Chapter 12 - Gotta Knock a Little Harder
"Emptiness, a lonely parody
And my life, another smokin' gun
A sign of my indifference"
Jet Black's P.O.V -
Valhoun… I can barely believe it. Here I was thinking it would be a
cold day in Hades before I came across that sorry scumbag again.
"Damn!" I follow behind Faye and Ed, being sure to keep a few blocks
between us. I can't let the two of them out of my sight. They've no idea
that they've just stepped out of the frying pan and are about to jump into
the fire.
Reaching into my coat pocket, I whip out my communicator, immediately
dialing up Spike. The moron doesn't even have his on - something I don't
think is accidental. I growl in frustration - the two of us are gonna have a
little chat later.
Wasting no time, I dial up another number. Within a few moments, my
old ISSP buddy, Bob, shows up on the line, looking the same as always.
"Jet," he replies, chuckling. "It's been awhile, pal. I heard you retired
yourself to a life of fishing."
"I still am fishing," I tell him, smirking slightly. "Only this time I've got a
big bite." He looks at me in curiosity. "Let's just say it's one who got
away."
"There aren't that many who fit that description," he tells me. "It's not
very likely that Black Dog lets one get away."
"I wish I hadn't let this one get away," I reply. "It's Valhoun."
Bob stares at me quietly for a few moments. "Aeolis?" he asks. I nod
in response. "That's impossible. I clued you in on him years ago - I
thought for sure you had busted him."
"Get serious." I say gruffly. "You know I haven't come across his
slimy ass since I quit the force."
"You know I wouldn't lie to you, Jet." Bob replies. "I tell ya, I sent
you a line a few years ago when I heard he was spotted in your area.
Your partner promised to relay the message."
"Spike?" I frown.
"Nah," Bob replies. "The woman, purple hair… she must've gone after
him herself."
I resist the urge crush the communicator in my frustration. 'Damnit,
Faye!' "How long ago was this? Ya gotta tell me."
"I'd say two years ago." Bob answers.
I curse loudly; everything is suddenly starting to piece together.
Damnit, Faye, why'd you have to go and try to be so noble?
"She tried to go after'im, didn't she?" Bob frowns when I don't reply.
"You know what he's like, Jet."
"Yeah," I reply slowly, swiping my hand over my face. "I know, Bob."
"Messed her up pretty bad, didn't he?"
I frown slightly, watching Valhoun smile down at Ed, who is busy
making little weird gestures. I don't like the look on his face one bit.
"She survived." Faye and Ed disappear around the corner with Valhoun
and the little weasel with them. "Shit!" With my free hand I check to see
if my gun is loaded. I take off running after them. I can't let the four of
them out of my sight.
"Jet," Bob's voice is calm and even. I glance down at my communicator
in curiosity. "The bounty on him is only 50,000."
"I don't care about the bounty." I reply. So, he's not the mystery bounty
head, huh? Too bad, 'cuz it's personal now.
"And in case you hadn't heard," Bob replies. "He's wanted dead or
alive."
I smirk slightly, ending the transmission. "That's all I need to know."
=====
I already explained before that no one expected any glamour from
being a cop. After all, our area of jurisdiction was the vastness of
space. People figured they could do just about whatever they pleased
simply because they were no longer on Earth. In space, people made
up their own rules - they did what they pleased.
It came as a big surprise to me when I found out that criminals weren't
the only ones breaking the law - cops did it every once in a while.
Granted, some cops had their own views of justice, operating outside the
stiff laws of the ISSP simply to bring order to the galaxy. Guys like that
I could respect.
But, like the saying goes, there are two sides to every coin.
You got guys that break the law to bring justice, and then you got those
who do it just to bring chaos. Those guys are sort of like Aeolis Valhoun.
I can remember being in my mid-20s when I met him for the first time.
I was still a little naïve when it came to the hidden politics within the
ISSP. Still, I had been on the force long enough to earn the rep and the
name Black Dog. Apparently, I had earned the attention of a few guys
higher up in the ranks, putting me in line for a promotion - a promotion I
found out later that Valhoun had had his eyes on.
