THE ASSASSIN - AU/CC/Adult - Epilogue - 11/6/16

[Double Trouble]

begonia9508: Lol, Michael does have a way with words... and with Maria.

Having her cooperation will make things go a little smoother.

Roswelllostcause: No, they sure don’t, and it’s gonna be a while before they do.

keepsmiling7: Lol, definitely not yet. That one’s gonna take some time.

Eva: Yep, it was a hard lesson to learn, but one she’ll never forget.

Domesticating Michael... that would be a story all its own, lol.

sarammlover: Lol, Bane wasn’t about to let anything happen to her. She had a major crush on him, but he’s a lot different than he was ten years ago. What little she knew about him then sure isn’t enough to balance against what she’s learning of the man he’s become. Well, so far there’s nothing to indicate he’s being tracked.

It’s Sunday!!!

Alien_Friend: That was tough for Maria and yeah, she now has to live with it. It’s only the start of a still long story.

Thanks!



Part 13

Bane laughed at the look on her face. “I guess I’m nothin’ like those little college boys you’re used to.”

Maria snorted. “You obviously haven’t watched me long enough.”

“Long enough to know you don’t really date. Doesn’t mean the boys out there don’t notice you.” He shot a sideways glance at her. “But then again, they’re just kids.”

She shivered at his words. True, he was 26, which made him older and more mature than those college boys. He was also an assassin which made him a lot of more bad-ass and dangerous as well.

“So you think a man your age would have the guts to ask me on a date even though Senator Halverson’s my uncle?”

“Blonde, IF I was the kinda guy who dated I wouldn’t give a shit what your uncle thinks. The great Senator Halverson doesn’t intimidate me and besides that, I wouldn’t be askin’ him out.”

“Right,” she believed him, “but you don’t date, right?”

“Dating means strings and I don’t do strings.”

That didn’t surprise her. “So just random sex.”

He shrugged. “What’s the point of getting involved?”

“I’ll tell you when I know.”

“The good senator doesn’t let you date, huh?”

“No, but it didn’t matter because no one wanted to date me anyway.” She crumpled the empty bag up and threw it in the backseat before resting her head against the window to ease the pain in her neck.

“I think you underestimate yourself.” He snorted and shifted to pull a small bottle of painkillers out of his pocket, popping the top off and shaking a couple into his palm. “Here, take these.”

“You’ve obviously never been in college where everyone knows who you are and what your family history is.” She looked at his hand and then reached out to take the offered painkillers. “Thanks.”

“No, I didn’t do the college thing and no one knows my family’s history.” Not even me, he thought.

Maria looked at him for moment, noticing the bitter tone in his voice. “I guess there are lots of different ways to be lonely,” she admitted and relaxed again.

“Never said a word about bein’ lonely, Blondie.” He shifted and rolled his shoulders as he checked the time. A couple more hours and they’d be there.

Deny it all you want, she thought. A life like his had to be lonely.

“What’s your uncle do when he’s not lyin’ through his teeth to the public?”

“He likes to fish.”

“He very good at it?” Maybe the senator kept a place out in the woods where he hid proof of his illegal activities. It wouldn’t be anything small of course, probably more like a lodge.

“I don’t know. I get seasick pretty quickly so I’ve never been out on the boat with him.”

He lifted an eyebrow at that. “The senator keeps a boat?”

“More like a yacht, but yeah.”

How had he managed to keep that quiet? “Where’s he keep it docked?”

“I think Boston.”

“Does he keep anything under assumed names?” He had to, it was the only thing that made sense.

“Could be. He has so many people working for him that I wouldn’t be surprised if he did things in their names.”

“You know the names of all his employees?” Maybe he could run a search on them and find the boat. Yacht, whatever.

“I know a lot of them but probably not all.”

“We’ll start getting them written down and if we can get to a computer I’ll do a search. If not... I’ll have to get the list to Valkyrie and let her do the search.”

“Valkyrie?” she asked with an amused snort.

He shot a glare at her. “You find something amusing about her name?”

“Her name’s just so... cliché.”

“Yeah, well, the people we work for tend to slap a codename on you when your past is a giant question mark and there’s no one out there who can identify you.”

“That’s why they call you Bane?”

He shrugged without answering.

“But you have a name now,” she turned her head towards him. “Your name is Michael. Michael Guerin.” The painkillers kicked in and she felt her brain soften in time with her stupid grin. “An’ in 2005 you had a little blonde girl crushing on you.”

He groaned at the goofy look on her face. The meds had definitely kicked in because she was practically boneless as she slouched into the seat. “Is that so?”

“I didn’t take the photos because I thought you were photogenic.” She rolled her eyes.

He chewed on that for a moment, trying to figure out if he’d been insulted. “Then why’d you take them?”

Maria grinned. “You were a rebel an’ you were the freakin’ most interesting boy I’d ever seen back then.”

“Yeah? So if I was interesting back then, I’ve gotta be even more so now, huh?”

“You definitely are a special mysterious man,” she mused drowsily, then frowned. “Dark. Dangerous.”

He lifted an eyebrow and looked at her. “Couldn’t be effective at my job if I wasn’t.”

“I suppose that’s true.”

He turned onto another highway, one that was older and less traveled. “Why aren’t you with some decent guy who does shit like carry your books and walk you to your front door?” She was the type, he was sure of it. “You can’t be that easy for your uncle to control.”

