Chapter 7

I was running back down the tower, my leg was still throbbing uncomfortably but my need to get to my fallen handler was greater than tending to my wound. I sprinted out of the tower and towards the alley where I had seen her lying face down on the cobbles. Ignoring the shocked glances from the locals and tourists, I skidded round the corner of the building and saw her body in front of me. She was positioned in such a way that she was hidden from the square but clearly visible from the clock tower. It had been the perfect hit.

Slowing I approached her, unsure what to do. My stomach felt like there was a lump of lead in it; it was a strange sensation that I couldn't place. I knelt down by her as a pool of blood started to spread from under her. It was then I noticed the smallest movement as her back rose and fell. She was alive! As gently as I could I turned her over to assess the damage. She had a nasty red stain soaking through her clothes near her abdomen. I lifted her shirt to see where the wound was; the bullet had hit her in the side inches from her stomach.

"She's alive Diana. But I'm not sure for how much longer." The wound was ugly and livid, there was only a small amount of blood at the moment. With a sinking feeling I knew this was because the bullet was still lodged inside her, stemming the blood loss. I had been in this situation before, a woman I had met undercover falling victim to my chaotic life. I had given her a mercy kill, it was better than prolonging the pain. The lead weight increased as I gripped my pistol, drawing it slowly. I should give the same mercy to Peregrine, but the thought of shooting her made me feel suddenly sick.

"47, there's an unattended vehicle two minutes from you." I heard Diana pause, "Are you going to kill her?" My grip tightened on my pistol, her face was pale, her eyes closed. There were deep shadows underneath her eyes and her lips were starting to turn a light shade of blue. I gritted my teeth, there were feelings whirling around inside of me that I couldn't place, I holstered my weapon and growled at Diana in a frustrated voice.

"No. Which direction is the vehicle?"

"South east of your location. Good luck 47." Her voice was distant and strained. I knew what that meant. I was now on my own. The line went dead in my ear as I shifted my arms carefully underneath Perry's head and legs. My leg screamed in protest as I straightened up, cradling Perry against my chest. I kept my eyes on her wound, the blood started to escape from it at a faster pace. I didn't have long.

Quickly getting my bearings I moved in the direction Diana had told me, I was very conscious of not jostling Perry too much. I saw her eyelids flutter as I began to walk, her mouth suddenly opening as she gasped for air. She was beginning to wake. I was leaving the square behind and moving further into Catanzaro, as I exited the small alley onto a busier cobbled street I saw the car Diana had been referring to. It was sleek red Ferrari, not the kind of car I would use as a getaway vehicle, Diana had obviously known I would choose to save Perry and would need a fast car to get us out of here.

I was aware of Peregrine starting to stir in my arms as I approached the expensive car. Careful not to jolt her I shifted her so one of my arms was free. With no time to spare I elbowed the passenger side window, it smashed easily, the car alarm began to blare as I opened the door and slid Perry into the leather seat. Leaning over her, ignoring the shouts of protest around me I unlocked the driver's side and sprinted round. It took me only a few moments to hot wire the car, it roared into life and after checking Perry was strapped safely upright I put it in gear and screeched up the cobbled street.

Pedestrians leapt out of the way as I pushed the accelerator to the floor, the car responding instantly to my request for more speed. The sound of police sirens cut through the feral growling of the Ferrari, I wasn't fazed this car would be hard to out run. Silently I thanked Diana for her parting gift. We were free of the claustrophobic streets of Catanzaro within minutes of me jacking the car. The open Italian countryside sped passed on either side. I looked over at Perry, her hair blowing in the wind coming through the broken window. Her breathing was becoming more labored as the pain of the wound was becoming evident to her. She would be wide-awake in moments I had to act fast.

I screamed along the winding road, there was little traffic and I scanned the sparse hills for a place to stop. Eventually I saw a derelict barn on the horizon. It wasn't brilliant but it would have to do. The police were nowhere in my rear view mirror I was confident we would be safe in the barn. Seeing a small dirt track off the road leading towards my chosen location, I pulled on the handbrake making the back end of the car skid round until I was facing the track. The tires screeched as I tore up the track, a plume of dust shooting out behind me. Perry moaned softly, her eyes opening. She searched around her in bewilderment, unsure of her surroundings.

The barn grew in size and I gritted my teeth as I sensed Perry's distress building next to me. The large doors had rotted away leaving a wide opening, I kept accelerating all the way to the decaying building before slamming the brakes on. The car came to a juddering stop inside the drafty barn. Looking at Perry's frantic expression and decreasing colour I judged I had roughly five minutes before she lost too much blood for me to help. I quickly unfastened her belt and pushed her towards the door so I could see her wound clearly.

