A Gunsmith Cats 'Fic;
Volume 2; Part 1
By; Talis13
Standard Disclaimer- Konnichiwa kids! ^^ All related characters belong to Kenichi Sonoda, not me. The only characters I'll own are the bad guys I've made up (I'll clearly mark those too darn it!!). So, enjoy the read and thanks!
Rally whistled as she cleaned a window in the Gunsmith Cats gun shop she owned. The sunshine glistened on the streaks of cleaner as they dried and disappeared. She stopped and nodded her head in approval. She glanced over at Minnie May who was taking down a special order for a customer; Rally was happy she beginning to get the hang of taking specials. She heard May giggle as the man put down half for deposit and Rally watched as he turned and left the doorway, waving back at May and then at Rally herself. Rally walked over. "Good to see you're finally getting the hang of this May! Its very helpful to me."
"Hey, no problem Rally!" she stopped a moment, listening. "Ooh! I hear the fax! Hopefully it'll be a bounty!" May ran to the back to retrieve the information. Rally started working on another special order at her desk when May burst back through the door, paper in tow. "Rally! Something you might be interested in!" Rally looked up and May continued, reading from the pages. "Looks like a guy skipped out this morning. Name, David Garrison; bounty at 5K."
"What was he in for?" Rally asked as she worked.
"Umm..." May scanned through the paperwork. "Looks like he was in on drug charges."
Rally rolled her eyes. "Is everybody in this town crack-happy? Geez. Well, set Becky on getting info on where the guy's heading and where he might be now."
"No problem Boss!" May saluted and went into the back room to call up Becky. Rally continued working on her gun until May came back into the front of the shop a few minutes later. "Okay, Becky said she'd start on it and call when the info is ready."
"In other words, when to deposit the money to her account." Rally rolled her eyes again.
May shrugged with a grin. "Whichever you prefer, but yeah, pretty much."
Rally nodded and continued working; it was useless to stop until Becky gave her the information. May was sorting through paperwork when she looked up. "Say Rally."
"Yes?"
"You never did say how your little.oh.date with Bean went last week. I'm assuming okay?" May asked a gleam in her eye.
Rally blushed ever so slightly, continuing her work. "Actually, it went pretty well."
"GREAT!" May yelled. "Have you talked to him since?"
"A couple of times. He's been busy playing hotshot driver."
"Yeah, but you think that's part of his charm."
"Which is exactly why I'm not arguing." Rally pointed at May.
May just laughed. "Wonderful Rally. We'll keep that in mind next time." She looked up as someone entered the shop. "Welcome to Gunsmith Cats! How can I help you?"
Rally just heard the beginning of the conversation as she concentrated again on her work. May was chatting amiably as the man decided which ammunition he wanted. May also had him fill out paperwork for using the shooting range. He went to the range and it was silent again in the shop. "I can't wait for lunch." Rally stated as she set her work down and looked at the clock; ten thirty.
"You going out today?"
Rally looked over, confused. "No. Why?"
May grinned. "Just curious."
Rally glared at her. "Are you just trying to annoy me?"
"Maaaybe. I guess you'll never know."
"I can beat it out of you."
"Nah. Besides, I think you've got a visitor." May maintained the grin.
Rally looked up at her friend. "Whaa-"
The door opened and in walked the infamous Bean Bandit. May grinned. "Hey Bean!" she yelled.
He smiled and bowed his head. "If it isn't Minnie May. Hey kid, what's up?"
"I'm doing really exciting paperwork. Yay. Other than that, nothing." She pouted. And then looked up with a smile. "I think she wants to say hi too though." May pointed over at Rally, who was fairly silent.
"Uh. hey?" Rally said; although, not with much force.
"Ah, the lady I came to see." He walked over to Rally and she stood up. She tilted her head, listening. "I just wanted to apologize for not getting a hold of you much this week-"
"Its part of your charm." May broke in.
Bean looked up confused. "What?"
"Nothing." Rally added with a blush.
He shrugged and continued. "Okay. Anyway, I was wondering if you wanted to go out tomorrow night or something."
"Hmm. I'm not sure if I'll be able to; Becky's digging dirt on a guy for a bounty that just came through today. We might be busy. Unfortunately." Rally stated with a pout. "What about tonight?"
He grinned at her. "I'm gonna be busy too. But, maybe at the end of the week?"
She smiled. "That'd be great! Hopefully nothing else will come up, you know?"
"Yeah, hopefully. Well, I look forward to the weekend then." With that he kissed her hand and walked out the door. May was melting into a small puddle on the counter.
"Awwww! You guys are so cute!! And Bean is utterly romantic! Who knew?" she shrugged with a smile. "Rally?"
Rally was not actually paying attention. She was looking at the small piece of paper Bean had slipped into her hand before he left. She unfolded it twice and looked at it. It read; 'Hopefully they'll be here by two.' -Bean. And that was it; she looked up confused. May looked over at her. "Rally? You in there? Hey! What's that?"
Rally folded the paper back up and stuck it in her pocket. "None of your business girlfriend."
May was arguing, but the rest of the hour went quickly and it was time for lunch. May made the Macaroni and cheese as Rally sat at the table, looking at a magazine, but not actually reading it. She was thinking about the small scrap of paper Bean had passed to her. As bad as May was, Rally was worse; she practically oozed into a little puddle on the floor too when he took her hand. She sighed and rolled her eyes. She would scream if she was going to turn into a 'hopeless romantic'. May pushed a bowl of mac and cheese in front of Rally and then sat at her own place at the table. Rally began to eat silently and May took a sip of her Sprite. "What are you so quiet about?"
Rally looked up like a deer caught in headlights. "Uh, nothing?"
"Are you asking me or telling me?" May asked with raised eyebrows.
"Telling of course." Rally stated with a smile. "So how's Ken been?"
May launched happily into how wonderful Ken's been lately and just how interesting life with him back was. Rally rolled her eyes. "Geez May, give me the life story why don't ya?"
May turned her nose in the air. "You asked, don't forget."
"However could I forget that May?" Rally asked before eating a bit more macaroni. The rest of their lunch hour went fairly smoothly. They both walked back out to the store, May stretching as they walked. "You know what?" Rally looked up and May continued. "You guys are cute, you know that?"
Rally just rolled her eyes. "May you are just a hopeless romantic, you know that?"
"Of course silly girl!" May giggled. "I think its one of the few 'normal' things in my life. So, I figure I might as well enjoy it."
Rally shrugged as she unlocked the shop door. "That makes sense. Life around here is a tad.unusual."
"I think that was the biggest understatement I personally have ever heard."
Both girls just started laughing as they reopened the shop. Rally sat back at her special order gun and May finished taking stock. There were few customers as both sat working. Rally glanced up at the clock, waiting for two o'clock; it was bothering her. What was he plotting? She heard May get up and start vacuuming the carpet. Rally finished her one special and moved to the next on her list. She had May call the owner of the gun done to pickup and gave him the final cost on it. A few minutes after two o'clock, Rally heard the door open, but was concentrating solely on the gun in her hands. She heard May gasp lightly and Rally's head shot up, wondering what was wrong. There was a young man standing there, holding flowers in his hands. He looked at both girls. "Rally Vincent?"
"That's her!" May yelled and pointed at Rally, grinning wildly.
Rally put her work done and stepped from behind the counter and approached the man like he had rabies. He held a clipboard for her to sign and then passed her the flowers. She tentatively took them, pulling the paper covering them back. She gasped; purple lilies in beautiful shades of lavender and royal purple. The deliveryman looked back at her. "Thanks Miss Vincent. Hope you like them; they are actually kind of hard to get a hold of this time of year. Have a good day ladies."
"These are utterly beautiful." Rally whispered, barely touching the velvet petals of the flowers.
"Wow Rally; they are really pretty. I'll run and get you a vase to put them in!" May stated as she ran out the door, back towards their house.
Rally just stood, staring at the flowers in front of her. She looked up at the clock; ten after two. She smiled; he was such a scoundrel and that certainly was part of his charm. May came running with a vase into the shop. She filled it with water and then set it on the desk behind the counter. Rally walked over slowly, still just looking at the beautiful flowers in her hands. She began to arrange them in the vase, looking at the color of each before placing them in the vase. "I wonder how he knew I liked lilies; much less purple!" May began to whistle innocently. "MAY! When did you talk to him?!"
May grinned and winked. "Why? Jealous?"
"HEY!"
"Aw, calm down Ral'! It was his idea; he just asked what flowers specifically, you liked." May shrugged with a grin. "I thought it was kind of romantic actually."
Rally looked at the flowers once more; the darks and lights contrasting beautifully. She smiled softly. "Yeah. It was."
May pushed her friend. "Who sounds like a hopeless romantic now, hmm?"
Rally rolled her eyes. "I said I would scream if I was becoming that."
