Author's Note: Ok first of all, I freaking LOVE my reviewers. I never thought I would find myself smiling so much at a death threat before! xD I'm sooo happy you guys like this, and I am definitely continuing it just for you! You guys are like my fuel. hehe. So, enjoy this lengthy piece of loveliness I've had written for a while. I've been hard at work on 5 and 6 these past two days, so hopefully the wait for those won't be too long either. Did i mention I LOVE my reviewers? I LOVE YOUUUU! -hearts asplode from the sky- yaaaaaay! hehe. sooo...don' -hides-
Chapter 4
Rebecca didn't turn back, even though she had a feeling Billy was going to come along anyway. But at least she knew he could take care of himself...for the most part.
"What's the status on the jumper?" she asked a frontlinesman. he looked at her curiously through his heavy duty helmet and neck sleeve, shrugging. He knew as much as she did.
Spotlights lit on the city's quarantine perimeter and Rebecca saw something that made her blood run cold.
A human, or no, one of the creatures was crawling up and down the wall. It's knees and elbows were disjointed, bent at impossible angles and it was clinging to the wall somehow. This was nothing like the slow, clumsy monsters she'd dealt with before. This bugger was fast, ridiculously so, as it dodged point-blank gunfire like an acrobat, crawling across the non-porous surface of the quarantine wall as if it were the ground.
she backed up a step or two, pulling her gun out and holding it low to the ground, ready to shoot if the thing got past the first lines of defense. the heavily armored frontlinesmen around her did the same. She felt oddly vulnerable without a helmet of her own and a protective neck brace, obviously developed specifically for the bite-happy creatures. But she stood her ground.
Suddenly, the lone monster leapt from the wall straight into the mess of Officers at the foot of it. They scattered, but a few didn't move quickly enough, and got rammed into the ground by the thing's obviously inhuman weight. Their cries pierced her soul.
Slowly, the thing kept progressing forward, the groundsmen now giving up their turf in sheer terror. Several kept shooting, but when the monstrosity would strike out with it's long, talon-like fingers and pierce the shooter every single time, the gunfire petered out.
"What are they waiting for? It's going to breach the perimeter if they don't shoot!" she hissed, frustration mounting along with fear as the thing got closer.
She raised her gun and aimed cautiously, one eye squinched shut. And fired.
The bullet hit it's mark, just below where the thing's eyeballs should have been if it even had any. It's cry in response was blood-curdling, but it couldn't retaliate, since she was still too far away. It moved quickly to close the distance and exact it's revenge.
"You're half the size of that tyrant I killed, buddy. you haven't got a chance." she bit her lip and braced herself against the ground, then started firing at the thing until her clip was empty. the shots were hitting, but with little to no effect, merely slowing down it's approach and muddling it's movements.
Now it was swaying back and forth, but still lunging for her. Just as it was about to breach the front line and finally be within range to strike, a whizzing sound filled the air and a missile hit it. With a fierce explosion of guts, blood, and acid, the creature met it's end.
Rebecca stared, flabberghasted at the smoking corpse in front of her.
"Told you I wouldn't listen." Billy whispered in her ear, helping her up from where she'd fallen into the grass, holding a modified missile-launcher.
"What the hell IS that thing?"
"A little toy i was working on in Chile. It's a modified version of those Molotov cocktails you used at Marcus', only with a little chemistry twist. something like carbolic and hydrobulic acid. I bet some of that sulfuric compound you got could pack the same kind of punch."
"You crazy, crazy man."
"Thanks. Now come on, let the big boys handle this, and come to me when they need a hero."
she stumbled to her feet with his help and stayed close behind him as they headed back to the bunker.
"Why couldn't we have stayed and helped? Nothing those guys had could even come close to yours in damage power."
Billy smirked. "You don't really get the business end of this whole thing do you, dollface? You show the ones with the power that you have something more powerful. odds are, they're going to want to be best friends real fast."
Rebecca nodded in slight understanding, following Billy down the ladder without really thinking about it. her watch read 9:15, but it didn't really feel that late.
"So, gonna take up my offer to stay?" Billy asked once they were downstairs again. he started to throw away his half-eaten dinner and heat up hers one more time.
"You know I can't Billy. It wouldn't look right."
"Trust me, that won't matter in ohhh...2 to 3 hours. I'll be holding all the cards again. And to be honest, i don't think they'd care."
"That's what you say. what if it doesn't work? What if they don't call you?"
"Trust me. They'll call."
Rebecca crossed her arms and sat at the table, the doubt apparent in her expression. She wanted it so badly, but duty was keeping her back. It didn't help when Billy flung off the long-sleeved dress shirt and sported only a wifebeater, his long and sensual tattoo shining black under the flourescent lighting. She stifled a quiet moan and coughed.
