Chapter 8
Joey glanced at the watch he had set; it read 7:32:04. He sighed, watching as Ada practically kissed her car goodbye and gripped the SIG tightly in her right hand. Everyone had a back pack tightened securely to their shoulders. A wavering look of worry crossed through their eyes as the four gazed at each other. "We don't have much time." Joey said softly, turning around and jogging towards the double doors at the mall's entrance. "Wish I could fly the helicopter," He muttered to himself though Ada heard him and giggled softly. He turned to her as they ran. "What? You've seen me fly thousands of simulators, even at the air force base. I bet I'd be damn good, Ada. I know all the controls…" His voice trailed off as they got closer to the front of the building, the white tent disappearing.
Joey tugged on the doors, expecting them to be unlocked; though they weren't. "What now, Joe?" Ada asked, looking through the glass doors into the large hall. Leon stepped forward, ushering them back. He pulled a bandana from his pocket and wrapped his hand in it. Leon punched through the glass, unlocking it from the inside and tugging the door open. He shook glass from the bandana and put it back in his pocket.
Claire stepped towards him and held his hand up to her eyes. Not a scratch on his knuckles. He half smiled and pulled her through the open doors, running after Joey and Ada.
"According to the map I found on the C.C.D. we should be able to get to the rooftop from…Gamestop. It's on the second floor, Zone D. There's a backdoor from there with three flights of stairs and an upper door. Any question?" He glanced at his friends, noting that the hesitant look had momentarily gone from their eyes and they were now soldiers of a sort. "Good, let's go."
They ran up the stalled escalators in single file, bludgeoning weapons strapped to their backs and guns gripped tightly with back up rounds in pocket. On the second floor, the group dashed from one end to another and slid to a short stop in front of GameStop. Leon was the first to grip the door handle, not surprised when that was also locked. "Fucking A…" He muttered, taking a step back before raising his thick soled boot and slamming it into the plate glass. It shattered inwardly in a thick gust of glitter and noise. "Hurry!" Leon ran into the room, finding a door marked 'Employees Only'.
He grimaced at the solid door, gripping the handle tightly, surprised when it turned smoothly and jerked open in his hand. He held it open, last in line and following Ada into the small hallway. Two doors were on either side, but the one they wanted was at the very end, a warning sign on it stating the roof was above. Joey was the one to open the door this time, following Leon in and up to the stairs.
Claire ran as fast as her legs could take her up the first flight of stairs. "Joey, how long?!" she asked, shouting over her shoulder at him.
"Two minutes, Claire. We better fucking hurry!" Claire's arm was sore from gripping the long barreled sniper rifle for so long. Her lungs began to ache from sprinting up three flights of stairs, but finally they made it to the outer door. Claire slammed into it, but the door didn't judge.
"Leon, the door won't open!" She kicked at it, punching at the small rectangular window until Leon reached the front and tugged her away. Angry tears were collecting in her eyes.
"Claire, calm down. You have to turn the goddamn handle." He shook his head and gave her a smile, his hand gripped the handle, turning it somewhat slowly and pushing the door open. A powerful wind whipped past them, followed by a deep thrum. Across the rooftop, a helicopter's blades were spinning powerfully as a man dressed in black and a man in a grey suit stood just outside of it and spoke to someone in the helicopter already; Claire assumed the pilot.
Leon's eyes grew wide as he stared intently at the scene in front of him. He recognized those men.
The white tent was off to the right and the doorway shook as three military men ran from it, sporting the exact same guns that the four teens bared. No one had noticed them yet. "Claire, what do we do?" Joey asked, the excitement clearly drained from him. But as he turned away from the tent to talk to her, he saw Leon's face pallor in color.
"Come back!" He shouted, running after Claire who was already ¾ of the way to the men at the helicopter.
"Who the fuck is that?" The military men stared at Claire cryptically as she stepped forward and held the gun defensively.
"Shut up Jensen. Let professionals handle this." The man in the grey suit stepped towards Claire and fastened the button on his jacket. His voice was thick and British, superiority wavering through it. She recognized him almost immediately… " How did you find us?" He asked, glancing behind Claire and seeing the other three that were following in a small pack. "Ah, so you've got a small army."
Claire nodded gravely, sure of herself as she stared the man in his steely grey eyes. "We want on the helicopter." He glanced at the sniper, then the Sig and the Beretta, landing on the Magnum that Leon held upwards.
He ignored Claire's comment and instead crossed his arms. "I see you've met Rodriguez. No matter; if he was killed by a bunch of children he doesn't deserve to be a S.T.A.R.S. member."
She jumped forward and stood less than a foot from him. "We didn't fuckin kill your guy. He was already dead, throat ripped out in the middle of Best Buy."
"Bitch!" One of the other S.T.A.R.S. men lunged at Claire, attempting to grab at her throat. Leon held up his gun and kicked the man in the stomach, shoving him back to the ground. The magnum was level with guys head, safety off and cocked. His finger was rigid against the trigger.
"Don't, fucking touch her." Leon's lips curled into a snarl and Grey Suit clapped slowly.
"How very touching, but unfortunately we don't have time. I really must be going." His beady eyes narrowed at the pilot who nodded.
Leon's eyes grew frantic and he now pointed the gun at Grey Suit. "Where the hell do you think your going?! Like she said before, we're coming with you."
The man began to laugh as he stepped onto the rising platform. "Son, you haven't got the guts to shoot m—" Leon pulled the trigger, hitting the man dressed in black squarely in the shoulder with a powerful 'whoomp!'. He heard Claire gasp, clutching at his back.
