Katara took her own advice to heart.
Still clutching the lid that felled Reynolds, she sprinted with Aang out of the alley and into the dimming twilight. How could this have happened? Reynolds was supposed to be one of the schools workers, dedicated to helping students and keeping the pupils safe. But no, it turned out Aang had been right about him. He did have more experience about this kind of situation than she did. It had been imperative that she had listened instead of basically shrugging off his suspicions.
She had slowly inched her way behind the dumpster while her boyfriend had stalled for time. There was no way she was going to leave him to face that man alone. Katara knew she was in danger, but that didn't matter to her. The only thing in her mind was to save Aang, a boy who had grown up way too fast for his age, someone had been taken for sick pleasure. Reynolds had been holding Aang at bay with a gun and had seemed to buy her boyfriend's lie about her being sent away.
The next thing she knew, trash can lid was in her hand, swinging it into the madman's head, and yelling at Aang to run. Now, with the sun going down and the person chasing them, Katara couldn't help but think how surreal the world felt at that moment. A few months ago she had been a normal teenager living her life, the next a girlfriend to a guy who was a runaway. Despite this, she chose to be with Aang, she decided to let herself love him.
She was going to protect him.
They ran into people at this point, exclamations being made about them pushing into the throng. They weaved through the crowd, hoping they lost Reynolds. Surprising her, Aang grabbed her free hand and ran into another alley. "We have to call Hakoda!" he called out to her.
Katara nodded in understanding. With her dad on the case, he had to know what was going on. They burst out of the alley into another crowd, one a little smaller than before, but the couple made use of it. Before they knew it they made it back to the car and Katara brought out her phone.
Panting she said, "Dad should be at the station. I'll call there."
However a problem occurred right at that moment, for her phone pinged out of her hand, hit the car window, and fell to the ground with a neat hole sparking the screen. She began to shake as the two looked over where the silent bullet had come from. Reynolds stood there, not even bothering to hide his face, nor the gun that was still pointing their way. Other people looked to see what had happened, saw the gun, and panic began to set in.
Most ran away from the trouble while others had their phones out, attempting to call the police. But Reynolds lifted his now audible gun and shot a bullet into the air, stilling everything.
In the deafening quiet that consumed the park, he spoke out in a chilling voice. "If anyone moves so much as a pinky I will fire. Nobody move."
Katara felt like this would be a good time to point something out. "Hey, Reynolds, what are you going to do when others recognize your face?"
For a moment he looked confused, before laughter began to flow from his mouth; softly at first but gaining volume and momentum. After a few seconds he was guffawing so badly, his entire body was shaking. But this laughter wasn't jovial; it was unrestrained and mad, like a cord had snapped inside an old toy.
Finally he was able to calm himself, staring at her with those cold dead eyes. "You don't seem to know much about espionage, girl. Do you really think this is my true face?"
That gave her pause before feeling like an idiot. Of course this guy would have a secret identity; since he was a spy for that psychotic witch, he would have to hide who he was. In fact, Reynolds s a cover name as well. Since that seems to be the case, than who was this person?
The Viper shook his head, saying, "I thought you were smarter than average. Now I see you are just like every other woman who isn't my Mistress: weak, stupid, and unfit to exist."
Aang stepped in front of her, glaring at the Viper. "Leave her alone; it's me you want. Katara never did anything to your mistress."
The Viper snarled, hand gripping tight on his gun. "Done nothing to her? That bitch of yours stole the Mistress's property, you, and she wants to tie up loose ends through me. I will not fail her."
Katara didn't know what to do. There was a small crowd, terrified of getting shot at, and the Viper wanted to kill them because Azula told him to. How were they going to out of this mess? It seemed impossible.
Her hands tightened and she realized...she was still holding the trash lid. An idea sparked in her mind in that second, one that seemed crazy, but might be enough to get them out of here.
Stepping around Aang, she called out, "If you're going to kill us, can we at least say goodbye?"
The Viper looked a little surprised by her request, and a lot suspicious. "Why should I grant even that to you?" he asked slowly.