"You're a little too late for that Rally."
"HEY!"
May pointed at the phone. "Shouldn't you call and thank the poor guy for going to all the trouble of those flowers?"
Rally's head shot up. "Ooh. That's right! Thanks May!" Rally grabbed the phone and dialed, hearing it ring and pick up.
"Yo! Bean Bandit."
"Hey mister two o'clock! Rally here!"
"Hey Rally. So, did they get there?"
"Aaahh! Bean, they're absolutely beautiful! I don't know what kind of strings you had to pull to get these, but I love them! Thank you so very, very much!" she gushed into the phone.
"Hey lady, you deserve it. I figure anybody that puts up with me is worth the effort."
Rally's tinkling laugh went through the phone. "Thanks! Nice to get somebody's approval!"
"You've got it babe. But, I'm going to be busy in a few, so I'll talk to you later, all right?"
"Sure! Thanks again Bean, I love 'em! Talk to you later." Rally hung up the phone and sighed happily.
May laughed giddily. "You two are adorable! As strange as that description sounds for each of you."
Rally smiled. "You only get one life May; might as well enjoy it, hey?"
May nodded in approval as Rally continued working on her project and May filed older paperwork. Later in the afternoon, just as the girls were fixing to close the shop, a call came through. Rally picked up. "Gunsmith Cats thanks for calling."
"Hey Rally, its Becky."
"Oh! Hey Becky, find some dirt on our buddy David Garrison?" Rally asked as she began counting down the register.
"Girlfriend, you are gonna owe me big for the dirt on this guy!" Becky grinned.
Rally grumbled. "Wonderful. How much is it gonna cost me?"
"Let's see.." Becky was mumbling as she figured out the costs. "How about six hundred and fifty?"
"Sold! What have you got?" Rally asked as she went to her computer and transferred the money to Becky's account.
"Quite a bit actually; at first I thought he was just a drug dealer, but turns out he has some interesting tricks up his sleeves."
"What do you mean?" Rally asked as she locked away her register drawer.
"While he does have the drug trafficking down, he also deals in illegal arms. Sound intriguing yet?" Becky asked.
"Very."
"Okay. According to my sources, he plans on making a break for it SOON. He's got his higher ups after him as well as any person he's been dealing with lately." Rally paused when Becky mentioned 'making a break for it'.
"Wait, Becky, what do you mean, making a break for it?"
"Huh? Oh; he plans on skipping to Canada apparently. Across the border and all that stuff; you should know that. Why?" Becky questioned, getting curious.
"Uh, nothing Becky. Anyways, go on." Rally shook her head and took off her apron, hanging it on its hook behind the counter.
"Well, sounds like he's hired a driver and plans on leaving tonight."
"SHIT!" Rally yelled. "I knew it! I just KNEW it would happen!!"
"Do you want to know who he hired and where he's leaving from?" Becky asked, confused.
Rally was mumbling. "Not like don't I already know." She then spoke up with a sigh. "Sure Becky, fire away."
"He's leaving from a hideout he has on the lower east side, off of Third Street. I'll email you the exact address. And as far as a driver, he's hired Bean Bandit which means you almost don't have a snowball's chance in- "
"Thanks for the confidence booster Becky." Rally snarled into the phone. May was silently looking on, wondering if this would be a bad time to interrupt.
"Hey girl, you know I'm not exaggerating! He's one of the best drivers! So unless you snag this guy at his house, you're not gonna get him!" Becky stated.
Rally sat a moment and sighed. "I know Becky. I'll have to get him at his house then. Thanks for the info and email it ASAP so we can snag him tonight."
"No problem Rally; pleasure doing business with you. I'll get it to you in a few minutes." Becky hung up as did Rally a moment later.
May looked up tentatively at Rally. "Um, is there a problem Rally?"
"Afraid so Minnie May. Looks like David Garrison is going to try and get away tonight." May looked on and shrugged. Rally continued with a wry smile. "He's going to Canada and of course he hired a driver. You only get one guess who."
It suddenly came very into focus for May. "Ooh. I see now why you were so upset. I'm assuming its Bean then?"
"'Fraid so May. So, in order to get that 5k, we have to nab him tonight. Becky's emailing me the extra info now, so, we need to get ready. Because if we don't get him at home, he'll be out of our grasp at a high rate of speed." Rally finished and looked up with her hands behind her head.
May nodded. "Yeah, no kidding. Well, let's get ready and come back and get the email when we're done."
Both girls went into their house, locking the shop door beforehand. Rally went into her room and put on her Kevlar jacket, slacks and boots. She placed her boot knife on her right hand side near her ankle, and loaded her CZ75 handgun, placing it in her shoulder holster. She then loaded a Grendal P10 on her wrist slide, locking it into place. Making sure to grab extra magazines for her CZ75, she placed them in her jacket as well. Rally zipped the jacket most of the way up and walked out of her room. She then headed down to the kitchen to grab a bite to eat. May was already down there, digging in the fridge. "Grab me an apple May."
"Here you go." May passed her an apple and then continued rummaging in the box.
"What are you looking for?" Rally asked after taking a bite.
"I'm not sure, but I'll know it when I see it!" May called cheerfully. "Ah-HAH!"
Rally watched as May reemerged with a can of fruit and a piece of French bread. May sat at the table, happily eating her goodies. Rally smiled. "So what are you bringing May?"
"Um," she swallowed some bread. "A couple each of smoke, flash and frag. Also those small extra goodies for emergencies."
"Alright. We need to get those glasses for the flashbangs then."
"Probably wouldn't hurt."
Both girls finished and walked back down to the shop silently. Rally checked her email and May went to find the flash glasses. Rally drew up the email and printed out a copy. May walked over and handed a pair of glasses to Rally. "What's it say?"
"He's at 564 on Third Street. He's got a few guards but apparently they're in a fairly secluded place; no reason to go there it sounds like. Anyways, we should be able to grab him without a lot of flash."
"Dang."
Rally rolled her eyes. "Sorry May."
"Well, let's head out anyways." May stated unhappily as they both began to walk out the door. "Wait! When's he plan on leaving tonight?!"
"Probably around six-thirty: that's not set though. Which means we should hurry to get him before Bean does." Rally stated as she pulled out her keys and cranked her Shelby GT500 Cobra. It roared to life and Rally popped the gas, as the two bounty hunters flew down the street to get their money- or guy.
May looked at her watch; it was five forty-five. The car pulled into a side street about half a block away from their goal. "So, what's the plan Rally?"
Rally looked at the building; a standard run-down condo that looked like it had not been used in ages. "Hmm. I guess just go from the ground floor up."
May looked at the three-floor building. "Okay. Let's go then!"
Both girls hopped out of the Cobra and walked towards the goal of the building. Each was looking up, trying to figure out where exactly, Garrison was staying. There were a couple of lights on at the second floor and three on the third floor. May pointed up, a questioning look on her face. Rally nodded. "Okay. Well, let's just start at the bottom and work our way up. That way we can at least prevent others from leaving."
May nodded and then looked at the door they had come near; it was a less used side door. She slid her fingertips around the edges of the door, trying to see if anything was amiss. She did not feel anything, so she went and motioned Rally around to the other side of the door. Rally grabbed the doorknob and twisted, barely pushing it in. It creaked slightly, but not loudly. It was dark and both stepped into the long dusty hallway, shutting the door back. May pulled a pair of night vision goggles on and looked into the room; at the end of the hall to the stairwell, there was an IR beam about five inches off of the ground. Other than that, it was fairly clean. May mouthed 'IR' and pointed down, hopping to the first step and Rally following her. May kept on the goggles as Rally took lead up the silent stairwell. She walked carefully and quietly up the stairs, pausing each step and listening for someone coming. It was going fairly well; this would probably be an easy grab. As they came to the second floor landing, May motioned that it was clear of signal beams and Rally looked carefully to one side and May the other. Quiet.
May looked at her watch; six o'clock. They had half an hour to grab the guy before he could even remotely make it to Bean. May grinned; this would add a little tension to the new relationship. She saw Rally stop and listen outside of an open door. Rally signaled three people and then motioned May to toss a smoke grenade inside. One man looked towards the door as he heard a metallic 'ping' of the grenade fuse opening. His eyes widened. "SHIT! GRENADE!!!" The men began scrambling for the door as it exploded in a burst of smoke and bits of confetti and the window cracked with the concussion.
Rally shot out the knees of the first man to stumble a few steps from the door and he fell to the ground with a shout. The next man stumbled over the first, gun drawn and Rally did the same to him as well as shooting his trigger finger. Last was the slow one, crawling out the door, which May was happy to tie up with duct tape and lean him against the wall. She winked at him. "Thanks man. Now we have a question."
Rally ripped the duct tape off with a smile. "Hi. Where's the guy in charge? David Garrison?"
