AN: Hey guys. Again, thanks to everyone who's reviewed so far. Sorry for this being such a short chapter, especially sense it's Friday, but... this one physically hurt me to write, once I was done I had to put the computer down and walk away for a couple of hours. Again it's not that gory, but... you'll see.
*** Waylon***
I woke up to a distant voice. Colored lights flashed from outside the little window. It took a second for the world to come into focus, but when it did the sounds became more clear.
"Waylon Park and Miles Upshur! Come out with your hands up, we have the building surrounded."
I wiped the sleep from my eyes. What?
"We can end this without bloodshed, please come out with your hands up."
Hands up? Prying myself from the cot I leaned up against the wall to get a look outside. There were squad cars and SUV's littering the front yard, with markings ranging from the sheriff's department, to county police, to unmarked black. Men in Kevlar vests and full scale tactical gear were everywhere to be seen.
"Oh my god…" they found me, they found me for a crime I didn't commit against a company that deserved the worse all humanity could offer.
"Waylon, what's going on?"
I looked over my shoulder to see Lisa awake and holding Garret who looked wide awake and terrified.
"Shhh. It's ok."
It was not ok and Lisa knew it.
"I'll be right back, I have to go do something." I had to do something, I don't know what exactly, but something.
"…but dad"
"It's all right Garret. I'll be right back, I pinky promise."
"Ok"
I looked at Lisa "I'll be right back"
"Ok, hey Waylon."
"…ya?"
"I love you"
God she looked scared "I love you too, I'll be right back."
I kept eye contact as long as I could before having to turn to go up the stairs. The walk was longer than I remembered it being. It felt like ages before I peeked my head around the corner that led to the living room.
Everything was bathed in blue and red light, including Miles's sleeping figure. How was he still asleep? Never mind that, the man who must have been speaking through a bull horn gave another warning that I failed to hear, less than a second later there was a heavy thump at the front door.
There was another thunderous thud, the thing shook on its hinges. Oh god, that sound triggered my flight responses more than I thought humanly possible. There was nowhere to hide in here, nowhere to hide!
The door flew through the air, landing with the force of a truck wreck. Men in full body armor wielding I-don't-know what kind of guns stormed the room.
"Get on the ground! Get on the ground!" one of them came charging at me, while some others started screaming at a sleeping Miles.
I moved, I don't know where to, but I moved. Things were too fast, there were people, things were too loud. There was gunfire. I hit something, I was falling. Falling, what were they saying!?
I landed in the dark, people were quiet again, but only for a second.
Before I lifted my head half a dozen men were yelling to get on the ground. I looked up. I'd landed on the couch. I'd landed on Miles. Miles who was not awake but sitting upright. I launched myself back, screaming like a little girl. There was panic fire at my movement, I don't blame them. It was loud there was a pain like fire in my shoulder. There was screaming, more than just my own. I was on the ground. Looking up I saw the meal storm of vaporized flesh and shattered bone that told me the Walrider was here.
Scrambling on the floor I escaped, the police, or SWAT, or whatever weren't so lucky. The screaming, oh god the screaming! I went down the hall, scrambling on the floor I only barely dove into a room to escape an oncoming squad. I don't know how the hell they got there and I didn't care. I had to get back to Lisa and the boys.
Somehow, as if every ounce of misfortune I had had the night before was being repaid with good luck I had gone into the door leading to the stairwell. Clutching my badly bleeding shoulder I half fell down the stairs and into the basement.
Everyone was awake now, Garret had buried himself into Lisa's side and Connor wasn't far off.
"Waylon, you're bleeding!"
"Dad I'm scared!"
I had no breath, this was a terrible idea, I couldn't talk.
Above me the sound of combat boots hitting the ground and panic fire raged. Garret was sobbing, Lisa was barely keeping it together, and I couldn't say a damn thing. I was so useless, I-!
There was someone coming down the stairs. Even footsteps. I could hear myself breathing, so useless! I put myself between my family and the doorway.
"I know you're down here" the voice was a man's and much too calm.
I pressed back towards Lisa, trying to block her and the boys as much as plausible. Around the corner stepped a man of unimpressive stature who seemed twenty feet tall in the dim light.
"Waylon Park. You've caused quite the bit of trouble."
I wasn't talking, my breath was too ragged and the pain from the gun wound didn't help.
"This must be the family mentioned in your personnel file." He eyed them with a clinical gaze, I shuffled again trying to block them from sight.
"You know…" he glanced at the pistol in his hand "for all the trouble you've cause Murkoff, outright killing you would be letting you off easy, and I can't let that happen, now can I?"
Without waiting for a reply he raised the gun level and took aim, not at me, but just past me. I couldn't let that happen, I lunged. I expected to die, to get shot; I jumped at him with all of my strength. The gun fired up into the air. I landed on him, but he stayed upright; kneed me in the gut right across the wound from Blaire. I slid to the ground, but held onto his arms. He kicked at me, after an eternal struggle I hit the ground.
"Cocky bastard." He leveled the gun at me.
No, not here in front of my family! A second after I was sure he pulled the trigger there was a primal scream. I never closed my eyes, I saw Lisa lung at him, tackling him from the side. I heard more yelling, I heard my boys screaming. I heard the gun roar once again.
The world stopped, all the adrenalin and color drained and Lisa sunk to the floor, leaving the man splattered in hot blood.
"Lisa!" I screamed it. I yelled with a voice that rubbed my throat raw and made me taste blood.
I twisted and crawled to her. She was on her back, eyes wide open and pinned to the ceiling. I grabbed her, she was still warm and soft, but wet with scarlet fluid.
"Lisa!" I held her crumbled form in my arms, squeezing for dear life. I held her for a second that lasted a grim lifetime. I loosened my hold to look her in the eyes. They were empty and glossed over, empty of spark that had lighted my world. She was gone.
"…Lisa. No. No. No!" I sobbed. I sobbed and couldn't see her limp body through the tears.
"Bitch got blood on my suit"
That bastard, I was going to kill him! I was going to rip him apart with my own damn hands! I was going to-!
I got kicked in the head. Tumbling over to the side Lisa's still warm body sagged to the cold ground. The bastard kicked me while I was down and pinned under my dead wife.
"Do you have any idea how hard it is to remove blood stains?" he put his foot on my wounded shoulder and drove in his heel.
"I'm…. going t-… murder you…"
"Pfft, good luck from down there." He glanced toward the staircase. "Help! I have a hostile! One down, I need a doctor!"
I could feel myself foaming at the mouth with rage. Never had I been so angry.
"Careful there, you look like you've gone insane" he looked down at me and had just enough time to deliver his smug ass comment before a man in tactical gear came down.
I was forced onto my stomach, only to have my hands zip tied together. With all the blood roaring in my ears I couldn't hear a word they said. All that preoccupied my view was Lisa's limp body and my sobbing sons huddled behind her on the cot.