He sat at the table opposite, arms crossed, and leaning slightly forward. Rebecca was about to scold him for staring, but couldn't bring herself to do it. It had been so very long...since she'd wanted someone to stare...
"Maybe I'll stay...a little while..." she said softly, looking up into his deep gaze and seeing the love there. she smiled. He smiled back.
"Glad you see it my way." they sat quietly for a second or two before the beeper from the microwave went off.
"You're foods ready." he got up to get it.
"Forget it. I've long lost my appetite tonight." she sighed and got up, kicking off her boots once more and flopping onto the cot. she noticed the open blue duffel bag and dove her hands into it, pulling out several more modified weapons.
"Well, you sure have been busy." she studied the triggers and craftsmanship of the mods, eyeing the attention to detail and functionality of the guns. They were almost beautiful in their design.
"Yeah. I needed something to keep me from going crazy. Ever consider that while you holed up in the office? A hobby or something? It helps loads."
Rebecca sighed. "No...although I did try and learn piano for a while. You inspired me." she smiled sheepishly, putting the modded pistol down.
"Thing is, I suck at piano."
Billy gently zipped up the duffel bag and took a seat next to her on the bunk, draping a comforting arm over her shoulders.
"If you want, I could show you. Sometimes it's all about how you're taught."
"That would be nice..." she said quietly, studying the floor. She didn't trust herself to stay in control if she looked up at him.
Turns out she didn't need to. She felt the feather-soft press of his lips against her head, then her temple. she turned slightly, more out of surprise then anything else. he was so bold...For the first time in her life she was truly no longer in control. And it felt...liberating.
He kissed her cheek next, tentatively, the beard rough on her jaw. she froze in place, unsure of what to expect, and not trusting herself to react to it properly.
The phone rang, just as he was leaning in and turning her face softly for a kiss on the lips. He hung there for a second, debating whether to ignore it or not, but Rebecca took the reigns again and got up. "You should get that. Might be headquarters requiring assistance, like you said."
Billy gave a strained smile and got up, ripping the phone out of it's cradle.
"What." he growled through clenched teeth, smiling fakely in Rebecca's general direction. She smiled sweetly back at him, all sarcasm and rainbows. It was fun to see him like this. To know he wanted it almost as much as she did. To feel wanted...it made her feel bold and powerful.
"I hear you have some sort of new-age tech that can take down a jumper."
It was an unfamiliar voice, maybe the chief lieutenant of S.T.A.R.S. or something. honestly, Billy didn't give a rat's ass.
"Yeah, you heard right. What about it?"
"I'd like to discuss some mass marketing and possibly some compensation-"
"Well the only thing I'd like to discuss is money, so once you're ready call back, I'll be here-"
"! I-I mean Officer, I apologize, please, this tech deal could save thousands of lives."
"Not my problem really is it?"
"The cost is no object. Just come in first thing tomorrow morning and show us what you have. We're open to negotiations. No hostility whatsoever. we just want to cut back on casualties here, save some lives, same as you."
Billy was silent, studying Rebecca's attentive attitude, leaning forward slightly as if trying to hear the phone conversation. It was painfully cute. He sighed, defeated.
"Alright. I'll be there. 0800, square?"
"Of course, Officer. I look forward to it."
Billy hung up the phone a lot gentler then he'd picked it up, slumped slightly against the wall. It had happened like he'd said it would, but something still felt wrong.
'So what'd they say? Did they bite?" Rebecca had gotten up, coming towards him with arms outstretched, so willing and trusting. He really didn't deserve that. He was becoming the monster everyone thought he was the whole time.
Because somewhere in the scheme of things, he'd stopped caring about everyone else, No one else mattered but her life...and his.
It was a haunting revelation. One that shook him to the core. He blinked his pale eyes slowly, trying to recover and prevent spooking the woman he loved.
"They bit alright. they tore the whole freaking chunk of bait out of my hands. I'm to meet with the head of the department tomorrow at 0800 for negotiations."
"That's awesome Billy! Just like you said!" her eyes lit up in a way they hadn't for a very long time. "I had a mind not to believe you for a second there, but boy was I wrong!"
Unwilling to join in her celebration, he just walked over to the cot and flopped into it, not even bothering to take his boots off. he still smelled faintly of musk, a thin film of sweat sticking to his body from the adrenaline rush of the attack. But that didn't stop Rebecca from placing a tiny, delicate hand on his bicep.
"You okay? You seem...I don't know...disturbed." she brushed her bangs aside and studied his face, trying to crack the code that was Billy Coen.
He didn't look at her. couldn't look at her. When had this started? Most likely at the end of everything, when he no longer needed her to survive...and yet, he just kept right on needing her alive anyway. Not for his own self-preservation but...because he wanted her.
