Jack kept waiting. And lo and behold, an hour later a dark car arrived and parked, and out stepped Farrow. Jack focused his scope’s sight on him, just in case he read the flyer when the receptionist gave the letter to him. Hopefully, the bullet wouldn't splatter blood all over her if that happened. Lucky for her, Farrow grabbed his mail and made his way to the elevator bank, selected his floor, and vanished behind the elevator door. Jack returned his sight to the window.
A few minutes later, Farrow appeared in the doorway to the room and sat down in a reclining chair before picking up the letter.
Jack took aim, waiting. Farrow's mouth opened in shock, then his face contorted in disgust as he crumpled the paper, tossing it to the floor. Before he could get up, or even call his seedy bosses, Jack fired three rounds. The first broke the glass, the second lodged itself in Farrow's chest, and the last one sliced a hole in his throat, killing him within moments. Jack scooted back towards the hole in the warehouse’s ceiling, disassembling his weapon as he went before tossing everything back in his pack and jumping down the hole in the roof and sneaking into a back alley, slithering his way back through the city and towards the Russian Prospect. It would be dark before he got back home.
Or he would have arrived after sunset if the world hadn't suddenly gone black and burlap. "THE HELL IS THIS!?" Jack swung a fist around and managed to connect with the skull of a figure hidden in the darkness, garnering an epithet from the burlap flavored void. "WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE? ARE YOU SERIOUSLY TRYING TO MUG ME? SON OF A-" Jack ripped the bag off of his face and pulled his revolver out, aiming it at the chest of the guy trying to kidnap him. He flicked a small switch near the trigger and yelled, "ANSWER ME
"Wh-wh-whoa man... D-d-d-don't go pointing that thing where it doesn't belong," the man stuttered out, pulling a knife out of his shirt. Sadly, the poorer districts of the American Province were rather rough at night.
Jack gestured at the man’s chest with the barrel of the massive revolver, "Sir if you try to slash me with that, you're getting a load of grapeshot to the chest. There won't be enough of your heart left for God himself to save you unless he can grow you a new freaking heart within seconds,” Jack finished with a poisonous barb and stood resolutely now that he could see his enemy.
The man didn't seem to hear him and lunged at Jack, but before he got close enough to stab him the revolver in Jack's hand fired with a cacophonous roar, sending a load of shot directly into the thug's heart, as promised. But that didn't stop the tweaker’s corpse from managing to slash Jack's leg on the way down, opening a cut along his right calf.
Jack groaned with pain and muttered, “That's… That’s not good." He ran into an alleyway and up onto the shantytown roofs, pausing only to bandage the wound and stop the bleeding so he wouldn't leave a trail. At least Aerotec didn't keep genetic records or anything of the sort, otherwise, he'd be even more screwed. As it was, he was going to have to do all sorts of counter-surveillance now. He wouldn't make it back home before dawn, at the least...
Chapter 12
Valerie was pacing back and forth in the living room even though it was pitch black outside. Even Maria was awake and worried about Jack. Val said as she ran her hands through her hair and paced, worried beyond worry, “Stan, it’s been over 12 hours since he left, and he hasn’t called to say if something’s gone wrong. I’m worried.” Stan stood up and grabbed her hands roughly, trying to get her to calm down.
He held her hands in his and spoke calmly, yet sternly, “Listen to me Valerie. Listen to me. Jack is going to be okay, I am going to make sure of it. But until then, we have to be positive. Think happy thoughts. He is going to be fine, he is a rough man, he isn’t going to disappear without raising a whole bunch of hell. We have to believe in him.”
Maria tugged on Stan’s shirttail, so he let go of Val’s hands and picked Maria up in his arms.
“Is Uncle Jack gonna be okay Stani?” Maria said, her big doleful eyes wet with the possibility for tears, “Is he dead?”
Stan held her in his arms, petting her back as he hugged her, “No of course not milyy, Uncle Jack is going to be fine. Even if he did die, we would avenge him by fighting the good fight, no?”
Maria considered this for a moment, “How would we do that Papa Stan?”
