo into clothing and flip-flops.

  “No,” Gabriel told her.

  “I’m sure I know you from somewhere, you both look real familiar. Do you live in Sedalia?” She pressed.

  “No,” Gabriel answered more curtly. “We don’t live in Sedalia, we’re out of towners, enjoying the fair and trying to rest for a few minutes.”

  “I’m real good with faces,” she started.

  “You do not know us,” I barked. “Now move along.”

  “You don’t gotta be a bitch,” the woman drew herself up, trying to make herself look intimidating. I giggled. She didn’t have a clue what we dealt with, if she thought she was scary, she was in for a surprise.

  “You don’t know us,” Gabriel took control again. “I suggest you return to your table and go back to eating or whatever you were doing.”

  “Is she famous or something?” The woman ignored his suggestion. “Are you her body guard?”

  “No,” I answered. “I am not famous. He is not my body guard. Now go.”

  “You’re awful mouthy. Let me tell ya something, bitch, being nice will get ya further in life than being a bitch.” Zen words out of the mouth of someone who looked like they belonged barefoot and pregnant in the house of someone who beat the shit out of them when he drank too much. I sighed.

  “You should go,” Gabriel warned her. His voice dropped to that low tone. I felt the calm descending upon me. Becoming me, the real me, inside the gates of the state fair was probably not the best idea on the planet. Being a sociopath, like I was, was akin to being a vampire or some other beast that lurked in the dark.

  “Not until she apologizes,” the woman told him.

  Gabriel turned to look at me. He smiled.

  “Do you honestly think you’re going to get an apology out of her?” He asked the woman. “It’s in your best interest to just go and enjoy the fair.”

  “No,” the woman turned her full attention to me. She slammed her hands down on the table. People turned to stare at us. “I want an apology bitch.”

  Gabriel shook his head and moved away from the table. I took my badge from my jeans and set it calmly on the table. I followed it with a set of handcuffs and a Taser.

  “First, my name is not ‘bitch,’ it’s US Marshal Aislinn Cain. Second, I will arrest you without probable cause and hold you for the next forty-eight hours. Third, when the holding period is over, I’ll have you remitted for a psychiatric evaluation. If they find you a danger to yourself or others, I’ll make sure you get locked up in some crappy institution, like the Fulton State Hospital for the Criminally Insane for the rest of your miserable life. And finally, I will Taser you if you come even an inch closer to me.”

  “Ah, you’re part of the death squad,” a man said, coming up behind the woman. “Come on Jeannie, let’s leave ‘em be, to enjoy their drinks. They’re probably working.”

  “I want an apology,” Jeannie whined.

  “Too bad,” I told her.

  “Jeannie,” the man said her name like he was pleading with her. Gabriel kept his distance. His hand was near the hem of his shirt, but he hadn’t actually reached for anything yet.

  “Federal cops,” Jeannie spit on the table. “Fat piggies getting fatter off the backs of hard working Americans.”

  “Is she drunk?” Gabriel asked.

  “She’s had a few beers,” the man admitted.

  “My partner really will Taser her,” Gabriel told him. “You should get her out of here.”

  “Fuckin’ cunt,” Jeannie spat on me. I lunged over the table. My badge skittered across the wooden surface. The Taser went in another direction. I could deal with a lot, but the “c” word was not one of them. Spitting was also bad. My hand went around her throat and I lifted her bulk an inch or two off the ground while squeezing.

  “I will not apologize. You will, when and if I allow you to breathe. I could rip your throat out with my bare hands and everyone would have to testify that you assaulted me first. Do you understand?” I dropped her.

  She wheezed and coughed. Gabriel stepped up next to her. He pulled out handcuffs and put the woman in them. She didn’t resist, which was good. I wiped the spit off my face with the sleeve of my shirt. Both guns were now fully exposed and I had the attention of every person there. They stared at me, their eyes wide and wild, unsure what to do. The male instinct was to come to the aid of the woman I had been choking, but it also told them not to mess with me.

  “You’re under arrest for assaulting a federal officer,” Gabriel told her. “You have the right to remain silent. I suggest that if you wish not to exercise that right, you offer Marshal Cain an apology. You’ll be remanded to the custody of the local police department. They will process you and Mirandize you.”

  “You don’t need to do that, we’ll take her home,” the man said.

  “If I let her go,” Gabriel said. “Do you promise to immediately leave the fairgrounds?”

  “Yes, sir,” the man said.

  “What about you?” Gabriel asked Jeannie. She had gained some of her composure back. She answered by spitting on him.

  “I am willing to bet this is not her first brush with the law,” I said, taking her from Gabriel. I took her to the ground, my knee planted in her back while I held one of her hands at a painful angle. She swore like a sailor and wriggled under me.

  “Jeannie, just stop,” the man looked desperate.

  “We’ll leave,” another man stepped forward.

  “I think not,” I told him. “Do not come any closer.”

  Gabriel was busy making a call for back up. It was more for the protection of the people that had begun to circle us than for our protection. I’d seen Gabriel in a fight, he could take any of these guys, probably more than one at a time.

