We'll Talk Again
3. The Trap
I don't love her, it isn't that! It can't be. If anything at all, it is just lust or maybe even an obsession. That is it. And I plan on taking her life...this is nothing more than a crime of hate...
Jackson sat up in his bed, trying to shake his thoughts. What the hell was going on with him? Lisa had him double thinking his actions, and even his whole life. He wasn't happy with many things he had done, but there was no way out of it. Plus, he had seen the fear in her eyes - that wasn't love. Sure, maybe at one point there had been some feelings she had towards him, but that was before she found out he was a killer.
Looking over his shoulder, he checked the clock that rested on the night stand. 6:30, great, not even a whole hour of sleep... He was exhausted from fighting Lisa the day before. And keeping him up all night was his overactive imagination thinking about Lisa.
Pulling himself out of bed, he walked into the bathroom. In a weak attempt to wake himself, he splashed water onto his face. His reflection showed a bruised nose. It was the last thing he needed, but it was there. Whats done is done...
After slipping on a clean pair of black slacks, a blue dress shirt, and a black jacket, he headed out into the hallway towards where Lisa was being held. Punching in the code on the door, he opened the door quietly. Lisa was still lying where he had left her, nothing out of place. Jackson sat on the bed next to her slumbering body. With his hand he smoothed her hair out of her face, then he took the covers up off of Lisa.
She did not open her eyes, but searched with both hands for the blanket.
"Good morning, Leese." Jackson's voice was teasing. "Have a good night's rest?"
Lisa's eyes opened to his words, she had forgotten where she was, and the memory of Jackson came back to clearly and quickly. She stared up at him with eyes full of fear, waiting for the knife to plunge into her neck or chest.
He rolled his eyes at her in disapproval. Still scared for her life, even though there was no reason for at least another few hours. Getting up from the bed he motioned with his head for Lisa to get up also.
"Come on, we don't have all day. Get up." He commanded with a rough voice.
"Where are you taking me now?" Lisa refused to get up without knowing.
"You'll just have to wait till we get there." Jackson yanked her by the arm, pulling her up to her feet. "Now, back into the car we go."
"Just tell me where we're going." Her voice was shaky, she was still unsure what he would do to her at this point.
"Stop asking questions. It won't get you anywhere." Not looking at her, he lead her down the stairs. At the bottom, he picked up the black cloth he had set on the floor last night. Turning her around, he tied it back over her eyes.
"Please...just let me see with my own two eyes."She begged, afraid of where he might take her.
"No, I don't think so. Just deal with it for another hour and then it will come off."Lisa could not see where he was, but then she nearly fell when he grabbed her by the arm and led her out the door.
"Careful, don't want you breaking an ankle."Jackson said sardonically. He was amused by her slight stumble. All though he knew it was because of him. "Watch your head."
He put a hand on Lisa's head and shoved her into the car, slamming the door shut, locking her in. He got in on the other side and pulled out onto the street.
"Go back to bed, I'll wake you when we get there."His eyes were focused on the road ahead of him.
"I'm not going to bed with you here."Lisa pressed her head up against the seat.
"Alright, suit yourself. It really won't make much difference to me."Jackson always had something to say back to her. Always something that would shut her up for the time being.
The rest of the ride was long, and silent. Just like the first drive up to his house. Then finally, after another hour of no talking, Jackson pulled into the driveway of Joe Reisert's house, Lisa's father. Lisa did not yet know, where she was, because of the blindfold.
"We're here." Helping Lisa out, he ripped the blindfold off. For a few seconds, the sun burned Lisa's eyes that had gotten so use to the dark. Then it hit her, she had been brought to her fathers place.
"Dad!" She screamed, attempting to dash into the house. She was quickly trapped by the powerful hold of Jackson's arms. "Let me go! I hate you!"
"Don't Lisa, I'm not the only person here you need to worry about." He warned, whispering in her ear.
"Please..." She muffled out, her tears had come back. She now feared for her dad's life. "...please."
