Chapter 7: Jackson

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He sat in the cold office overlooking the entire warehouse. It was rectangular, with gray walls, except the one that faced the warehouse was all glass windows, that were knew frosted over by the extreme cold. It was winter on Pluto ll. He breathed out, then slowly in. Suddenly coughing, as his lungs froze up.

He knew they were all down there waiting for him. Waiting for his next plan, but he had none, not yet anyway. When Garrickson came back this afternoon and told him that Blazer was dead, and was shot by Hocks. He felt angry, but not as betrayed as when he found out that Hocks had taken Minx away. He almost killed Garrickson on the spot for his foolishness. But he still had another two hours before the 72 hours were up. He was a man of his word and never went back on it either.

Although he was now having second thoughts about keeping his word and killing Garrickson right now. His life and money was on the line. If the real boss found out that Minx and the money wasn't returning to him tonight, Jackson knew he would be dead by tomorrow evening.

He was about to loose hope, when he remembered the second tracing device he installed in the software. When it was opened it would trace where they were, and in the worst case just report that it had been opened, and who it was opened by.

Gut then there was a knock at his door. "What!" He said gruffly. His back to the door. "It's Val." Val was one of his top men, his most trusted. "Come in." He said shortly. "Sir we have a transmission from our spy." He said quietly. Jackson turned in his chair and faced him. "Bring it to me." He commanded. Val nodded slightly. A moment later he returned with a sheet of paper, and wordlessly handed it to him. "That's all."

Val left him. Jackson quickly unfolded it, to reveal a message. It was short and to the point, but left out where he was.

Hocks has the girl and the money. He left the space port nine hours ago. The card has not been activated, and but the message has been read by the girl. Her whereabouts however is unknown at this time, we cannot trace the ship. Agent 4.

Jackson crumpled up the piece of paper and put it in his pocket. How did he lose the control of this so fast? He wondered.

Suddenly he got the idea. They could still track the coarse of Hock's ship. Getting out of his chair, he headed down stairs to his group of men.

When he came down stairs everyone stood up, including Garrickson who didn't look Jackson in the eyes. Jackson felt the anger well up inside of him at the sight of Garrickson, but decided to deal with him later.

"Let's get on with business. Val move the security into place at all exits and entrances." He waited a moment for Val to give the signal to start the meeting. It took a moment longer then expected, when suddenly gun shots rang through the air, hitting a gas line and sending everything up in flames.

Jackson ran to the opposing wall and the second gas line caught and set two of his eight men on fire. Garrickson rolled out of the way in time before the flames hit the wood pile in the corner.

Screams could be heard from out side. Unexpectedly an armored truck came bounding through the front of the warehouse, sending debris flying, and adding to the flames. He began to crawl on the ground to the armored truck, seeing Val inside.

Jackson grabbed the riffle that was close by, and held it in his left hand, for his own protection. The fire seemed to stop traveling, but the flames grew higher. Just as Jackson reached the truck, there was a muffled sound of engines in the distance accompanied by sirens. He jumped into the truck, and Garrickson followed.

Val backed up quickly, running over something, but put in drive and plowed forwards. The sirens became louder as a voice came over the radio. "Stop, Salvador Jackson you are under arrest. Stop the truck." But Val sped up, now pushing the battered truck from fifty to one seventy in a matter of seconds, as the turbo charger kicked in, thrusting them forwards, as the force of the speed pushed down on them.

They neared a freeway on ramp swerving around a slowly cruising car. Suddenly the truck swerved and swayed dangerously as one of the back tires was shot out by the pursuing mecs. Val cursed loudly as they wove and continued to swerve on the road, through lanes, and around cars. They flew up the freeway entrance, almost air born, and off the ground. Leaving the mercs behind. But not for long as they saw head lights in the mirrors of the truck. "You know where to go V." Jackson ordered quickly. Val nodded, just barely scraping around another car, and dodging a semi.

There was a hissing noise as sparks began to fly. "What the hell?" Val questioned. Garrickson looked in the side mirror. "Shit we lost the tire. We're riding on the wheel." He said panicked. Jackson knew that it would limit the driving, but also knew that it kept the mercs back.

"Keep going." He ordered to Val. Who nodded. The lane narrowed by cones and temporary barriers, that of a construction site. They wove in and out of the barriers hoping to loose them but it was no luck, the mercs where on their tail. There was suddenly a sign. Road Ends.

A concrete barrier came into view, miles before their planned destination. Val tried to swerve around it but it was too long, and he ended up going into the trees instead.

They all got out of the truck silently. Val took out a match, lit it, and threw it into the truck's cabin. They escaped to the safety of the trees, and bushes. Minutes later the truck was nothing but a sheer ball of fire.