Taking a deep breath, hoping that this crazy idea of hers worked, she then replied, "You've got us cornered and we don't know your true identity. If nothing else, you can witness us being alive and savor your victory over us." Putting emotion into her voice wasn't hard; she was terrified and her voice reflected that. But the determination burning inside her like a flame only grew with each word. They would not succumb to this madness, nor would she allow them to fall at this crucial moment.
The Viper considered this for a moment before nodding. "Very well; enjoy your last moments. Remember, if you try anything, I will shoot someone. Are we clear?"
Not wasting time, Katara turned to give Aang a lingering kiss, which he responded to without any thought. Afterwards she hugged him tightly, pressing her mouth to his ear. "I have an idea on how to get us out of here. Can you distract him?" she breathed.
"Yeah, but...what good will that do?" Doubt filled his voice as the question was murmured. He had done that previously, but was unsure of it would work this time around.
"Just trust me."
Aang hesitated for the barest of seconds before nodding his assent. "I do."
They pulled apart at that moment, and the Viper gestured to them. "Alright, lovebirds, come on over here. I want to see your life fade from your eyes." They started walking closer to the man, and once they within three feet from him, he gestured for them to stop. Katara's heart was pounding, trying to escape, but she forced her fear down for the time being. They had to get out here and they couldn't afford to waste this one chance they had.
The Viper grinned at them maliciously, practically salivating at the thought of killing the ones who had caused his mistress's strife. "Now then...who should go down first, eh? Perhaps the girlfriend, Aang? It was you caused the most trouble, so it would make sense to take her out first while you watched in anguish."
Anger flashed across his face and Katara could feel it coiling his body in a protective manner, but she placed her hand on his arm to stop him from rushing the madman. He took a calming breath and spoke instead. "I don't think so, you snake."
The Viper raised his brows, cold amusement on his fake face. "I don't think you're at the liberty to go against what I say, boy. But it would be amusing as well to kill you first. Either one will do."
Katara clenched her makeshift shield, surprised he hadn't commented on it being there. Was he really so sure that there was nothing they could do to save themselves and those around the trio? If so, she prayed that it would help in protecting everyone.
Aang said, "I would rather die first."
Katara turned to him, eyes wide. "Aang, no, it shouldn't be that way," she said loudly, attracting attention, including his.
He looked surprised by her outburst, but after a moment he seemed to understand what she was doing, and took up on the argument. "If we're both going to die, I would rather you enjoyed your last moments first. You were caught up in this because of me."
She shook her head, tears coming to her eyes; both for his words and for the act they were putting on. "I don't care; I still love you enough to die for you. I can't bear watching you dying." Katara covered her eyes with one hand, exaggerating her sobbing. But she was still aware of her plan, one they had to continue.
Aang seemed to understand that as he said, "Katara, we'll be together again. I promise."
The Viper scoffed at that. "Just watching this is nauseous." When Katara raised her head, she noticed the gun pointed right at her and the smug smile on the man's mug. "I have a different idea in mind. The Mistress does want Aang dead, but perhaps it will be all the more delicious if she was the one to do it. So, sorry Aang, my boy, but it will be a while before you see your sweetheart again."
He cocked the gun once more, Katara gripped the lid...
A shot fired...
And she was shoved out of the way.
What?! No! She was supposed to raise the lid and throw it into the Viper's face. Instead, as the sound of the gun echoed the park, followed by a pained grunt, she found herself on the ground, staring in horror as Aang fell after her, his left side bloody and torn. Gasps could be heard around them, but they seemed muted, as if she were underwater.
The Viper stood over him, gun cocked once again, tsking at the teenager. "You foolish boy; now you've ruined my own plan. Watching you suffer at the hands of my Mistress would have been a joy. Oh, well, best to get it done with it, then."
Aang looked at Katara...and suddenly she understood. This was his idea of a diversion; even at the risk of his life, Aang understood what she needed.
Now was her chance.
Praying that this was going to work out, she jumped up and rushed the murderer, holding her lid up. He didn't see what was coming until it was too late. She swung the lid and smacked the gun out his hand. It landed somewhere beyond Aang, who was holding his side, struggling to get up. The Viper cried out, cradling his injured hand, but when she went to hit his head again, he ducked.