Of course, he suddenly found a reason to hate my guts. I didn't really
like him that much either - he was pushy, arrogant, and really had no
respect for any other human life than his own. Not that I really cared,
but I guess someone decided it would be funny to pair me up with him
on a few cases. That's when the proverbial shit hit that proverbial fan.
They called it the Wolf in Sheep's clothing murders. From Venus to
Jupiter, the police were getting reports of numerous kidnappings/murders -
all women and children. Of course, when an investigation was started,
all the victims were last reported being seen with a cop.
What do you say to something like that? My first guess was some punk
impersonating an officer, but that soon proved to be false. Reports
indicated the perpetrator was dressed like a real cop - had the badge
and standard issue gun used by us guys in the ISSP. You can't really
pick up those things at your local grocery store.
My next guess was the possibility that this guy was a cop killer. It
made sense, didn't it? Some scumbag bumps off a cop - uses his
uniform and badge to go wreaking havoc across the galaxy.
Unfortunately, that didn't fly well either. It turns out when a search
party was sent out, the criminal always knew where we were going to
look. It seemed like he was always one step ahead of us.
Still, seeing since I was on the case, there was no way Black Dog was
gonna give up until this creep was behind bars. I was especially
determined when my landlord, a nice old lady who baked me a pie
every Monday, reported that her 16-year-old daughter had turned up
missing. It suddenly got personal.
Unfortunately, the case wasn't going well, as you could probably
suspect. My being teamed with Valhoun turned out to be more of a
hindrance than help. He tripped me up at every step, trying to convince
me that the case was a waste of time. It was almost as if he was
deliberately trying to keep me from solving the case.
Would you believe that's when I figured out who the Wolf in Sheep's
clothing was? Yep, and guess who it was? That's right, it was Aeolis
Valhoun.
It turns out he was just a sick-o. He started out as a vigilante, taking
out small-time thugs and bounty heads. When the pickings on them got
slim, he started preying on the innocent. When the police picked up on it,
it turned into a game for him, letting him enjoy being one step ahead of us
at all times.
I tried turning him in of course, but it had taken so long for me to come
this far. The big wigs upstairs caught wind of the fact that the Wolf was
actually a cop, and they pulled the plug on the whole operation, allowing
Valhoun to slip away scot-free. I thought about busting him anyway, but
that would have meant losing my badge. At that point in my career, I
didn't want to risk it.
After that, it weighed on my conscience for years that I had allowed a
monster like that to keep roaming the streets. He had hurt a lot of people,
including Faye. Today I was gonna make sure it wouldn't happen again.
The Black Dog had bitten and there was no way in hell he was gonna
let go.
=====
When I caught up to them, Faye and Ed were seated on a bench next
to an alley. The weasel guy stood behind them while Valhoun stayed in
the shadows of the alleyway. How like him.
The weasel had something in his hand. I put on my sunglasses, zooming
in so I could get a better picture. What the Hell… mushrooms?
"And you're sure this is the real thing?" he was asking.
"Of course." Faye replied. "We know a guy who runs a business selling
them back on Earth. We go back and steal some every now and then."
"Ever tried one?" Faye turns to Valhoun; there's an uneasy scowl on her
face. Does she realize who this guy is yet?
"Yes, yes she has!" Edward pipes in. "I tricked her once, gave her a
funky mushroom instead of an eating one. Strange hallucinations!" She
waved her hands about in a spooky gesture.
The weasel laughed, amused by her antics. "She's a tricky one, isn't
she?"
"Yeah, she is." Faye replies. "So, are you gonna help us out or not? As
much as I enjoy your company, Edith and I really need to get back to
work." She rises from her seat, taking Edward by the arm.
"Hang on a second," Valhoun steps out of the shadows, snatching the
mushroom out of the weasel's hand. He breaks it in half, sniffing it.
After biting a piece of it and spitting it out, he looks back up at them with
a scowl on his face. "Perhaps you have something else you'd be willing
to sell us?"
