Touch the Wildcard

Hiccup watched the girl get into the black car. As he watched, he noticed a few things. The bruises on her wrists, the tear streaks. Something was seriously wrong. Two large men got in on the both sides of the car, and it sped off.

"I can't just let that happen. I have to follow that car."

He got into his old Chevy Nova and discreetly followed the black car. They then turned down an alley. Noticing this, Hiccup drove a couple blocks down, and then parked.

As he neared the alley, he took a peek around the corner. There was the black car. Stunned, he watched the three men wrestle the gagged and struggling girl into a small building. Hiccup looked around for surveillance cameras or people who might see him. There were none. With that, he slunk around the corner, careful to stay in the shadows.

The building was old, and obviously not cared for. It looked like it could fall at any minute. Taking a deep breath, he stepped inside. The only light came from downstairs. Taking a deep breath, he started down the stairs.

Hiccup had only ever gone to a club once, and never a strip club. He cautiously looked around, noting the prices. The bouncer soon noticed his presence.

"Hey kid. What're ya doin here? You don't look a day over 16!" the bouncer boomed.

"Actually, I'm 21, almost 22. Look." Hiccup replied, showing his license.

"Alright then. What'll it be? The basics 75 bucks, full works 450."

"Um, basic for now I think," he replied.

"Alright then, 75 dollars please," the bouncer whose nameplate read Bruce said.

Hiccup reached into his pocket and pulled out a 100 dollar bill. "Perfect, 25 dollars change..." The bouncer looked into the hallway, where another burly guard stood. "Hey Jordy, escort this guy please, basics only."

The bouncer took hiccup to a small room and explained what the basics were. You can look, but don't touch. Touch, you die.

Hiccup didn't know what to expect, but he certainly wasn't expecting the blonde haired girl. The fresh tear streaks, the marks on her wrists. She never looked up.

"Hey, I saw what happened. We're gonna get you out of here, alright? Come here," hiccup told her gently. She looked up at him.

Hiccup took that moment to study her face. She was certainly beautiful, blonde hair, sky blue eyes, round face. He extended his hand, which she took cautiously.

Just as they turned towards the door, the burly guard burst in, gun drawn. Hiccup quickly sidestepped him and punched the guard in the face, causing him to stagger. Hiccup then used that moment of shock to knock the gun out of the guard's hand. It skidded over to the girl, who nervously picked it up. Hiccup ran over and took it from her, immediately pointing it at the guard.

"I don't want to kill you, because she's here," he said, motioning to the girl behind him. "However, since I can't have you following me..."

Whack! Hiccup brought the barrel down hard on the guard's head, effectively knocking him out. He took the keys off his belt, and checked the hall. Incredibly, no one had heard the ruckus. Seeing the coast was clear, they stepped into the hall.

"Are you alright? What's your name?" Hiccup asked the shaking girl.

"Astrid. And I've been better," she replied.

"Well Astrid, do you know where an alternate exit is?" He asked.

"As far as I know, there is a back entrance, but it's fully guarded with security cameras. You wouldn't make it through," Astrid replied.

"You don't know me. We're going to get you out, and that's the only way out," hiccup replied.

"You don't understand. These cameras are the best on the market. They miss nothing!" Astrid protested.

"But how long does it take security go get there?" Hiccup asked.

"From the front, most likely about 30 seconds, if you're lucky," Astrid replied.

"Well then we've got 30 seconds to get away. Do you know the way to this back entrance?"

"Yes. Follow me."

She led him down the hall, to a locked door. Hiccup pulled the keys out of his pocket, and found the one labeled corridoor.

'Wow that guard was funny,' hiccup thought.

The door unlocked, they opened it a crack and peeked out. Incredibly, no guard was stationed. They moved out into the long hall.

"Okay, exit is up that staircase there," Astrid directed, pointing to a staircase at the end of the hall.

Hiccup moved quickly down the hall to the stairs, which went up to ground level.

"Alright come on, it's only a matter of time before they find that guard in the room."

The climbed quickly, reaching the top in no time. Another locked door, stood there. Before unlocking it, hiccup peeked out the window. Two panning cameras were outside, scanning everything.

He noticed that they took about five seconds to pan the the other side. When they looked away, he pushed open the door. Unexpectedly, an alarm was set off.

"Run." They said simultaneously.

The pair took off, adrenaline fueling every step. About 10 meters behind them, four big guards appeared in the doorway, in hot pursuit. The pair ducked into an alley, and bolted off again. They ran into an empty coffee shop, and hid behind the counter.

The cashier regarded them with surprise. "You're not supposed to be here," she told them.

"Please, we're being chased by some criminals, help us," they asked pleading.

The cashier looked out the window and noticed the guards come out of the alley. "Those guys?" she asked. They nodded and gulped.

"Honeys stay as long as you want. Get under the counter."

A guard walked into the shop. She looked at him, annoyed. "We're closing. What do you want?" She asked him.

He looked at her slowly. "Shut up," he sneered, and walked out.

As soon as he was gone, the cashier spoke softly. "Honeys this is what you do. Go out the back way, get out on the main street, catch the 276 bus to Edgware. Take it seven stops, to BSU. Get off there and you'll be good. Here's a map." She told them.

"Thank you so much," they both replied.

"Honeys that was nothing. Anything to get away from those thugs," she replied. "Now go before they come back."

Without another word, they ran to the nearest bus stop on Main Street, and waited. Every minute seemed too long. The bus eventually came, and they quickly scrambled on.

Now safely on board, hiccup turned to Astrid. "What happened? Tell me everything from the start."

Astrid tearfully told him about her mom, who sold her to the men for drug money. The strip club, his daring rescue.

He embraced her as she broke down and held her close. "Shh everything is going to be alright now."

She buried her face into his chest. Somehow she felt that he was right.

"You're coming to my place for now, it's not safe anywhere else right now. I live about a block from the university," he told her.

Astrid nodded. "Thank you. This is the first time anyone's ever cared about me."

Hiccup nodded. 'And it won't be the last...' he decided.

xXx

Well this turned out much longer than I expected. I got this piece of inspiration while on a train in France. If you couldn't tell, it's loosely based on the music video for Felix Snow and KSHMR - Touch. Very loosely, but based on it nonetheless. It's not my best work, but it will have to do. Thanks for reading and please review.