| "With Consequence" | ||
|
Samovar Club Elevator May 10, 2008 0259 hours "Remember they're civilians Alpha 3," Paige said quietly into her comm as the doors whooshed open. It reminded her, she imagined, like sitting in a darkened house at night, after watching a particularly scary movie, going to the bathroom and staring at the shower curtain, wondering what could be behind it. Not really what, because 'what' was always the same, an intruder dressed in black, an alien dressed in green, it was the 'could' that really got the Bathroom Tigers up. What COULD be behind the curtains. Now that was really the question. It was inane, actually, when you thought about it. You had entered the house, nothing had presented itself then, why now, after the movie, when you were really scared, did they wish to announce themselves? Timing? To be funny? She didn't know. She did know, however, and unlike the mystical shower curtains, what lay on other side of the metallic doors that were almost open the entire way now. This was no scary movie, just an assassination, a murder, the killing of one who deserved it by all means and purposes, but murder anyway. Enemies. Civilian enemies, but enemies nonetheless, stood or crouched on the other side of the doors. She sighted her target immediately as he came into view. His shoulder was as good as place as any and she squeezed the trigger of her glock (not the bad glock), letting the bullet rip into him. Almost simultaneously, perhaps even before Paige had, Jordan let her own killer instinct come to the fore sending a bullet into the guard that waited just opposite Paige, separated only by the numbered floor panel of the lift. They stepped in unison together to the medial line of the lift, weapons raised and one bullet short a piece. They were met by the two men, big men, they had just laid bullets into, who pushed themselves into the elevator. Paige was forced to lift her gun, though she wanted to lower it. Jordan had been able to though, perhaps because she was so much shorter and lighter than Paige, and somehow managed off two shots, at their legs, disabling them only for a moment as the pain seared through their bodies. Paige heard other shots and cast her eyes about as she jumped from the elevator into the main hallway. She crouched low sighting a target to her left. She needn't have to worry about him as he went down with a bullet placed squarely into his chest. The bullet, however, did not come from her weapon and she whirled, still crouched, to her right. The man, dressed in black pants and a navy blue shirt was busily taking down another guard. She recognized him instantly and waited with her weapon trained on him. The guard went down after a well placed pistol whip to his head. "Clear, get the Rabbit," Paige said quietly as she rose and stepped over a body to get closer to him. The Moonlighter focused on her now as she approached, and both their weapons lowered together. She approached him quickly, as time was of the essence, the questions already forming in her mind, even as he recognized her through her mask. She did not consider herself a distinct person though one properly trained could easily recognize her gait, her movements, and the contrasting colors of golden flecks upon the fields of green that made up her eyes. She stopped only upon violating his personal space, nary a foot from him. 'Who are you?' she thought to him as the dark green eyes of hers darted quickly back and forth between his. He moved and carried himself too easily for someone in the government, even for the FBI, and she knew instinctively...he must think the same of her. So then, what was this new game being played? She saw within his own contrasting colored orbs of hazel, that probably set many a woman to swoon, the confidence of someone who had done what he just did many times before. He was comfortable with his weapon, and he was comfortable using it on civilians. And that made him different...and that made him very much like her. But there was something else, some hidden anger and frustration masked by the calm serenity of being confident in one's own ability to kill without pity. She was sure that her eyes, in that infinitesimal moment they locked with his, betrayed the same confidence. The opening of a door behind the Moonlighter and some thirty feet from where they now stood, had not been effective enough to avert either of their gazes from each other. Had they had more time, perhaps, the questions that clearly flowed between them might have had the opportunity to be verbalized. But it would not be so now, and it might not be so for a long time. "Go, I'll cover you," he spoke quietly. Paige hesitated only a brief second before turning away from him and picking up in her vision her partner. Jordan had Sara's limp body in her arms and was struggling as she tried to step over the bodies that although with two bullets in them persisted on being a nuisance. "Got her?" Jordan said reacting to Paige pulling on Sara's body. "I got her," Paige responded. The Moonlighter let out two more shots. Paige looked down the hall and registered one more body falling to the ground. She did not wait to see if there would be any more as the Moonlighter turned once more towards them. 