Faye takes a step back, placing Edward behind her. I brace myself,
trying to decide when to make my move.
"Maybe you'd like this!" Edward holds up two small vials filled with
reddish-purple liquid. The weasel's eyes practically glaze over.
I gawk - that's not what I think it is, is it? Glancing over at Faye, it
seems she can't believe it either.
"These are the only ones," Edward replies. "But it's good - worth a
pretty, pretty penny."
Suddenly, the weasel draws his gun, aiming it at Faye's head. "All right,
honey," he replies with a sneer. "Hand it to me nice and easy."
"No way!" Faye exclaims. "Didn't you hear anything we just told you?
We need the money!"
The weasel laughs. "Come on now, sweetheart," he says. "What're you
gonna do with money when you're dead?"
"Don't kill them," Valhoun replies. "Not just yet anyway."
Faye turns her gaze to him. "What do you want?" she asks.
"What I didn't get the last time we met." he answers. Faye frowns in
confusion. Valhoun raises his hands, smirking slightly. "Don't you
remember, Miss Huntress?"
Faye's eyes widen in recognition, as well as horror. "Aeolis…"
Valhoun smiles at her, a sadistic smile that makes my blood run cold.
"That's right," he replies. "You were shaking then, just like you are now.
I remember it all quite clearly."
Damnit!
Faye grabs Ed by the shoulder. "Run!" she exclaims. Edward does as
asked, backing up slowly.
"No ya don't, sweetie," the weasel raises his gun. That's when I react.
My gun is raised and fired, knocking his weapon out of his hand. "What
the hell?" he exclaims.
Faye looks up, spotting me. "Jet?"
Valhoun looks up in my direction. "Jet?" he replies hoarsely. "Jet Black!"
I don't have time for his sick pleasantries. "Faye, Ed!" I yell. "Get down!"
Before Faye can oblige, Valhoun grabs her by the throat, yanking her in
front of him like a shield.
"You still gonna shoot, Black?" he sneers.
"Shoot'im, Jet!" Faye screams, giving me a frightenend, 'don't worry about
me' look. "Shoot him!"
I start to lower my gun slightly, all the while, Faye giving me a betrayed
look. At that same moment, Edward lunges forward, sinking her teeth
into his shoulder. With the slight distraction, Faye wrenches free of his
hold, punching him in the face before ramming her boot into his gut.
Damn, I'm impressed.
"Come on, Ed!" Faye yells, grabbing her by the hand and running
towards me. The weasel is already reaching for his gun. I fire a
few shots to slow him down until Faye and Edward are behind me.
"What're you doing here, Jet?" Faye demands to know, glaring at me
as we sprint down the street.
"Why do you think?" I yell back. I probably should have expected this.
"I know who that guy is!" I shoot her a wry look. "You always manage
to cross paths with the creepy ones, don't you?"
Faye doesn't reply. "Why didn't you shoot?" she asks after a few
moments. "You could have."
"And shoot you, too?" I reply with a snort. "Forget about it. When I
get tired of dealing with your shit, -then- I'll shoot you."
She snorts back, smirking haughtily. "Whatever you say, old man--"
"Jet-person! Look out!" Edward pushes the two of into an empty alley
as a volley of shots whiz by us.
"Good looking out, Ed." we both reply in unison. Faye reaches in her
jacket for her guns, peeking around the corner to fire a couple of rounds.
As she pulls back, I resume firing. The weasel is firing back, and
Valhoun is getting back on his feet. He's got a phone to his ear, calling
for back up no doubt. "Who's the weasel?" I ask.
"Arnold Benedict." Faye answers. "Spike said he used to work for the
Syndicate."
"The Syndicate?" I ask bewildered. Well, that explains the connection -
Spike knows the weasel from the Syndicate, I know Valhoun from the
ISSP, and Faye stumbled across him as a bounty head. Now the two of
them are working together. Does that mean Arnold's the bounty head?
If that's the case, how does Edward fit in?