“Maybe I don’t want that kinda guy.” She really had no clue what kind she wanted. She hadn’t met him yet and maybe her life was too messed up for it anyway. “And what guy wants a girlfriend who’s haunted by ghosts of the past?”

“I wouldn’t know, but what I do know is you can’t really move forward until you know what’s behind you.” He shrugged one shoulder. “You know what you want and no one can fault you for that.”

She nodded. “You’ll help me find the truth? Our truth?”

“We’ll get the answers,” he said with certainty.

Maria looked out the window. The snow covered everything with a soft white layer. It looked so peaceful but she knew there wasn’t any peace for them. They were on the run from some nameless, faceless organization that wanted them dead. “I’m glad they set you on me first, Michael.”

He grunted. “You wouldn’t be glad if you hadn’t known me.” She wouldn’t be anything but dead if he hadn’t had questions.

“I know you would’ve killed me. And any other assassin probably would’ve because it wasn’t him in the photo.” She studied him when she realized something. “But you didn’t know about the photos at first, did you? So why did you let me live?”

“You were so sure you recognized me the day at your car.” He shrugged. “I needed to know if there was any chance you were right.”

“Wow, so that little recognition made the difference between life and death.” It was hard to believe her life had been so close to being ended that day. And well... today it had almost ended too and he was the one who had prevented it so he had kinda redeemed himself.

“Not something anyone else on this rock can lay claim to.”

She snorted. “I feel special, Michael.”

He smirked. “Not sure why. You’re still on their hit list.”

“But I’ve got one of ‘em on my side now.”

Her words, her certainty that he would save her, her simple faith in him was confusing. “Yeah, well, we’re not close to bein’ outta this shitstorm yet.”

“I know.” They were neck deep in shit and that was putting it nicely.

“We’re still an hour out from our destination. You should try to get some sleep.”

“Okay,” she fumbled around with both sides of the seat until she found the right trigger to pull for the backrest to drop back. Her neck was still hurting despite the painkillers but it became less noticeable as the monotone sound the wheels made on the cold asphalt helped to ease her nerves.

He rubbed his gritty eyes and bit back a yawn. Another hour and they’d be at the airstrip. He checked his watch and smirked as he imagined the tongue lashing he was in for when he woke them up well before daybreak. There were very few people he trusted and he was about to test those boundaries.


On a highway near Fayetteville - North Carolina - December 2015

“So have you ever been in the same place for more than two days at a time?” Alex looked at the woman in the driver’s seat.

He knew he should be concerned by the turn of events. His life and that of his friend was in danger and they had no clue how much they could really trust their companions, but he couldn’t help but feel the rush of excitement.

Finally, his life had taken an unexpected, intriguing turn, something he had always anticipated but never expected. This would be a story to tell his kids and grandkids. This would be an adventure he would still remember in his 80s. Well, that’s if he survived it! But what was the point in just existing? Would it really matter that he had lived if he didn’t leave some visible footprints on the earth? Visible at least to those who knew him.

“Hardly,” Valkyrie replied and turned the black Ford Mustang onto a smaller street. They needed gas and she didn’t want to stop at one of the bigger stations that were most likely video monitored.

“So where have you been?”

“Where have I been?” she muttered and frowned at a car following them. It had been there for several miles now, which wasn’t that unusual, but it kept her on edge.

“Yeah. In the world, I mean. You must’ve seen a lot.”

“Lots of places. Most of them not pretty. I can’t remember them all, but let’s just say I’ve led quite the wild life out there.”

Alex snorted. “How many languages do you speak?”

Her focus shifted to the other car again when she saw something reflecting off of their taillights. “Shit.”

“What?” He only now registered her worried gaze in the rearview mirror and he turned his head to look.

“No,” she shouted and reacted quickly to press his head down at the same time she heard the sound of the shot.

Instead of the expected window shattering the car suddenly overtook them and Valkyrie realized the shooter had taken aim at one of the tires instead of their heads. They were too quick to take control back. The Mustang went off the road and thanks to a pile of gravel on the shoulder they were sent up into the air. The next thing she knew the roof hit the ground with an ear shattering sound and smoke filled the car.

She shook her head to clear it, fighting against her body’s desire to simply shut everything out and fall unconscious. Her weight against the seatbelt prevented her from unlocking it and she shifted in an attempt to reach for the sheathed knife on the shoulder strap of her holster. Once it was in her hand she made quick work of the seatbelt straps, freeing herself and holding onto the steering wheel to keep herself from further injury by falling against the roof of the car.

A quick glance at her companion let her know he wasn’t conscious and she reached over to check his pulse to make sure he was still breathing. At the moment everything was muffled and she knew she wouldn’t be able to count on her hearing to let her know when their assailant was upon them. She crawled out through one of the broken windows, ignoring the glass where it cut into her skin. There would be time to deal with that later. First she had to neutralize the immediate threat.

One hand on the frame of the car, she looked around to assess the situation. Not good, was her first thought. They were out of sight of the highway and if no one was actually looking for them they could be missed for days. Luckily they had landed close to a sparse stand of trees and she could use that for cover while she waited. She left Whitman in the car and made her way over to find a good spot.

Their assailant would have no choice but to wait until the highway was clear in both directions before making his way down on foot. He would have to make certain no one could see him as he made his way to the overturned car. It might not be visible from the road but he would draw unwanted attention by being seen leaving his own car to go off the road in this weather. She reached up to wipe the blood from her right temple when she felt it creeping down the side of her face and she scooped up a handful of snow to press against the bleeding wound.