"Calm down, Leese. Your dad is still alive." He assured her, hearing the worry in her voice. All though he was not so sure what he said was true. For in his line of work, it was not always a forgiving one. All Mr. Reisert would have to do to get himself killed was piss one of his associates off. And sometimes, that was a very easy thing to do.
"Let me see him..." She pleaded. "I want to see him."
"Hang in there. I'm sure you'll see him any time now." His voice was calm and flowed smoothly. It was early in the morning, and he didn't want Lisa waking the neighbors. She went limp in his arms, and he was taken off guard by it. But quickly he regained himself. He held her in his arms, running his hand up and down her back. Trying to stop her from crying. For fucks sake...you need to be quiet...
He managed to carry Lisa to the door, and knock on it. A tall, skinny man answered the door, holding a knife to his side.
"Planning on killing anyone with that knife, Rupert." Jackson said hastily. Cautiously taking Lisa inside, one eye still on the knife. He still couldn't trust Rupert.
"Shut up, Rippner. It's just precaution."Rupert snapped back."Take her in the living room. I assume you know where that is already."Rupert gave a slight laugh. Jackson knew he was talking about when he had attempted to murder Lisa, and found Rupert, less than hilarious.
"Don't mess with me Rupert, we all know what happened last time."Him and Rupert had gotten in a life and death battle last time Rupert had used his mocking words towards him, and he nearly killed Rupert, but allowed him to live in return that he give him a generous amount of cash. Rupert backed down and gave a small glare in Jackson's direction.
In the living room were two more hitmen. A small, fat one, and the other about Jackson's height. In the middle of the room, was Joe Reisert, tied to a chair. His face was cut and bleeding. God only knows what unforgiving punishment had been inflicted on him. Lisa's jaw dropped at the site of her dad. Jackson released her, letting her run to her dad and hug him. The three other men in the room all began to run for her, but stopped as Jackson held out a hand. After all, he was still the manager of the association.
"It's okay, she won't do anything that might get her and her dad killed." He assured them, but he said it more as a warning to Lisa."Now, tell me, what do you guy's plan on doing this time?"
"We need Lisa to go with you to the hotel." The fat man said. Jackson had no clue who the other two men in the room were."Once in the hotel, Lisa will get you two a hotel room. You should love that part, huh Jack."He added with a grin.
Jackson jumped at the man before anyone could do anything and grabbed him by the neck. "If I hear anymore shit from your mouth again, I might just loose my temper completely, and who knows what the hell I'll do to you."
Rupert and the tall hitman just watched, they didn't dare mess with Jackson, even if he was out numbered by many. Letting go of the man, he eased up just a little. Then walked over to Lisa's side. He watched her rub her dad's forehead for a moment, then looked back up at the other men in the room.
"What do we do once we have the room?"Jackson asked.
"Oh no, we don't want just any room, we need you to get a room that is connected to the targets room. Make it easier to take him out."The tall one replied. "After you have that done, we will join you. "
"Who's the target?"Jackson asked, then sat down on the couch."And I'm going to need all the files you have on the assassination."
"His name is Adam Hawk, he is the detective assigned to the Keefe's case."The fat guy finally regained his speech. Lisa's jaw dropped at the sound of the detective's name. She looked up from her father and her sight went from the three men to Jackson, who was casually sitting on the couch a few feet from her. He gave her a questioning look but said nothing, and turned back to the men.
"This Hawk guy, what's the reason for taking him out?"He was watching Lisa from the corner of his eye. The way she looked around the room made him think she might try to run at any time. She isn't going to run, not without her dad... He reassured himself.
"Should we really be discussing this in front of her."Rupert looked over to Lisa, pointing a hand her direction. Lisa looked at him then at Jackson with a slightly worried face. She wanted to hear, wanted to know why they planned on killing Adam. He didn't deserve to die. Not this way.
"It doesn't matter. After this is all over, she won't be taking another breath."Jackson gave her a wicked grin. Her heart skipped a few beats. But knew it was coming anyways, knew that when she was no longer useful, he would kill her.
