If you haven't already read, please find part a) of this chapter that I posted yesterday. Don't miss the illustration in conjunction with that chapter on my Tumblr. Links in profile.
So I realise up until point I haven't touched on anything work related and that's because I don't really know what or how the hell to write it. I haven't gone into much detail, if at all, about this operation, but that's because I wanted it to be more about Gail's state of mind than anything else, so I hope it works with out those kinds of details. Very unlikely to touch upon this operation again. Also I wanted to try and start to heal McPeck. Gail needs her friends.
"McNally, Peck, we need eyes on the rear street exit," I hear Steve say and I tap my earpiece to get rid of the crackle.
"Copy that. On our way," McNally responds as she stands up and removes the holster from her waist and puts her gun in her inside jacket pocket. She looks down at me and I nod back at her. Lets do this. We exit the back of the van and I shove my gun down the back of my jeans and cover it with the bottom of my hoodie. We make our way down the alleyway and turn onto the poorly lit back street where the back exit to the pizza place is. The smell of pizza is making me crazy, and is doing things to my poor, food deprived stomach, which has been living off Mentos for the last five hours. Mmm... anchovies and um lots of cheese! Mmm... Maybe later. The green exit sign above the back door one hundred metres away lights the ground around it. I concentrate on the flickering street light attached to the wall on the building opposite to try and calm my nerves. I see Andy look at her watch out the corner of my eye. "About forty five minutes 'til the exchange," she says as she glances up from her watch, to me, and I nod in acknowledgement.
"No movement here, over" I say into my com as we slowly get closer. I close-line Andy with my arm about fifteen meters away from the back street exit, and we come to an abrupt stop as I hold her back. I can hear the faint sounds of voices coming from inside the closed door. Without a second thought I unceremoniously push her over to a dumpster about five meters away from us which is on the opposite side of the street of the door. We duck down and hide behind it using each others respective shoulders to steady ourselves. Andy gestures to me to be quiet, putting her finger up to her mouth. What the fuck does she think I am going to do, start yelling or something? Douche. The voices are getting louder, and I hear the distinct sound of a door opening and two men arguing, or at least one is.
"I said forty thousand! Did they not get the fucken' memo?" one of the men yells and he proceeds to cough up his lungs. He sounds a lot like Alan Rickman, only with an American accent.
"Yeah, but, uh, Nico said that ah..." the other weakly stammers before being cut off. He sounds a lot younger than the other guy.
"I couldn't give a fuck what Nico said. If he doesn't get the forty to me in thirty minutes, he's a dead man. Same goes for you and your brother," the older man threatens as Andy peaks around the corner of the dumpster to get a proper look. "Now take this trash away from me, and get the fuck out of my sight."
"Shit!" Andy exclaims under her breath. "He's gonna come over here any minute," she whispers and she whips her head around towards me, her face muscles in a state of panic, her eyes in disarray. "Trash!" she exclaims.
"Where the hell are we going to go?" I whisper desperately, as we both look around and quickly survey our options, but there doesn't seem to be any. At this point there is no way of getting away without being seen. My mind starts to dangerously wander. My life could be over any minute and the first thing I think about is the fact that I never even had the chance to sleep with Holly. This really sucks balls.
"Gail, stand up" Andy whispers, and I look at her like she hasn't got a clue what she is doing and she rolls her eyes at me as she starts to pull me up to my feet. "Stand up," she repeats in a huff and she and slams me up against the brick wall behind us. "Trust me. Just go with it," she adds as she unzips my hoodie all the way down to the top of my jeans. What, you going to strangle him with my sleeves? Suffocate him with my hood? You do have a gun you know.
"Why should I trust... Jesus McNally!" I mumble through my teeth as she attacks my neck with her mouth, pulling my hoodie down over my shoulders, and then runs her hands back up my arms. "What the fuck are you doing?" I ask as she kisses down around my collarbone, and she quickly shoots her head up in front of me and shakes my shoulders.
"You wanna die right now?" she questions, and I'd laugh if it weren't for the fact that I am so terrified right now.
"Errr, not real..."
