"Park here," Millaray said.
Roman pulled into the parking lot and found a spot. He turned off the engine and looked over his shoulder at the woman in the back seat. She was in a prison suit and a pair of boots that she had requested. Her hair was pulled back in a ponytail. Her wrists were secured in handcuffs that went to a chain around her stomach. He was going to hold on to that chain as if his life depended on it.
"I made a deal with the devil," he muttered.
"Really? You see me as the devil?" She grinned. "Oh honey, you have no idea how evil I can be."
"Oh, I do," he said. "But not today. Today you're gonna play nice, be a good girl and give me what I need."
"You sound like the beginning of a porn movie," she said.
"In your dreams, sweetheart," he chuckled.
He got out of the car, opened the door to the back seat, grabbed her arm and pulled her out of the car. He closed the door again and locked the car. He took a deep breath while trying to steady himself. He knew this was a gamble. His team was not far behind though. If something happened to him, they would be there fast. He could only hope it would be fast enough.
"What now?" He asked.
"Now we go on a hike," she answered.
"Where to?" He asked.
"Follow me," she answered.
She was not going to give him any hints. Despite having shown her he wasn't wired up, she still wouldn't trust him. He couldn't blame her for that. Living a life with crime didn't exactly make a person trust anyone.
"Is it a long way there?" He asked.
"You sound like a child," she made her voice high pitched. "Are we there yet? Are we there yet? I gotta pee."
He chuckled at her. She smirked at him.
"Just enjoy nature, Roman," she said. "We'll get there when we get there. It'll all be worth it. You're gonna be the big hero. The mayor will call you in for a handskake and a medal. You'll go on the news. All the women in town will want to sleep with you."
"I wouldn't mind any of that," he said.
"3 years," she said lowly. "Maybe I should try and study something in those 3 years. You know, to make a better life for myself once I get out again. I'm getting old and tired. I never pictured that this would be my life. I got sucked in and now I can't get out. In a way I should thank you. You're giving me a way out."
He smiled at her. She didn't look at him though. He could see she was busy trying to turn it all around in her head. She wanted out and he was the one to help her out. Once again he was the hero.
"What do you think?" She finally looked at him.
"I think you can do anything you set your mind to. You're a smart woman," he said.
"Thank you," she smiled. "It's not everyday people compliment me like that. It feels nice to hear. This way."
"Up the mountain?" He asked.
"Just for a few hundred meters. There's a cave up there. We can go through to the other side. It's faster than going around it, and no eyes on us," she said.
"Lead the way, Indiana Jones," he chuckled.
They walked up the mountain. He found her nice to small talk with when they were out alone with no one listening in on them. After a while she led him through some bushes, and then a small cave opening appeared.
"Really?" he asked.
"It's bigger on the inside," she said. "Suck in your stomach, big man."
"Those are muscles," he smirked.
"I know," she giggled.
She leaned down and moved in through the opening. He followed after her and was surprised to find a bigger cave on the inside. There wasn't much light in there but she seemed to know where to take him. He held on to the chain around her waist while she led him through the dim lit cave. She started whistling and for some reason that made him nervous.
"Millaray?" He asked nervously. "Would you mind being quiet? This place is freaking me the fuck out."
"And so it should," she said.
"What are you talking about?" He asked.
He didn't get a chance to even reach for his gun. Several men attacked him and held him down. A flashlight was turned on and almost blinded him. He recognized the voice holding the flashlight right away as her brother.
"You only brought one?" Dean asked.
"Of course," Millaray answered. "This one was stupid enough to believe me."
"Millaray!" Elias yelled.
"Elias!" Millaray yelled back.
The flashlight moved around. Roman watched as Elias ran in and scooped Millaray up in his arms. They shared a passionate kiss that made Roman bare his teeth. She had fooled him. Somehow her gang knew they were coming and had been waiting for them.
"Get the key," Millaray said. "It's in his left pocket."
Elias walked over to Roman, smirked at the man being held by other gang members, and took the key from his pocket. He walked back to Millaray and released her from the chains.
"How the hell did you pull this off?" Roman asked.
"We got eyes and ears at the station," Dean said.
"Who?" Roman asked.
"There's no fun in telling you that," Dean chuckled. "Our mole gets a fair cut in order for passing information. Like you taking my sister here for a hike. We always have a plan where to meet in case one gets caught. How and when is up to our mole to tell us. And don't think we're stupid enough to use this cave twice. We have plenty of places to choose from."
"There's not gonna be a next time," Millaray said. "Next time just fucking kill the guards, alright?"
Dean handed Millaray a bag. She pulled some clothes up from it and stripped out of the prison suit and boots provided to her by Roman.
"I've missed seeing that," Elias smirked.
Millaray giggled in return before putting on her own clothes. Once again she looked like the girl next door that could blend in with any crowd. She was going to escape. Hopefully Roman's team would be closing in on them soon enough since they had been standing still for a short time now. Millaray walked over to Roman and stared at him intensely.
"Where's the chip?" She asked.
"What chip?" He asked.
Her tongue poked out of the corner of her mouth. There was a weird smile on her face that he didn't like.
"I led you to this cave because it blocks out all signals, including the chip I know you got on you. You can live or I can kill you and tear everything on you apart to find it," she said.
She grabbed his jaw and squeezed tightly.
"Where is the chip?" She asked.
"My left boot," he answered.
She crouched down and took the boot off him. Elias came over with a knife and tore into the sole with the blade. He pulled out a chip and smirked. He handed it to another gang member named Mansoor who took off running right away. Roman knew Mansoor was going to fool his team into thinking they were moving again. The chip would be dumped somewhere and take his team on a wild goose chase while Roman was left inside the cave.
"So this is it?" Roman asked.
"What? You think we're gonna kill you?" Dean chuckled. "I want to. Believe me, I want to so bad, but we're not that fucking stupid to kill a cop. The hunt you got going on us right now is fun. Killing a cop will turn that hunt very unpleasant very fast."
"We'll call for someone to come find you," Millaray said.
"We just need a bit of a headstart," Dean said.
"Drink this," Elias said.
Elias held up a bottle. Roman pressed his lips together and shook his head no. Dean stepped in, grabbed Roman's head and forced his mouth open. Elias poured the liquid down Roman's throat. Dean forced Roman's mouth shut and Elias grabbed Roman's nose. Roman couldn't breathe. In desperation he swallowed. Dean and Elias let go of him and smirked.
"There, that wasn't so bad," Dean said. "You'll have a nice, long rest. When you wake up, your team will have found you. Nothing to worry about."
"Next time," Roman said lowly. "There's gonna be a next time. I will find you again."
"I'm sure you will," Millaray placed a hand on Roman's cheek. "And I'm looking forward to it. I do enjoy our talks. But you know just as well as me that you will never put any of us behind bars. We're always a step ahead."
"I... I..." Roman mumbled.
"Put him down," Millaray said.
Roman felt himself being laid down on the ground before he fell asleep. Millaray laced her fingers in between Elias' fingers and smiled at him.
"I missed you," she said.
"I missed you too," he said. "Okay, let's get out of here so that Mansoor can call us. He should be halfway there by now. He runs so fucking fast."
"And we'll pick him up on the agreed spot," Dean said. "We never leave anyone behind."
Dean turned to smile at his sister.
"Never," Dean repeated.
"I know," Millaray smiled back. "You won't believe the crappy food they serve in prison though. I need pasta with cheese sauce tonight."
"Anything for you, darling," Elias said.