"Well, Adam Hawk knows to much about the organization. If he finds out about us, Jackson, well you and I both know what will happen." Rupert never stopped pushing his luck with Jackson. And it only made him angry. His gaze fluttered back to Lisa, there eyes locked. He could see terror in those green eyes. There was something else, and then he realized, that Lisa knew Adam. His knowledge gave him something to fall back on. Something he thought would come in handy. Possibly another way to bring pain into her life.
"Do you have a list of witnesses he has questioned?"Jackson asked, never looking away from Lisa, watching the way she would react. She starred back, wondering what he was looking for from her.
"Uh...yeah."The tall hitman searched through a briefcase and pulled out a folder, passing it to Jackson."Here you go."
Flipping the folder open, he skimmed the names and times on the list. Almost every day, Lisa Reisert had been questioned. For at least an hour, the times showed.
"So, Lisa, what did you tell our little detective when he asked you about what happened?"He kept reading on through the files, recognizing several names on the list.
Oh my god... She thought to herself, Hawk had warned her that Jackson would know that she had talked to the police. I mean, it would be amazing if she hadn't. Jackson looked up from the folder, and the three other men in the room glared at her.
How could I be so blind, I should have asked her this when I first had the chance. Of course the police asked her about what happened, and she probably spilled out every little detail she knew...His expression showed a little hint of worry, as he thought back to the flight. Had he said anything that would have given the police a lead on the case?
"Leese...you will tell me one way or the other."Jackson threatened. Rupert walked up behind Lisa, ready to stop her from any attempts to escape.
"I-I don't r-remember..."Lisa lied, but knew Jackson could see right through her. He stood up from his seat and joined Rupert, tilting his head to the side, watching Lisa. Her dad gripped her arm, afraid for what they might do to her. He had been brutally beaten himself for information.
"Lisa, please...just tell them."Joe begged his daughter.
"You should listen to your dad, Leese. It might save you a whole lot of pain."His voice was cruel. Slowly, Jackson knelt down next to her, taking her face in his hands. "Adam Hawk, what do you know about him? Huh?"
"He just asked m-me a few questions. That's it." She closed her eyes, refusing to look at him.
"What kind of questions did he ask you?"Jackson's patients were running thin, but he kept a steady, calm voice.
"Jackson, we don't have time for this. Let's find another way to get her to talk." Rupert loved to torture. Jackson knew that much, and even though he was going to kill Lisa and wanted to make her suffer as much as possible, a nagging pain pulled at his heart, telling him not to let her get hurt, or at least not by another person besides himself. He let go of Lisa's face, and stood up, rising to Rupert's eye level.
"We'll get information out of her later. Once the job is done. For right now, we have a lot of work to do." Rupert backed down at Jackson's remark, knowing that it was no time to argue with Jackson. Lisa let her head hang, she was grateful that for now she would be safe.
"Let's try to find-" The fat hitman began to say, but was interrupted by the door. "Who the hell could that be?" He hissed at Joe Reisert. Assuming he would know.
Jackson took Lisa by the arm, putting a hand up to her mouth. He knew if she was given the chance to escape, she would take it. And this was no time for mistakes. He dragged her over to the window, where he peeked through the blinds. As if this situation could get any worse...
"It's Adam Hawk!" He whispered back to Rupert and the others. He knew it was him, he remembered seeing the picture of the target in the files. "Hide Reisert and then you three hide somewhere close, just in case."
They picked up the chair Joe was tied to, they gagged him and stuffed him in a closet. While Jackson led Lisa to the hallway.
"You are going to pretend everything is fine, and that your dad went out for a walk and left to you to watch the house. Okay?" Jackson asked with a commanding voice. Scared out of her mind, but Lisa quickly nodded her head - she feared for Adam.
A knock came at the door again. This time a little louder. Jackson let go of her and shoved her towards the door, then slipped in between an opening between the stairs and the wall. Only a few feet away from Lisa. She took a breath, and opened the door, putting a fake smile on for Adam.