Movement caught her attention and she watched as a figure quickly left the road and disappeared from sight of passing drivers. She winced when she reached for her holstered weapon, knowing without seeing that it had left a deep bruise from the impact of the crash. It was gonna hurt like a bitch for a while. She waited patiently while the assassin moved closer and as he neared the car she was able to identify him.

Brooks.

She had waited so long to go head to head with that conniving little bastard, but there was no time to draw the game out. She watched as he crouched down a safe distance from the car, leaning over to look inside and bracing his weight on his free hand. The other held a custom designed weapon, which wasn’t unusual in their line of work. They all had their preferences. He was known for taking great pride in his weapons of choice – there was never a question about his kills. He liked to inflict wounds that left the target helpless while maximizing the damage and drawing out their suffering.

She knew the exact moment he realized she wasn’t in the car. His body stiffened just slightly, but it was a dead giveaway that he was surprised. A moment later she saw the feral grin that lifted his thin lips as he scanned the area and his eyes took on the gleam of challenge. For him the job was a game and there was no doubt he enjoyed every moment of the hunt and the kill. He used the car for cover as he cautiously moved along its side to search for evidence of her escape.

Under other circumstances she would enjoy taking him down, but time was a luxury she could ill afford right now. She didn’t bother announcing herself, didn’t even bother showing herself, she just waited until he moved into the line of fire and squeezed off a shot. Any bullet could do damage if it hit its target with precision and a jacketed hollow point did a better job than most in her opinion. The Circle would quickly cover up what had happened and by the time the evening news came on this would be nothing more than a fatal car accident. And by that time they would have also turned another assassin loose on her.

How had they located her so quickly? She had always been careful to make her purchases off the grid so there was no way they could know about the house in South Carolina. There was no money trail, no paper trail, and no connection to any of her known aliases to lead them in that direction. The car couldn’t have been chipped to transmit her location because like her properties she had purchased the cars covertly. Which really only left one option, didn’t it? They had to move quickly. If her theory was correct she was the one that had been tagged. And if that was true, Bane was also in more danger than he knew.

She hurried to cover what was left of Brooks’ head with snow before searching his pockets for his keys. Once she had them in hand she covered the rest of his body and hurried back around the car to get to Alex. He was beginning to groan quietly as he fumbled around in an effort to identify his surroundings. She slapped him hard across the face to try and get him focused on her.

“C’mon, Whitman, we don’t have time for this.” She reached inside when she spotted the cell phone lying on the drivers’ side and she cursed out loud when she saw the cracked screen. She punched a couple of buttons but it made little more than a half-hearted attempt to come to life. “Damn it,” she muttered. She knew the number Bane had called her from, but if he didn’t recognize an incoming call as the number she had given him he’d destroy the phone and get rid of it, believing it to be compromised. “You’d better be able to fix this thing, Whitman.”

Alex found it hard to focus on anything. His head was spinning and it felt like he was trying to think through a thick fog. “What happened?”

“Later. Right now we’ve gotta get outta here.” They had a little time, brief enough to stop at some roadside motel and find the tracker. Then they would have to move on.

He didn’t protest and helped her as much as possible to get him out of the car. The air was cold, but he welcomed it because it helped to clear his head as well as his vision. He turned his body to be able to push himself from the cold, snow covered ground and frowned when one of his hands landed in a mass of cold red mud. “What-” he quickly pulled it away when the smell of blood assaulted his senses.

“Here, stand up and lean on the car while I grab our things from the back. Get yourself together because we’re gonna have to get to his car and make tracks.”

Alex turned his gaze away from the dead man on the ground when she paused to kick snow over the body again. Over the body where the guy’s head should be. “Who is he?”

“His name’s Brooks. He’s an assassin,” she muttered as she gave up trying to open the trunk with the key and stood back to take aim at the lock.

The loud harsh sound of the shot made him wince. There were parts of his body that had been hurt and he knew he was going to be a mess once the adrenalin dropped back to normal levels. “How’d he find us so quick? We didn’t stop.”

“There’s only one possibility that makes sense.” She grabbed their bags when they dropped to the ground and paused long enough to unlock the case her rifle was in, examining it for any damage before closing it up once again. “Alright, let’s move.”

He followed her, limping. “You wanna fill me in?”

“You’re a quick study, Mr. Whitman.” She shot a glance at him over her shoulder, her gaze assessing his movements. “The car is registered under an alias, the GPS on it has long been disabled, so that only leaves two options. And I can’t imagine they have any reason for tracking your movements.”

“Holy shit. What’re we gonna do about it?”

“We’re gonna put some distance between us and this location, stop, and find that fucking tracker.”

“How do you find such a thing?” His eyes moved up and down her body.

She turned her head to look at him. “I’ll assume you’ve seen a naked woman before otherwise this’ll be awkward for one of us.”

He swallowed, staring at her while she walked around the car to get in the driver’s seat. “Uh-”

“Move it before someone comes by and sees us,” she snapped.

“Okay,” he tried not to think about the possibility of seeing this woman naked. And hell, she was all woman.

She started the car and checked the mirrors before pulling out onto the road. She scanned the interior and shook her head. Brooks hadn’t had any sense of style and it was evidenced by the completely bland vehicle. “The tracker will have to be located and removed otherwise we’ll have another assassin on our asses in no time.”

“Do you have any idea where it could be?” His gaze automatically dropped to the well developed swells on her front.

“Most likely someplace I can’t reach,” she said, rolling her eyes at his predictably male response.

“It could be really deep.”

