“If I’m not back in ten minutes, you find the other stairwell and try to get downstairs.”
“Won’t they be up here by then?”
She was sharp. Good.
“Ten minutes should give you enough time to get to the other stairwell while they investigate what happened to this team,” I answered. “You wait longer than that, and it’s over. Got it?”
She nodded her head and set her jaw. If I didn’t come back she was as good as dead, but I didn’t want to tell her that. Untrained and unarmed, the cleaners would make short work of her.
I climbed over the edge of the railing.
“What are you doing?” Lucy asked. “Your heart rate just dropped, which means you’re about to attempt something ill-advised and reckless.”
“I’m dealing with the cleaners,” I said, quietly. “Which would be easier without you asking me questions.”
“It’s my job to ask you questions and cover your ass,” Lucy replied icily. “It’s also my job to inform you when you are making life-altering errors, like not fulfilling a Cartel contract or, oh, I don’t know, taking on a rescue who should have been a target.”
“You know the code,” I said, shifting over a few feet until I could see the cleaners creeping up the stairs. “And you know why I can’t break it.”
“This code is going to get you killed,” Lucy warned. “Whatever you’re considering doing, don’t. Fifty isn’t as spry as you think it is. You’re going to get hurt or break something and I’m not going to pick your ass up. I don’t leave the Farm for anyone—not even you.”
“Fifty is the new thirty, didn’t you hear?”
“Sounds like something a fifty-year old would say,” she scoffed. “Shit. Whatever you’re going to do, get it done. More cleaners just arrived. The Cartel hasn’t gotten the call, but when they do they will try and erase you.”
“Not today,” I said and leaped into the center of the stairwell.
FIVE
Searing pain shot up my arm as I leaped across the chasm and grabbed the railing behind the cleaners. I buried my blade in the neck of the closest cleaner. One of them managed to get a shot off, punching me in the side. I barely kept my grip. I leaped over the railing, drew my gun, and put two rounds in each of them. Unlike the cleaner, my aim was accurate—head and heart on each.
“Shit,” I grunted and felt the area. Soft tissue damage, maybe a bruised rib. The Polykev lining in my shirt and jacket prevented it from being worse. I was going to need to see the Nurse.
“What happened?” Lucy said, trying to mask the concern in her voice. “How bad is it?”
“Need to see the Nurse,” I said. “Minimal penetration, but there’s damage. They must have been using armor-piercing rounds. Shoulder is out of commission for a bit.”
“Good thing fifty is the new thirty.”
“Shut it,” I shot back. “There may be some internal bleeding too.”
“You diagnose that all on your own did you, Dr. McCoy?”
“Spare me the trekisms, give the Nurse a call, and tell her I’m on the way.”
“She’s not going to be happy you’re AWOL,” Lucy said after a pause. “Are you sure you want to go to her?”
“You have a better idea?”
“Yes, but you don’t want to hear it.”
“Because,” I said, groaning as I climbed the steps, “it involves erasing Ren.”
“Is that what we’re calling her now?” Lucy asked. “You should never name them, Huracan. That’s how you get attached. That’s how you get dead.”
“Too late. Call the Nurse.”
“Fine I’ll--” Lucy began.
“Don’t…”
“Make it so,” she finished. I could hear the smile. “Prepare for one pissed off Nurse.”
Jumping off the railing wasn’t one of my brighter ideas I reflected with each painful step. My shoulder joined in the pain chorus and began a banshee wail as the agony shot down my arm.
Fifty was the new thirty my ass.
“Ren,” I said, looking up the center of the stairwell “You there?”
She poked her head over the railing. “I’m here.”
“What did I tell you?”
“Not to look over the railing.”
“What are you doing now?”
“Looking over the edge of the railing, but you called me.”
“Get down here, “ I growled pulling my blade out of the cleaner’s neck. “If you can’t follow a simple instruction, you’re going to end up like them. Do you understand?”
Ren looked down at the bodies of the cleaners and nodded slowly.
“Tell me you understand,” I said, wiping the blade on the cleaner’s jacket before sheathing it. “I want to hear it.”
“I understand,” she said. “Are you hurt?”
“Keep to the walls,” I said and started going downstairs. “Next time I give you an instruction, you follow it—period.”
“Are you sure you want to keep her?” Lucy asked. “She sounds stubborn and hard to control. On second thought, this sounds like a perfect match.”
“She had the presence of mind to hide when the killing started, and she has the look.”
“Oh god, no,” Lucy said with a groan. “Not the ‘look’, please tell me that isn’t why you saved her.”
“I saved her because no one deserves that kind of death.”
“Sentiment is a lethal flaw in this occupation,” Lucy replied. “Might be time to consider hanging up the holsters.”
“Has anyone mentioned how hilarious you are?” I asked, moving fast down the stairs despite the pain.
“Not lately, no.”
“Shocking, really,” I said. “Do you think you can give me an egress route?”
“Lobby is clear. Service entrance is your best option,” Lucy said as we reached the ground level. “I bet you were the child that showed up with strays every other day, weren’t you?”
“The one time I brought home a stray, they killed it in front of my eyes to teach me a lesson.”
