Chapter 3: Taken

The Rain was hitting the windshield like gunfire as Rock put the pedal to the metal realizing these vans were after him. Although it was just a feeling he knew by now to trust this instinct that had been so well nurtured with Revy's guiding influence.

The highway was straight, and ran for about a couple miles before he would hit the city so if they were gonna strike it would be here, no real room to evade or maneuver and jungle forest on either side of him.

He considered reaching for one of his guns but he recalled something Revy had once said

"It's a fucking stupid idea. Never try to shoot a gun while in a car chase if you're the driver. Do that and you dead before you come to a stop. You can't aim, drive, and dodge all at the same time so stick to driving if you alone and let them shoot if you're lucky the fuckers will give YOU the openings to do some damage"

Unfortunately while they were speeding up they had formed a staggered line and not yet opened fire.

Just then it seemed as if on cue the side doors opened and even in the dim light he could make out men dressed all in black, with full face masks, lean out and begin to fire with automatic rifles.

Rock did his best but he could barely swerve to either side of the wet road without going into a skid. Bullets flew past him and many of them imbedded themselves into the body of the car.

"Sorry Benny" Rock muttered as he tried to increase the gap between but even with this powerful engine whoever was chasing him had just as good vehicles.

One thing puzzled him, the shots seems to be aimed at the car not him

Rain was soaking her hair and head but she didn't care.

They had just gotten out of the car Balalaika had sent over to bring them to the scene of whatever had happened and already Revy knew it was bad. Dutch, Benny and Jane could also see it.

As they got out before them was 'Jane'.

She was riddled with bullet holes, laying upside down and had collided with a rather large tree on the passenger side causing the entire car to bend slightly.

Revy was numb, during the ride she had been again at full boil her earlier sickness this time seemed to just fade away as she hounded Dutch for question to which he had replied he didn't know then questioned the driver but the man only spoke Russian. Curses and complaints aside Revy was forced to sit back and wait all the while getting both angry and worried. Angry that Rock had messed up and worried that he was hurt.

Before any of them could speak there came a heartbroken sob and moan of anguish.

"No.. Not Jane she was just a baby" Benny said as his shoulders sagged in defeat that he already knew Jane was totaled.

Dutch put a sympathetic hand on the tall blond man's shoulder as Jane beside him tried to mutter some words of comfort. Not a car woman herself she still knew of her boyfriend's love for a good muscle car.

Revy however was looking about for an ambulance or a stretcher. Some sign of someone getting medical attention as she could already see that Rock was not in the car. The driver side door was open and partially shot off. Then of course despite the ongoing raid she could catch the scent of blood, and gunpowder. When you've been through all the shit Two-Hands has been through you can smell it just on instinct alone.

Without a word from anyone she started to walk closer to the wrecked car. She could see among the shards of glass some scraps of white cloth and some blood on the grass where the rain had not gotten to it yet.

Balalaika and Chang suddenly appeared behind her and without looking she asked.

"Is he dead?"

Chang sighed and a rare thing happened he took of his sunglasses "We're not sure Revy. We found a few bodies and one survivor but barely".

Balalaika then took over as Dutch and the others came by to listen in.

"One of my men got the call that he had seen Rock leaving the parking lot of the drug store with three suspicious vans. The kinds you see people like my men using for operations. He radioed us and I immediately smelt outside forces at work".

Revy meanwhile was watching one of the elite soldiers work as he was taking notes of the signs left by the accident and how it happened. Being soldiers they were somewhat trained in reading a scene and tracking it. Revy herself had seen enough to follow and she began to work it out in her head while the others talked.

Looking at the road and seeing the skid marks she could see what happened.

Another bullet came through the rear windshield and finally blew it apart. Said bullied buried itself in the passenger head rest. Rock meanwhile felt the cold rush of air and the spray of glass as his arms jerked and he nearly lost control of the wheel. It was then the lead van made its move.

It moved up alongside him on his left until its front tires were to his rear. Then with a sharp turn against him 'Jane' lost traction in the back and he went into a skid. Rock tried to turn into it to keep some control but the road was too wet and he was gone. He sailed across the other land onto the shoulder and then felt a sickening twist of gravity as the car hit the ditch after the shoulder and he was flying through the air.

BANG

He hit the ground on the roof of the car and all his brain could do was make his arms wrap around his head to protect it as the car went into a roll. One second on its bell, then on its back, then on the belly again. Finally this dizzying roller coaster ride came to an end when it hit its roof again and collided with a tree trunk.

Windows burst, metal buckled, his head warped in his arms hit the driver side window and cracked it he felt a sharp pain at the elbow.

"It was a PIT maneuver" Revy said.

Dutch nodded "yep you can tell from the skid marks in the road. I've seen it before; precise and effective they wanted him bad" he said grimly.

"My men have been going over this spot with a find tooth comb. We can tell you for certain Rock survived the crash in decent condition" Balalaika continued as she pointed to the driver side of the car.