“And since I have no scars on my tits I think we can safely rule that part of my anatomy out.”

“So they aren’t fake?”

Fake? She snorted at the question. “Would you like to feel them?”

Alex lifted one eyebrow. “That a real question?”

“What makes you think you could tell real from fake?”

“I suppose the real ones would feel softer and more natural,” he guessed. He wasn’t that experienced. To be honest, he’d only had one girlfriend in the past.

It was ridiculous but his answer made her laugh. “Have you ever had your hands on a pair of tits?”

He frowned. “Yeah.”

She snorted. “Real ones?”

“Yes.”

Valkyrie chuckled and shook her head. “Let me guess.” She studied him for a moment and then nodded. “High school... prom night... backseat of your dad’s car,” her eyes narrowed for a moment. “Nah, not you. Hotel room, prom night was your first time, probably for both of you?”

“Shut up,” he crossed his arms over his chest.

Um-hmm, she’d nailed that one. “So, no girlfriend at the moment?”

“No,” he glared at her, “an’ yes, I was with someone in high school and it went on in our freshman year of college, but then her brother decided to go on a super cool tour of Europe and she decided to go with him.”

“You’re what, a sophomore now?”

“Yeah.”

“And your high school sweetheart dumped your ass for Europe your freshman year.” She picked at the steering wheel cover with her thumbnail, enjoying winding him up. “I’ll bet you haven’t been laid since then.”

“Bet all you want,” he snorted. “I’ll bet you get laid a lot, but on the other hand, you have no clue what it means to have feelings that run deeper.”

“Feelings make you weak and that’s one thing I can’t afford. You allow someone to get that close and they wanna know you... who you are, who you were, what makes you tick...” she shrugged one shoulder. “People don’t want the truth about someone like me.”

“That sounds like a lonely life.”

“Sometimes you don’t get a choice. Sometimes you just have to run with the hand you’ve been dealt.”

“Well true, but everyone can influence his or her life in one way or another.”

“Is that so?” She took her eyes off of the road to scald him with a glare. “Because sometimes they take the choice from you. Sometimes you learn that who you were in the past was every bit as worthless as you’ve been told you were. Someone like me has two choices when it comes to potential relationships: Find a guy you really like and live lie after lie because revealing the truth would send him packing, or keep your life free of attachments.”

“Why do you believe no guy would stick with you if he knew the truth?”

“Because I’m a born killer, Mr. Whitman. I don’t know much about my past. There was an accident when I was 17, an accident I was responsible for, and I managed to take my entire family out. Every bit of research I’ve done on myself points in one direction – a teenager with a self-destructive streak. And it wasn’t enough to put myself in dangerous situations.”

His head hurt and her raised voice didn’t make it any better. “It’s still not a reason to think no one would be capable of seeing past that. What about your friend? He’s an assassin, too, isn’t he? Wouldn’t someone like him understand?”

“Bane and I understand each other. All strings are good for is tying a noose around your neck.” She shook her head as she checked the mirrors again, making sure they weren’t being followed. Before long The Circle would begin sending teams to take them out.

“Oh man, Maria and him are gonna have a lot of fun.”

“What?” She didn’t understand the amusement in his tone.

“You don’t know Maria. She’s a nice girl and she’s very loyal to her friends, but she can be stubborn as hell and she’s definitely not the random hook up type.”

“Well, he’s not the type to hook up unless it’s random.” Bane and the senator’s niece? No way.

“I see. There’s no worry about them hooking up then.”

She snorted at that thought. “No.”

“Should we contact them? If you have the transmitter, I bet your friend has one too”

She grabbed the phone from the console and tossed it to him. “Yeah, just as soon as you can make that work again.”

He caught it in his lap, wincing when the jerking motion made his shoulder hurt like hell. With patience, he inspected it, pushing a few buttons to see if it reacted. “Seems like it’s just the display. If I’m right we can connect it to a laptop and use it with its help.”

“Good. As soon as we know for sure what we’re looking at we’ll contact him. No need to waste the call if we don’t turn anything up.”

“Where’re we gonna stop?” He tried to see something on the road, but it was too dark and the snow that was starting to fall heavily made it even harder.

“We’re only a few miles from the next town. There are a couple of hotels right off the Interstate. We’ll stop at the one closest to the road, deal with the transmitter issue, try to contact Bane, and grab something to eat before getting back on the road.”

“Do you have any equipment to deal with this?”

“I keep a med kit for emergencies.”

“Prepared for everything, huh?”

“Trust is a risk in this life. You learn quickly how to patch yourself up when you can because you trust the wrong person and it’s all over.”

What kinda life must that be, he wondered but didn’t say anything. Instead he tried to relax and concentrate. His body was sore all over and there wasn’t so much as rest or sleep in sight.

[begonia9508]

Really long and exciting part! Nothing is easy in their lives anyway... EVE

[L-J-L 76]

Great Chapter!!!! Please please please please please please please please come back and post more really really really really soon? I can't wait to read what will happen next for Max, Liz and friends. I hope Max and Liz will be able to find Maria and Alex and help them. I hope Max, Liz, Maria and Alex will find out what Maria's uncle is up to. And I hope they will find out who put the hit on Maria.


From:
L-J-L 76

[Eva]

This gets freakier within the minute/ Valkyrie/ Isabel has a chip too? What does that mean? Will Michael have one too? Chances are big that he will have one too. The Circle likes to be in control.

The talks in between are great! I can't stop smiling: Alex & Maria are provoking a lot of unknown feelings in their companions.