"Do you know either of those guys, Ed?" I ask, glancing back at her.
She's busy rustling through her backpack, pulling out several little green
vials. I don't even think I want to know what those are for.
"Edward has never seen either of them before now," she answers.
"Only you, Spike-person, and Faye-Faye." She frowns, pulling out one
last vial. "Neither of them are the bounty-head."
"How do you know?" Faye asks.
"Because," Edward answers, "Edward thinks she knows who the
bounty-person is."
"What?"
"Later," the red headed hacker replies, taking one of the vials. She holds
it in the air, inspecting it carefully. A grin passes over her face.
"And what the hell is that supposed to be?" Faye asks, slightly
frustrated.
"Faye-Faye will see," Oh boy, that 'I'm a genius/slightly psychotic
hacker' look is on her face. Somebody pray for us. "Where is Faye-
Faye's car?"
"About three blocks back that way," Faye points. "We'll never make it
through all that gunfire."
"Not only that," I add. "But I think our friend over there just called for
reinforcements." Just as I speak, a black car stops in the middle of the
road. Several black-suited men get out, armed to the teeth with guns.
"Shit."
The young hacker giggles, leaving Faye and I a little concerned. I wish
she'd let us in on the joke. "Leave everything to Edward." she replies.
She takes two of the little vials, tossing them into the air. "Shoot them!"
she exclaims.
"What?" Faye gawks.
"Just shoot them!" The two of us do as she says, shooting the little vials.
A loud explosion is heard as green gas shoots out all over the place.
"Edward says its time to beat feet!"
The three of us take off, using the confusion caused by Ed's little
creations to get as far away as possible.
Within a matter of minutes, we're back across the street from
Casablanca. Faye stops and turns to Ed, a bewildered look on her face.
"What the hell was in that vial, Edward?"
Edward smiles up at her curiously. "The red one or the green one?" she
asks.
"Red…?" Faye blinks, suddenly remembering. "Oh yeah!" She shakes
the young girl slightly. "How did you manage to get a hold of Bloody
Eye?"
My jaw nearly drops to the ground. "That was Bloody Eye?"
Edward giggles, shaking her head. "Not Bloody Eye," she answers.
"Watered down nail polish." You could have knocked us over with a
feather right there and then. "Edward sold them all the time - Edward
used money to feed Edward and Ein when looking for father-person."
This girl - though incredible at times - really scares me. No wonder
they called her Radical Edward… some of the shit she pulls…
"Okay, okay," Faye interrupts, deciding not to dwell on the matter.
"What was in the green vial?"
Edward scratches her head thoughtfully. "Edward thinks it could be
one of four things," she replies. "The green vials are either sleeping
gas, stink bombs, smoke screen, or homemade nerve gas."
"You mean you're not sure!" Faye exclaims. "Ed, you could've killed
us!"
"Um… sorry?"
A few bullets ricochet off the wall over head. I peek around the
corner - those black cars are speeding down the street towards us.
"Edward guesses it wasn't nerve gas after all." she muses.
"I guess not!" Faye grits her teeth, jumping into her car. Edward
follows suit. She turns to me. "Come on!"
"I got the Hammerhead." I reply. "Take off!"
"Can you get to it?" she asks.
"No problem," I tell her. "It's sitting above you."
"Well then, old man," Faye replies with a slight smirk. "Move your ass."
I give her a small frown. "Ed and I will cover for you." Before I can
even object, she starts her car, peeling rubber as she tears out of the
alley. I can hear Edward's excited squeals over the loud roar of the
engine.
As they drive away, I smirk to myself, slowly climbing the ladder. "Those
two sure are something else."
End of Chapter 12
Author's Notes -
Hey there, guys! Sorry for keeping you waiting. I wanted to stcik to
updating two chapters at a time, but it seems as though I'm having a bit
of trouble getting chapter 13 started. Go fig... it starts focusing in a little
bit more on Spike (not that we haven't done that already, but what can I say
he's just so much fun!... not like that .=P )
Chapter 13 - Don't Speak
"Emptiness, a lonely parody
And my life, another smokin' gun
A sign of my indifference"
Jet Black's P.O.V -
Valhoun… I can barely believe it. Here I was thinking it would be a
cold day in Hades before I came across that sorry scumbag again.
