Thank you all very much for the reviews. I was pleased to hear from you. Sorry about the cliff hanger, but you're reading this now, so it works.
Anyway, yes, for those of you who will soon be curious if you are not already. There will be romance in this story, and it will be between Justin and Juliet. I always think it's very sweet when mortal enemies conquer their differences and fall in love with each other anyways.
AgiVega: You reviewed! Iwas very pleased to hear from you. This is the kind of story that I write. It's not like Colfer's as far as style goes, but it's better, because it's me.
aperfectattitude: You came back! I was very glad to hear from you. I'm glad you agree. Everyone seems to be agree with me.
kentduo: Okay, let me explain. It's called omnisient point of view. Colfer uses it. Page 39 of the first book;
Julius rubbed his eyes. Why did these things always happen on his watch. Holly could understand his frustration.
See? He jumps from Julius to Holly. If you handle it correctly, it's fine. I'm sorry if I was a little choppy, but I don't think first person would have been good for this story.
Trouble Kelp: Thanks, I'm glad you agree with me. Please update your story soon.
Disclaimer: I do not own anything except the things I own. The things I own are the things not owned by Colfer. Colfer owns everything except the things I own. The things Colfer own are the things I do not own. :) Try that one, all you people who think you're the next Artemis Fowl.
And now… on with the story.
As she fell, Juliet thought she heard some very confused noises on the roof above her. And those few noises caused her no end of satisfaction as her head connected with something solid, and the darkness grew. Fooled again… weren't they?
Justin moved away from the building, watching the men climb the fire escapes. She would not get away this time. Either she would be persuaded to accept an apology, or she would die.
Slowly, he raised his hand. They were waiting for the signal now. Any time would do. Then he dropped it.
It was at that precise moment, that something fell off the roof.
A flash of light lit up the sky above, and they could all see the silhouettes of the men as they explored the roof, guns ready, straining their eyes to see her. She must be there.
Justin blinked. It couldn't have been her; there was nothing there. Nothing at all. She hadn't hit the ground, and no one would have just jumped. Maybe a piece of trash. He was getting too jumpy. Maybe it hadn't been her on the roof. Maybe it had been some little kid climbing out of his bedroom window, who'd gone back inside when he realized he was going to get into trouble.
Finally, he called the men down. It was no good drawing attention to themselves, and she was obviously not there. They would watch the exits. She would not leave the city without being intercepted.
Juliet rolled over with a groan, struggling to raise her head. It hurt. It hurt a lot.
She was lying on her back in the dark. Most bothersome and worrying was the fact that she did not know where she was. That was almost never a good thing. Never.
Even more annoying, were the things poking her back. She shifted, and sat up, banging her head on something. A shaft of light entered for a moment, and then disappeared. It was enough though. Enough to fill Juliet with a shudder of disgust at the things around her.
She was, unfortunately, lying in the middle of a very large pile of garbage. The fortunate part, was that she had landed of quite a few clothes, that had probably saved her from a concussion, and a large amount of filth.
That was not to say her head didn't hurt. As it was, she was in desperate need of a bath.
Then, she remembered Dom. She'd better call him. He was probably crying right now.
After climbing out of the dumpster, she crept around the buildings to where a rather dirty stream entered a pipe to go under a road, and pulled out her phone, ducking inside the pipe.
"Hello?" said Butler dully.
"Don't tell me you've been crying!" Juliet grinned.
"You made it! For a while I though you hadn't! What trick won the game, little sister?"
"I jumped off the roof." She had to say that, if just for the shock quality.
"You—"
"I landed in the dumpster. They had me cornered on the roof. The two way flash technique. They never found me. Now, I just have to get out of the city, and come home. I assume my wrestling tour is over. There's no way I can make things up."
"It'll be good to have you back," said Butler firmly. "Forget wrestling. Think about how to get out of there. They'll have the exits guarded."
"Oh." It was a little obvious she hadn't thought about that. "I'm sure I can figure it out."
Butler groaned.
"Don't worry big brother. I shall call if I get into trouble. Tah tah for now…"
Juliet emerged from the tunnel smiling. Things were good. She was alive. A little sore in the head, but otherwise good.
First things first. Juliet needed some kind of weapon. Knife or gun, it didn't matter. And she thought she knew where she might find one…
Three hours later, Juliet was standing in front of a mirror, looking at herself. She liked what she saw. She liked what she saw a lot.
She should do this more often, she decided. Who cared if she looked like a professional? Butler could keep yapping, she liked things this way. The whole look was her. The slightly baggy pants, with plenty of pockets, the tank top. The… what did they call it in America? Hoody. Yes, that, and of course the jade ring in her hair. It was becoming her trade mark. She now had ones of different colors to match her outfits.
"You like it?"
"Certainly." Again, she examined the throwing knives. They were weighted to respond to a touch, and beautiful. Apparently, the hilt of each, if it could be called that, were hand carved.