[Roswelllostcause]

Great part! Things are really heating up!

[keepsmiling7]

They really knew a lot about Michael........especially in 2005 the little blonde chasing him.
Thanks,
Carolyn

[sarammlover]

This update was great! I LOVE Valkyrie! I am in love with her and Alex at this moment and I am glad she has someone she can trust right now *as much as she can trust.

AHHH, seriously, I want to keep reading this and it ends every week! DAMMIT!

[Double Trouble]

begonia9508: Thanks! No, very little comes easily for them.

L-J-L 76: Thanks! It may take time but they’ll get there. It’s gonna take some work for Max and Liz to figure out what’s going on because they’re out of the loop where The Circle is concerned.

Eva: That seems to be what’s going on. They’ll have to get some help to figure out if he’s been chipped.

Our assassins are very unfamiliar with the feelings their civilians are provoking, lol, so it should be very entertaining at times.

Roswelllostcause: Thanks! Yep, and they’re gonna keep heating up!

keepsmiling7: Now if only he knew as much, lol.

sarammlover: Thanks! She’s a lot of fun and Alex is going to push her buttons and do his best to draw her out. It’ll be good for her to have someone to possibly lean on in time.

Lol, well, if it helps... here’s another update!


Part 14

It wasn’t before long before Valkyrie pulled into the driveway of the next hotel. She used the rearview mirror to clean her face of any blood before getting out into the cold again. “Wait here,” she told him and he watched her as she walked into the well lit two-story building, her ass swaying lightly in the tight leather outfit.

Two minutes later she came back and opened the trunk. “We have a small room on the ground level. Let’s go.”

He nodded and climbed out of the car, wincing as every ache began to make itself known at once. The cold air only made it worse, but he kept his mouth shut as he followed her to the room. It wasn’t the most impressive hotel chain around, but the room was clean and as they stepped inside he glanced at the bed longingly. Man, what he’d give to be able to just crawl under the covers and sleep for about twelve hours!

“Don’t even think about it,” she said as she studied him and started to pull down the zipper of her leather outfit.

“Don’t flatter yourself,” he muttered tiredly.

She shrugged out of the upper part of her suit, standing in front of him bare from the waist up except for the black bra. “I want you to look at my back and see if there’re any scars or skin lesions that would lead you to believe something’s been implanted there.”

He cleared his throat when his mouth went dry and in spite of the beating his body had taken it took an effort to control his reaction. He forced his feet to move and when he stood behind her he reached up to brush her long hair over her shoulder so he could look at her. “Just out of curiosity... say we do find the implant. How do you intend to get to it?”

“You’re gonna cut it out.”

He nodded as he ran his fingertips over the skin high on her right shoulder. “I was afraid you were gonna say that.” The skin there was puckered and scarred. “Gunshot?” he asked as he traced over the ridges, prodding in an effort to determine if anything could be hidden in the thicker tissue.

“Yep,” she answered, “that was last year. No tracker there.”

There was no emotion in her voice, nothing to indicate any feelings at all attached to the situation that had led to her being wounded. His hands swept down over the smooth skin and he paused over a small half-moon shaped scar just below her left shoulder blade. “What about here? This one doesn’t look recent. The shape’s wrong for the blade of a knife, not enough damage to be from a bullet...” He placed his thumbs on either side of the scar, pressing in pushing them together against her skin. “I can feel somethin’ there. Could it be shrapnel from an old injury?”

Valkyrie went over every injury she could remember but couldn’t recall one that could’ve left her with a piece of shrapnel in her back. “No.”

He continued his exploration, searching for any other possible implant sites. He wanted to be as certain as possible before he did as she wanted. He had no medical experience beyond removing the occasional splinter and treating and bandaging minor cuts so the thought of cutting into the delicate flesh of her back was a daunting prospect. He ran the edge of his thumb over another, longer, scar that ran under her ribcage and over her side, edging onto her back. “This one has to be from a knife.”

“Good eyes, Whitman.”

“Too thin and smooth to be from a bullet.” He shook his head as he inventoried the wounds she had sustained over the years. “Why do you do this?” He didn’t realize the question was out until he felt her tense beneath his hands. “Sorry, I know, none of my business.” He took a step back. “I think the one below your shoulder blade is the most likely location for a transmitter to be implanted.”

“Good.” She straightened and turned around. “I’m gonna get everything ready for you to take it out. See if you can get the cell to work in the meantime. Maybe we can get an answer from Bane, see if he can locate a transmitter in the same location.”

“Alright.” He went to get his laptop, doing his best not to fumble when she moved around without bothering to cover herself. No doubt about her being all woman, he thought as he opened it up and turned the power on. He rubbed his forehead and tried to focus on what he was doing rather than the half-naked goddess walking around in front of him. He glanced up, his eyes moving over the black bra and her earlier question jumped to the forefront of his mind.

“Would you like to feel them?”

Yes! What the hell kinda question was that for any woman, let alone one that looked like her, to ask a man?! He cleared his throat and ordered his eyes back to the cell phone in his hand. “Down boy,” he muttered under his breath.

“What’d you say?” she asked, placing a few items they would need to remove the transmitter on the nightstand.

“Nothin’ you wanna hear.” He worked on the connection between the cell and the laptop.

Valkyrie finished her job and then walked over to him, standing behind him and staring at the screen. “Does it work?”

“The phone’s rebooting but it shouldn’t take long before we know one way or the other.”