“What the hell kind of lesson was that?”
I glanced over at Ren. “They wanted me to learn that only strength mattered. That the weak and defenseless deserve death,” I answered. “But it wasn’t the lesson I learned.”
“I’m hesitant to ask…what lesson did you learn?”
“Having strength matters only when you destroy those who would kill the weak and defenseless,” I said. “That is what strength was for.”
“Your childhood was truly damaged,” Lucy replied. “They made you one scary bastard.”
“They realized what they created too late,” I said, opening the service entrance door after making sure the lobby was empty. “Like Freddy said: If you gaze long enough into an abyss, the abyss will gaze back into you. I was their abyss.”
“And they blinked.”
SIX
We walked down Broadway and took a left on 95th Street heading to West End Avenue. I held on to Ren’s arm, preventing her from running. I sensed the urge to bolt emanating from her entire body.
“Take a deep breath,” I said, scanning the street. “Again.”
“They will be after us, we have to run.”
“No, we walk until we get to the subway,” I said keeping my grip tight. “Then we disappear.”
“The subway is in the opposite direction,” Ren said, looking behind us. “Why are we walking this way?”
“To make sure we haven’t grown a tail.”
It was one of the things I loved and hated about my city. The selective invisibility. If I was alone, I could dress like a homeless person, park on a corner, and no one would see me. I could tell if I had Cartel tracking me. I didn’t plan on rescuing Ren, which meant we would have to improvise a disguise. First part of losing a tail was walking.
Even at this early hour, the streets were humming with activity. If we ran, we’d stand out, and may as well carry a sign that read: shoot me now. If we walked, keeping pace with
the crowd around us, we’d blend in and disappear. It was counterintuitive as hell and required fighting the instinct to dash, but it worked.
“Lucy, how bad is it?” I asked, using the windows and mirrors to get a feel of the people around us.
“Oh, now you want to know how bad it is?”
“Yes, think you can manage a Sitrep without the lecture?”
“Would you like the long or short version?”
“Let’s start with the short,” I said, turning the corner onto West End Avenue. “Give it to me.”
“In a word, we are fucked.”
“Try not to sound so positive,” I answered. “Break it down for me.”
“The cleaners found the second team you dispatched on the stairs.”
“Guess those cleaners needed cleaners,” I said with a smile.
“I’m so pleased your imminent death has not diminished your cutting sense of humor,” Lucy said dryly. “There was another surveillance system in place on the premises. They have you taking your rescue.”
“Shit.”
“It has indeed hit the fan, the walls, the floor--”
“I get it,” I said, cutting her off. “They were watching him.”
“And you,” Lucy said. “Standard protocol will have them disable your SCAN in five minutes.”
I smiled. One of the reasons I had the Nurse implant my SCAN was to prevent The Cartel from tracking my movements. My SCAN device piggybacked off several frequencies and hopped around between them every few minutes. If they tried to track me, it would show I was in New York City, Milan, London, Osaka, and a few other cities simultaneously. Lucy had created a direct line which appeared to be under Cartel control, but was really independent. Lucy was fearsome when it came to tech.
“Once they try to shut me down and find out they can’t, they’ll unleash an operator,” I said, removing my phone and dropping it in a nearby sewer drain. “Let me know when they make the call.”
“I’m sure you’ll get a courtesy call,” Lucy said. “You were one of the best.”
“Were?”
“Right up until the moment when you suffered brain damage and decided to save that girl,” Lucy replied. “From that moment forward, you acquired a conscience and sealed our fate.”
“Be sure to get me tickets when you take your comedy act on the road,” I snapped. “Why not make your first stop Antarctica?”
“Forgive me for my extreme reaction to being blacklisted and hunted. When I checked the schedule this morning I didn’t see ‘break Cartel contract’. Must have missed that action item.”
“I get that you’re pissed,” I said quietly. “I didn’t have a choice.”
“Huracan, we always have a choice,” she replied softly with a sigh. “In any case what’s done is done. A fired bullet can’t be unfired.”
“An uttered word can’t be unsaid.”
“Well this certainly isn’t boring,” Lucy said over the tapping of keys. “Cleaners are almost done. They’re making the calls. Expect the temperature in the oven that is your life to go from hot to infernal.”
“Alternate surveillance means Degas at Command suspected something,” I mused as we approached Broadway again. “They must have seen something that required Viktor’s execution.”
“Something or someone,” Lucy replied. “Oh, fuck.”
“What?” I asked, my senses hyper-alert. “They have a fix on us?”
“Not yet, just intercepted the call,” Lucy answered. “Remember when you asked how bad it was?”
“Who is it?”
“Samael and his pack of degenerates.”
SEVEN
“Samael? Are you sure?”
This was going to get ugly fast. If we went underground, we could avoid the needless collateral damage Sam was known for. It wouldn’t be long before we had a mob of Cartel operators after us.
“He’s being his typical douchey self and leaking your contract to the rank and file.”
“That’s his method,” I said. “Sam doesn’t like getting his hands dirty.”
“Can your rescue shoot or is she just window dressing?” Lucy asked. “If she can’t help, she’s dead weight. Literally and figuratively.”
