Chapter Five
Jaime ducked from shadow to shadow, cowering in each dark corner like a hunted animal. One by one, she searched each of the outbuildings but didn't see any sign of where they might be holding Steve. She figured they must have him locked up somewhere in the large main building, and began to move cautiously toward the center of the compound.
Steve finally caught sight of her, but noticed with alarm that guards were closing in - mere seconds from finding her. He knew she was no match for them in her current condition. Jaime stood no chance of fighting them off, but he did. He set the backpack down where it was partially hidden, hoping Jaime might find it and have food and water. Then he purposefully stepped out into the open, kicking up rocks and gravel to attract the guards' attention, to lead them away from Jaime.
------
The Secretary of State was preparing to swallow some mighty bitter medicine. Oscar's questions and accusations had started him thinking, and even though he'd had nothing to do with the plot against Jaime and Steve, his lie had kept the wheels in motion. Now, he intended to tell the President what he'd done and accept whatever might be coming to him. He reached into his pocket and pressed a tiny button.
The door to the Oval Office was slightly ajar. President Larkin was on the telephone, so the Secretary took a step back, away from the door - not to eavesdrop, but simply to wait his turn.
"You got one of them?" The President said angrily. "One? Well, whooptie-do! This country has already spent far too much on this 'bionic program'. I want them both eliminated by this time tomorrow. Understand? What about that little bimbo receptionist?"..."Good; very good." Larkin chuckled. "I can just picture her sweet little face; after doing everything we told her to do, she thinks she's going overseas to avoid prosecution; thinks she's about to get more money than she could ever spend, and instead - BOOM!"..."Right. You catch the other 'robot' immediately and then terminate them both."..."Goldman gets popped tonight, then the whole unnecessary financial drain disappears, the budget balances - everyone's happy."
The Secretary of State was no longer interested in speaking with President Larkin. He took off as fast as his 60+ year-old feet could move; he had to get to Oscar.
------
Steve figured that since they already had him, he'd kick up a little dust, make a little noise, in an attempt to alert Jaime. "Ok - you found me," he said, just a little louder than normal. "Now what?" It worked. Jaime looked around the corner in time to see Steve being pushed into the main building through a side entrance. She instinctively headed toward where he'd been, instead of directly into the building. When she found the backpack, like manna from Heaven, she uttered a silent thank you.
------
Oscar shook his head. "I'm not leaving this office until Jaime and Steve are safe!" he said emphatically.
The Secretary sighed in frustration. "I'm still your boss, Goldman, and this is not a polite request! Go home and get some rest - NOW!"
"I can't do that, Sir," Oscar insisted, refusing to budge from his desk.
------
Steve was in major trouble. He'd been injected with something that rendered him unable to fight back, and his captors had sprayed him with ice water, shocked him and were now resorting to their fists in an effort to pry whatever information they could out of him. Steve hadn't cracked, and still glared at them defiantly. "That all you've got?" he asked them, faking more strength than he actually had left.
"Oh, screw it," the one in charge snapped. "Take him outside and get rid of him."
The same four men who'd executed the receptionist stepped forward and began an identical procession, this time with Steve.
------
The door to Oscar's office flew open, and three men - strangers - burst in to confront the man who sat resolutely behind the desk.
"Oscar Goldman?"
"Depends. Who are you?"
"Are you Oscar Goldman?"
He stubbornly refused to budge from the chair. "Yes," he finally answered.
Without another word, all three men withdrew guns from their jackets and fired until every bullet was used, leaving the lone figure slumped across the desk - dead.
------
Steve was led to the open area where the pool of blood had been allowed to remain and was now beginning to congeal. He wasn't fighting them, but when he was forced to the ground with his back to the gunmen, he rose to his feet and turned to stare directly into their eyes at the very moment that multiple gunshots rang out, filling the still night air with the cacophony of violent death.
------