Stan chuckled, and sat Maria in his lap, beckoning Val to sit on the couch. His voice waxed eloquent, “Let me tell you two a story. It is entirely true too! Have you ever heard of a woman named Mariya Oktyabrskaya? She was one of the first female tankers for the Soviet Union, this is true! See, Mariya had been waiting for news about her husband from the front when the Germans invaded, only to learn that he had been killed on duty as a tanker. Does Mrs. Oktyabrskaya sit back and mope and mourn? No! She saved up money and bought her own tank! How crazy is that? She went on to fight in the war as a tanker and killed many bad men,” Stan continued the story, giving Maria a figure to look up to, and distracting her and Val from Jack’s current plight.
A few minutes later, his phone buzzed against his leg, and he grabbed it, looking at the message upon the screen. “It’s Jack. I’ll go get him, he is mostly fine, just a cut to his leg. Do not worry Val, I will be back by dawn.” Stan sat Maria down, and left without a further word. Val and Maria were beset with worry once again an hour later.
…
Earlier...
Jack made his way across the rusty rooftops hoping that he wouldn’t catch tetanus if he tripped. He was trying to be slow and methodical, and he was trying not to panic most of all. He jumped off of the roofs and into an alleyway once again before finding himself at his old apartment, apparently abandoned. He forced his way in and immediately collapsed on the ratty mattress before pulling out his small medkit and beginning redressing his leg. He’d have to call Stan and Val soon if his phone even had enough battery to make a call. He didn’t want to risk it anyway. He’d fix his leg up, cover it with his pant leg, and walk back to the house, making sure he wasn’t followed.
Jack pulled out his phone and typed in the number for Stan’s cell, only to be greeted by static. Dammit… The hell is going on? Jack tried the number again, failed, and tried to send a message. ‘Stan, I am at my house. I’m wounded with a cut to the calf, and I’m pretty sure I’ve been followed, possibly by a drone. Can’t be certain. Be safe.’
Then the door handle rattled.
Jack pulled out his pistol, sliding another buckshot round into the lower barrel and aiming directly at the door. He cocked the hammer back but stayed quiet. The door slowly slid open, and a figure stood in the lonesome portal.
Jack spoke, his voice loud and authoritative in the dreary silence, “Whoever you are, state your name and your business. If you come a step closer, you’re dead. I’m not in the mood to be messing around.”
“My name is Culloch. Alexander Culloch. Erin Culloch’s brother, please, don’t shoot. I’m…. I’m not like my brother… Please, sir…” The man said, his voice quaking with fear. He had never had a gun leveled at him his entire life, much less in his own newly issued government home.
Jack stood up, very much confused. “Culloch? Erin Culloch’s brother? The hell are you, an Aerotec lapdog, doing in the slums, much less in my apartment of all places?” he inquired, the situation becoming more muddled as time went on.
“What? No, this is my apartment, Social Services told me to come here as soon as possible, since Aerotec doesn’t have a use for me they kicked me out when Erin died and I registered for a house and they-” Alexander was getting very excited and his words blurred together.
Jack shushed him and spake, “Let me get this straight Alexander. After your brother died, Aerotec kicked you out of the Inner City and you had to apply for housing?”
“Y-yes, sir. I’m sorry if I intruded, I must have the wrong apartment, it’s been hard without the company supporting me. I was looking for f-for apartment 12c.” He stuttered out.
Jack’s incredulity persisted, “Well I reckon they’ve assumed me dead or missi
ng. You’ve got the right place Mr. Culloch, but please, come sit down. See, this used to be my apartment before your brother took the flog to my back and nearly killed me. Name’s Jack Cabe.”
Alexander sat down across from Jack, staring at the massive revolver in his hands, then realizing something, “You’re Jack Cabe? Word at the mine is that you died like a month ago! You can’t be! I know my brother was terrible, but he was good at one thing: inflicting pain, and… I guess he would know when to stop to not kill someone... “
Jack scoffed, “Well actually it was because I had passed out from pain and blood loss, and he couldn’t get his sadistic enjoyment from whipping a sack of meat. Ever since… Well, I’ve been wandering around while my back heals up. Didn’t realize I was dead though.”