They all looked down and Revy finally cracked a slight smile from her blank expression as she saw the 9mm shell casings that had been ejected from Rock's gun as he fired either from inside or after climbing out of the car.

Rock groaned as he felt his seat belt barely keeping him in his seat upside down. His ears were ringing, head pounding. There was a wet sensation near the back and his left arm felt a little tingly.

Reaching blindly he undid the belt buckle then had to groan again when he hit the roof of the car about thee to 4 inches below his head.

"Not my day" he mumbled as he saw it was getting brighter and realized it was the lights from the vans as they pulled over and men started to climb out of them. He counted at least twelve.

Finally having had enough he reached for his gun with his right arm, clicked the safety off and thumbed back the hammer, then fired through the window.

Revy would have been proud had she seen him at this point as even from in a crumple and inside a smashed car his first two shots went through the cracked glass and into the heads of two of the lead men.

This caused the rest of them to raises their weapons. Mostly handguns but a few had assault rifles. They looked like M4 carbines but he was not sure in his state.

"So he fired and got two of them, that explains the two bodies" Dutch said watching the Russian soldiers lift two black body bags into a van.

"Damn right he did. Rock doesn't go without, not a pussy anymore" Revy muttered.

"How sweet Two-Hands" Balalaika concurred "Yes impressive indeed you've taught him well even soldiers can have some difficultly engaging in battle under these conditions.

"So what happened where is he?" Benny asked.

Rock kept firing as he struggled to haul himself through the empty window with his left arm. It felt sore. He noticed a fair sized bruise already forming likely when he hit it against the window.

Finally he was out and despite cuts from glass to his hand and tearing his shirt he could draw his other 92 and keep firing but now the men were onto him being still in the fight and were taking cover by their own vehicles.

"He got out and we can tell from his shoe prints in the mud he moved away from the scene into the woods. Outnumbered and banged up he was likely hoping to lose them and head for the city" Chang explained as led the through under the cover of the jungle trees showing them spots where Rock's shoe prints had left marks and of course more 9mm shells.

Rock kept firing as he ran into the woods breathing heavily. He felt sore all over and dizzy. When his right hand gun ran empty he holstered it then checked the back of his head. He felt his hair wet and slightly matted with blood. Likely from the window bump.

He could hear the men behind him shouting commands.

"Target Asset on the move" Was the only clear thing he heard.

"West.. west" he said to himself knowing once he got some distance if he turned to his right he would be due west and headed for the city. If he could just get there he might be able to lose them in the streets then call the others.

"Don't know who'll be madder, Benny about the car or Revy about my being late and being blindsided" Rock said more to himself as he tried to keep himself steady.

Suddenly a hail of gunfire at the tree he had run past two seconds ago. He then stopped and turned raising his right hand gun and while he did see the muzzle flashes he did not get a chance to fire.

A single loud shot rang out, and then his hand felt as if it was on fire.

The shot had struck his 92 directly in the slide.

"We found this here also" Chang said as he held up a beautiful Beretta 92 FS with a giant hole in the slide which had caused the frame to bend slightly.

"Damn another inch to the right and it would have hit the round in the chamber" Dutch said. His tone was one of near awe as it took some precision to make that shot

"I know what you're thinking Dutch but best complete the tour first" Chang said.

Rock screamed out in shock and pain as his gun was struck. His grip on it was tight as he currently high on his adrenaline rush. This only served to make the pain more severe as his fingers had been harshly jarred.

His arm up to elbow for a moment went numb due to the sudden shock. All he could do for at least 10 seconds was stare at the once well-crafted weapon that had served him so well in helping to protect what he cared about before he was forced to drop it and run as he could he his pursuers closing the gap.

He took off running west again.

After at last a minute his brain started to process what happened

Now Revy is really gonna get mad

Was his first thought after he recalled the time she lost one of her own Cutlass'. After that he processed what happened to his own gun and one thought was most prominent whoever was chasing him wanted him alive, more or less unharmed and they were professional.

Finally he saw a sign of hope. Coming around a tree he saw the city lights and the road into its limits. He was heavily winded from this chase but right now the sight of his wife enraged and with guns in hand was enough to make him weep with joy.

Just then came the sound of boot steps and he turned and fire a single shot just in time to catch one of the lead chasers in the head. The man went down with only a spray of blood and not a sound.

However just then another shot rang out from the woods and his second gun was hit in almost the same spot, this time however it was knocked clean from his hand.

Next thing Rock knew he was tackled hard by two men in full combat gear. He tried to fight but they had way too much weight on him he could not breathe. They rolled him over and as he tried to struggle more he felt the barrel of a gun pressed to his head.

He stopped struggling and just lay still on the cold wet grass that was now soaking his clothes. It was over.

"Asset acquired" One man spoke into a radio in his harness.

"Good work, dose him and prep for EVAC" came another voice from the radio.