The man looked up with a scowl. "Why the hell should I tell you anything?"
"May?"
May walked over and pulled another hand grenade out; another smoke but he didn't know that. She smiled sweetly. "It would be a real shame if this accidentally fell into his lap and exploded huh Rally?"
"It certainly would May! Remember that one guy you did that to? Ow; boy I bet he wasn't too happy for awhile there. Girlfriend probably wasn't either." Rally stated, shaking the gun for emphasis.
The man looked up, fear-filled eyes. "Wait! Wait! Please-o-please don't! I'll tell you where he's at! Just keep that thing away from me!"
Rally nodded, and May unhappily put away the grenade. He looked up, relieved. "Okay. Thanks. He's on the third floor, right hand corner. I swear."
Rally retaped his mouth and looked down with a grin. "Thanks. And I think you made a wise decision friend."
"Dang it."
Rally rolled her eyes. "Sorry May. Let's go."
The two continued on their path towards the next set of stairs, May with the goggles back down. She signaled another IR and stepped over it at the foot of the steps. Rally did the same and they continued up the stairs. She looked back and May cleared it. They turned right down the hallway and May looked at her watch; six-twenty. That took longer than she expected; she pointed at her watch to Rally. Rally kept her eyes from bugging out; Bean was being more of a foil for her plans than normal. This was cutting it a little too close. They proceeded quietly down the hall and Rally neared the last door on the right hand side; she listened through the cracked door. It sounded like there were only two; that was odd. She supposed they did not think there would be a problem yet. Rally grinned and signaled at the door. May grinned and pulled out her flash goggles. Rally did the same, readying her gun. May rolled the grenade into the room, relishing the sound and feel of the explosion that followed. There was a very bright flash followed by the sound of shattering glass exploding across the room from the windows. Rally jumped to the doorway, gun sighted towards the middle of the room. There were the two she heard. May looked around and yelped. "RALLY LEFT!!"
Rally turned and automatically shot towards her left, firing a shot at the woman's hand that was holding a gun and then covered the two back at the center of the room. May covered the one woman with the small revolver she carried. Rally moved towards the two, carefully watching. One suddenly pulled a S&W revolver out and fired a shot at Rally; luckily, it was not a heavy gauge, otherwise she would have had a problem. She fell to her knee, but still trained the CZ75 on the two after firing the gun out of the one's hand. "Shit. Okay. Drop any guns you have before you no longer have fingers to fire with."
The one that fired at Rally tentatively dropped another handgun and boot knife, while the last person dropped a Rueger 85 handgun. Rally stood, remembering who Garrison was from Becky's report. "Okay, David Garrison, you've been bad boy jumping court like that, so you've got a date with the cops. May."
May tossed Rally a pair of handcuffs from her jacket. Rally strapped them on Garrison and then turned towards the other two. She nodded towards May who grinned and brought out the duct tape again. She taped up the remaining two and then dusted her hands off. "Good job Ral'! 5K is great for a night's work." She winked.
Rally grinned too, and then looked up, hand to her side. "Say May, what time is it?"
"Um.six-thirty five Rally." May looked up from the watch.
"Okay. We'll leave the rest here and just take Garrison; he's the big one anyways." Rally stated, leading Garrison in front of her back down the hall, her gun still drawn, just in case. May waved at the man still taped on the second floor. He scowled at her. The went back down to the first floor and out the side door they had entered through; there they were greeted by a dark 1970 Boss 302 Mustang. Bean glanced out the window at them; his eyes widened slightly at whom Rally was poking out the door. He opened the car door and stood with his arms crossed, looking down at Rally.
"What the hell are you doing?" Bean asked, looking slightly perturbed.
Rally shrugged. "Sorry. Bounty you know. May, take him to the car."
May nodded and started poking Garrison in the back with her revolver, waving back at Bean once. Rally then turned towards Bean again, her arms crossed matching his pose, the ghost of a smile on her lips. "We had talked about this remember?"
Bean ran a hand through is hair, smoothing it back from his eyes. "Yeah, I know. But this soon? Come on Rally."
"Sorry Bean. Your job is to take them away; mine is to take them in. You just weren't quick enough this time hotshot." She smiled up at him.
He looked up at the stars appearing in the hazy city sky and then back down at Rally with a grin. "Point taken. Well, my business here is done I suppose."
"Afraid so partner." She turned with a grin and looked back at him. "We still on for this weekend, or are you going to be in a bad mood?"
"Funny. Of course we're still on as long as you want to go."
"Yeah! Movie?"
"Sounds good. How about Gone in 60 Seconds?" Bean asked with a smile.
Rally grinned again. "Hey, sounds like a good choice! My place or yours?"
"Whichever."
"Okay. Yours then. May and Ken will probably be over at mine." She rolled her eyes.
"Okay. Sounds good. I'll catch you later then." Bean stated.
Rally watched brown eyes looking longingly at her and she smiled, stepping over, pulling him towards her into a kiss. His hand rested on her hip as he returned her kiss. Rally pulled back slightly with a pained expression. He looked down, concerned. "What's wrong? Did I do something?"
She shook her head. "No. No it wasn't you. I took a shot to the side ups there is all. Sorry, it wasn't you."
"You gonna be all right?"
She nodded with a slight smile, pulling him back down for a quick kiss. She let go, looking up and blushed slightly. "Yeah. I'll call you later."
"RALLY!! ANY DAY NOW!!!" May yelled from the car.
"Yep, its time." Rally stated as she walked back towards her car parked down the street, wistful glance over her shoulder: she could see a smirk on his face. "See you later."
Rally made it back to her car and fired it up. May was grinning like a hyena. Unfortunately, she had to wait to goad Rally until after they dropped off Garrison at the police station. After they were finished, May squealed. "You guys are so cuuuuute! Hehe. So what are YOU doing this weekend huh?"
Rally looked over and shrugged. "We're seeing a movie."
"Which one?"
"Gone in 60 Seconds."
May's eyes rolled. "Figures. Where at?"
"His place. I figured-"
"Yaah! Ken can come over!!" May cheered. Rally rolled her eyes. "Yep. My thoughts exactly."
"Now I expect you two to be good Rally." May goaded with a mischievous smirk.
Rally just sighed loudly. "I really think you're a Freudian, you know that?"
"Sure." May began enthusiastically. "Two points in life; survival," Rally nodded. "And to procreate!" Rally rolled her eyes as May laughed again.
"So, are you okay from that gunshot?" May asked suddenly.
"Yeah. Its going to be pretty soar, but the Kevlar did its job." Rally replied, tentatively touching her side. The rest of the ride was silent as the girls calmed down from their night out. They both got out of the Cobra after Rally parked it in their driveway and walked wearily to their house. Both slept soundly all night.
Early the next morning, Rally was up and about, cleaning up the kitchen and fixing eggs on the stove. She sung along to the radio as the eggs popped and hissed, and she cleaned the countertops. Rally looked up when she heard May tromp down the stairs. May walked over to the table and Rally heard her head hit the wooden tabletop with a resounding 'klunk'. Rally began laughing merrily. "What's the matter May? Not a morning person?"
May glared at Rally's cheerful grin that was appearing far to early in the morning. "No. Never have been, probably never will be." Her head hit the table again.
Rally finished up breakfast for the two and set a plate of eggs and toast in front of May. She then set across from May and began to eat her own breakfast. May eventually struggled up and began to eat. After finishing, both girls went down to the store to open the shop for the morning. As Rally hummed along to the radio she flipped on, she pulled out a special order gun she was working on and began on it again. May finished her paperwork sorting from the previous day and then headed to the back to pick up the new faxes for the day.
Later, May was out the door and gone to grab something at the grocer Rally just sat down, working on a special order until the door opened with a gentle 'whoosh'. She sat up with a smile. "Welcome to Gunsmith Cats. What can I help you with today?"
Rally just helped the police officer that had come in. They went through different guns and ammos and he looked up at the clock. "Wow! Time flies huh? Say Ms. Vincent, I don't suppose you'd be interested in dinner some night?" he asked as he packed away the ammo he just purchased.
"Sorry Dave, but no can do. I've got a boyfriend now and I don't think he'd like it too well." Rally stated with a wink.
"Really? I hadn't heard that yet! Good for you. I'll have to pass the news on to Roy. So, who's the lucky guy: anyone I know?" Dave asked cheerfully.
Rally stalled a moment. Hazardous truth versus safe lie. Hazardous truth versus safe lie. She shook her head slightly. "I'll say as long as you don't blow a gasket. Deal?"
Dave cocked an eyebrow. "Uh, sure. I guess."
"Have you heard of Bean Bandit?" Rally asked as she picked at a bit of plastic on the countertop.