"Hello, detective." She greeted. "How can I help you?"
"Are you okay?" Adam put a comforting arm on Lisa's shoulder. He could see all the bruises and scratches on her, and wondered if they had been there before. "You look a little worried."
Lisa could hear Jackson breathing and just hoped Adam could to. It wasn't likely. "Um...ya, I'm fine. What brings you here?"
"I went to your house looking for you, but you weren't there." He took a few steps inside the door, Lisa saw in the corner of her eye Jackson back farther into his hiding spot.
"Yeah, I came over here to see my dad." She had a small quiver in her voice. Adam was walking into a house full of killers, who planned on taking him out.
"Well, I'm glad I found you. I need to ask you of a favor." He stepped in and walked into the kitchen, taking Lisa by the hand." I am going to be staying at your hotel tonight for some undercover work. And i need your help."
"Sure, anything." A pained look rushed over her face, luckily Adam did not catch it. Lisa saw Jackson sneak behind the door to the kitchen, and a tear fell down her cheek. She quickly wiped it away. He would die because of her doing, and she was letting him fall deeper, and deeper into a trap that he would not survive.
"I got a heads up that a man we think might be involved is staying there tonight." He informed. "And if we are right, we might have a chance at catching him. He has been on the run."
"Who is going to be showing up there?"Lisa asked, looking at the ground.
"Um...well, we believe that Jackson Rippner, will be there tonight." He tried to say it calmly, knowing it would be hard to get Lisa to help. "And I need you to help lure him into a trap."
Jackson stopped breathing, hearing his name. What the hell, I was never gonna go to that hotel... He shot a look at Rupert who was creeping up next to him. Jackson shook his head at him, indicating not to attack Adam yet.
"I'm sorry, you said Jackson...Rippner?" Lisa was just as stunned to hear his name as Jackson had been. "Are you sure?"
"No, we're not, but we have a really good feeling he might be coming for you and we think we can play that to our advantage."He said, taking Lisa by the arms. She flinched, but knew he was not going to hurt her.
"I don't think that you should..."She stopped at seeing Jackson moving to the other side of the door, still hidden from Adam, but Lisa could see him. He gave her a warning look, telling her not to continue what she was going to say."...have me be the one there." She covered up. Swallowing the painful lump in her throat.
"He knows you work there, and is going to be wanting to come after you. I know this is hard for you but I need you to do this for me. Please." Hawk begged.
"What do you...need me to do?"Lisa said cautiously, for she was unsure what to say that would not piss Jackson off. And she saw that it had been the right thing to say. Jackson nodded in approval at her, and nudged his head towards Hawk, telling her to continue.
"OK, great. Tonight at eight, come into the hotel, and pretend you are coming in for work. Then meet me in your office. I will tell you what to do from there." Hawk let out a sigh of relief, glad that she had agreed to the plan. "We're going to get this creep for what he did to you."Hawk then began to walk towards the hall, Jackson was no longer visible to Lisa. It made her wonder where he went, and hoped he would not touch Adam.
"Wait!" She screamed, making Hawk turn. Jackson suddenly appeared in Lisa's line of vision, he was standing behind the stairs, looking back at her, again with a warning look."...Let me, walk you out."
Lisa shut the door behind him and watched as he drove away. Jackson brought an arm around her waist, and put his head in close to hers. It startled Lisa, but she did not move from her spot.
"Good work, Leese."His voice was cold, and heartless."You may have just made this job easier."A wave of guilt rushed over Lisa.
Rupert and the other two joined them in the hallway. He had a puzzled look on his face. Then he laughed a little looking at Jackson.
"And how is that, Jack?"Rupert was annoyed."The job? It is only harder now."
"No, not if we can get Lisa to convince Hawk, to go up to a certain room..." Jackson snarled, his grip harder on Lisa. He was more talking to her than anyone else in the room."...get him to walk, straight into a trap."
No, how could this be happening...tears rolled down Lisa's face, and she closed her eyes. Adam is going to die because of me...