And now that he had her...it was getting worse.
"Let's run away. Just you and me. Let's get to the bottom of this whole shitty business on our own and make a difference. So no one else has to die."
His proposition hit her like a slap to the face. But she couldn't say she hadn't been expecting it. Ever since she'd come to the bunker for dinner, she knew something about Billy had changed. he seemed warmer to her, and cooler to everyone else. Like he was a different person with her and no one else seemed to be worth caring about.
It was flattering, but it wasn't Billy. It was his nature to care about every innocent life. It was why he'd served his country so long ago. And why he'd suffered so much.
"So what do you say?"
"Billy...I'm on the edge of a groundbreaking discovery here. We could find a cure! Then everything will be alright again. Running away would be-"
"Useless...I know...but...I'm just so tired of everything. I want to get away...I need to get away."
"You've been 'away' for over 6 months..." she started, then stopped, realizing the unintentional bite in her words. Billy caught it, and turned in the bed, away from her.
"Billy don't-come on, i didn't mean it like that. I just-"
"I know exactly what you mean. and it's still true. I wasn't there for you when you needed me. You see this as me abandoning you yet again. Only this time, I don't want to go alone. I want you to go with me."
"You know I can't-"
"There's a difference between choosing your destiny and playing it safe."
"Are you calling me a coward?"
Billy was quiet. Rebecca got up, flustered.
"If that's what you think I'm doing, playing it safe by staying where I'm needed most, then you have the mental capacity of a five-year old. What ever happened to duty? to honor and responsibility for your peers? I'm needed here. My expertise is needed here. I'd be abandoning all those people who depend on me, for what?"
"For me. For hope."
Rebecca's face remained unreadable, but Billy had learned by now that everything going on inside was made visible in her liquid blue eyes. And right now, there was a serious storm brewing.
"You're being very unfair, Billy Coen. Forcing me to choose like this." her voice was calm, even, almost monotone. She was trying to lock everything inside again. Only this time, she was messing with emotions too strong to be held back.
"I would never force you to do anything. You're not duty bound to me. You have no ties to me other then the bond you choose to have. We spent a night together, keeping each other alive, so we could both see the morning. We're just two people who happened to work together once. I'm not your comrade, I'm not your peer, I'm not even innocent-"
"You're lying!" Rebecca shouted suddenly, her eyes blazing, her face contorted in anger.
"You're lying..." she whispered, slowly regaining control by looking away. Her body was shaking.
Billy bit his lip. It killed him to do this, but it was the final litmus test. The final strike that would either make a warrior, or kill a fool.
"I'm nothing to you, Rebecca. clearly, I'm not forcing you to do anything. The choice should be obvious."
"You and I both know it's not." she said, voice modulating with the strain of keeping back the tears. It was like looking at the last throes of a caged animal, before it either gave up, or toughened up.
Billy waited, silent and watchful. Morose, but only on the surface. His heart told him exactly what he needed to hear. He had faith in her. She would do the right thing.
But Rebecca had other thoughts on her mind, namely the warning the mole from Umbrella had given to her. If they stayed here, they'd be safe. If they ran away, they'd be running targets. But running away from Raccoon City would take them further from any possible danger...it was a close to impossible conundrum to figure out. But she knew she couldn't risk their lives for nothing so easily. Without the tech, the facility here was useless, or close to. He couldn't just leave them all defenseless like that. She bit her lip gently and spoke.
"No. I can't go with you Billy."
His heart caught. He only had one more ace in the hole...
"Tell you what. I'll leave the tech here. Everything, to S.T.A.R.S. to reverse engineer and mass-produce. For a pittance. I swear to you I will. I can make more along the way."
She looked up, eyes wide. She hadn't expected that. Billy bowed his head to show his sincerity. He was telling the truth...for the most part. But he admired how careful she was being anyway. He knew how much she trusted him already, but instinct was taking over now, and instinct told her to be cautious.
What he mistook for instinct was actually doubt. Rebecca was putting all her faith into tech she didn't even fully understand. Maybe if they got farther away...with the new tech the men could keep Raccoon City at bay long enough...
"Fine. I'll bite. We leave after you surrender all the tech tomorrow, at 0900."
"No."
"No?"
Billy got up and stood close to her, arms crossed. He was in charge again. God, how he'd missed authority.
"We leave at nightfall, when no one can see us. Plus I need time to make the proper arrangements."
Rebecca's eyes remained wary as she nodded, unsure.
"You're making the right choice. I promise." He held his arms out.
And before she could really think about it, She'd wrapped her own arms around his waist, felt a gentle pressure by her ear, heard Billy murmur "I'm so sorry, sweetheart..."
and the world went black.