“So do you know about what happened to Erin?” Alex said, curious. He seemed to hate his brother just as much as anyone else.
“Well, I know he got shot by someone, pretty sure he died,” Jack responded, wondering if Alex could be used as an ally.
“Oh, he died alright Jack, dead as a doorknob. Word is, the new Resistance got him. I’m glad somebody is standing up to Aerotec at least.”
Jack sighed, realizing that Alex here was probably about as useful as Maria at the moment. “Yeah, at least someone is. Tell you what…” Jack grabbed a flyer out of his backpack and handed it to him, “...Personally, I hope they make a good go of it, really. But I can’t do much to help them y’know?”
Jack took on a more amicable air, hoping to set the bait, “But you just might be able to, being a former Aerotec family man. I found that flyer on the ground the other day, so I reckon you might be able to get more out of it than I can. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ll get out of your hair. I need to go back to my wife and kid, ‘stead of hanging around my old apartment looking for stuff. Little black-haired ragamuffin, probably drove her mom insane by now… Uh, good luck Mr. Culloch.”
Jack left out the door, sweating. He stashed his gun back in his bag. Clearly, Erin had been the smarter of the two brothers, and Alex had been the naive one. Jack felt his phone buzz against his leg and grabbed it to look at the message.
Luckily, it was Stan:
On my way now. Have you moved anywhere?
Jack sent his reply:
Yes, I just had a run-in with a most unexpected person: Alexander Culloch. I’ll be at the intersection of Donovan and Rex, and I’ll tell you all about it when you get here.
Stan replied, understandably confused:
I have many, many questions. But yes, I will see you soon.
Stan arrived a few minutes later, and Jack explained everything as they drove.
Chapter 13
Jack and Stan had been driving for about a minute when Stan stopped Jack in his tracks with the explanation, “Jack, you really expect me to believe that you just had a conversation with the brother of Erin Culloch? That is impossible, why haven’t we heard about this brother until now? You were followed, and you were tricked, and we need to verify this guy’s identity soon, otherwise, we could all very well be dead by sunset. You should be more careful abou-”
Stan was interrupted by a fusillade of gunfire, causing him to slam on the brakes and bring the car to a screeching halt. “OUT, NOW JACK!”
Jack and Stan jumped out of the car and made it behind the trunk just before it began to be pelted by bullets. Luckily, it was low enough to the ground and sturdy enough that they were mostly safe.
Stan spoke in the chaos, his voice barely below a shout, “Jack, I do not believe in coincidences, I think your friend Alex was a trap, sorry to break it to you.”
Jack cursed himself and pulled out his range attachment and stock, “Yeah, but I don’t think a guy like that would do something like this willingly. Regardless, he was a rat like his brother, so if he messages us, he’s getting a strongly worded response.” Jack popped his head up and fired off a few rounds at the people firing at them.
Stan stated the obvious about their situation while he fired, “Luckily Jack, we are close enough to an alley to run away. But we are not going back to the house right now. Not with an unknown group of armed individuals after us.” A bullet whizzed mere inches from his head.
“We could always head back to my house since it’s unlikely that anything Culloch said was true, if it even is Culloch. And if he is there… Well, we can kidnap him and force information out of him Stan," Jack chuckled grimly to himself.
Stan considered this for a split second and quickly agreed, “Yeah, you’re right. Either way, it can only get better or worse from here, and I would very much like some answers.”
“Let’s go then," Jack popped up and fired off a few shots while Stan ran into the alleyway, and he fired his last three rounds of nine before running himself.
The pair fled, dodging through back alleys and abandoned houses. More than once Jack had to fire a shot back as they ran when a thug would catch up with them, and he had certainly killed at least two and injured a few more.
His gun fired off with a loud bang and he spoke, “I think that’s the last of them, Stan, unless they have a whole army coming after us!” The black-clad thug tumbled to the ground behind them.
Stan huffed and finally remarked, his accent heavy now, “Yeah, well at least they do not have tank. I do not know how we would handle that. Luckily, we are almost there. Let us enter quietly, so they do not know where we went."