"We are getting on that helicopter no matter what. I will shot every goddamned one of you if I have to." Grey suit's face was pale and he seemed to search for words.
"If I let you come, what do I get from it?" He asked skeptically, completely aware that the three S.T.A.R.S. members were aiming all of their guns at Leon; though all the S.T.A.R.S. also had guns trained on them, from the other three teens.
"You get information." Leon said evenly, glancing at Claire who took a quick look at his pocket. The DVD had a faint outline against the fabric. "And one hell of a sharp shooter." Leon nodded to Claire beside him whose barrel was level to Jensen's head.
The man laughed, his evil eyes crinkling at the corners. "Her? How old are you, twelve?" Though Claire was certainly not; her full bust and curvy figure making that obvious. The S.T.A.R.S members had retreated to the edge of the building on the other side, backs to the group.
"I'm serious." Leon said deadpan. "Name anything within a mile of this place and she can hit it."
Grey suit cocked an eyebrow, glancing around the surrounding area. His arm raised and a lanky finger pointed to the south. "I want you to hit the "S" on that tattoo sign, then the period on the gas sign. If you can hit both of those in three shots then I'll let you on the copter. If not, you stay here. Deal?" He asked, holding his hand out to Leon.
Claire gave him a pleading look, but nodded. Leon held the gun at the man's chest, shaking his hand with the other. "It's a deal."
The man smiled a Claire, waving at the signs with a hand. "When ever you want, but make it quick." Claire sunk to one knee, closing one eye and setting the scope to 1 as she stared through it.
The "S" came into clear view, and she hesitated a moment before she felt Leon's hand on her shoulder. "You can do this." He whispered, kissing her neck before backing off. Her shoulders leveled, and Claire squeezed off one round. It flew from the barrel at break neck speed and slammed into the sign. More specifically, it slammed into the bright red "S", dead center.
She glanced at the men behind her. Leon gave a smug look and grinned, Grey Suit merely gritted his teeth. She turned to the gas station, three prices stared her in the face. "Which period do you want?" She asked, keeping her sights on the sign. "3.45, 2.77 or 3.26?"
The man laughed uneasily and shrugged, though she couldn't see it. "$2.77 I suppose." Claire nodded, more to herself than anything, before settling on the small black square. She let out a slow breath, squeezing the trigger again.
It shattered the sign, peeling the black square off the clear plastic and destroying the electrical wires. Claire smiled, standing up and resting the rifle against her shoulder. "So, do we have a deal?" She asked, staring the man square in the eye.
He was angry, but nodded and waved his hand towards the open door. Claire began walking forward, dragging Leon by the hand as he helped her up. Ada began to climb in, sitting next to Claire. "Wait a minute, I said you can come. Not them. The others will only be in the way."
Claire sneered at him and stood in the door way, pushing Ada behind her into the chopper. "There are four people I would be willing to leave here with out, and that's you and your men. One way or another, all of us will be on here when this thing leaves."
He cocked and eyebrow and leaned closer to her. "None of you know how to fly a helicopter," Joey began to open his mouth in protest but Leon clamped his hand over Joey's mouth, shaking his head. "And the pilot of this helicopter will not leave with out me. So, either all four of you get to stay here or only you come with us."
With his back to the guys, the man didn't notice Leon ease up behind him, but rather felt Leon's arm tighten around his neck and cut off air supply. He struggled and clawed at the arm, squirming silently as the other three looked on. Claire quickly took care of the pilot, whapping the butt of Ada's SIG against his skull and instantly knocking him out. Finally, the squirming man in grey turned a red shade and his eyes slid closed. His arms were limp and he slumped against Leon.
The S.T.A.R.S. members still had their backs to the copter, the blades blurred out any noise that could have been made. "Help me with him, Ada." Claire grabbed the pilot's arms as Ada grabbed his legs and they tossed him out of the chopper. "Joey, you better know how to work this fucking thing."
He nodded and climbed into the pilot's seat, sliding the head phones on and adjusting the microphone. The rest of them were seated, Ada in the seat beside Joey as he pushed the throttle and held down a red button. Claire and Leon held hands, watching the S.T.A.R.S. men for any signs of suspicion. They didn't turn around.
The chopper began to rise off the rooftop, albeit extremely shaky. The nose dipped forward as the tail rose first, causing it to spin in a slow arc. It lifted more, seven feet off the roof when the S.T.A.R.S. men turned around; the sound of the blades had changed. It now sounded strained as if it was leaving!
"What the fuck?!" Jensen shouted at them, running after the helicopter when he spotted Grey Suit and the pilot on the ground unconscious. They began to fire at the chopper with the Berettas, hitting it in a few spots along the doors. Everyone inside the heli ducked, covering their heads as Joey lifted them higher until they were up enough to speed away from the building and following 215.
All the S.T.A.R.S. could do was curse and shoot into the air. Bullets couldn't reach the chopper now, and Claire finally felt a sliver of hope. Sure, she felt guilty that they had to leave six strangers on a roof top in the middle of the desert after stealing their helicopter but… Claire would always choose her friends first, no matter what.
Leon stared at her as if he knew what she was thinking and cupped her face gently in his hand. Her eyes watered and their lips met slowly. Claire's hands traced over Leon's chest, feeling the strength and power that he carried so well.
Ada turned around in her seat and cocked and eyebrow at them."I hate to interrupt, but does anyone know how to get to Washington in a helicopter?"
So, been a little but since I updated, hope you guys liked this chapter even though it was kind of short. Read and Review. More smut, fluff and violence to come very soon.