"Then shut up," she says cutting me off. The guy slowly comes into my peripheral vision, holding what looks to be a bag of rubbish.
"It's the kids brother. I recognise him from a photo " I whisper into her shoulder as she places her hands up the sides of my rib cage on the inside of my hoodie.
"Grab my boobs," she says. Come again?
"No way freaking way, and I'm not kissing you either," I protest, but I couldn't have if I wanted to, my muscles seem to have turned to ice.
"Well grab something!" she exclaims as she starts on my neck again, pulling me closer. "Make an effort!" she mumbles into the crook of my neck and I close my eyes so I don't have to look him in the eye when he sees us. I finally take my grip off the top of her arms and I slide my hands down to her waist and up and around her back. My god this is ridiculous. The irony of the situation is not lost on me. I reluctantly move my hands down to her ass, and I stupidly open my eyes, and I accidentally squeeze her hard in reaction to seeing him notice us, and her response to my reaction seems to be to suck harder on my neck. Seriously? She is like a leach, but my blood is all but frozen. He looks me in the eye for a few seconds and it leaves me wondering what he might do to us. There is a glint in his eye I just can't trust, I mean, why would I? What the hell am I talking about? I feel Andy put her hand into her inside pocket, over her gun, as he clears his throat to properly interrupt us. I cheekily crack a smile at him to the best of my ability, though I am not sure what that looks like. It's probably a mixture of panic and embarrassment. Though I suppose they are all natural reactions to getting busted like this, so I'm good... I think. Come to think of it, I have felt like this before, all too recently I might add.
"You girls should get outta here," he says with a somewhat annoyed smirk on his face and he throws the rubbish into the dumpster, but I can't help but notice his hand behind his back as he does it. I casually wrap my arm over Andy's shoulder, dangling my hand over her chest. She takes my hand in hers as she gradually turns around, purposefully stumbling in the process. Her other arm snakes it's way around my back and over my firearm and onto my hip to keep her fake balance.
"Let's go get another drink, babe," I say as he turns to walk away back over to the door, and I breath a heavy sigh of relief. We let go of each other and for a moment we look at one another in disbelief. "Oh my god," Andy breathlessly mumbles as she starts laughing, leaning forward with her hand over her mouth to try and mask any unwanted sound. It seems to be contagious too, and my body shakes as I hold my stomach with both hands. She grabs my forearms and I can feel her hands trembling through my sleeves. I'm not sure whether she is it's from laughing or shock. Maybe it's a bit of both.
"Your face was priceless," she silently laughs, burrowing her head into my shoulder.
"My face?" I chuckle. "You were the one who..."
Bang. Bang.
I momentarily put my hand over Andy's mouth as the sound of the shots fired still ring through my ears. I see someone out the corner of my eye fleeing at the very end of the street, and then disappear around the corner. We drop to the ground. "Shots fired, I repeat, shots fired," is all I manage to hear Andy say as I crawl over to end of the dumpster and look down the street. I see the guy lying flat on his back, with the dark colour of blood pooling around him on the asphalt beneath him.
I stagger to get up, but I manage to launch myself forward. I suddenly feel Andy trying to grab onto the bottom of my hoodie to pull me back. "Peck, no!" she pleads and I break free of the hold she has on me.
"I promised," I say as I start running down the street towards the young man, my eyes fixed squarely on the back exit. I know I shouldn't be doing this. I know it. But it's not my head that's thinking right now. Stop! Just stop you idiot. I slow down as I come closer to his body. I can see his eyes are open, but he is gone. A bullet to the side of his head as well as one to his abdomen. It was a very good shot. I kneel in front of his body, my senses confounded and seemingly useless. What the hell happened?
I put my hand to my ear. "McNally, Peck!" Steve yells over the com. "Get out of there! Our eyes inside say they are on their way out to you," I hear him, but I don't register straight away. What did you think you were going to do? Drag him out of here?