Dave coughed slightly. "Um. Yes. Why?" he asked, hoping it wasn't what he thought. Rally just smiled. "I see. Hmm. I'll be sure to pass the news on to Roy." Dave stated with a grin.
Rally glared at him. "Don't you dare get me into trouble Dave!"
He held his hands up. "Okay, okay! I'll break it to him as nicely as possible. I'll see you later Rally."
"See you later Dave." Someone cleared their throat behind Rally. She spun around.
"So, you're finally admitting he's your boyfriend eh?" May asked from the doorway, smile glinting.
Rally blushed. "Well, yeah. Why?"
"No reason Rally." May sung.
"I'm glad it's Friday." Rally stated emphatically.
"Why ever is that Rally?" May asked innocently. "As if I didn't know."
"Funny. I wanna see that movie." Rally stated and then looked at May with a wink. "And I wanna see Bean."
May laughed merrily. "That's what I thought! So, are you going over to his place tonight or what?"
"If he's not busy, I figured I would. I'll have to call him and make sure though." Rally replied as she started sweeping the floor. May started picking shipments from the boxes off the floor and putting them on their rightful place on the shelves. She then looked at the clock on the wall; five o'clock.
"Quitting time!" May cheered as she took the broom from Rally's hands after locking the front door. She pushed Rally towards the register. "Count that sucker down so we can go and call Ken!"
"I don't want to call Ken." Rally stated as she opened the register drawer.
May swatted her with the broom. "HEY!"
Rally laughed and May eventually joined in. They finished cleaning up the shop and Rally locked the drawer in a safe in the back room. May followed Rally into the house and Rally went in and picked up the phone, dialing Bean's number quickly. It rang twice before he picked up. "Bean Bandit here."
"Hey Bean! Its Rally!"
"Hey girl, what's up?"
"Nothing much; I just wondered if you wanted to get together and watch that movie tonight if you have time?" Rally asked as she twirled the phone cord around her fingers.
"Sure, sounds good. Have you eaten yet?"
"Nope! I can pick up pizza on the way to your place though if you want."
"Sure, that'll work. I've already got the movie, so we'll be set. When are you coming over?" Bean asked.
"Whenever's good for you."
"Okay. Come when you get ready then. I'll be waiting."
"Okay! See you in a few Bean!" Rally stated cheerfully as they respectively hung up the phones.
May looked up at Rally from her seat. She grinned. "Pass that phone; I want Ken over!"
Rally did as she asked and got out her cell phone to order pizza to pick up. May dialed Ken's number and waited patiently for him to pick up. "Ken Takizawa."
"Hii! Its May!"
"May! You still want me over tonight?"
"Of course silly!!" May stated with a giggle. "As soon as possible would be nice. Oh yeah! Pick up some food on the way too!"
"Chinese?"
"Perfect! You're the best Ken! Love ya!"
"See you soon May."
They both hung up and May sighed happily. "He's the best, you know that?"
Rally grinned at May. "I'll take your word on it May. I'm gonna go and pick up the food. I'm not sure when I'll be home tonight."
"Or if you'll be home." May added sarcastically.
"Funny. I'm going to change. I'll be back in a minute." Rally finished and ran upstairs to her room. She changed from her sweater and slacks to black jeans and a blue t-shirt. She ran a brush through her hair and applied just a bit of lip gloss. Rally walked back down the stairs and grabbed her Gunsmith Cats jacket and keys. "See you later May."
"Have a good night Rally. Just remember, sex really is good." May sung from the living room.
Rally laughed with a blush and walked out the door to her Cobra. She smiled as it roared to life. Rally drove to Cassano's Pizza and picked up an extra large with pepperoni and mushrooms. She set it in the passenger seat and then drove to Bean's place; it was getting dark out already. She dialed him up again. "Bean Bandit."
"Hey Bean, its me again." Rally stated as she looked at his garage door.
"Something wrong Rally?" he asked, sounding worried.
"Oh no! I was just wondering if I could park in your garage, 'cause I'm not liking this neighborhood at night!" Rally giggled a bit.
"Oh! Sure. I'll get it." It was silent a moment as Rally waited in her car. Suddenly, the large door began to open. She looked inside and saw all of the muscle cars she likes to drool over. Bean stood in the stairwell entrance up to his apartment. He waved her in and hung up the phone. Rally grinned and drove into the garage, watching as the door lowered again. She parked at the end and got out. "Have I mentioned how much I love this garage?"
"No, actually you haven't"
"OH. Well, I love this garage! Pretty car, pretty car, power, power, power! I love it!" Rally had the pizza box in a death grip. "Lotsa horsepower to burn baby! Gotta love those monster engines."
Bean started laughing. "I thought you might like it though!"
He grabbed her hand and they walked up the stairwell to his apartment. He stopped at the door and unbolted the six locks. "You're not paranoid, are you Bean?" Rally asked sarcastically.
"I have every right to be Miss Vincent." He replied and pulled her into the room. She set the pizza on the table. He grabbed napkins and plates and passed them to her. She opened the box and inhaled. "Yum."
He opened the fridge. "Any preference on drink?"
"What have you got?" Rally asked as she leaned over his shoulder, looking in. "Such variety; Miller and Bud!"
Bean laughed. "Hey! I have my preference you know!"
"That's kind of obvious." Rally stated as she grabbed a can of Miller, and popped the top[i]. He pulled a can of Bud out and did likewise, shrugging slightly.
Bean walked over and pulled the tape out of the box and put it in the VCR. It began to play automatically. Bean sat on the sofa across from the television and pulled Rally into his lap. "You can sit with me." He grinned at her.
"Thanks so much Bandit." She leaned against the arm of the sofa and began to eat pizza, her legs stretched across his lap and over to the other side of the couch. He did likewise. The movie actually began; it was the remake of Gone in 60 Seconds, not the original. Rally began to cheer. "WooHoo! The Shelby Cobra is the star of THIS show!"
Bean laughed. "Yeah, but in the original, the 'star' was a Mach 1!"
"Yeah, but both are Mustangs, so there!" Rally giggled. "Quality lives through the ages."
"Which is actually kind of nice, you know?" Bean asked as he took a drink of beer and watched the movie.
Rally took a sip of her drink. "Yeah; nothing can beat a Shelby."
"Uh, hold on. I've beat you a few times girl." Bean stated, pointing at her.
"Yeah I know, thanks for reminding me." Rally grumbled as she set her paper plate and napkins on the table across from the two. "Of course, your Mach 1 is always totally souped up, you know."
Bean laughed. "Yeah, but it has to be! I drive, don't forget."
"Yeah, I know." Rally stated as she snuggled up next to Bean, her head resting on his shoulder as she watched the movie. "You know what I don't like about this movie?"
"Probably when the Cobra is beat to hell. I felt the same way about the Mach 1." Bean stated as he put an arm around Rally.
"Exactly. I cringe every time he runs into something in the movie with that poor, innocent car." She paused a moment. "What time is it?"
"Clock above the television."
"Oops." She squinted slightly in the darkness that was interrupted by the television's glare. "Seven huh? Ah well."
They watched as Memphis is talking to the Shelby Cobra. Rally giggled. "I do that."
Bean grinned. "I can see that happening."
Rally sighed as the characters walked off the screen. The movie picked up as they started stealing the fifty cars. Bean looked a moment. "Mostly new cars."
"Uh-huh. Ferrari's especially." Rally replied, her eyes slightly drooping as she got a little sleepier.
"Yeah. Its weird." Bean stated before taking another drink, shrugging. He looked down at Rally, whose eyes were beginning to close, ever so slightly. "Hey, you getting sleepy?"
"Um, as much as I like this movie, yeah kind of." Rally stated as she stretched some.
"That's alright. We can finish the movie later if you want." Bean replied. "You can crash in my room and I'll take the couch if you want."
"We can stay here." Rally stated. "I'm fine."
"But-"
"Stop arguing with me mister." Rally stated through a smile as she pointed at him. He grinned. "Yes ma'am. Can I get you a blanket, or is that arguing?"
"Blanket's good." Rally smiled slightly.
Bean pushed her legs over his lap and stood, stretching his arms back. He walked to his bedroom and grabbed the blanket and pillow. Walking back out, he cut the lights, walking through the room by the glow of the television. Rally slowly sat back up, making room for Bean again. He smiled and sat down, kicking his legs up on the couch, and pulling Rally next to him under the blanket. Rally smiled as she lay next to him, shoulder and chin resting on his chest. "You're comfy."
Bean grinned at her. "You're a trip, you know that?"
"I've been told that before." She replied, snuggling closer and smiling again.
Bean smiled, kissed her forehead and cut the television off. "Goodnight Rally."
"'Night Bean." She replied. Both fell asleep to the hum of late traffic in Chicago outside the windows.
1 Continued in Part 2 of Vol. 2
----------------------- [i] Keep in mind, Rally's 21 in my storyline at this point. So, she's legal!!