  “Since you ain’t from around here, I’ll tell ya what’s going to happen,” a large burly man moved in closer.

  “Clive, let it be,” the man said.

  “Yeah, Clive, listen to your friend. He seems to have a good head on his shoulders.” I released Jeannie’s hand slightly, ready for an attack.

  Clive didn’t disappoint. He grabbed the base of my ponytail, pulling me off Jeannie. I retaliated by turning and using my favorite defensive move. My work boots slammed into his knee. There was a noise, but not the popping noise I was used to or the screaming that followed the dislocation of a knee. Clive lost his balance and still holding my hair, we both began to fall to the ground. I didn’t fight against his grip, I put all my weight into my elbow, slamming it into his cheek. He screamed then and let go. My head bounced off the concrete a moment later. For a moment, my vision threatened to go black.

  The screaming man was all that kept me from passing out. Jeannie suddenly stood over me, her hands were still cuffed behind her back. It took practice to stand with handcuffs on. I kicked out at her, catching her in the gut. The force caused her body to vibrate for a moment. She doubled over again, I struggled to get to my feet.

  Gabriel was being pinned by one guy while another moved in for a good solid blow to his face. Gabriel used the leverage offered by the guy holding him to pick up both feet and mule kick his attacker. The kick caused the guy holdi
ng him to stumble and they went to the ground in a heap with Gabriel on top. I turned my attention back to the woman in front of me.

  Using my forehead, I met her face to face, feeling the bridge of her nose break under the attack. Immediately, I crouched down and took her feet out from under her. Handcuffed she couldn’t catch herself. Her head crashed against the concrete and she didn’t move. Her chest heaved up and down. When she woke, she was going to have a hell of a headache.

  My eyes searched for the Taser, badge and handcuffs that had been on the table. They found an artificial limb, just the ankle and part of the calf was visible beneath Clive’s pant leg. I would have to remember that for later.

  Before I could find either, my body jerked. My knees gave out. The electricity coursing through me caused the muscles in my back to spasm hard enough I thought my spine would break. I had been Tasered before, but never at full strength. It was dangerous to say the least and only used in the most dire situations. I was the only one I knew that kept my Taser set all the way up. Someone was Tasering me with my own weapon. I face planted onto the concrete. I felt another tooth chip. Drool and blood leaked from my mouth as my body twitched.

  Chapter Nine

  The electricity caused me to flop like a fish out of water. It seemed to go on for ages. My heart skipped a beat, then another, then another. It felt like it was on the verge of giving out all together when it finally stopped. I lay there, unable to move as something large and heavy fell on me. The electricity resumed, but the current was much lower. My heart skipped another beat and my head was pounding.

  It wasn’t the weight that kept me from moving. My muscles felt weak and worthless. They twitched and jerked, unwilling to respond to the commands my brain was giving them. Seconds ticked by, each one slow and painful. I counted them, trying to get my heart rhythm back to normal and my diaphragm to fully inflate with air. I refused to die by my own Taser with some asshole on top of me.

  One hundred and sixteen seconds later, I managed to roll over. The guy on top of me rolled off and onto the floor. His hand made a hollow thudding noise. I stared at the roof of the building where we had been sipping our drinks quietly and watching the fairgoers pass. It was made of dark timbers that had grown darker with age and weather.

  “Ace?” Gabriel came into view.

  “Ugh,” I told him.

  “Perhaps you should turn your Taser down,” he suggested.

  “No,” I croaked out. I forced myself to sit up. The world spun. I closed my eyes, but it didn’t help.

  “You’re bleeding. You probably have a concussion.” Xavier’s voice cut through my brain, sending painful stabbing barbs deep into the soft tissue that was obviously damaged. “Nasty scalp laceration. You need a hospital.”

  “I need a minute,” I corrected.

  “You’re bleeding, a lot,” Xavier said again.

  “I have some to spare. It will clot in a minute or so.” I kept my eyes closed.

  “No way should you be sitting up or talking after taking a jolt like that,” someone I didn’t recognize said. “Do you know this Taser is on full power?”

  “She always keeps it on full power. Never know when you’ll need to fry a prairie dog or stop a pissed off psychopath,” Lucas’s voice answered for me. The world didn’t seem right. It wasn’t just my head. My heart was still doing an irregular dance in my chest.

  “Pull out the Taser wires,” I said. Someone, probably Xavier, yanked them out. “They continue to give a little juice even after the trigger stops being pulled.”

  “They aren’t supposed to,” Gabriel said.

  “They were,” I took a deep breath and held it.

  “If you are going to pass out, let us know, so we can catch you. You shouldn’t hit your head again,” Xavier said.

  “I am not going to pass out,” I let the air out of my lungs. “My heart might explode and my brain might implode, but I will not pass out.”

  “Feel better?” Gabriel’s voice was smiling. I smiled despite the condition I was in.

  “I think so, only, did I get my ass kicked?” I asked, the smile spreading wider.

  “No,” Gabriel said. “You took down two, I took down two. The rest just stood around unwilling to join in the melee.”