“Good.” She drummed her long fingers against the backrest of his chair while they waited. “Could the laptop connection mess with the phone’s safe line?”

“Safe line,” he mumbled. “I’ve heard of that, but thought it was just talk.” He shook his head. “No, if my understanding of how that works is correct then the connection won’t interfere. It’ll allow the reboot and the connection, but if it works correctly it should prompt for a password before it’ll allow any calls to be established as a protective feature.”

“Good.” They waited until a window popped up on the screen. “So? Does it work?”

“Looks like we’re in luck.” He typed in a new command and nodded when another window appeared. “You’ll need to enter your password.”

She leaned around him and typed it in, pressing enter. “Cross your fingers that he picks up.”

“You got any idea where they’re at?” he asked when the call went without being answered.

“Pennsylvania for all I know.”

“Depending on where they are it could just be a matter of no signal strength. I’m assuming they’re staying on the move, and if that’s right and they’re heading north or west there’re a lot of mountain ranges. That can interfere with the signal too.” He hoped that’s all it was.

“Damn it.” Just what they needed. “Alright, well, Whitman, we don’t have time to waste, so let’s get down to business.” She glanced over at the nightstand. “Ready?”

“Not particularly, but I know it has to be done.”


Private property on Lake Erie – outside of Erie, PA – December 2015

The stars stood out against the black of the night sky and the full moon cast its bright light over the snow covered fields. He could see for miles in every direction. Lake Erie stretched out behind the house, the private airstrip and hangar covered the land in the opposite direction, and to the north and east there was nothing but open land. The house was dark, which he supposed was to be expected at this hour.

Bane let up on the brake and carefully navigated the long driveway. He knew from experience there were dogs on the property. Dogs that were highly trained and wouldn’t make so much as a sound until they were on top of you. His buddy Kyle Valenti, also an ex-Navy SEAL had thought it was hilarious the first time he’d come out and the dogs had been on him before he’d had time to process their existence.

The dogs belonged to Valenti’s wife, Tess Harding. She had been a helicopter pilot in the Marines and after several tours and reaching the end of her contract she had opted out to pursue a degree in veterinary medicine. She had considered a degree in the medical profession but had finally decided animals suited her better. She had seen enough in combat and he imagined that putting people back together probably brought that back a little too clearly. He knew she worked a couple of days a week at a small town veterinary clinic about twenty miles away.

The rest of the time she and Valenti operated their charter service. They handled the mechanics, the flying, and all the headaches that went with owning one’s own business, but they seemed to be happy in their little corner of the world. His eyes scanned the property as he approached slowly, knowing the demon dogs from hell were lurking in the shadows, just waiting for him to get out of the truck.

He pulled up right in front of the house, lights glaring through the front windows and leaned his weight on the horn. There was no one around but the occupants of the house for the noise to disturb and he had no intention of facing those damn dogs of hers again.

Maria jerked up in her seat at the sudden noise, her heart rate jumping from normal to over the top racing within a few seconds while the wound on her neck started to burn. All she could see was a house in front of her and the lights of the car reflecting from its windows. Panic ran through her body when realization hit her that they were no longer driving and she turned her head quickly just to see Michael next to her in a relaxed pose.

“Trust me, it’s easier to get them to answer the door this way,” he said with a smirk.

“You scared the shit out of me,” she hit his side with her fisted hand.

He chuckled gruffly, the sound rusty from lack of use. “Not used to havin’ anyone with me.”

“Where are we?”

“Outside of Erie, Pennsylvania. When you step out of the truck and that arctic air off the lake hits you, believe me, you’ll never forget where here is.”

“More cold. Well, that’s just great, but I was referring to: Whose house are we at?”

“Place belongs to an old buddy I served with.”

“You mean the people here will help us?”

“Yeah, he’s one of three people I trust. He won’t do anything to compromise your safety.” He grinned when he saw the barrel of the shotgun that came through the front door and a moment later the front porch light came on and the screen door was thrown open.

Kyle Valenti stood there in boxers and a tee shirt, oblivious to the icy air blowing off the lake. “Man, what the fuck are you doin’ here at this hour?”

Bane rolled the window down and leaned his head out with a grin. “Hey, pussy, you still sleep with your tee shirt on?” Ever since he had been overrun by a bunch of cockroaches back in a shitty tent in Pakistan the man had slept with something covering his upper body.

“Yeah, you wanna come out here and do somethin’ about it? Pussy,” he muttered. “Let’s see you walk around out here in your underwear, asshole.”

“He doesn’t seem to be pleased about our visit,” Maria said skeptically.

He chuckled and opened the door. “Keep your dogs off of me, will ya, Valenti?”

“I make no promises about that. They’re kinda partial to my girl’s whims and you did just come ridin’ in here makin’ a racket and disturbing a perfectly good mood so she might just set them on you to be spiteful.”

“You can come out now, Harding.” Michael laid his head back to look up on the balcony where he knew she stood with another powerful weapon in her hand. “I come in peace.”

“You come in many things, jackass, but peace is never one of them.” Her eyes narrowed on him. “What kinda trouble are you bringin’ with you this time?”

Instead of answering he hit the hood of the truck a few times and then made a sign with his hand.

Maria hesitated a moment before she opened the door and slipped out slowly. He hadn’t been kidding about the cold out here, she thought and wrapped both of her arms around herself uncomfortably.

“It’s a girl.” Kyle took a couple of steps out and craned his neck to look up at his girlfriend as he pointed in their direction. “He’s got a girl with him, babe.”