Jack and Stan came upon the door to Jack’s old apartment but decided against using it. Doors were too easy to booby trap. Jack had a window on his kitchen module, so they decided on using that instead. Jack and Stan slowly climbed into the apartment to the alarm of one Alexander Culloch, who didn’t recognize them for who they were.
“Please, Alvis! Don’t kill me, I told you everything he said…” Alex whimpered, curling into a ball on the floor, “Please, just let me see Allie and Eva again…”
Jack and Stan froze. They shared a concerned look, and after what seemed an eternity Jack spoke, "Alexander, we aren't here to kill you. Who in the blue blazes is Alvis?"
Alex just shuddered on the floor, his breath coming in heavy sobs. Stan tried to get Alex to speak now, "Mr. Culloch, I am friend. We are not going to kill you. My name is Morningstar, and yes, that is not my real name. But you can trust me and Jack."
"How can you trust me after I told Aerotec everything about you, Jack?" Alex whimpered, still earnestly thinking that he was going to die.
"Alex, I know you betrayed me, and I know you were sent here for me. But I am not going to quickly cast judgment, especially when you assumed that the two strangers in your home were here to kill you and aren't letting you see people I assume are your family. In fact, we are very much against that sort of thing," Jack assured him, and knelt over the prostrated man, “Alexander, tell us what’s going on, and we will do what we can to fix it.”
Stan put his hand on Jack’s shoulder and whispered into his ear, “Jack, are you sure about this, it could be trap…”
Jack shrugged, “Stan, I can’t stand the thought of innocents being hurt, much less as blackmail. I can get in and out of nearly anywhere like a ghost, especially if I have a team supporting me. Let me do this.”
Stan sighed heavily, “Jack, as much as I disagree with sending you out again, I know that you are stubborn. But please, come back home with me first.”
Below them, Alexander was listening intently. He was utterly confused, “What are you talking about, ‘getting in and out’? Have you killed someone? Who did you kill? What’s going on?”
Jack put his hand on the man’s shoulder. “Alex, right now you’re looking at the resistance. Yes, I’ve killed two people today, Darren Farrow and some thug that tried to mug me. I was also responsible for your older brother’s death.”
Alexander sat in stunned silence before speaking. “You guys are the real deal, huh? I’m glad they’re dead, even my brother. I know it sounds sociopathic, but… Well he deserved it. But I don’t know how you think you c
an possibly help me. After Erin died, Aerotec took my wife, Allie, and my daughter, Eva. I don’t know where they took them, except that it’s some Aerotec property in the Inner City. They… They told me that if I wanted them to live I had to do everything they said. Move in here, and if anyone entered come and confront them. So I did. I-I… I figured they were looking for someone, maybe even a resistance person… But I was talking to you and… I want to help, I really do, but I can’t put their lives at risk.” Now the dots were coming together, and both Jack and Stan agreed that this was as close to the truth they were going to be getting.
Stan spoke now, his big heart moved enough that he was willing to show mercy, “Alexander, listen. Give us all of the information you have that’s relevant to finding your family. We will find them, and we will save them. But I have one request: Do not tell Aerotec about any of this. If we leave here and we get ambushed again, I will personally come back here and slice your throat. I am a compassionate man, but that stops at betrayal. I, Jack, and the rest of the resistance will work dutifully to return your family to you, but you have to cooperate with us. If you do not have any information relevant to the investigation, then give us something we can use, locations of weapons staches, vehicles, people that need to die for their crimes, anything Alex. We will make use of it, trust me.”
Alex finally broke. He didn’t have any information about his family, but he knew some deep and dark Aerotec secrets for sure. “Okay then… Listen, if you want people to kill, you need to start with the head of the guard at the mine. He’s about as corrupt as corrupt gets, and that’s coming from a Culloch. Hookers, drugs, you name it, just about anything wrong with the workers of that sort can be traced back to him. You take him out, it’ll piss off his clients and his higher-ups in Aerotec, but it’s a drug-dealing pimp out of the game isn’t it? And if you can get his belongings, get into his office, there’s a secret prison….” Alexander began listing off the dirty laundry of the Aerotec mine, about the only thing he did know a good deal about.
Jack Cabe Page 5