Volume 2; Part 1
By; Talis13
Standard Disclaimer- Konnichiwa kids! ^^ All related characters belong to Kenichi Sonoda, not me. The only characters I'll own are the bad guys I've made up (I'll clearly mark those too darn it!!). So, enjoy the read and thanks!
Rally whistled as she cleaned a window in the Gunsmith Cats gun shop she owned. The sunshine glistened on the streaks of cleaner as they dried and disappeared. She stopped and nodded her head in approval. She glanced over at Minnie May who was taking down a special order for a customer; Rally was happy she beginning to get the hang of taking specials. She heard May giggle as the man put down half for deposit and Rally watched as he turned and left the doorway, waving back at May and then at Rally herself. Rally walked over. "Good to see you're finally getting the hang of this May! Its very helpful to me."
"Hey, no problem Rally!" she stopped a moment, listening. "Ooh! I hear the fax! Hopefully it'll be a bounty!" May ran to the back to retrieve the information. Rally started working on another special order at her desk when May burst back through the door, paper in tow. "Rally! Something you might be interested in!" Rally looked up and May continued, reading from the pages. "Looks like a guy skipped out this morning. Name, David Garrison; bounty at 5K."
"What was he in for?" Rally asked as she worked.
"Umm..." May scanned through the paperwork. "Looks like he was in on drug charges."
Rally rolled her eyes. "Is everybody in this town crack-happy? Geez. Well, set Becky on getting info on where the guy's heading and where he might be now."
"No problem Boss!" May saluted and went into the back room to call up Becky. Rally continued working on her gun until May came back into the front of the shop a few minutes later. "Okay, Becky said she'd start on it and call when the info is ready."
"In other words, when to deposit the money to her account." Rally rolled her eyes again.
May shrugged with a grin. "Whichever you prefer, but yeah, pretty much."
Rally nodded and continued working; it was useless to stop until Becky gave her the information. May was sorting through paperwork when she looked up. "Say Rally."
"Yes?"
"You never did say how your little.oh.date with Bean went last week. I'm assuming okay?" May asked a gleam in her eye.
Rally blushed ever so slightly, continuing her work. "Actually, it went pretty well."
"GREAT!" May yelled. "Have you talked to him since?"
"A couple of times. He's been busy playing hotshot driver."
"Yeah, but you think that's part of his charm."
"Which is exactly why I'm not arguing." Rally pointed at May.
May just laughed. "Wonderful Rally. We'll keep that in mind next time." She looked up as someone entered the shop. "Welcome to Gunsmith Cats! How can I help you?"
Rally just heard the beginning of the conversation as she concentrated again on her work. May was chatting amiably as the man decided which ammunition he wanted. May also had him fill out paperwork for using the shooting range. He went to the range and it was silent again in the shop. "I can't wait for lunch." Rally stated as she set her work down and looked at the clock; ten thirty.
"You going out today?"
Rally looked over, confused. "No. Why?"
May grinned. "Just curious."
Rally glared at her. "Are you just trying to annoy me?"
"Maaaybe. I guess you'll never know."
"I can beat it out of you."
"Nah. Besides, I think you've got a visitor." May maintained the grin.
Rally looked up at her friend. "Whaa-"
The door opened and in walked the infamous Bean Bandit. May grinned. "Hey Bean!" she yelled.
He smiled and bowed his head. "If it isn't Minnie May. Hey kid, what's up?"
"I'm doing really exciting paperwork. Yay. Other than that, nothing." She pouted. And then looked up with a smile. "I think she wants to say hi too though." May pointed over at Rally, who was fairly silent.
"Uh. hey?" Rally said; although, not with much force.
"Ah, the lady I came to see." He walked over to Rally and she stood up. She tilted her head, listening. "I just wanted to apologize for not getting a hold of you much this week-"
"Its part of your charm." May broke in.
Bean looked up confused. "What?"
"Nothing." Rally added with a blush.
He shrugged and continued. "Okay. Anyway, I was wondering if you wanted to go out tomorrow night or something."
"Hmm. I'm not sure if I'll be able to; Becky's digging dirt on a guy for a bounty that just came through today. We might be busy. Unfortunately." Rally stated with a pout. "What about tonight?"
He grinned at her. "I'm gonna be busy too. But, maybe at the end of the week?"
She smiled. "That'd be great! Hopefully nothing else will come up, you know?"
"Yeah, hopefully. Well, I look forward to the weekend then." With that he kissed her hand and walked out the door. May was melting into a small puddle on the counter.
"Awwww! You guys are so cute!! And Bean is utterly romantic! Who knew?" she shrugged with a smile. "Rally?"
Rally was not actually paying attention. She was looking at the small piece of paper Bean had slipped into her hand before he left. She unfolded it twice and looked at it. It read; 'Hopefully they'll be here by two.' -Bean. And that was it; she looked up confused. May looked over at her. "Rally? You in there? Hey! What's that?"
Rally folded the paper back up and stuck it in her pocket. "None of your business girlfriend."
May was arguing, but the rest of the hour went quickly and it was time for lunch. May made the Macaroni and cheese as Rally sat at the table, looking at a magazine, but not actually reading it. She was thinking about the small scrap of paper Bean had passed to her. As bad as May was, Rally was worse; she practically oozed into a little puddle on the floor too when he took her hand. She sighed and rolled her eyes. She would scream if she was going to turn into a 'hopeless romantic'. May pushed a bowl of mac and cheese in front of Rally and then sat at her own place at the table. Rally began to eat silently and May took a sip of her Sprite. "What are you so quiet about?"
Rally looked up like a deer caught in headlights. "Uh, nothing?"
"Are you asking me or telling me?" May asked with raised eyebrows.
"Telling of course." Rally stated with a smile. "So how's Ken been?"
May launched happily into how wonderful Ken's been lately and just how interesting life with him back was. Rally rolled her eyes. "Geez May, give me the life story why don't ya?"
May turned her nose in the air. "You asked, don't forget."
"However could I forget that May?" Rally asked before eating a bit more macaroni. The rest of their lunch hour went fairly smoothly. They both walked back out to the store, May stretching as they walked. "You know what?" Rally looked up and May continued. "You guys are cute, you know that?"
Rally just rolled her eyes. "May you are just a hopeless romantic, you know that?"
"Of course silly girl!" May giggled. "I think its one of the few 'normal' things in my life. So, I figure I might as well enjoy it."
Rally shrugged as she unlocked the shop door. "That makes sense. Life around here is a tad.unusual."
"I think that was the biggest understatement I personally have ever heard."
Both girls just started laughing as they reopened the shop. Rally sat back at her special order gun and May finished taking stock. There were few customers as both sat working. Rally glanced up at the clock, waiting for two o'clock; it was bothering her. What was he plotting? She heard May get up and start vacuuming the carpet. Rally finished her one special and moved to the next on her list. She had May call the owner of the gun done to pickup and gave him the final cost on it. A few minutes after two o'clock, Rally heard the door open, but was concentrating solely on the gun in her hands. She heard May gasp lightly and Rally's head shot up, wondering what was wrong. There was a young man standing there, holding flowers in his hands. He looked at both girls. "Rally Vincent?"
"That's her!" May yelled and pointed at Rally, grinning wildly.
Rally put her work done and stepped from behind the counter and approached the man like he had rabies. He held a clipboard for her to sign and then passed her the flowers. She tentatively took them, pulling the paper covering them back. She gasped; purple lilies in beautiful shades of lavender and royal purple. The deliveryman looked back at her. "Thanks Miss Vincent. Hope you like them; they are actually kind of hard to get a hold of this time of year. Have a good day ladies."
"These are utterly beautiful." Rally whispered, barely touching the velvet petals of the flowers.
"Wow Rally; they are really pretty. I'll run and get you a vase to put them in!" May stated as she ran out the door, back towards their house.
Rally just stood, staring at the flowers in front of her. She looked up at the clock; ten after two. She smiled; he was such a scoundrel and that certainly was part of his charm. May came running with a vase into the shop. She filled it with water and then set it on the desk behind the counter. Rally walked over slowly, still just looking at the beautiful flowers in her hands. She began to arrange them in the vase, looking at the color of each before placing them in the vase. "I wonder how he knew I liked lilies; much less purple!" May began to whistle innocently. "MAY! When did you talk to him?!"
May grinned and winked. "Why? Jealous?"
"HEY!"
"Aw, calm down Ral'! It was his idea; he just asked what flowers specifically, you liked." May shrugged with a grin. "I thought it was kind of romantic actually."
Rally looked at the flowers once more; the darks and lights contrasting beautifully. She smiled softly. "Yeah. It was."
May pushed her friend. "Who sounds like a hopeless romantic now, hmm?"
Rally rolled her eyes. "I said I would scream if I was becoming that."