The man behind her smiled slightly. An old friend of Dom's. "You don't want any help?"
She shook her head. "You can't help me. It's an army of them. An army. And their all here in New York. You live here. They'll kill you. Besides, you wouldn't be able to help me much more than you have. I think I'll be better on my own."
"Just like you brother." He nodded, turning to the window. "Any transportation? They're guarding almost all the exits of the city that were ever made."
"On foot might be better for now. If I need it, I'll call. There's not much else you can do."
He nodded. "If you need it, call."
She paused suddenly, looking at something in the corner. "Is that a… skateboard?"
"Yes…?" The man's eyebrows went up slightly. He couldn't quite believe what he was starting to think from the look on her face. Skateboarding? Her? A Butler? No.
"Can I have it?"
"Have it?"
"Have it big man. It'll be faster than walking. I used to play with them when I was little. Whenever my brother wasn't looking. Besides, they won't be looking for anyone on a skateboard. I'll look like a crazy teen. I'm short enough anyway. Small enough."
"Take it then. I don't use it, and I've been trying to get my son to leave it alone for months."
Juliet tossed a few hundred dollars down on the table, picked up the board, and left. She didn't have time to waste talking.
Justin scowled at the sky, glancing at the monitors again. They were lucky he had friends in the airport security. Without them, they could have never covered the entire grounds. As it was, it was rather tiring. He almost wished she had already left the city.
"You see who you're looking for?" asked one of them curiously.
Justin shook his head at the guard. "No. But I wouldn't be surprised if she showed up the moment I left."
"And are you going to leave?"
"Not for a while." He scanned the wall again, making it clear that he did not want to talk. The guard didn't say anything more to him. Justin had the effect on people.
They had been roaming the city for quite a while now. It was almost noon. He was starting to think she was gone. Of course, people didn't just disappear, but this was close enough. No one had even thought they'd sighted her. She just wasn't there.
His phone rang. "Yeah?"
"What's she look like again? Did Jordon say blond hair, small, all that junk?"
"Yeah."
"And she has those crazy eyes? Jumping in their socket like they're watching everything?"
"Yeah."
"And that nose like the Butler?"
"Yeah." He shut his eyes. "Why?"
"Because there's a girl here who looks like that. But she's playing with a skateboard on the stairs over here. And she's wearing— she's not dressed like a Butler. If it's her, and the Butler saw her, I think he would have a heart attack. It's that bad."
"Why don't go ask her then? Just see if she's actually the right girl. If not, keep looking."
There was an uncomfortable silence on the other end.
"What?"
"She took out Axel."
Justin blew up. "There are three of you! She's only nineteen! You're afraid of a little, itty-bitty girl?"
"Fine. We're going," grumbled the man.
Justin didn't hang up. He sat there listening. He could hear the grunts and grumbling from the men as they crunched over gravel. And he though, once or twice, that he heard the clatter of a skateboard as it met with concrete, and rolled on.
Really though, it was ridiculous. The sister of the great Butler? Playing with a skateboard? And wearing— well, whatever she was wearing, it must have been shocking. It must have been the complete opposite of a Butler. They always wore suits, and things like that. It gave them a little bit of professional advantage. They looked scarier in their own way.
"Hey little girl!"
"What?"
"Come over here."
Justin groaned. Come over here? They were going to get arrested for harassment if it wasn't her. And if it was, she'd probably run the opposite direction. What girl in her right mind, after all, would run into the open arms of three very large, and dangerous looking men?
"You have any kind of reason?"
"I think you beat up Axel yesterday!" snapped one of them impatiently. "That's all. Any problems with that?"
"Don't tell me you want to go to the hospital too?" There was no mistaking the amused sarcasm in the girl's voice. They'd found the right girl after all. No buts…
There was a shuffling sound as the men spread out.
"Why don't you just come with us?" Justin groaned again. "Then maybe you won't get hurt."
"Yeah? And I'm sure it doesn't hurt to jump of the state building either. Or maybe you'd like me to pose for your target practice? How stupid do you think I am?"
"Guys?"
"What? Can't you hear we're busy, Justin?"
"Instead of standing there arguing, why don't you just take her? It's a lot less trouble. Believe me."
"As soon as we're done with her." They hung up.
Justin got to his feet, rubbing the back of his neck. For some reason, he was a little worried about certain people's health.
He ought to call the others. To go and take care of the casualties that girl left behind. There would be three of them, he was sure. Like she said: she wasn't that stupid.
Every good story has to have some kind of idiot. Remember Chips and Pex? They were great. Their conversations on Barney and Captain Hook were extremely interesting. I read them whenever I'm getting stressed. Especially the part about diamonds and dinosaur dung. I thought that was quite funny.
Ah well. Of course I can't wait to see what Juliet does to them either, but, like always, I am waiting for your reviews. Press the buttons, and send me a letter. Or just write me. I like that just as much. I promise to write back.
Until next time…