Out of the corner of his eye Rock saw another man reach into his combat vest and draw a hypodermic needle. Then he felt a sharp prick at his neck. Soon the world was growing fuzzy and dark. His last sight was that of a black bag put over his head and thoughts of someone who would likely be very, very mad soon.

Revy was looking down at the ground at the spot where Rock's second gun was laying. Her face was blank, but her hands were shaking slightly. Inside however she was a in a volatile, which was the only decent way to put it, state.

She was enraged, afraid, numb, and on the verge of a complete loss of emotional control

"So this is where he got taken down?" Dutch asked already knowing the answer.

Benny, Jane, Chang, and Balalaika stood all around looking down at the ground where impressions of a struggle could be seen in the dirty and wet grass.

Dutch then cast an intent glance over to his currently silent gunslinger. He knew enough of Revy's mind to know things were going to get messy and soon.

Chang followed his gaze and nodded to himself.

"It's clear from the start this was a capture and extraction plan, only military are this precise. I have a guess as to which one but off the first two bodies they carry nothing to give hint to nationality as for weapons, and gear well that will take a bit of time and examination" Balalaika said.

Just then Revy came over to them.

"You said Rock took out one but he's still alive?" she asked in a dead tone

All eyes turned to her and for a brief moment even the two crime lords felt it best not to keep cards close to the chest

"Yes Rock only grazed the man's head but it was a deep one and likely knocked him out. His comrades may have mistaken him for dead and left him behind" she said

"Why did they leave bodies behind? Did chasing Rock take up too much time?" Benny asked.

"Probably not, they had at least a good few minutes to pack up their prisoner before my men arrived on the scene. It concerns me that they did leave even a possible survivor"

"Yeah, as a clue, a message, or are we just dealing with someone whose not worried about leaving a trail" Chang said

Balalaika then turned to Boris whom appeared with a couple armed soldiers.

"Kapitan, Watsap is on the scene and asking questions. We've secured the bodies and survivor and are ready to move out. What shall I tell the officer?" He asked

"Much as I despise speaking with that man he will get a clearer message to keep this quiet if I speak to him directly.

She turned and nodded to Chang.

"Miss Balalaika is gonna make sure this keeps as below the radar as possible she thinks there's something about this that affects us all so naturally we want this to stay quiet. I'll give you all a lift back to your office and we can pick you up again when we know something"

"All due respect Mr. Chang I have a feeling we should not keep too far away from things" Dutch said.

Chang didn't need to ask to know what the hint was. He knew Revy would not sit well with just waiting at the office. True as this involved one of the Lagoon family they would be first to know it would still not do well to leave Revy in her state alone or somewhere to sit and stew.

As if on cue evidence to support that came in the form of a sudden startled yelp

"You bitch!" Revy snarled

Dutch and Chang turned to find Revy with one hand holding Jane's blouse balled up in a white knuckle grip the other was reaching back for a nose shattering punch.

Fortunately Revy was too slow before Dutch got her into a hold. He had expected her to react this way. It was not hard to connect the dots. She put anchovies in the pizza, Revy eats them, Revy gets sick, Revy needs meds, Rock the loving husband leaves, Rock ends up falling into a trap and is taken, so naturally Revy views the entire incident as being started by the unfortunate woman whom is nearly wetting herself in fear.

"Calm down Two-Hands. Now is now the time for this" Dutch said in a low tone as he signalled Benny with a nod to get Jane out of here.

Benny was quick and although it resulted in her blouse being torn he got Jane out of Revy's grip and immediately walked her off following the path of the Russians, thankfully escorted by two of Chang's men.

Chang himself waited but seeing as how Dutch had the matter well in hand he felt it was time for the boss to have his pep talk with his employee.

He turned and left.

"If I let you go are you gonna keep from going Whitman on the girl?" Dutch asked

"Fuck her, she's lucky not to have a second asshole already" Revy growled.

Dutch sighed and let her go. Before Revy got the chance to take off he said what he knew would shake her focus

"If your gonna start putting holes in people maybe start with yourself" he said calmly

Revy rounded on him but did not draw instead she just froze, angry still, something clicked.

Dutch thanked God above that his insight was correct.

"Don't be so quick to draw on everyone but yourself Revy. We all heard how you chewed the man out. He was trying to be a good husband after all. If you had not blown your top maybe he would not have needed to go out" Dutch said again still calm knowing he had to make the point clear to her volatile state.

It was clear from the look on Revy's face, which was slowly shifting from enraged to blank that he had hit what really set her off.

"Now you can either go wild here and now and someone may have to kneecap you or you can calm the fuck down and find out who took your lovable hubby" Dutch said as he walked passed her and headed back to the vehicles.

Revy stood alone under the rain and later on she would be thankful for one being alone and two the fact the water streaming down her face hid the single tear that ran down as well. Her hair hide her eyes.

"Dammit" she muttered and turned to follow Dutch.