"Damn!" I follow behind Faye and Ed, being sure to keep a few blocks
between us. I can't let the two of them out of my sight. They've no idea
that they've just stepped out of the frying pan and are about to jump into
the fire.
Reaching into my coat pocket, I whip out my communicator, immediately
dialing up Spike. The moron doesn't even have his on - something I don't
think is accidental. I growl in frustration - the two of us are gonna have a
little chat later.
Wasting no time, I dial up another number. Within a few moments, my
old ISSP buddy, Bob, shows up on the line, looking the same as always.
"Jet," he replies, chuckling. "It's been awhile, pal. I heard you retired
yourself to a life of fishing."
"I still am fishing," I tell him, smirking slightly. "Only this time I've got a
big bite." He looks at me in curiosity. "Let's just say it's one who got
away."
"There aren't that many who fit that description," he tells me. "It's not
very likely that Black Dog lets one get away."
"I wish I hadn't let this one get away," I reply. "It's Valhoun."
Bob stares at me quietly for a few moments. "Aeolis?" he asks. I nod
in response. "That's impossible. I clued you in on him years ago - I
thought for sure you had busted him."
"Get serious." I say gruffly. "You know I haven't come across his
slimy ass since I quit the force."
"You know I wouldn't lie to you, Jet." Bob replies. "I tell ya, I sent
you a line a few years ago when I heard he was spotted in your area.
Your partner promised to relay the message."
"Spike?" I frown.
"Nah," Bob replies. "The woman, purple hair… she must've gone after
him herself."
I resist the urge crush the communicator in my frustration. 'Damnit,
Faye!' "How long ago was this? Ya gotta tell me."
"I'd say two years ago." Bob answers.
I curse loudly; everything is suddenly starting to piece together.
Damnit, Faye, why'd you have to go and try to be so noble?
"She tried to go after'im, didn't she?" Bob frowns when I don't reply.
"You know what he's like, Jet."
"Yeah," I reply slowly, swiping my hand over my face. "I know, Bob."
"Messed her up pretty bad, didn't he?"
I frown slightly, watching Valhoun smile down at Ed, who is busy
making little weird gestures. I don't like the look on his face one bit.
"She survived." Faye and Ed disappear around the corner with Valhoun
and the little weasel with them. "Shit!" With my free hand I check to see
if my gun is loaded. I take off running after them. I can't let the four of
them out of my sight.
"Jet," Bob's voice is calm and even. I glance down at my communicator
in curiosity. "The bounty on him is only 50,000."
"I don't care about the bounty." I reply. So, he's not the mystery bounty
head, huh? Too bad, 'cuz it's personal now.
"And in case you hadn't heard," Bob replies. "He's wanted dead or
alive."
I smirk slightly, ending the transmission. "That's all I need to know."
=====
I already explained before that no one expected any glamour from
being a cop. After all, our area of jurisdiction was the vastness of
space. People figured they could do just about whatever they pleased
simply because they were no longer on Earth. In space, people made
up their own rules - they did what they pleased.
It came as a big surprise to me when I found out that criminals weren't
the only ones breaking the law - cops did it every once in a while.
Granted, some cops had their own views of justice, operating outside the
stiff laws of the ISSP simply to bring order to the galaxy. Guys like that
I could respect.
But, like the saying goes, there are two sides to every coin.
You got guys that break the law to bring justice, and then you got those
who do it just to bring chaos. Those guys are sort of like Aeolis Valhoun.
I can remember being in my mid-20s when I met him for the first time.
I was still a little naïve when it came to the hidden politics within the
ISSP. Still, I had been on the force long enough to earn the rep and the
name Black Dog. Apparently, I had earned the attention of a few guys
higher up in the ranks, putting me in line for a promotion - a promotion I
found out later that Valhoun had had his eyes on.
