Disclaimer: I do not own Human Target and intend no copyright infringement.
WHO'S CHEATING WHO PART 11
Author's notes: Wow, why didn't I just wait another few years to finish this story?! It should have never taken this long. The literature is sitting here at my lap. Written many chapters out, but the author too lazy to type them. Anyway, since I love writing author's notes, here we go:
1. There is no hockey. Yes, the NHL has not come to an agreement. It's like pouring a bowl of you favorite cereal, only to open the fridge and seeing no milk.
2. I have a problem with losing my pants. I mean…not in the way you think…but I literally have 30 pairs of jeans, and as soon as I take them off, I lose them. I think my dogs are eating them.
3. My mother and I agreed to get new cars, and trade them in the winter (so I could save on gas)…..we are looking at Prius's and Rav4's….I am having a very hard time with this. Ever step on a LEGO? Yea, the thought of me driving something that doesn't have a V8 kinda feels like that.
4. I am actually feeling some sort of attraction to Tim Tebow…and the TV show Gossip Girl.
5. I only started back to this story because I was home sick. It's a bit scary that illness is my motivation. Can't wait for cold and flu season.
6. The election is over...party at my house ;)
"Mrs. Pucci, I better go. Thank you for listening to me. I have no one to talk to here. The soldiers only make fun of me, and my dad would never come to reason." Ilsa walked to the door with him. " Brent, I swear to you that if my team, comes to my aid, I will get you out of here." He smiled as he left. "Thank you."
When he closed the door, she walked back to the bed and sat down. The last few months had been hell and she was in the ninth circle. She figured if she had made it this far then why give up? She hummed the last parts of the lullaby as she had once done for Chance.
Ilsa walked into the warehouse. It was quiet, but then again, it was Sunday morning. She figured Chance was out running. She settled into her office and started clicking away at the computer. As always she found herself at work on the weekend. Having just flown in from Prague she should have taken some time off, but refused. To her, working came second nature. Marshall was normally gone most of the time on business, so it kept her occupied.
After an hour passed, the elevator chimed. When she looked up, she was slightly surprised. In walked Christopher Chance….looking like death. He was wearing his typical outfit with a leather jacket. His hands were shoved in his pockets and his head was hanging low. She got up and walked over to greet him.
When he finally made eye contact he released a heavy sigh. "Hey." His eyes were red and puffy. His nose was running and he looked like crap in general. She approached and sized up his condition. "I take it the seasonal allergies are attacking again?" He only shrugged. He held up a plastic bag to show her. "I think I bought every allergy pill in the store…but none of it ever works. I'm going to sleep." Without letting her respond, he made his way up to the loft. She could only smile. He was cranky and miserable and most likely wouldn't bother taking care of himself. She secretly enjoyed taking care of him. She never had the opportunity to care of her late husband so it was a bit of a treat….to have this burly man rely on her…even if he acted like he didn't enjoy it.
She gathered her paperwork and placed it in a file folder, then went upstairs. She found Chance lying in the bed with the covers and pillow over his head. "Chance, you need to get up and take a shower." He didn't respond. She reached down and gently shook him. "Chance, get up and shower."
This time he rolled away from her and groaned. "No Ilsa, I don't feel good."
"Yes I know you don't feel good, but if you don't clear out your nasal passages and change these sheets, you will never get better." He didn't say anything to her. She knew he would stay stubborn and she wasn't in the mood for it. She reached down and pulled the blanket from him. "GO…NOW! I don't want to tell you again!" This time he wasn't going to fight with her. He got up and walked to the bathroom. Before he closed the door, he mumbled something under his breath. She shot him a glare. "What was that?" He didn't look back. "Nothing!"
While he showered, Ilsa busied herself changing the sheets on his bed. She rummaged through the medicine he bought and chose an appropriate combination. When he emerged, he was only wearing a pair of boxer briefs. He walked past her and climbed into the bed, then looked up with a pouting lip. "You're mean." She smiled back down at him. "Why? Because I put up with your stubbornness?" He didn't respond because he knew she was right.
She handed him some pills to take and went to the bathroom. When she returned, she placed a warm cloth over his eyes and nose. "Does that feel better?" He nodded. "That will help clear your passages a bit." After a few minutes she removed the cloth. "Open your eyes." Ilsa reached for the eye drops and gently held his lids open. His eyes were sore and burning. When the drops hit, it was instant relief. "Better?" He curled his lip once more in defeat. He didn't want to admit that he loved the fact the she was taking care of him. "Yes it helped." She got up and kissed his forehead. "Get some rest."