"Peck we have to go," Andy calls as I hear her come running towards me. "Now!" she adds as she lifts me up under my arms, and starts pulling me in the direction of the main road, but I resist. "I promised his brother we would get him out," I explain as Andy yanks tirelessly on my arm. That's when I hear the voices coming and the shuffling of feet behind the exit door. "It's too late for that. Now move!" She says and I snap out of it, and start running for my life. I don't think I have ever run so fast. Maybe it's because McNally is pulling me. Though from the looks of things she has barely broken into a canter. I hate you. We make it around the corner and onto the main road footpath, leaving all the commotion behind us. We keep running for a few blocks, dodging the occasional person in our way, before I have to stop to catch my breath. Andy is fine though of course. I hate you even more right now.
"What was that back there, Gail?" she asks as we come to a slow walk and she eventually stops behind me. After a few more steps I come to rest against the wall of a storefront, my head falling back against the bricks.
"McNally/Peck, what's your status," Steve calls.
"Just making our way back to the van, over," Andy says as she approaches me. I turn my head towards her; trying to take in some much needed oxygen as she stretches her arm out to lean against the wall next to me.
I lift my head up and look out into the busy street. "I'm sorry, I just,"
"Promised?" she wonders, and I bow my head and shake it at my stupidity.
"I spent all day yesterday with that guys kid brother, " I tell her, gesturing a hand in the direction we just came from. And here it comes. "McNally, this kid was fifteen. Fifteen for Christ sake! And to be caught up in the middle of all this?" I say I raise my arms up in disbelief. "He was so scared, and I was scared for him, and stuff just... started pouring out of my mouth." Kind of like what's happening right now. "I don't know what I was thinking. And now his brother is dead," I say as I look back at her. There is compassion there and I don't know why.
"We could have died," she says and I feel the guilt build in my stomach. "He was a bad guy, Gail, regardless... There would have been no hesitation on his part to kill us. You saw his gun, right?" Is she consoling me right now? She drops her arm and leans back against the wall next to me. "I have done so many stupid things on this job and in my life, I have lost count. Sometimes you can't help but ignore your head and lead with your heart." I hear what she is saying, but it still makes me kinda want to vomit.
Your ice is melting. "It is not!" I exclaim and she turns her head to me in confusion.
"What?"
"Oh nothing, I am just going crazy," I say as I queue the awkward silence. Much better.
She pushes off the wall with her shoulders and I do the same as I zip up my hoodie. We walk in silence, turning the corner at the next block so we can loop back in the direction of our van.
This isn't good. I was distracted, and I have been for weeks. I have turned into a pile of mush. A happy pile of mush. Maybe some separation from Holly is just what I need. Maybe this trip is a blessing in disguise? I feel my phone vibrate as we turn the final corner, and I fetch it out of my jeans pocket.
Holly: Crap! I have had one too many beers. Your friends are bad influences. I was only going to stay for an hour and it has now been four. I did however shoot some zombies in the head. You proud? I ate some cheese-puffs too. Did you know they make your lips orange? Did you also know that orange has a hue of 30 degrees in the HSV colour space? I may have read this message ten times over to check for spelling mistakes. Found eleven, maybe more if I don't stop typing. Your bed is very comfy. ;)
There's that feeling again. That warm one that circles your heart. For fuck sake, get a grip. It's just a freaking text message! "What are you smiling about all of a sudden?" Andy asks as she leans over towards me and tries to take a peak at my phone. I defensively take a step away from her and she raises a single hand up as she retreats. "Sorry I asked." I am a bitch. She doesn't have a clue. Well I am pretty sure she doesn't. I mean what else would I be smiling about?
Holly. Holly. Holly. Holly. Holly. Holly and cheese-puffs.
As I open my eyes I feel the warm sensation of tears on my cheeks. I go to lift my arms to wipe them away but they are stuck. They are tangled up in the warm body resting tightly against me. Holly has found her way onto the sofa next to me. It seems she has found her spoon because I am totally wrapped around her. Skin touching skin. Body parts touching body parts. How did I not wake up? I think she has my hand somewhere, as my arm is wrapped tightly around her waist but the rest has disappeared. I gently try and pull my arm away from her and she seems to loosen her grip. If she is sleeping like the way she was earlier, she will never wake up. My arm is free, but I seem to have brought my new friend Gail with me. Holly gently stirs from the loss of contact, so I place Gail back down by her hands and she grabs hold of her and nuzzles her own face into Gail's fluffy synthetic fur. I check my watch. It's 3:30am. She has to get up soon. I have to assume her alarm is set on her phone that is now sitting on the coffee table along with my uneaten cheese-puffs.