Of course, he suddenly found a reason to hate my guts. I didn't really
like him that much either - he was pushy, arrogant, and really had no
respect for any other human life than his own. Not that I really cared,
but I guess someone decided it would be funny to pair me up with him
on a few cases. That's when the proverbial shit hit that proverbial fan.
They called it the Wolf in Sheep's clothing murders. From Venus to
Jupiter, the police were getting reports of numerous kidnappings/murders -
all women and children. Of course, when an investigation was started,
all the victims were last reported being seen with a cop.
What do you say to something like that? My first guess was some punk
impersonating an officer, but that soon proved to be false. Reports
indicated the perpetrator was dressed like a real cop - had the badge
and standard issue gun used by us guys in the ISSP. You can't really
pick up those things at your local grocery store.
My next guess was the possibility that this guy was a cop killer. It
made sense, didn't it? Some scumbag bumps off a cop - uses his
uniform and badge to go wreaking havoc across the galaxy.
Unfortunately, that didn't fly well either. It turns out when a search
party was sent out, the criminal always knew where we were going to
look. It seemed like he was always one step ahead of us.
Still, seeing since I was on the case, there was no way Black Dog was
gonna give up until this creep was behind bars. I was especially
determined when my landlord, a nice old lady who baked me a pie
every Monday, reported that her 16-year-old daughter had turned up
missing. It suddenly got personal.
Unfortunately, the case wasn't going well, as you could probably
suspect. My being teamed with Valhoun turned out to be more of a
hindrance than help. He tripped me up at every step, trying to convince
me that the case was a waste of time. It was almost as if he was
deliberately trying to keep me from solving the case.
Would you believe that's when I figured out who the Wolf in Sheep's
clothing was? Yep, and guess who it was? That's right, it was Aeolis
Valhoun.
It turns out he was just a sick-o. He started out as a vigilante, taking
out small-time thugs and bounty heads. When the pickings on them got
slim, he started preying on the innocent. When the police picked up on it,
it turned into a game for him, letting him enjoy being one step ahead of us
at all times.
I tried turning him in of course, but it had taken so long for me to come
this far. The big wigs upstairs caught wind of the fact that the Wolf was
actually a cop, and they pulled the plug on the whole operation, allowing
Valhoun to slip away scot-free. I thought about busting him anyway, but
that would have meant losing my badge. At that point in my career, I
didn't want to risk it.
After that, it weighed on my conscience for years that I had allowed a
monster like that to keep roaming the streets. He had hurt a lot of people,
including Faye. Today I was gonna make sure it wouldn't happen again.
The Black Dog had bitten and there was no way in hell he was gonna
let go.
=====
When I caught up to them, Faye and Ed were seated on a bench next
to an alley. The weasel guy stood behind them while Valhoun stayed in
the shadows of the alleyway. How like him.
The weasel had something in his hand. I put on my sunglasses, zooming
in so I could get a better picture. What the Hell… mushrooms?
"And you're sure this is the real thing?" he was asking.
"Of course." Faye replied. "We know a guy who runs a business selling
them back on Earth. We go back and steal some every now and then."
"Ever tried one?" Faye turns to Valhoun; there's an uneasy scowl on her
face. Does she realize who this guy is yet?
"Yes, yes she has!" Edward pipes in. "I tricked her once, gave her a
funky mushroom instead of an eating one. Strange hallucinations!" She
waved her hands about in a spooky gesture.
The weasel laughed, amused by her antics. "She's a tricky one, isn't
she?"
"Yeah, she is." Faye replies. "So, are you gonna help us out or not? As
much as I enjoy your company, Edith and I really need to get back to
work." She rises from her seat, taking Edward by the arm.
"Hang on a second," Valhoun steps out of the shadows, snatching the
mushroom out of the weasel's hand. He breaks it in half, sniffing it.
After biting a piece of it and spitting it out, he looks back up at them with
a scowl on his face. "Perhaps you have something else you'd be willing
to sell us?"