"You're a little too late for that Rally."
"HEY!"
May pointed at the phone. "Shouldn't you call and thank the poor guy for going to all the trouble of those flowers?"
Rally's head shot up. "Ooh. That's right! Thanks May!" Rally grabbed the phone and dialed, hearing it ring and pick up.
"Yo! Bean Bandit."
"Hey mister two o'clock! Rally here!"
"Hey Rally. So, did they get there?"
"Aaahh! Bean, they're absolutely beautiful! I don't know what kind of strings you had to pull to get these, but I love them! Thank you so very, very much!" she gushed into the phone.
"Hey lady, you deserve it. I figure anybody that puts up with me is worth the effort."
Rally's tinkling laugh went through the phone. "Thanks! Nice to get somebody's approval!"
"You've got it babe. But, I'm going to be busy in a few, so I'll talk to you later, all right?"
"Sure! Thanks again Bean, I love 'em! Talk to you later." Rally hung up the phone and sighed happily.
May laughed giddily. "You two are adorable! As strange as that description sounds for each of you."
Rally smiled. "You only get one life May; might as well enjoy it, hey?"
May nodded in approval as Rally continued working on her project and May filed older paperwork. Later in the afternoon, just as the girls were fixing to close the shop, a call came through. Rally picked up. "Gunsmith Cats thanks for calling."
"Hey Rally, its Becky."
"Oh! Hey Becky, find some dirt on our buddy David Garrison?" Rally asked as she began counting down the register.
"Girlfriend, you are gonna owe me big for the dirt on this guy!" Becky grinned.
Rally grumbled. "Wonderful. How much is it gonna cost me?"
"Let's see.." Becky was mumbling as she figured out the costs. "How about six hundred and fifty?"
"Sold! What have you got?" Rally asked as she went to her computer and transferred the money to Becky's account.
"Quite a bit actually; at first I thought he was just a drug dealer, but turns out he has some interesting tricks up his sleeves."
"What do you mean?" Rally asked as she locked away her register drawer.
"While he does have the drug trafficking down, he also deals in illegal arms. Sound intriguing yet?" Becky asked.
"Very."
"Okay. According to my sources, he plans on making a break for it SOON. He's got his higher ups after him as well as any person he's been dealing with lately." Rally paused when Becky mentioned 'making a break for it'.
"Wait, Becky, what do you mean, making a break for it?"
"Huh? Oh; he plans on skipping to Canada apparently. Across the border and all that stuff; you should know that. Why?" Becky questioned, getting curious.
"Uh, nothing Becky. Anyways, go on." Rally shook her head and took off her apron, hanging it on its hook behind the counter.
"Well, sounds like he's hired a driver and plans on leaving tonight."
"SHIT!" Rally yelled. "I knew it! I just KNEW it would happen!!"
"Do you want to know who he hired and where he's leaving from?" Becky asked, confused.
Rally was mumbling. "Not like don't I already know." She then spoke up with a sigh. "Sure Becky, fire away."
"He's leaving from a hideout he has on the lower east side, off of Third Street. I'll email you the exact address. And as far as a driver, he's hired Bean Bandit which means you almost don't have a snowball's chance in- "
"Thanks for the confidence booster Becky." Rally snarled into the phone. May was silently looking on, wondering if this would be a bad time to interrupt.
"Hey girl, you know I'm not exaggerating! He's one of the best drivers! So unless you snag this guy at his house, you're not gonna get him!" Becky stated.
Rally sat a moment and sighed. "I know Becky. I'll have to get him at his house then. Thanks for the info and email it ASAP so we can snag him tonight."
"No problem Rally; pleasure doing business with you. I'll get it to you in a few minutes." Becky hung up as did Rally a moment later.
May looked up tentatively at Rally. "Um, is there a problem Rally?"
"Afraid so Minnie May. Looks like David Garrison is going to try and get away tonight." May looked on and shrugged. Rally continued with a wry smile. "He's going to Canada and of course he hired a driver. You only get one guess who."
It suddenly came very into focus for May. "Ooh. I see now why you were so upset. I'm assuming its Bean then?"
"'Fraid so May. So, in order to get that 5k, we have to nab him tonight. Becky's emailing me the extra info now, so, we need to get ready. Because if we don't get him at home, he'll be out of our grasp at a high rate of speed." Rally finished and looked up with her hands behind her head.
May nodded. "Yeah, no kidding. Well, let's get ready and come back and get the email when we're done."
Both girls went into their house, locking the shop door beforehand. Rally went into her room and put on her Kevlar jacket, slacks and boots. She placed her boot knife on her right hand side near her ankle, and loaded her CZ75 handgun, placing it in her shoulder holster. She then loaded a Grendal P10 on her wrist slide, locking it into place. Making sure to grab extra magazines for her CZ75, she placed them in her jacket as well. Rally zipped the jacket most of the way up and walked out of her room. She then headed down to the kitchen to grab a bite to eat. May was already down there, digging in the fridge. "Grab me an apple May."
"Here you go." May passed her an apple and then continued rummaging in the box.
"What are you looking for?" Rally asked after taking a bite.
"I'm not sure, but I'll know it when I see it!" May called cheerfully. "Ah-HAH!"
Rally watched as May reemerged with a can of fruit and a piece of French bread. May sat at the table, happily eating her goodies. Rally smiled. "So what are you bringing May?"
"Um," she swallowed some bread. "A couple each of smoke, flash and frag. Also those small extra goodies for emergencies."
"Alright. We need to get those glasses for the flashbangs then."
"Probably wouldn't hurt."
Both girls finished and walked back down to the shop silently. Rally checked her email and May went to find the flash glasses. Rally drew up the email and printed out a copy. May walked over and handed a pair of glasses to Rally. "What's it say?"
"He's at 564 on Third Street. He's got a few guards but apparently they're in a fairly secluded place; no reason to go there it sounds like. Anyways, we should be able to grab him without a lot of flash."
"Dang."
Rally rolled her eyes. "Sorry May."
"Well, let's head out anyways." May stated unhappily as they both began to walk out the door. "Wait! When's he plan on leaving tonight?!"
"Probably around six-thirty: that's not set though. Which means we should hurry to get him before Bean does." Rally stated as she pulled out her keys and cranked her Shelby GT500 Cobra. It roared to life and Rally popped the gas, as the two bounty hunters flew down the street to get their money- or guy.
May looked at her watch; it was five forty-five. The car pulled into a side street about half a block away from their goal. "So, what's the plan Rally?"
Rally looked at the building; a standard run-down condo that looked like it had not been used in ages. "Hmm. I guess just go from the ground floor up."
May looked at the three-floor building. "Okay. Let's go then!"
Both girls hopped out of the Cobra and walked towards the goal of the building. Each was looking up, trying to figure out where exactly, Garrison was staying. There were a couple of lights on at the second floor and three on the third floor. May pointed up, a questioning look on her face. Rally nodded. "Okay. Well, let's just start at the bottom and work our way up. That way we can at least prevent others from leaving."
May nodded and then looked at the door they had come near; it was a less used side door. She slid her fingertips around the edges of the door, trying to see if anything was amiss. She did not feel anything, so she went and motioned Rally around to the other side of the door. Rally grabbed the doorknob and twisted, barely pushing it in. It creaked slightly, but not loudly. It was dark and both stepped into the long dusty hallway, shutting the door back. May pulled a pair of night vision goggles on and looked into the room; at the end of the hall to the stairwell, there was an IR beam about five inches off of the ground. Other than that, it was fairly clean. May mouthed 'IR' and pointed down, hopping to the first step and Rally following her. May kept on the goggles as Rally took lead up the silent stairwell. She walked carefully and quietly up the stairs, pausing each step and listening for someone coming. It was going fairly well; this would probably be an easy grab. As they came to the second floor landing, May motioned that it was clear of signal beams and Rally looked carefully to one side and May the other. Quiet.
May looked at her watch; six o'clock. They had half an hour to grab the guy before he could even remotely make it to Bean. May grinned; this would add a little tension to the new relationship. She saw Rally stop and listen outside of an open door. Rally signaled three people and then motioned May to toss a smoke grenade inside. One man looked towards the door as he heard a metallic 'ping' of the grenade fuse opening. His eyes widened. "SHIT! GRENADE!!!" The men began scrambling for the door as it exploded in a burst of smoke and bits of confetti and the window cracked with the concussion.
Rally shot out the knees of the first man to stumble a few steps from the door and he fell to the ground with a shout. The next man stumbled over the first, gun drawn and Rally did the same to him as well as shooting his trigger finger. Last was the slow one, crawling out the door, which May was happy to tie up with duct tape and lean him against the wall. She winked at him. "Thanks man. Now we have a question."
Rally ripped the duct tape off with a smile. "Hi. Where's the guy in charge? David Garrison?"