'Until next time' she thought to him and nodded her head before turning and following Jordan down the short hallway to the fire red door. It had only twenty minutes prior been the doorway to their adventure, and now, it was their escape, their refuge. Jordan slammed into the door pushing it open and almost knocking Alpha 1, the Protector, Baz, to the ground. He ushered her behind him and with his arms out took Sara's limp body from Paige. "Egress hot," he spoke evenly into his comm to Tac 1. Paige took once last glance behind her before following Baz out into the west building, letting the door close behind her. Baz was already on the move and she followed quickly taking the stairs two at a time. They reached the van, the dark navy blue one that double as their rolling tactical unit, and hurried inside, pushing hands against body parts, in a disordered dance of speed. Sara was laid out on one of the bench seats as Paige rummaged through the first aid kit she had packed before leaving. She took the unconscious woman's vitals, then satisfied she was ok, sat on the floor watching her. "You gonna wake her up?" Baz said putting his hands on Paige's shoulders, though he had to lean across the van to do so. "No," Paige shook her head, "not here." "We're going to transfer you four to SH2," Simon said, watching Sara's body closely. "She's not dead," Paige offered sarcastically. "I know," he shot back before gingerly turning to his laptop. As if his actions had somehow attached him to the guilty parties she went to him. "What the hell happened back there?" she demanded. He tapped at his laptop, "I dunno. The guards all of a sudden got spooked. One of them was trying to call the elevator..." he studied the camera feed on his laptop, "when it didn't come he got spooked, started calling the others in." Paige leaned over Simon's shoulder watching, still, what was happening on the fourth floor. The Moonlighter had dispatched the guards quickly and was now moving purposefully towards the back of the building. She watched silently as Simon followed his movements with various camera feeds as the Moonlighter disengaged their sniffer. The laptop went blank. "Fuck," Paige breathed out shaking her head. "That the guy from your meet?" Simon asked her. She looked to him blankly, "does it matter?" "Well, he just scored one classified sniffer courtesy of the government." Paige smirked, "good thing he's got the same boss, we don't have to worry about pay cuts." Simon snorted a response before clearing the screen and moving on to something else. Paige sat on the van floor next to Saf, doubting very highly the Moonlighter worked for the same boss. He might have been after the same thing, might have even been after Konstantin, most likely had, but he didn't answer to the same people regardless. She dismissed the bizarre events from her mind and looked to Saf, lying still and serene, breathing evenly. There were other things she had to deal with now...mostly this woman before her, what Paige had done, and the worry that came with consequence. Safehouse 2 0500 hours The ride back had been, for the most part, in silence. Paige busied herself with Saf though it was hardly necessary, but the appearance of being busy at least saved her from any questions her teammates might have of her. Once back at the Safehouse, Jordan and Baz had expressed their concern for Saf and rightly so. Paige assured them she would be fine and would stay with her until she woke up. Yes, she could easily wake her up with a simple injection, but she did not. Saf, unfortunately, had to be tended to from a chair. A Bathroom Tiger hell bent on breaking the second primer lay on the only bed that occupied the small room and did not find Saf's limp body to be worthy of such comfort. Paige could have easily moved into another room but there were others around, those in charge of the medsection, and they had dispatched her to this room. She could not come up with a plausible excuse why not to stay, and in order to avert any questions, Saf had to stay in the chair until she woke up. Paige attached the restraints to Saf's wrists, for her own safety, and stood near, as the Tiger growled every now and then as if she possibly needed to be reminded of his presence. What she needed was time to think, something she loathed doing nowadays and certainly she did not want to do in her current state of being tired and paranoid. But she 'had' to. Some things just happened that required reflection. Those things were now...and she only could wonder about the price the piper would demand. Return |
||