“I’m not blind, Kyle.” She stepped directly behind the railing and placed the shotgun next to her. “Did you kidnap her, Bane?”

Maria’s eyes widened at the unexpected turn the conversation had taken. “Do you normally kidnap women and bring them here?” He didn’t, right? They were joking or something.

When Bane just glared at her, Kyle chuckled and made an inviting gesture with his hand. “Normally he doesn’t bring anything but his weapons arsenal. Let’s get in the house before my nuts freeze off.”

She glanced at the man when he made a joke. At least she hoped it was a joke. Her gaze shifted to Michael, waiting to see what he would do. He seemed to be completely comfortable in this place, with these people, and if he believed they were safe here, she had to trust him.

They walked inside into a huge wide open foyer. Maria glanced around and when movement caught her eyes she turned towards it to watch the woman of the house coming down the stairs. She neared them and when she got the first good look at her face, her eyes widened.

“Bane!” Tess went over to poke him with her gun. “You kidnapped Senator Halverson’s niece?”

He shrugged and nudged the barrel in another direction with one finger. “It was either kidnap her or kill her. She didn’t seem too fond of the second option. You got some coffee?”

“Can you believe he has the nerve to show up here at this hour and ask for coffee?” Tess looked at her man.

Kyle laughed and nodded. “He’s never claimed to have any manners.”

“I thought it was just me,” Maria muttered with a slight grin.

“The day this asshole shows any manners hell’s gonna freeze over,” she said with an affectionate smile at the man.

“Are you done with the insults?” Bane rolled his eyes.

“I haven’t decided yet.” She snapped her fingers and two Belgian sheepdogs appeared at her side, their lips curled back as they stared at Bane. She gave them a command in German and they dropped to their haunches, their expressions completely docile.

“Well, you’d better get over it, because we don’t have any time.” He pulled the cell out of his jacket and frowned when he didn’t have a signal.

Kyle made a follow-me motion. “Cell reception’s iffy on a good day out here. C’mon, I’ll show you the best spot in the house.”

He shot a look at Maria when he followed his old friend.

“Go,” Tess waved him off, “I’ll take care of her.”

Maria swallowed hard as her gaze bounced between the two dogs. “So you’re friends of... his?” She didn’t know if she should say anything about knowing his real name.

“Kyle and Bane served together as SEALS.” She moved further into the house and waited until the other girl followed her. “They went through a lot of shit together and that formed a bond between them that’ll last a lifetime.”

“So you kinda inherited him with your relationship with Kyle?”

“That’s right.”

She snorted. “I’m surprised. I didn’t think he had any ties to anyone.”

“Ties would be too much to say,” Tess shook her head and held a pot up. “Coffee?” When Maria nodded she turned her back to her again and moved on. “Bane’s a loner. He doesn’t stay with anyone for longer than a few hours, a day at most I’d say.”

She tipped her head to one side as she studied the woman. “Do you like him?”

“He saved my husband’s life more than once, so yeah, that puts him high on my list.”

Maria nodded and accepted a mug of coffee when the woman held it out. “You guys kinda live out in the middle of nowhere. When we were outside I looked around and I couldn’t see any sign of another house anywhere.”

“The next little town’s several miles away. We like it quiet.”

The woman didn’t seem interested in carrying on a conversation. She wandered over to the windows and looked outside. What had happened to her life? Everything she knew had been turned upside down in a heartbeat and now she was on the run, trying to stay one step ahead of some killer chasing after her. Her hand lifted, her fingertips brushing against the bandage on her neck. She had been tagged like some kind of animal in the wild. Why? For what purpose?

“What happened?” Tess asked after watching the odd behavior of the woman Bane had brought with him. She still had no clue why he would do such an out of character thing.

“I guess you know what he does for a living?”

“Yeah.”

Her eyebrows lifted in surprise when the woman gave a positive response without a moment of hesitation. “He was sent to kill me, but I recognized him from ten years ago. Instead of killing me he basically kidnapped me to keep me from being killed by the next assassin they sent after me.”

“That would put him on their hit list as well.”

She nodded. “He’s already killed one of them.” She touched the edge of the bandage again. “They found me because I had an implant that allowed them to track my movements.”

“He removed it.”

“Yes.”

Their conversation was interrupted when the men walked in and Bane’s face was anything but happy. “We need to leave. Quickly,” he told Maria.

“Let us help you,” Kyle tried.

“No,” he denied sharply, “I’m not involving you in my shit.”

“What’s going on?” Tess demanded.

“I spoke to Valkyrie,” he said more to Maria than to the other woman. “There’s another transmitter.”

“In you,” she breathed.

He nodded and looked at Kyle. “It won’t be long before someone’s close enough to take a shot.”

“If you’re carrying a tracker they already have your location. Let me get the damn thing out and then we’ll take you up, get you off the grid, and drop you someplace safe.” Tess shook her head before he could deny her offer. “You can’t keep running if they’re tracking you.”

“I have no clue where this thing is, Harding,” he glared at her. “And they implanted it deep. No chance of just cutting it out.” His conversation with Valkyrie had been short, but he had gotten all the necessary information from her. The location of her own transmitter and the failed attempt by her companion to get it out had told him what he needed to know.

“Okay, well, I do have access to x-ray machines and I have surgical practice.” She smirked slightly. “Most of my patients have four legs, but I don’t think the residents at the clinic will complain.”

“Think about it, man. Tess could take you out to the clinic while I have a look at her,” he nodded at Maria, who seemed to be horrified.