"Stay still Morgan." She locked eyes with me as I used her real name. I hoped it would make her realise the seriousness of the situation. Making a quick list of what I needed I got out of the car and drew my pistol. There was a small amount of dry hay in the barn, I took a handful and placed it away from the rest of the hay. Finding a rubber inner tube from a discarded bicycle in the corner I syphoned a small amount of petrol from the Ferrari onto the hay. Aiming my gun at the mound of petrol soaked hay I fired. The fire burst into existence, and I quickly threw some of the dry wood from the walls of the barn onto it to feed it.

I withdrew a small knife from my jacket and placed the blade in the flames of the fire I had just created. I turned my attention to Perry in the car; climbing back in beside her I ripped her shirt open so I could inspect the wound. Her eyes widened as she saw the hole in her side for the first time.

"Oh-oh my god 47. What-"

"Stay still." My voice held no argument and her wide brown eyes stared at me as I leant in to look at the damage. There was no exit wound so the bullet was definitely lodged inside, as I had feared. I was unsure where the bullet was and what it was currently stopping so taking it out without any surgical equipment was going to be a big risk. I made up my mind to leave it in; to remove it could kill her instantly and in such a sensitive place I didn't want to damage something I shouldn't. I was no doctor after all.

I undid my tie and balled it up. Perry's lips were losing colour by the second, the wound pumping out blood as if maliciously trying to rid her of it. I held the tie to her mouth; she looked at me in pained confusion.

"You're going to want something to bite down on." A flicker of fear crossed her face as she tentatively let me put it in her mouth. I tore a strip off my shirt and wiped away the excess blood around the wound so I could clearly see the edges. Once I was sure how to seal it I returned to the fire I had made and retrieved the now red-hot knife. As I reentered the car I saw Peregrine's eyes widen as she took in the horrific weapon in my hand.

"I'm sorry Perry, but this is going to hurt." I pinned her against the door of the car with my body and pinched together the gaping wound with one hand. She began to sob into the tie as I carefully lower the burning knife blade towards her skin. She closed her eyes and turned her face away, tears streaming down it. I didn't want to hurt her, but it was the only way to save her life.

The blade let out an aggressive hiss as I pressed it onto her skin. The smell of burning flesh filled the car and Perry screamed into the gag I had placed in her mouth. It was better than her biting her tongue off. I held it in place for a few seconds before lifting the knife away to reveal a cleanly cauterized wound. The skin around the ugly join was blistering and turning a vivid shade of red. Perry's screams stopped abruptly and glancing up I saw she had fainted. Good, at least she would sleep through the worst of the pain now. I removed the tie from her mouth and carefully readjusted her so her head was against the headrest.

Outside I found a water trough with a little water left in it from the rain. I used the torn off strip from my shirt and soaked it in the small puddle. Returning to the Ferrari I gently tied the wet piece of fabric to Perry's wound; that would soothe the burning a little. She was still very pale, but I was sure she hadn't lost enough blood for it to be fatal. The bullet would keep any internal bleeding at bay; she would need to visit a hospital at some point though.

Satisfied my handler wasn't on the verge of death anymore I turned my attention to my own wound. Ripping my trousers I examined where the bullet had entered my thigh. This was a lot less dangerous, so I decided to take the foreign object out of me. I had seen an old pair of pliers by the bike when I had been over there. Locating the rusty tool I placed it the fire along with the knife again. I was much happier operating on myself, I knew where my pain limit was and had a lot of experience over the years patching myself up.

Once the pliers were red hot I cooled them down in the water trough outside and sat with my legs outside of the expensive sports car. Preparing myself I carefully inserted the pliers into the small wound, opening them slightly to widen the hole. The pain shot through my leg, the chaos of the last hour had lessened the affect of the damage but now the adrenaline was leaving my system the pain was taking over. Gritting my teeth I pushed the pliers in further until I felt a solid object stopping their progress. Taking deep breaths I gripped the end of the bullet with the pliers and gradually began to pull it out. The progress was slow and excruciating, I was thankful I had decided not to subject Perry to this.

The bullet came out with a rush of blood and I quickly deposited it on the floor. Tearing off another piece of my shirt I wiped away the blood and retrieved the knife to seal my wound. I knew what to expect so the deed was done quickly and efficiently, the burning smell filling my nostrils. Wrapping the cauterized wound in a wet strip like Perry's I leant back in the leather seat and closed my eyes. We were safe for now, and I would need a moment to gather my strength for the next leg of the journey.

The agency had betrayed me, and Diana. In some weird twist of events I had ended up siding with my rebellious new handler and now found myself running from the ICA yet again. I really needed to stop doing this. They would be looking for us, I was certain. We would need to find a place that even they didn't know about. Luckily Peregrine had decided to come to the south Italy and I knew just the place to go.