  “Oh good, I would hate to think some asshole in overalls kicked my ass. The Tasering thing felt like I got my ass kicked though,” I opened my eyes again. The world was out of focus and still felt like it was spinning. I closed them again, obviously not ready for whatever came next.

  “You sustained two and a half minutes of Tasering. It probably does feel like you got your ass kicked. And it was with your Taser.” Xavier said. “Any heart or lung problems?”

  “Yes,” I told him. “My heart is a little fluttery and my diaphragm does not feel like it is fully inflating. Also, my head hurts and I have vertigo.”

  “I can see your skull,” Xavier said.

  “Is it fractured?” I asked.

  “If it is, I can’t see that. There’s a lot of blood.” Xavier answered. “We really should get your scalp put back together and scan your skull.”

  “Interesting,” I said.

  “What’s interesting?” Gabriel asked.

  “The lights on the back of my eyelids,” I answered. “Xavier can patch the head wound.”

  “Uh, no,” Gabriel’s hands were suddenly on my shoulders. “You are getting a trip to the hospital and Xavier’s going with you.”

  “I hate hospitals. I refuse to stay overnight.” I told him.

  “We’ll see,” Gabriel’s voice was soft, hushed. I really wanted to look at him, but I was sure if I opened my eyes, I’d toss my cookies.

  “Give me your hand,” I said. I felt Gabriel’s fingers close around my hand.

  “You shouldn’t stand,” Xavier warned.

  “You are not picking me up,” I told him. Using Gabriel and Lucas, I leveraged myself to my feet with my eyes closed. Standing was much worse than sitting. I let them guide me to a gurney. I was strapped down and taken to the hospital.

  By the time they got around to examining my skull, I was so full of drugs, I didn’t care what they did to me. They could pluck out my eyeballs and attach them to my feet for all I cared. They’d given me migraine medication, vertigo medication, nausea medication, pain killers, and something with sodium and potassium in it to boost my electrolytes after being Tasered. I was high as a kite and felt terrible.

  “Well, the hairline fracture on the skull will heal,” the doctor told Xavier. “She should really rest and take it easy. We’ll keep her overnight...”

  “No, no, you will not. I will share a room with the doctor, but I will not be staying here.” I interrupted.

  “Ace, be reasonable,” Xavier said.

  “I am being reasonable. If I am going to die, I am going to die. Whether I do that here or somewhere not here is my choice. And I chose not here.” I opened my eyes. My vision was still blurry with spots in it. “Besides, I am supposed to sleep after getting a major concussion. When was the last time you had a good night’s rest in a hospital? Never. That’s when. Furthermore, I will be shoved into a room with someone who cannot leave their bed and will be vomiting into a bed pan or worse. They will want to chat and they will make noises, lots of noises. The nurses will make noises coming and going from the room. The doctors will make noises. I will be so stressed out from the constant activity that I will never relax. They will have to give me tons of sedatives and I still will not be able to sleep. Also, there is a very good chance that the person they shove me into a room with will be a serial killer, because that is the sort of luck I have. I am going home.”

  “We’ll give you a private room,” the doctor told me.

  “Can I keep my gun?” I asked.

  “Yes,” Xavier answered for him.

  “And a Taser?” I continued.

  “Yes,” the doctor sounded exasperated.

  “And a few knives?” I looked at them.

  “Fine,”
Xavier said.

  “No, you may have one knife and Lucas,” Gabriel came around the curtain. “He’ll need a bed.” He said to the doctor in the room.

  “Fine, one knife, a gun, a Taser and Lucas, I can live with that.” I answered.

  “No, Ace, you may have one knife. Lucas will be armed though,” Gabriel told me.

  “I liked Xavier’s deal better.” I huffed.

  “Don’t care,” Gabriel turned to talk to the doctor. “I’m guessing she can’t return to work tomorrow?”

  “No, I’d say not for a week or so,” the doctor answered.

  “You’ll stay here tonight, we’ll get you home tomorrow. Nyleena and Malachi can babysit you for a few days.” Gabriel said.

  “I’d rather be babysat by starving tigers.” I sighed.

  “It’s either that or you stay here for the entire week,” Gabriel informed me.

  “Malachi and Nyleena will be just fine as babysitters,” I gave in.

  “At least you’re out of the heat,” Xavier said.

  There was the proof that I had gotten my ass kicked. Basically, I had created the circumstances for it, after all, it was I that kept my Taser kicked up to 150,000 volts. However, I knew that both Malachi and I could handle 50,000 volts and keep going. We had tested it. The intermittent current lasting five seconds wasn’t enough to drop either of us. Malachi took more than I did, but not by much. Call me paranoid all you liked, if it didn’t drop me, it wasn’t going to drop a psychopathic serial killer either.

  I was out of the stake out of the fair, but I was also stuck at home for a week. This was entirely my fault, I should never have let the Taser get into the hands of some yokel, but it didn’t make me very happy. All the wounds I’d ever had weren’t enough to keep me from working, until now. I’d always been patched up and sent back into the field. Now, I had a skull fracture and they weren’t going to risk losing me because of it. Some part of me said I should have found that comforting. Instead, I found it annoying.