The man looked up with a scowl. "Why the hell should I tell you anything?"
"May?"
May walked over and pulled another hand grenade out; another smoke but he didn't know that. She smiled sweetly. "It would be a real shame if this accidentally fell into his lap and exploded huh Rally?"
"It certainly would May! Remember that one guy you did that to? Ow; boy I bet he wasn't too happy for awhile there. Girlfriend probably wasn't either." Rally stated, shaking the gun for emphasis.
The man looked up, fear-filled eyes. "Wait! Wait! Please-o-please don't! I'll tell you where he's at! Just keep that thing away from me!"
Rally nodded, and May unhappily put away the grenade. He looked up, relieved. "Okay. Thanks. He's on the third floor, right hand corner. I swear."
Rally retaped his mouth and looked down with a grin. "Thanks. And I think you made a wise decision friend."
"Dang it."
Rally rolled her eyes. "Sorry May. Let's go."
The two continued on their path towards the next set of stairs, May with the goggles back down. She signaled another IR and stepped over it at the foot of the steps. Rally did the same and they continued up the stairs. She looked back and May cleared it. They turned right down the hallway and May looked at her watch; six-twenty. That took longer than she expected; she pointed at her watch to Rally. Rally kept her eyes from bugging out; Bean was being more of a foil for her plans than normal. This was cutting it a little too close. They proceeded quietly down the hall and Rally neared the last door on the right hand side; she listened through the cracked door. It sounded like there were only two; that was odd. She supposed they did not think there would be a problem yet. Rally grinned and signaled at the door. May grinned and pulled out her flash goggles. Rally did the same, readying her gun. May rolled the grenade into the room, relishing the sound and feel of the explosion that followed. There was a very bright flash followed by the sound of shattering glass exploding across the room from the windows. Rally jumped to the doorway, gun sighted towards the middle of the room. There were the two she heard. May looked around and yelped. "RALLY LEFT!!"
Rally turned and automatically shot towards her left, firing a shot at the woman's hand that was holding a gun and then covered the two back at the center of the room. May covered the one woman with the small revolver she carried. Rally moved towards the two, carefully watching. One suddenly pulled a S&W revolver out and fired a shot at Rally; luckily, it was not a heavy gauge, otherwise she would have had a problem. She fell to her knee, but still trained the CZ75 on the two after firing the gun out of the one's hand. "Shit. Okay. Drop any guns you have before you no longer have fingers to fire with."
The one that fired at Rally tentatively dropped another handgun and boot knife, while the last person dropped a Rueger 85 handgun. Rally stood, remembering who Garrison was from Becky's report. "Okay, David Garrison, you've been bad boy jumping court like that, so you've got a date with the cops. May."
May tossed Rally a pair of handcuffs from her jacket. Rally strapped them on Garrison and then turned towards the other two. She nodded towards May who grinned and brought out the duct tape again. She taped up the remaining two and then dusted her hands off. "Good job Ral'! 5K is great for a night's work." She winked.
Rally grinned too, and then looked up, hand to her side. "Say May, what time is it?"
"Um.six-thirty five Rally." May looked up from the watch.
"Okay. We'll leave the rest here and just take Garrison; he's the big one anyways." Rally stated, leading Garrison in front of her back down the hall, her gun still drawn, just in case. May waved at the man still taped on the second floor. He scowled at her. The went back down to the first floor and out the side door they had entered through; there they were greeted by a dark 1970 Boss 302 Mustang. Bean glanced out the window at them; his eyes widened slightly at whom Rally was poking out the door. He opened the car door and stood with his arms crossed, looking down at Rally.
"What the hell are you doing?" Bean asked, looking slightly perturbed.
Rally shrugged. "Sorry. Bounty you know. May, take him to the car."
May nodded and started poking Garrison in the back with her revolver, waving back at Bean once. Rally then turned towards Bean again, her arms crossed matching his pose, the ghost of a smile on her lips. "We had talked about this remember?"
Bean ran a hand through is hair, smoothing it back from his eyes. "Yeah, I know. But this soon? Come on Rally."
"Sorry Bean. Your job is to take them away; mine is to take them in. You just weren't quick enough this time hotshot." She smiled up at him.
He looked up at the stars appearing in the hazy city sky and then back down at Rally with a grin. "Point taken. Well, my business here is done I suppose."
"Afraid so partner." She turned with a grin and looked back at him. "We still on for this weekend, or are you going to be in a bad mood?"
"Funny. Of course we're still on as long as you want to go."
"Yeah! Movie?"
"Sounds good. How about Gone in 60 Seconds?" Bean asked with a smile.
Rally grinned again. "Hey, sounds like a good choice! My place or yours?"
"Whichever."
"Okay. Yours then. May and Ken will probably be over at mine." She rolled her eyes.
"Okay. Sounds good. I'll catch you later then." Bean stated.
Rally watched brown eyes looking longingly at her and she smiled, stepping over, pulling him towards her into a kiss. His hand rested on her hip as he returned her kiss. Rally pulled back slightly with a pained expression. He looked down, concerned. "What's wrong? Did I do something?"
She shook her head. "No. No it wasn't you. I took a shot to the side ups there is all. Sorry, it wasn't you."
"You gonna be all right?"
She nodded with a slight smile, pulling him back down for a quick kiss. She let go, looking up and blushed slightly. "Yeah. I'll call you later."
"RALLY!! ANY DAY NOW!!!" May yelled from the car.
"Yep, its time." Rally stated as she walked back towards her car parked down the street, wistful glance over her shoulder: she could see a smirk on his face. "See you later."
Rally made it back to her car and fired it up. May was grinning like a hyena. Unfortunately, she had to wait to goad Rally until after they dropped off Garrison at the police station. After they were finished, May squealed. "You guys are so cuuuuute! Hehe. So what are YOU doing this weekend huh?"
Rally looked over and shrugged. "We're seeing a movie."
"Which one?"
"Gone in 60 Seconds."
May's eyes rolled. "Figures. Where at?"
"His place. I figured-"
"Yaah! Ken can come over!!" May cheered. Rally rolled her eyes. "Yep. My thoughts exactly."
"Now I expect you two to be good Rally." May goaded with a mischievous smirk.
Rally just sighed loudly. "I really think you're a Freudian, you know that?"
"Sure." May began enthusiastically. "Two points in life; survival," Rally nodded. "And to procreate!" Rally rolled her eyes as May laughed again.
"So, are you okay from that gunshot?" May asked suddenly.
"Yeah. Its going to be pretty soar, but the Kevlar did its job." Rally replied, tentatively touching her side. The rest of the ride was silent as the girls calmed down from their night out. They both got out of the Cobra after Rally parked it in their driveway and walked wearily to their house. Both slept soundly all night.
Early the next morning, Rally was up and about, cleaning up the kitchen and fixing eggs on the stove. She sung along to the radio as the eggs popped and hissed, and she cleaned the countertops. Rally looked up when she heard May tromp down the stairs. May walked over to the table and Rally heard her head hit the wooden tabletop with a resounding 'klunk'. Rally began laughing merrily. "What's the matter May? Not a morning person?"
May glared at Rally's cheerful grin that was appearing far to early in the morning. "No. Never have been, probably never will be." Her head hit the table again.
Rally finished up breakfast for the two and set a plate of eggs and toast in front of May. She then set across from May and began to eat her own breakfast. May eventually struggled up and began to eat. After finishing, both girls went down to the store to open the shop for the morning. As Rally hummed along to the radio she flipped on, she pulled out a special order gun she was working on and began on it again. May finished her paperwork sorting from the previous day and then headed to the back to pick up the new faxes for the day.
Later, May was out the door and gone to grab something at the grocer Rally just sat down, working on a special order until the door opened with a gentle 'whoosh'. She sat up with a smile. "Welcome to Gunsmith Cats. What can I help you with today?"
Rally just helped the police officer that had come in. They went through different guns and ammos and he looked up at the clock. "Wow! Time flies huh? Say Ms. Vincent, I don't suppose you'd be interested in dinner some night?" he asked as he packed away the ammo he just purchased.
"Sorry Dave, but no can do. I've got a boyfriend now and I don't think he'd like it too well." Rally stated with a wink.
"Really? I hadn't heard that yet! Good for you. I'll have to pass the news on to Roy. So, who's the lucky guy: anyone I know?" Dave asked cheerfully.
Rally stalled a moment. Hazardous truth versus safe lie. Hazardous truth versus safe lie. She shook her head slightly. "I'll say as long as you don't blow a gasket. Deal?"
Dave cocked an eyebrow. "Uh, sure. I guess."
"Have you heard of Bean Bandit?" Rally asked as she picked at a bit of plastic on the countertop.
Dave coughed slightly. "Um. Yes. Why?" he asked, hoping it wasn't what he thought. Rally just smiled. "I see. Hmm. I'll be sure to pass the news on to Roy." Dave stated with a grin.