Now that I am wide-awake and my hand is free, I don't know what to do with it. I rest it on my hip and my fingers start to drum against my bare thigh. Her soft skin is calling to me right now. I want to touch it. I need to touch it. I scoot down lower into the sofa, burrowing my head into the top of her shoulder, and I place a lingering kiss on her spine, right between her shoulder blades and she leans back into my lips. Maybe she isn't really that asleep after all.
My hand finds it's way onto her hip and my thumb brushes over the hem of her underwear. I slowly move my hand up the side of her waist to the bottom of her ribs and back down again, massaging her back with my thumb as I go and I hear a hum reverberate from her mouth.
I feel her breath hitch as I slide the tips of my fingers over the smooth skin of her abdomen and she shivers as they move up to trace concentric circles around her belly button. I open my hand and edge my palm up slowly under her t-shirt and over her sternum; my fingers lingering between her breasts before they ghost back down over her stomach to rest just above her underwear line. She places her hand over mine as she turns over, but my hand slides over to the side of her waist, as her own disappears underneath her. Our legs untangling themselves momentarily before she repositions her leg between mine, dropping Gail between us before pulling my leg up, and over her hip. I get my other arm out from underneath me and lay it out straight as she nestles down against it and I wrap my arm around her head and I hold on to her shoulder, pulling her in closer to my chest as out foreheads meet. I trail my hand from her waist over to her the hand on my hip and after my fingers intertwine over hers, she slowly starts moving them up the side of my body until they rest with Gail between our chests. Her eyes never opened but they are burned into my memory. I slowly find my eyes getting heavier, as I feel a hand on my face that wipes my tears away, and I slowly start to drift off...
I wake to the smell of coffee, and I quickly sit up on the sofa a little disoriented as I survey my surroundings. Did she stay? I jump over the back of the sofa and take a few steps before I slide over to the kitchen. "When did I put my socks on exactly?" I wonder. I walk over to the coffee machine where there is a mug there waiting for me, and I proceed to fill it up to the brim. I take it and go and sit down on one of the stools that line the kitchen island and I slide the notepad over in front of me to see if there is a response to any of my stupid messages. Our last page has disappeared from the notepad and she has appears to have started writing on a blank page.
'I hope my coffee finds you well and that you slept as awesome as I did. Never has my couch been so comfy. By the way, I think our last note deserved to be stuck on the fridge.
In answer to your delightful postscript messages:
- Yes it's terrible, but what exactly does your handwriting say about you?
- Well obviously I can't see well enough to ever find my glasses, so I place many pairs around my apartment so I can easily stumble across them. And as you know, my eyesight has become increasingly worse over the past six weeks having been blinded many times by your beautiful face. You're gagging now aren't you? I don't know how many you saw, but there are usually six pairs lying around. I'm taking two with me just so you know.
- I have marked on the map in red the locations of the plants that need watering daily. But only if you can be bothered. I am sure they can survive without. I also don't mind if you babysit them.
- Sorry? There is chapstick behind the cupboard mirror in the bathroom.
- Though I was obviously joking, I am the one that needs the manual. I am a little rusty. It has been a while.
P.S. I found your socks on the floor of the bathroom, so I put them back where they rightly belong - on your feet.
P.P.S. Please find jar of Arnica oil on this counter next to you. It's for that FUCKING HUGE HICKEY ON YOUR NECK! Not sure if I have a right to be jealous after only a week, but I am! What the hell, Officer?
P.P.P.S. I have kidnapped Gail, and I am holding her hostage. Ransom note and proof of life still to come.
P.P.P.P.S. I have wasted far too much time on this note. Well I suppose it's more of a letter really. I am going to miss my flight now.'