He felt a small sense of relief. But soon the tension was back as two things happened. The mercs came in to investigate, and Jackson pointedly remembered who he had to face tonight. He had to face the real Boss. His boss. The one who came up with this doomed plan, the one who wanted Minx, the one that wrote that message in the plasma screen, the one who was the rightful owner of the 500 billion dollars, and the one that could end Jackson's life.

He was up in that house waiting for Jackson's news. The mercs leered closer in the distance. Jackson knew he couldn't move, but knew if he stayed that the mercs would find them for sure. Just as a merc drew near, the merc turned his head in the direction of the road behind him. And moved away back to the others. They waited for them to clear out, and started moving again.

Jackson climbed the steep hill, the rifle still in his hand. An hour later they reached the ominous house. It was a ghostly white, a one story, with shattered windows, and missing chunks of paint. It stared down at them. The cold wind picked up, and burned their ears, as if to whisper to them their fates.

The house grew nearer and nearer by the minute and Jackson's nerves began to twitch more frenzied and lively by the second. The branches crunched under their feet as the wind whipped through the trees. Another forty-five minutes later and they were at the house. Jackson put his foot on the first step, and the door opened. In the door frame stood one of his many thugs. They were the originals from before he went into hiding a month ago.

"We've been expecting you." He said motioning for Jackson and the other men to follow. They entered the house. It was spacious and dimly lit. There was a fire burning in every room. The house was warm, but the feeling never reached his bones nor his heart that was now beating rapidly.

The man led them down a long and narrow hall way. Four doors lined each side, each door had a number on it, counting down. At the end of the hall stood two more guards, on the door it was labeled 1. The guard turned to face them. "Come with me. But you two stay. The boss wants a word with Jackson. Watch over these boys." He said to the two other guards. The one that was speaking was obviously the leader.

Jackson followed him into a room that was the masters bedroom. A huge fireplace blazed before him. A chill ran over his body as he looked around the room and realized that the boss was no where in sight. "When were you planning on telling me that Minx and my money are still not in my possession?" The sound of his voice made Jackson jump. "I planed on tell" But the boss cut him off, "I am still speaking Sal. You can talk when I'm finished. Let me explain something to you." He said vacantly and slow. Jackson still didn't know where he was in the room. He didn't dare to move and find out all too quickly.

He couldn't believe that the day had come where his brother would bring him to this type of fear. But he knew what happened to their other brother. "I worked hard to get to where I was." He began smoothly. His voice dangerously calm. "Everything I did I built with care. The ideas, my surroundings, my people, the business, the security, and the money. It took me fourteen years of my life to achieve that type of almost immortality." He paused for a moment and sighed. "Jackson, I believe that you claimed I was the one who would amount to nothing. But that's off the record now isn't it? My modesty forbids But I finally had everything I wanted. Money, status, respect, pride, and the woman I loved. But then you and my brother showed up at my office one day, asking for a loan. For money, and for forgiveness. I was reasonable Jackson, I gave it to both of you, on three simple conditions and a consequence. You remember what those were?" He chided, pausing.

Jackson didn't answer for the fear of his fate clouded his memory. After minutes past he felt the mood change in the room from eerie and quiet, to forceful and enraged. "Answer me!" He suddenly yelled, his voice harsh. "Three conditions: We both repay you in full, stay out of your life ,and we don't report you to the mercs. The consequence: If we don't pay you, we repay you with something else, whatever you decide." Jackson said swallowing hard, a bead of sweat trickling down his left temple.

"Good I'm glad you remember. We both know that our other member of the deal already paid his." He said, but something made Jackson cut him off. "Yes! I know you made him pay with his life. He didn't even die with a respectable death. His identity was clouded by who people thought he was. You didn't even give him a chance, he always lived in your shadow." Jackson couldn't believe he just said that. "That's not true." He stated simply. "Yes it is. You knew it and took full advantage of his weakness.The money he made and his love for Minx. But you had to take that from him." Jackson was yelling now.

"Enough!" He yelled finally standing up and showing himself. Jackson looked at his brother. "He didn't disserve his money or Minx. I gave him the money to start that pitiful excuse he called a business. He should be grateful I stepped in when I did. He almost died because of his foolish choices. There used to be three of us, all brothers, fighting against our father's idea of life. When you two joined him, you became my enemies, instead of my friends and brothers." Jackson's watch alarm sounded, letting him know that the 72 hours were up, but he still had his riffle. What he didn't notice was that his brother was armed as well.

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From the outside of the door the three mercs, Val, and Garrickson heard a lone shot ring through the air. Then silence filled the house once again.