“You want me to assess that from looking?”
“I know she may have swayed you with her innocence, but if she was at Viktor’s she has a past,” Lucy said. “Ask her if she’s ever fired a gun.”
“Do you know how to shoot?” I asked Ren. “Have you ever fired a gun?”
“Not really, no,” Ren replied, looking away. “Why?”
“Not really, my ass, “ Lucy said. “Voice analysis tells me she’s lying. Modulations are all over the place. If she’s never held a weapon, I’ve never touched a keyboard. You tell Annie Oakley to cut the crap.”
“Don’t lie to me, Ren,” I said. “When did you last use a gun?”
Ren stared at me.
“Twice, a few years ago,” Ren answered after a pause. “Once to save my life and once to take a life.”
“Looks like basic skill, Lucy,” I said, scanning the street. “Above average resolve, though.”
“At least there’s that,” Lucy said. “If you can get her to the Farm, I can prepare her, and give her a fighting chance before the end.”
“Somehow I can’t see you as an instructor,” I said with a short chuckle. “Are you going soft?”
“Say that again and I’ll give you a nine-millimeter enema.”
“What happened to the ‘put two in her and be done’ method of rescue?”
“Are you going to listen to my sound advice?”
“No.”
“Then we turn our liabilities into assets,” Lucy snapped. “Before she gets us all killed.”
I reached into my jacket and opened the hidden pocket. I handed Ren my Beretta Neos. It was a small .22 caliber pistol I used as a backup. It didn’t have much stopping power and was a last ditch, ‘save my ass’ weapon. I used it more for shock value than doing actual damage.
“Think you can use that?” I said as she put it in her jacket pocket with a nod.
“Yes,” Ren answered quietly.
“Center mass, here and here,” I said pointing to my chest and stomach. “Don’t be fancy, and don’t miss.”
“Huracan? “ Lucy asked. “What are you doing? Tell me you didn’t give her a gun?”
“You just asked if she could shoot,” I said. “What happened to turning our liabilities into assets?”
“Are you actively trying to get shot?”
“I just saved her life.”
“A life you were tasked with ending.”
“And didn’t.”
“Which guarantees nothing. If you save a shark and jump into the water when it’s hungry, you’re still dinner.”
“I trust her.”
“You’re too old to be this naive, Huracan,” Lucy snapped. “Call me when she shoots you.”
“She won’t,” I said, looking into Ren’s eyes and knew.
“Famous last words,” Lucy replied. “I’ll have them engraved on your tombstone: ‘She won’t, but she did’.”
“I’ll get her to the Farm, but first I need the Nurse.”
“You have a more urgent situation, Samael has made the contract open. Most likely with Degas’s blessing.”
“You’re right,” I said. “The Nurse would be unhappy if I dragged Sam to her.”
“That’s putting it mildly,” Lucy answered. “In all the years I’ve known her, she was never keen on getting shot. I don’t suggest you start the trend now.”
Lucy had left the field and became my handler years ago. It wasn’t because she lacked ability. Rumor was she lost a partner because of a sloppy handler and left the field in disgust. She was determined not to let what happened to her, happen again. Paired operators, though rare, weren’t unheard of in The Cartel. Sometimes a contract called for a couple, or two operators working in tandem.
I didn’t know her operator name when she
was in the field. What I did know, after doing some digging of my own, is that she was fearless and feared. Having Lucy as my handler had saved my life too many times to mention. I trusted her implicitly, even if she was a colossal pain in my ass.
“I’m going to need to lose Sammy first.”
“Or he’s going to find you and shoot you both.”
“Will you miss me when I’m gone?” I asked. “Maybe shed a tear?”
“Of course,” Lucy replied. “I’ll grieve for you an entire seven seconds. If you let a hack like Sammy finish you, that’s all you deserve.”
“I didn’t know you cared.”
“Stop wasting time,” Lucy said. “The Nurse is at Washington Square.”
“We have a tail.”
“Get downtown and erase him or reverse the order,” Lucy answered. “Whatever you do, get moving.”
“Probably more than one,” I said scanning the street again. “Word got out fast.”
“Degas must be livid,” Lucy said. “You broke the contract.”
I crossed the street and headed into a Starbucks. If this tail was determined, he would follow at a distance, or hand us off to another operator. I needed to gauge how messy this would get.
“I’ll make the reparations.”
“Huracan,” Lucy started, “it’s beyond reparations at this point.”
“Head and heart?”
“Indeed,” Lucy said. “You took a target, killed cleaners, and walked away.”
“The alternative was killing them all.”
“You made them look foolish and incompetent.”
“Because they were.”
“No one likes to be reminded of their shortcomings,” Lucy replied. “You knew what the response would be. Degas doesn’t handle insults well, and this was the ultimate betrayal.”
“Options.”
“Kill or be killed,” Lucy said. “You take them out or they erase you, the girl, and me.”
“I can convince them to leave you out of this.”
Lucy laughed.
“What did you think?” she asked. “The second I kept handling you after you broke the contract—”
“Lucy, I’m—”
The Birth of Death Page 2