Faye takes a step back, placing Edward behind her. I brace myself,
trying to decide when to make my move.
"Maybe you'd like this!" Edward holds up two small vials filled with
reddish-purple liquid. The weasel's eyes practically glaze over.
I gawk - that's not what I think it is, is it? Glancing over at Faye, it
seems she can't believe it either.
"These are the only ones," Edward replies. "But it's good - worth a
pretty, pretty penny."
Suddenly, the weasel draws his gun, aiming it at Faye's head. "All right,
honey," he replies with a sneer. "Hand it to me nice and easy."
"No way!" Faye exclaims. "Didn't you hear anything we just told you?
We need the money!"
The weasel laughs. "Come on now, sweetheart," he says. "What're you
gonna do with money when you're dead?"
"Don't kill them," Valhoun replies. "Not just yet anyway."
Faye turns her gaze to him. "What do you want?" she asks.
"What I didn't get the last time we met." he answers. Faye frowns in
confusion. Valhoun raises his hands, smirking slightly. "Don't you
remember, Miss Huntress?"
Faye's eyes widen in recognition, as well as horror. "Aeolis…"
Valhoun smiles at her, a sadistic smile that makes my blood run cold.
"That's right," he replies. "You were shaking then, just like you are now.
I remember it all quite clearly."
Damnit!
Faye grabs Ed by the shoulder. "Run!" she exclaims. Edward does as
asked, backing up slowly.
"No ya don't, sweetie," the weasel raises his gun. That's when I react.
My gun is raised and fired, knocking his weapon out of his hand. "What
the hell?" he exclaims.
Faye looks up, spotting me. "Jet?"
Valhoun looks up in my direction. "Jet?" he replies hoarsely. "Jet Black!"
I don't have time for his sick pleasantries. "Faye, Ed!" I yell. "Get down!"
Before Faye can oblige, Valhoun grabs her by the throat, yanking her in
front of him like a shield.
"You still gonna shoot, Black?" he sneers.
"Shoot'im, Jet!" Faye screams, giving me a frightenend, 'don't worry about
me' look. "Shoot him!"
I start to lower my gun slightly, all the while, Faye giving me a betrayed
look. At that same moment, Edward lunges forward, sinking her teeth
into his shoulder. With the slight distraction, Faye wrenches free of his
hold, punching him in the face before ramming her boot into his gut.
Damn, I'm impressed.
"Come on, Ed!" Faye yells, grabbing her by the hand and running
towards me. The weasel is already reaching for his gun. I fire a
few shots to slow him down until Faye and Edward are behind me.
"What're you doing here, Jet?" Faye demands to know, glaring at me
as we sprint down the street.
"Why do you think?" I yell back. I probably should have expected this.
"I know who that guy is!" I shoot her a wry look. "You always manage
to cross paths with the creepy ones, don't you?"
Faye doesn't reply. "Why didn't you shoot?" she asks after a few
moments. "You could have."
"And shoot you, too?" I reply with a snort. "Forget about it. When I
get tired of dealing with your shit, -then- I'll shoot you."
She snorts back, smirking haughtily. "Whatever you say, old man--"
"Jet-person! Look out!" Edward pushes the two of into an empty alley
as a volley of shots whiz by us.
"Good looking out, Ed." we both reply in unison. Faye reaches in her
jacket for her guns, peeking around the corner to fire a couple of rounds.
As she pulls back, I resume firing. The weasel is firing back, and
Valhoun is getting back on his feet. He's got a phone to his ear, calling
for back up no doubt. "Who's the weasel?" I ask.
"Arnold Benedict." Faye answers. "Spike said he used to work for the
Syndicate."
"The Syndicate?" I ask bewildered. Well, that explains the connection -
Spike knows the weasel from the Syndicate, I know Valhoun from the
ISSP, and Faye stumbled across him as a bounty head. Now the two of
them are working together. Does that mean Arnold's the bounty head?
If that's the case, how does Edward fit in?