"Wait." She turned back to him. "Yes?" He puckered his lips. "I need another one. So I can get better faster." She shook her head and leaned down. As she pulled the covers over him, she placed a chaste kiss on his lips. "Now get some rest." He closed his eyes as she walked off to the living room and sat down. It was extremely rare for her to watch television, but she didn't feel like opening a book or magazine. She settled on an old black and white movie that had just started.
Midway through the movie, she heard footsteps. Chance had awakened and was making his way to where she was sitting. He was dragging a pillow and blanket behind him. He looked like a child who had just finished opening his Christmas gifts; absolutely exhausted and ready to be comforted. Without saying a word, he put the pillow against her lap and lay down. She adjusted herself to a more comfortable position. "I take it you couldn't sleep?" He shook his head but didn't say anything. " Should I leave so you're more comfortable?" He rapidly shook his head no, and she smiled. "Maybe I'll just go down and finish some work."
"NO! Stop teasing me Ilsa, I don't feel good!" He pulled her hand out of her lap and awkwardly hung onto it. "Ok I will stop teasing you. But I am going to need my hand back." He hesitantly released it. She brought it back up to his head and intertwined it into his hair. He exhaled at the bliss she was causing him. She noticed he hadn't quite fallen asleep. It wasn't just the allergies. It was every demon that haunted him from the past. The ones she attempted to chase away in this intimate moment. As she massaged, she sang softly to him…..
I'd put my own sweet child to sleep in a silver boat
on the beautiful river,
Where a shoheen whisper the white cascades, and
a lulla lo the green flags shiver.Sleep, baby dear,
Sleep without fear,
Mother is here with you forever.
When he finally fell asleep, she looked down at his sleeping form. He was calm and relaxed. She was pleased to know that he felt safe in the comfort of her arms.
Chance brought the dirt bike to a screeching halt. He removed the helmet and pulled out a radio. "Guerrero, how far?" The radio garbled. He was no doubt in a remote section of the world. "Dude, you're about five hundred yards away. Go ahead and ditch everything there." Chance pushed everything into the brush. He radioed back to the team. "Ok guys, I'm flying solo from here." This time it was Winston who came back. "Chance, be careful. We got your back on this end." He put the radio beside the bike and walked down the road. He looked down to the nothingness and took a deep breath. "Well…into the lions den."
"Damn. They sure didn't hesitate did they?!" Winston watched the tracking device move quickly on the monitor. Guerrero was able to sew a small tracer into the waistband of Chance's jeans. They had to keep some sort of trace on him to know where to go. Akos looked and pointed. "Guerrero, here is the North Mountain Pass. We could probably have some men head up that direction. The West wall is most likely covered with heavy guns. I don't know if we can even penetrate that side."
Guerrero studied the map. "Ok, what about a helicopter?" Akos shook his head. "There's no way we can approach until some of that fire power is muted. They would shoot us down from two miles away. We will have to be stealthy on this one."
Ames shook her head. "We just get into the worst situations."
A soldier patted down Chance while three others held guns on him. "He's clean. Harmen's on his way." They pushed him into a nearby chair. A few minutes later Harmen walked through the door. He looked him up and down then laughed out loud. "This is interesting. You had the nerve to actually bring your sorry self here. No doubt in a vain attempt to save your girlfriend. Do you actually think you have the ability to get out of here? Amazing isn't it? What a man will do for some women. Chance my friend, be honest with yourself, she's fucked around with you and never committed and now she's pregnant. Why are you running yourself crazy for her?!"
Chance didn't respond to his rant. He was more concerned about his surroundings and how to make some sort of plan. Harmen looked back to him. "Well you can ignore me all you want, but you'll talk soon. Take him to a cell. She needs to see her rescuer." The soldiers led Chance out of the room. As they walked down the hall, he continued to take in his surroundings. He noted the amount of firepower and the men who carried it. When they reached the cell he was shoved inside. Moments later Harmen walked in and Ilsa followed. The moment she saw Chance; fear, relief and anger ran through her mind. Why was he here? How did he even get past the guards? Then reality hit her. The man that she cared for came to recue her.
