Chapter 14:
"Do not go gentle into that good night. Rage, rage against the dying of the light." It's funny. That poem was read so long ago in high school. Now, it had awoken. It had a voice, and those lines repeated over each other across the edge. But how do you rage against the dying of the light?
Bailey Winters stood at the edge of the roof. She looked down, all the way down to the world below. The world did not notice her. She looked up above, above at the spiral that pierced the heavens, but even the heavens were quiet. This moment was hers, but she couldn't do it. She wanted to soar, fly free straight to the end, but fear held her back. And there was no escape now.
Heavy footsteps thundered up the stairs toward the door leading out to the roof. She did not hesitate, sending white lightning bolts across the metal, and sealing them in. And she sealed herself out. Now, what was she going to do? There was no helicopter parked here, and even if there was, she could not fly it. She would have no choice but to jump. She remained standing along the edge.
"Bailey Winters," a voice boomed from a rooftop nearby. "You are under arrest. Get on your knees, and place your hands above your head."
"No," Bailey whispered to herself. "I will not go out like this." She stepped back from the ledge. "I won't take the easy way out."
"I repeat you are under arrest," Audrey yelled into her megaphone. "What is she doing?" Matt remained quiet as he stood beside her. "Any thoughts, Matt?"
"You want me to help?"
"Yeah. I want you to help. I want to know what she is thinking." She grabbed her radio and pushed a button. "Team A, hold your position. Team B, wait for my orders. Snipers, do we have a GO?"
"Snipers?"
"I asked you, Matt, to focus on Bailey Winters."
"Aren't snipers a bit extreme?"
"This is an extreme situation, and you wanted to help, remember? So, help."
"We have a GO," crackled through the radio.
"Wait for my orders," Audrey replied.
"Bailey. Bailey," Matt thought out to her. "Stand down. Please, stand down."
"Matt," she thought back. "You're here. Linderman said you would be."
"Linderman is using you."
"I know."
"Stand down, Bailey."
"They're going to kill me, aren't they? I can see a sniper pointing his rifle at me."
"Don't worry about them. Just stand down. Let them take you in."
"And then what?"
"We'll figure it out."
"There's nothing to figure out. Linderman explained everything to me, who I am, what I am."
"Linderman lied to you," Matt roared, and Audrey shot him a look. "Linderman lied to you," he thought.
"He might be using me, Matt, but he did tell me the truth. I know what I am now, and I can't let them take me in."
"Bailey, please. Please," Matt thought out to her. "Stay with me. I'll protect you."
"You couldn't before. You can't now."
"Bailey," he thought. "Bailey," he yelled.
"I know what I have to do, Matt. It's okay," she thought back.
It made sense. This was the only way. It had to be the only way. All that life that she had taken. All those bodies that she had left behind. It wasn't right. She was a monster, and something like her could not exist here. This was the only way.
"What is she doing," Audrey asked Matt. "Did you reach her?" Matt slowly shook his head. "I need reports on what the target's doing," Audrey demanded into her radio. "What is she doing?"
Bailey Winters stood in the center of the rooftop. She raised her arms above her head. It was not a gesture of surrender. Her eyes closed, and she began to vibrate a soft, white. A humming began to echo around her as well as a white shell. More white light spilled out around her.
Just then, a helicopter flew by. It attempted to land on the rooftop. A white bolt struck its side, sending it flying back, but it did not crash. It fought to stay hovered over the rooftop.
"Get rid of that helicopter," Audrey roared into her radio. "Now!"
A moment later, the helicopter was gone, but the shell around Bailey had expanded. The humming was louder. The white light was blinding. There was no telling what was going on inside, but she was not stopping. She was going to explode.
"Take the shot! Take the shot now," Audrey screamed into her radio.
"No!" Matt clung to the rooftop. "Bailey, no!"
"Good-bye, Matt," whispered into his mind.
"Fire," Audrey screamed, and the white shell exploded.
Everyone was thrown back. Glass shattered. Debris thundered down below. Rifles erupted. Bullets soared and crashed against concrete. A scorched mark remained where Bailey Winters had once stood.
"Target is gone. I repeat. Target is gone," echoed on Audrey's radio. "She's gone."
Matt rolled onto his side. He coughed as his head throbbed. A hand was held out to him. It was Audrey, who then helped him to his feet. Matt returned back to the edge, looking for signs of life, but the voice on the radio was right. Bailey Winters was gone.
"Matt…" He looked away. "Matt, I'm sorry."
"Linderman did this," he replied.
"I know. He wanted you here with me." Now, he glared at her. "He called me before we left. He wanted you here."
"Where is he?"
"Matt, it's a trap. You have to know that. You can't go up against him."
"Where, Audrey? Where!"
"Kirby Plaza." He stormed past her. "Matt!" He disappeared down the stairwell. "I really am sorry. I didn't want her to end this way," she thought. "Please, forgive me. Please, forgive me," she said as she looked back at where Bailey Winters had died.