"Do you know either of those guys, Ed?" I ask, glancing back at her.
She's busy rustling through her backpack, pulling out several little green
vials. I don't even think I want to know what those are for.
"Edward has never seen either of them before now," she answers.
"Only you, Spike-person, and Faye-Faye." She frowns, pulling out one
last vial. "Neither of them are the bounty-head."
"How do you know?" Faye asks.
"Because," Edward answers, "Edward thinks she knows who the
bounty-person is."
"What?"
"Later," the red headed hacker replies, taking one of the vials. She holds
it in the air, inspecting it carefully. A grin passes over her face.
"And what the hell is that supposed to be?" Faye asks, slightly
frustrated.
"Faye-Faye will see," Oh boy, that 'I'm a genius/slightly psychotic
hacker' look is on her face. Somebody pray for us. "Where is Faye-
Faye's car?"
"About three blocks back that way," Faye points. "We'll never make it
through all that gunfire."
"Not only that," I add. "But I think our friend over there just called for
reinforcements." Just as I speak, a black car stops in the middle of the
road. Several black-suited men get out, armed to the teeth with guns.
"Shit."
The young hacker giggles, leaving Faye and I a little concerned. I wish
she'd let us in on the joke. "Leave everything to Edward." she replies.
She takes two of the little vials, tossing them into the air. "Shoot them!"
she exclaims.
"What?" Faye gawks.
"Just shoot them!" The two of us do as she says, shooting the little vials.
A loud explosion is heard as green gas shoots out all over the place.
"Edward says its time to beat feet!"
The three of us take off, using the confusion caused by Ed's little
creations to get as far away as possible.
Within a matter of minutes, we're back across the street from
Casablanca. Faye stops and turns to Ed, a bewildered look on her face.
"What the hell was in that vial, Edward?"
Edward smiles up at her curiously. "The red one or the green one?" she
asks.
"Red…?" Faye blinks, suddenly remembering. "Oh yeah!" She shakes
the young girl slightly. "How did you manage to get a hold of Bloody
Eye?"
My jaw nearly drops to the ground. "That was Bloody Eye?"
Edward giggles, shaking her head. "Not Bloody Eye," she answers.
"Watered down nail polish." You could have knocked us over with a
feather right there and then. "Edward sold them all the time - Edward
used money to feed Edward and Ein when looking for father-person."
This girl - though incredible at times - really scares me. No wonder
they called her Radical Edward… some of the shit she pulls…
"Okay, okay," Faye interrupts, deciding not to dwell on the matter.
"What was in the green vial?"
Edward scratches her head thoughtfully. "Edward thinks it could be
one of four things," she replies. "The green vials are either sleeping
gas, stink bombs, smoke screen, or homemade nerve gas."
"You mean you're not sure!" Faye exclaims. "Ed, you could've killed
us!"
"Um… sorry?"
A few bullets ricochet off the wall over head. I peek around the
corner - those black cars are speeding down the street towards us.
"Edward guesses it wasn't nerve gas after all." she muses.
"I guess not!" Faye grits her teeth, jumping into her car. Edward
follows suit. She turns to me. "Come on!"
"I got the Hammerhead." I reply. "Take off!"
"Can you get to it?" she asks.
"No problem," I tell her. "It's sitting above you."
"Well then, old man," Faye replies with a slight smirk. "Move your ass."
I give her a small frown. "Ed and I will cover for you." Before I can
even object, she starts her car, peeling rubber as she tears out of the
alley. I can hear Edward's excited squeals over the loud roar of the
engine.
As they drive away, I smirk to myself, slowly climbing the ladder. "Those
two sure are something else."
End of Chapter 12
Author's Notes -
Hey there, guys! Sorry for keeping you waiting. I wanted to stcik to
updating two chapters at a time, but it seems as though I'm having a bit
of trouble getting chapter 13 started. Go fig... it starts focusing in a little
bit more on Spike (not that we haven't done that already, but what can I say
he's just so much fun!... not like that .=P )
Chapter 13 - Don't Speak