“No, no,” she shook her head, “I’m going with Michael.” The thought of being separated again wasn’t bearable. He was the only one who knew how to protect her.

“Look, Tess can take you in the chopper, hit the clinic, get the location of the tracker, and determine if she can remove it on the fly. They’re gonna follow you because they’re tracking you, but you’re gonna be ahead of them if you take to the air. I know it doesn’t buy a lot of time, but maybe it’ll be enough to find out what you need to know. I’ll get the plane warmed up so as soon as the two of you get back here we’ll head out.”

“Come on, Michael,” his wife used the name the other woman had revealed, “it’s your best option.”

His head snapped to the side and he glared at her even as he was weighing her words. He knew she was right, knew drawing the assassin after him while leaving Maria protected by someone he trusted was the best plan of attack. If the assassin came after him he could dispose of him and buy them some time to make a getaway.

Maria waited for his decision. She knew it was the best solution to let the other woman handle his tracker, but she wanted to go with them. Maybe the other man could be trusted, but she wouldn’t feel safe.

Bane went over the options, considered what was best for her. He could tell that she didn’t want to be left with someone she didn’t know, someone she didn’t know for certain could be trusted. But he also knew that if the assassin took a shot at him while he was at the clinic Tess could hold her own, she knew how to handle herself under fire. Maria would be safer with Kyle, out of the line of fire. “Maria, I want you to stay here while I go get this thing taken care of. You’ll be safe with Valenti and he won’t let anything happen to you.” Kyle would protect her with his own life if it came to that.

Her hope as well as her stomach sank at his words and she turned away to stare out the window. She knew there was no point in arguing with him. He wouldn’t reconsider his decision because of anything she said.

“Alright, let’s get this done. Valenti, keep your head down and anything happens to her we’re gonna find out which one of us really is the best.”

“Move it, Michael,” he snorted.

Tess turned her head and gave the dogs a sharp command, watching them leave the room to make their patrol around the house. She walked over to Kyle to give him a kiss. “Watch your ass, Valenti.” She winked. “I’m kinda partial to it the way it is.”

“You too,” he said, reaching around her and giving hers a gentle squeeze. He knew the operation brought with it a great amount of danger, but they would never leave a friend hanging.

“Alright, Michael, let’s go.” She shot a look over her shoulder. “I like that a lot better than your codename.”

“Whatever,” he grumbled, turning his head to look at the stubborn woman that had been accompanying him recently. She still kept her back to him but he met her gaze in the reflection in the window anyway.

Maria watched him, waiting to see if he’d say anything. She was terrified of being left alone with the other man. She knew if Michael trusted him then she was safe, but she still didn’t want to be left with him.

Damn woman, he thought and went over to her while he fumbled something out of his pants pocket. He stopped with his chest pressed against her back, reaching around her and placing a small black case in her hand.

“What is it?” she whispered.

He opened it and revealed its tiny content – a small razorblade. “The edges are coated with a special neurotoxin. Stay in the house and if anyone shows up, hide someplace where you can avoid bullets. If anyone gets in the house then let him come close and just scratch him with it. A tiny wound is all you need to paralyze him for hours.”

Her hands shook in spite of her attempts to calm her fears. “What if I accidentally cut myself with it?” she asked, trying to make a joke.

He shook his head. “Don’t. Otherwise you’d be unable to move or even blink. Not a good feeling.”

Her eyes shot to his in the window’s reflection. “I’ll be careful,” she promised and covered his hands, urging him to close the case. Being paralyzed for hours didn’t sound like a good time. “You will be too, right?”

“Anyone crossing my path will be dead,” he nodded and then turned to Tess. “Let’s go.”

Kyle followed them to the door and stood there, waiting for Tess to grab a coat and watching them make their way out to the hangar. It wouldn’t take long before she had the helicopter prepped for takeoff. “As soon as she calls to let me know they’re on their way back we’ll head out to the hangar ourselves. So, you knew him years ago, huh?”

[Alien_Friend]

Wow so much as happened in just two parts. I love that Kyle & Tess have been introduced and that Michael and Kyle have a solid friendship. It's good that he can have people like them he can trust. I only hope they don't get hurt because he came to them for help. I have a feeling he would never forgive himself if they did. But it's clear Tess and Kyle can take very good care of themselves. I think I'm going to like this Tess. I hope Max and Liz catch up with them soon.

Thank goodness Valkyrie and Alex made it out of that accident with out any serious injuries and that she was able to put down Brooks without too much more hassle. I'm curious to know if her real name, birth name that is, is Isabel. It is extremely funny to picture Alex in this situation having to be so intimate with Valkyrie to help them escape the circle. It is good that she caught on now about the possibility of them having a tracker. I don't think Maria could do what Alex has to in order to help keep him and Valkyrie safe. But then again you never know.

I am a loving settling in to this story more and more with each part. I am glad to hear that you two are in it for the long-haul with this one. It makes me very happy.

Eagerly awaiting next week's installment. Terrific stuff as always ladies.

[Eva]

The introduction of Tess & Kyle was hilarious. I really had to smirk several times. The friendship between Kyle & Michael is deep, although they're both loners in their own way.

So Alex couldn't get the transmitter out, huh? That sucks! Michael is in good hands with Tess but Isabel & Alex aren't save yet. I'm very curious how they will solve the problem.

By the way, wouldn't you girls sell this story for a movie or so? It's way more stunning and thrilling than anything I've ever seen!