Rally glared at him. "Don't you dare get me into trouble Dave!"
He held his hands up. "Okay, okay! I'll break it to him as nicely as possible. I'll see you later Rally."
"See you later Dave." Someone cleared their throat behind Rally. She spun around.
"So, you're finally admitting he's your boyfriend eh?" May asked from the doorway, smile glinting.
Rally blushed. "Well, yeah. Why?"
"No reason Rally." May sung.
"I'm glad it's Friday." Rally stated emphatically.
"Why ever is that Rally?" May asked innocently. "As if I didn't know."
"Funny. I wanna see that movie." Rally stated and then looked at May with a wink. "And I wanna see Bean."
May laughed merrily. "That's what I thought! So, are you going over to his place tonight or what?"
"If he's not busy, I figured I would. I'll have to call him and make sure though." Rally replied as she started sweeping the floor. May started picking shipments from the boxes off the floor and putting them on their rightful place on the shelves. She then looked at the clock on the wall; five o'clock.
"Quitting time!" May cheered as she took the broom from Rally's hands after locking the front door. She pushed Rally towards the register. "Count that sucker down so we can go and call Ken!"
"I don't want to call Ken." Rally stated as she opened the register drawer.
May swatted her with the broom. "HEY!"
Rally laughed and May eventually joined in. They finished cleaning up the shop and Rally locked the drawer in a safe in the back room. May followed Rally into the house and Rally went in and picked up the phone, dialing Bean's number quickly. It rang twice before he picked up. "Bean Bandit here."
"Hey Bean! Its Rally!"
"Hey girl, what's up?"
"Nothing much; I just wondered if you wanted to get together and watch that movie tonight if you have time?" Rally asked as she twirled the phone cord around her fingers.
"Sure, sounds good. Have you eaten yet?"
"Nope! I can pick up pizza on the way to your place though if you want."
"Sure, that'll work. I've already got the movie, so we'll be set. When are you coming over?" Bean asked.
"Whenever's good for you."
"Okay. Come when you get ready then. I'll be waiting."
"Okay! See you in a few Bean!" Rally stated cheerfully as they respectively hung up the phones.
May looked up at Rally from her seat. She grinned. "Pass that phone; I want Ken over!"
Rally did as she asked and got out her cell phone to order pizza to pick up. May dialed Ken's number and waited patiently for him to pick up. "Ken Takizawa."
"Hii! Its May!"
"May! You still want me over tonight?"
"Of course silly!!" May stated with a giggle. "As soon as possible would be nice. Oh yeah! Pick up some food on the way too!"
"Chinese?"
"Perfect! You're the best Ken! Love ya!"
"See you soon May."
They both hung up and May sighed happily. "He's the best, you know that?"
Rally grinned at May. "I'll take your word on it May. I'm gonna go and pick up the food. I'm not sure when I'll be home tonight."
"Or if you'll be home." May added sarcastically.
"Funny. I'm going to change. I'll be back in a minute." Rally finished and ran upstairs to her room. She changed from her sweater and slacks to black jeans and a blue t-shirt. She ran a brush through her hair and applied just a bit of lip gloss. Rally walked back down the stairs and grabbed her Gunsmith Cats jacket and keys. "See you later May."
"Have a good night Rally. Just remember, sex really is good." May sung from the living room.
Rally laughed with a blush and walked out the door to her Cobra. She smiled as it roared to life. Rally drove to Cassano's Pizza and picked up an extra large with pepperoni and mushrooms. She set it in the passenger seat and then drove to Bean's place; it was getting dark out already. She dialed him up again. "Bean Bandit."
"Hey Bean, its me again." Rally stated as she looked at his garage door.
"Something wrong Rally?" he asked, sounding worried.
"Oh no! I was just wondering if I could park in your garage, 'cause I'm not liking this neighborhood at night!" Rally giggled a bit.
"Oh! Sure. I'll get it." It was silent a moment as Rally waited in her car. Suddenly, the large door began to open. She looked inside and saw all of the muscle cars she likes to drool over. Bean stood in the stairwell entrance up to his apartment. He waved her in and hung up the phone. Rally grinned and drove into the garage, watching as the door lowered again. She parked at the end and got out. "Have I mentioned how much I love this garage?"
"No, actually you haven't"
"OH. Well, I love this garage! Pretty car, pretty car, power, power, power! I love it!" Rally had the pizza box in a death grip. "Lotsa horsepower to burn baby! Gotta love those monster engines."
Bean started laughing. "I thought you might like it though!"
He grabbed her hand and they walked up the stairwell to his apartment. He stopped at the door and unbolted the six locks. "You're not paranoid, are you Bean?" Rally asked sarcastically.
"I have every right to be Miss Vincent." He replied and pulled her into the room. She set the pizza on the table. He grabbed napkins and plates and passed them to her. She opened the box and inhaled. "Yum."
He opened the fridge. "Any preference on drink?"
"What have you got?" Rally asked as she leaned over his shoulder, looking in. "Such variety; Miller and Bud!"
Bean laughed. "Hey! I have my preference you know!"
"That's kind of obvious." Rally stated as she grabbed a can of Miller, and popped the top[i]. He pulled a can of Bud out and did likewise, shrugging slightly.
Bean walked over and pulled the tape out of the box and put it in the VCR. It began to play automatically. Bean sat on the sofa across from the television and pulled Rally into his lap. "You can sit with me." He grinned at her.
"Thanks so much Bandit." She leaned against the arm of the sofa and began to eat pizza, her legs stretched across his lap and over to the other side of the couch. He did likewise. The movie actually began; it was the remake of Gone in 60 Seconds, not the original. Rally began to cheer. "WooHoo! The Shelby Cobra is the star of THIS show!"
Bean laughed. "Yeah, but in the original, the 'star' was a Mach 1!"
"Yeah, but both are Mustangs, so there!" Rally giggled. "Quality lives through the ages."
"Which is actually kind of nice, you know?" Bean asked as he took a drink of beer and watched the movie.
Rally took a sip of her drink. "Yeah; nothing can beat a Shelby."
"Uh, hold on. I've beat you a few times girl." Bean stated, pointing at her.
"Yeah I know, thanks for reminding me." Rally grumbled as she set her paper plate and napkins on the table across from the two. "Of course, your Mach 1 is always totally souped up, you know."
Bean laughed. "Yeah, but it has to be! I drive, don't forget."
"Yeah, I know." Rally stated as she snuggled up next to Bean, her head resting on his shoulder as she watched the movie. "You know what I don't like about this movie?"
"Probably when the Cobra is beat to hell. I felt the same way about the Mach 1." Bean stated as he put an arm around Rally.
"Exactly. I cringe every time he runs into something in the movie with that poor, innocent car." She paused a moment. "What time is it?"
"Clock above the television."
"Oops." She squinted slightly in the darkness that was interrupted by the television's glare. "Seven huh? Ah well."
They watched as Memphis is talking to the Shelby Cobra. Rally giggled. "I do that."
Bean grinned. "I can see that happening."
Rally sighed as the characters walked off the screen. The movie picked up as they started stealing the fifty cars. Bean looked a moment. "Mostly new cars."
"Uh-huh. Ferrari's especially." Rally replied, her eyes slightly drooping as she got a little sleepier.
"Yeah. Its weird." Bean stated before taking another drink, shrugging. He looked down at Rally, whose eyes were beginning to close, ever so slightly. "Hey, you getting sleepy?"
"Um, as much as I like this movie, yeah kind of." Rally stated as she stretched some.
"That's alright. We can finish the movie later if you want." Bean replied. "You can crash in my room and I'll take the couch if you want."
"We can stay here." Rally stated. "I'm fine."
"But-"
"Stop arguing with me mister." Rally stated through a smile as she pointed at him. He grinned. "Yes ma'am. Can I get you a blanket, or is that arguing?"
"Blanket's good." Rally smiled slightly.
Bean pushed her legs over his lap and stood, stretching his arms back. He walked to his bedroom and grabbed the blanket and pillow. Walking back out, he cut the lights, walking through the room by the glow of the television. Rally slowly sat back up, making room for Bean again. He smiled and sat down, kicking his legs up on the couch, and pulling Rally next to him under the blanket. Rally smiled as she lay next to him, shoulder and chin resting on his chest. "You're comfy."
Bean grinned at her. "You're a trip, you know that?"
"I've been told that before." She replied, snuggling closer and smiling again.
Bean smiled, kissed her forehead and cut the television off. "Goodnight Rally."
"'Night Bean." She replied. Both fell asleep to the hum of late traffic in Chicago outside the windows.
1 Continued in Part 2 of Vol. 2
----------------------- [i] Keep in mind, Rally's 21 in my storyline at this point. So, she's legal!!