Harmen stepped closer and raised his hand. "Please, feel free to join him. We'll leave you alone." One of the soldiers shoved her into the cell and locked the door. Chance and Ilsa stood staring at each other not knowing what to say. She wanted to yell and embrace him all at the same time. Her anger at his risk was more prevalent, and he knew that. So in pure Chance style, he inserted humor to break the ice. "Well, I guess it's not the Four Seasons is it?" Without a second thought she walked into his personal space and slapped him…hard. When he finally recovered and met her eyes, he was fully aware of the rant that was to follow. "What the hell is wrong with you Christopher?! They could have killed you!" He shrugged. "Well…um…" She interjected. "Oh forget it! You had no business coming here. You always want to put your life on the line..and..and play the damn hero!" She was angry and relieved at the same time that he was there. Even thought she wanted to hold him, she was mad as hell at his rescue attempt.
She turned her back to him in a huff. He knew she was dangerous. Pregnant and dangerous, but he was going to stand his ground. He walked up to her with careful precision. He grabbed her wrists in the chance she might slap him again and carefully turned her around. "Let's get something straight. I don't care how angry you might be, but you have two roles in this company. First as a benefactor and second an assistant when I allow. And yes, I am the team leader. I make the final decision on how an operation runs. My decision today was to rescue you. Whether you like it or not has nothing to do with my decision. So unless you plan to jump ship and join Harmen, then it's my full intention to get you out of here."
She was a little shocked. He had actually stood his ground against her. Deep down, she respected him, but on the surface she was still upset. He gently released her wrists but still kept her gaze. "I know what I said to you in the past was wrong. In fact, it was low. Especially saying it to you. You didn't deserve it and there aren't enough words to say I'm sorry. I just…I just felt like I had been betrayed. After all the nights we spent together, you became a part of me. Then when you started dating Harmen, I just couldn't handle it. For the first time since Katherine, I found someone I care deeply for. So as mad as you get….I don't care." She swallowed hard. "Chance….." He interjected. "Don't…just…let me figure this out okay?"
She didn't respond. He knew whatever she said, it still wouldn't change his intention. "Winston has a tracker in the waistband of my pants. If you're nice, maybe Ill let you take them off and find it." He winked at her and she smiled. "C'mere." He embraced her and she instantly melted into his arms. She wanted it all to go away and be out of this horrid place. "It's gonna be okay…I promise." Just as she was relaxing, the door swung open. The soldiers walked up to Ilsa and started pulling her out of the cell. She pleaded. "No…please." Three other soldiers grabbed Chance and walked him down the opposite end of the hall. After two flights of stairs and another long dark corridor, they came to another cell and shoved him inside. There were no windows and only two lamps illuminating parts of the room. Harmen walked in behind them. "Well Mr. Chance, I suppose you coming here will provide me with some entertainment." He looked over to one of the soldiers. "Strip him."
The soldiers tore his clothing off. He hoped the tracking device wasn't harmed. From the other side of the room, a large burly soldier came into the light with a whip in his hand. He dropped it to his side. Harmen walked to the cell door. "Try not to kill him too quickly."
"Guerrero, there' no signal. I can't get anything." He looked up at Winston. "I'm tryin' dude." Ames was breathing incrementally. "We should have never let him go in there. Its him against an army!" Akos looked up. "I've got good news. The East wall has a possible weak point, but we still can't get into there with a helicopter. It has to be on foot through the mountain path." Winston chimed in. "Whatever it takes. Look here." He pointed at the computer screen. "This is the last spot we have from the tracking device and that has to be where he's at." Akos gave a surprised look. "You guys don't do anything easy do you?"
Two soldiers grabbed Chance's nude body and tied his wrists. They led him to one wall where there was a hook above his head. They fastened him to the hook then walked away. He knew what was coming next. The burly soldier let the end of the leather whip hang to his side. Then he took a deep breath. The first lash made Chance cry out. The sheer intensity of the crisp leather bore directly to his soul. Moments later, the second lash came. This time it was high on his back. He cringed and sucked his torso in. The third came much swifter then the previous ones and it found a new spot to claim on his tender flesh. He stopped all verbal response. He didn't want to give them the pleasure of hearing him cry out. After the fifth lash the pain finally stopped. The soldiers unhooked him and threw him to the ground in a heap of blood and pain.
For the next few hours, they came in periodically and beat him. Enough for him to nearly pass out. When Harmen figured he had enough, he stopped the bloody melee. As hurt as he was, it still didn't overtake the rage Chance had knowing he raped the woman he cared about. Harmen walked up to him and bent down. "You know something, she actually told me she cared about you. How it was complicated missing business and pleasure. Making so hard to be with you. And now looked what happened. She's carrying my baby. I had such a wonderful time violating her and look what happened. You're pathetic Chance. You're nothing."