Snarling he used his free hand to pull out a blade from inside his nondescript clothes. Katara backed away as he swung, but she could tell he was skilled with the blade; even more so than the gun. She wasn't sure how long she could fend him off.
The Viper grinned at her, knife held expertly in his hand. "You wanna play, then? So be it."
She could hardly keep up with him; even with her self defense training, he was still faster. Parrying the knife away, Katara's mind spun with what to do next. The crowd was screaming, running away now that they had the chance, but that left her and wounded Aang, who managed to get to his knees. But now she felt certain they were both going to die.
The lid was knocked out of her hand and she found herself flat on the ground, hand on her throat. He had recovered from her surprise attack already. Air was cut off before she could regain it, eyes going fuzzy soon after. The man laughed. "I wanted to have some fun with you, kitty kat, but I guess this will have to do."
The knife started lowering towards her chest and Katara felt a shot of adrenaline course through her system. Her hand reached up and stopped the knife, despite feeling dizzy. But already she was weak and tired, and so very, very afraid. The madman knew this and continued to force his hand lower...lower...
The next thing she knew, the Viper was thrown off of her. She gasped for breath, rolling over to see what was happening through streaming eyes. Aang, despite his injuries, was rolling on the ground, trying to get the upper hand with the blade. But Aang's wound was costing him. It wasn't much longer before he was on his back, the knife going for his heart next. Katara looked around in desperation, then stopped. The moonlight glinted on something black in the dark, metallic...
The gun.
She rushed over to it, gripped the foreign object in her hands, and pointed it towards the Viper. But she couldn't get a clear aim; her hands were shaking so much from what she was feeling: Anger, despair, love for her boyfriend, desire to save him and the need to protect.
"Stop!" she yelled, voice only slightly trembling. "Let him go!"
The Viper looked up from what he was doing, then chuckled. With the agility of a jungle cat, he was up and had kicked Aang in his wound. The boy screamed in torturous pain, curling in on his side. The man walked slowly over to her, stopping with two feet to spare, mocking her. "You don't have the guts."
"How would you know?" she shouted.
He shrugged nonchalantly. "You would have done it already."
She scooted back, gun trembling fiercely in her hand. "Stay back!" she screamed, trying to gain courage.
Sighing he took another step, knife raised. "Not happening. This game is getting old. Let's end this once and for all." He raised the knife higher, took aim...
And she fired.
The man froze in his position, shock on his draining face. Draining because, somehow, she had managed to shoot him in the forehead. The shock of the pulse hurt her arm, the sounds throbbed in her ears, and disbelief went through her entire body. The dead man collapsed onto the grass, the blade glinting in the moonlight.
For a long moment she sat frozen, staring at the body of the one and only person she had killed.
Killed...like his life didn't matter. Katara dropped the gun as tears welled in her eyes. Tears of pain, relief, and sorrow for what she had to do.
But before she could grieve for a lost part of herself, the sound of Aang groaning caught her dulled hearing. Looking up, she saw him stagger to his feet. In an instant she forgot about her own problems and was rushing to him. Just in time, too, because a few steps later he collapsed into her arms. They fell and sat on the grass, holding each other.
"I'm okay," he whispered shakily, trembling in her arms.
She sobbed softly onto his shoulder. "You will be..." she murmured through her crying. And so, as sirens echoed from somewhere in the city, Aang and Katara held each other, blood soaked and sick feeling but still alive, breathing in their victory...
No matter how short lived it might be.
Hi! Sorry to keep you guys waiting, but I had the worst case of writer's block ever. HOwever, I have returned with this new chapter that I hope you have enjoyed. Let me know how this one came out and if I did it justice.
Anyway, I also have a question for you, my fans. If you knew I had published novels, would you buy them? If so, please check out my books I have to sell. Go to Lulu, type in Melinda Burnley, and you'll see my available works there, or go to my website: melinda - m - burnley . wixsite fullmoonbooks, just without the spaces.
You can watch trailers, read previews, and get links to available novels. Thanks a bunch!