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Barney had been gone for a long time now. And by that I mean it's been three weeks since he walked out of his room. I sighed as I shuffled around my kitchen, frying bacon.

"What's the matter darlin'?"

I looked over to Tool, who had become a mainstay in my house since all that mess happened. My face was damn near back to perfect, bruises faded to a light yellow color.

"Is this how it's always going to be? Him just walking out and me never knowing where he's gone and when he's coming home?"

Tool slipped his glasses off and set down the paper to look at me.

"Seems like three weeks is your breaking point."

"No, I asked the day he left. But you told me this was his life, and I respected that. So I left it alone. Now it's three weeks later and you still haven't told me anything."

"He's on a job."

"Where?"

Tool looked at me and smiled.

"In Mexico."

"Drug cartels?"

He nodded his head as I brought the hot pan over with bacon in it. He moved the paper so I slide some onto his plate.

"Sunny side up or over easy today?"

"Over easy."

I nodded and went back to the stove.

"How dangerous is it?" I asked as I cracked an egg into the pan.

"Depends."

I cracked another egg, a little harder this time.

"Don't start lying to me now Tool."

"Cartel's are bad business Avie. Kidnappings, massacres. It's just no good."

I nodded. I watched the news, saw what was happening in those places.

"Are they doing good down there?"

"Extraction."

"What does that mean? What are they extracting?"

"Some American do gooders got themselves kidnapped. Our boys went down to get them back."

I let out a breath I didn't know I had been holding.

"So what's on the agenda today?" He asked as he he ate the eggs I just placed in front of him.

"I've got some flea market's I want to hit up. You don't have to keep following me Tool. I'm a big girl."

"Yes you are. And yes I do. See the fella that broke in here, he didn't just want to hurt you. He wanted to kill you. And we haven't found him yet. So until we do, you and me, well we're gonna be closer than sisters."

I grinned and shook my head.

"Don't you have work to do?"

"My shop can stay closed for awhile. Sides' I like it here."

"You like the free food."

"And the good atmosphere. It's light here Avie and the lord knows I don't deserve it. None of us do."

I pulled a chair out and sat next to him.

"Those who deserve love the least are those who are most in need of it Tool. Your always going to be welcome in my house."

He smiled sadly at me and nodded.

"Much appreciated."

"Any time, now I'm going to go get dressed and then we can head out. Sound good to you?"

"Sounds fine."

I ran upstairs, pulling my hair out of the sleep braid it was previously in. I slipped on some jean shorts and a white, three quarters length button up shirt. On my feet I slipped on a pair of white flats. I put on a thin line of black liner, winging it out at the edges. A quick coat of mascara and I was set. I hopped down the stairs and Tool was waiting for me.

"All set darlin'?"

"Yup. Let's get going."

He smiled and slid his cowboy hat on.

Bourbon street Flea Market

"Time to go honey," Tool said as he grabbed my upper arm and steered me away from a man selling mirrors.

"What's the matter?"

He was quiet, his eyes scanning the crowds around us. His silence was making me nervous.

"We're being followed."

"What do I do?" I whispered.

"You listen and do everything I tell you to, got it?"

I nodded my head, fear flooding my system. Tool let go of my upper arm and instead took my hand. I gripped it tightly, not wanting to lose him in all this nonsense. He weaved us in and out of vendors and tents. It was hot as hell out and I was sweating like a pig. When we hit the street Tool redoubled his efforts. We were practically jogging when we passed an alley and someone grabbed Tool. I let out a scream as he quickly flipped him around and put a knife into his chest. I covered my mouth, and looked around wildly. Nobody had seemed to notice the incident.

"C'mon honey." Tool grabbed my hand again and this time we were running. I looked over my shoulder and saw two men running this way.

"Why are they following you?" I asked. Tool looked back and cursed.

"They ain't here for me sweetheart. They are here for you."

"Who's they?"

"A guy Barney pissed off a couple of months ago. Looks like he still ain't over it."
Tool pulled me into an alley and we ducked behind a dumpster. I was breathing hard.

"A guy like him, another mercenary?"

Tool nodded his head as he dug a gun out of his boot. He handed it to me. It was a standard issue nine millimeter.

"I don't want this Tool."

"Take it, use it if you have too."

I sighed and took the gun. I checked the safety and the clip, making sure it had ammunition. Tool gave me a crazy smile.

"You know a thing or two about guns."

"Of course I do. I was raised in the woods, hunted all my life. Everybody kept a pistol or a rifle on them or in their trucks in case they came across wolves, coyotes or bears."

He nodded and we were on the move again. My truck was a few blocks down, on the right. We crossed the road quickly, and sprinted to it. I had no idea how to run, hold Tool's hand, and hold a gun all at once. The whole situation was beyond me.

"Keys" Tool asked calmly. My hands where shaking when I let go of his and dug around my my pocket for the keys to the truck. He unlocked my door and helped me inside the cab. I quickly relocked the door before leaning over and unlocking the drivers side door. He jumped in and fired the old girl up. My racing heart was just beginning to calm down, I was starting to feel safe when the glass of my window shattered and I screamed out of pure terror. A hand reached in and grabbed me by the arm, trying to haul me out of the window. I planted a foot on the door and one on the dash, trying to brace myself. Tool was holding on to my other arm and trying to shift the truck.

"Shoot him Avolene! Shoot the bastard!"

I had forgot about the gun. I pointed it at him and pulled the trigger. The bullet tore through his skull, spraying me with bits of bone, blood and brain matter. I screamed as I crawled away, scooting towards Tool. I kicked at the now slumped over body, until it fell out the window. Tool peeled out, and I stayed flush against him, my back to his right side. He put his right arm around my waist and held me as I sobbed.

Tool's Shop

I had been sitting on this old musty couch, with a scratchy wool blanket around my shoulders for hours. I couldn't move, couldn't think. The cup of tea in my hands was cold now. I had progressed from crying, to sobbing and dry heaving, to this. Nothing. I killed a man. Shot him in the face. Tool tried to clean me up, but I couldn't have anyone touch me. It made my heart kick into over drive again, and I became physically ill. I could hear people talking outside the room I was in. It had to be an office of sorts. There was a desk, this couch, a coffee table, a tv, and some other little things. Tool had turned the tv on, and I had turned it back off. The door opened and Tool came back in. He came and sat in front of me, on the coffee table.

He took the tea from my hands and held them in his. My eyes fluttered a few times as I lifted them to look into his.

"I know your drowning in there baby. But hold on, you got a lot of life rafts here. You killed that man," my tears started again, "to protect yourself. To protect me. Their ain't nobody in this world gonna hold that against you."

I swallowed before I spoke,

"How long do I have before the police come?"

He looked at me and shook his head.

"What police?"

"I...killed that man. I broke the law, I'm going to jail."

"Ain't nobody going to jail. I took care of it."

I opened my mouth to speak, but he cut me off.

"Don't do that to yourself sweetheart, don't ask those questions. You trust me?"

I nodded my head. How could I not? He stabbed a man for me, protected me, covered up a murder for me.

"Then let it go. Trust me, and just let it go."

After a few seconds I nodded my head.

"Some rowdy, dirty, Mexican smelling men out there wanting to see you now, are you up for it?"

I wasn't sure if I could face anyone right now.

"I don't know."

"Hows about I send just one in?"

I nodded my head, understanding that he meant Barney.

"Okay."

"Your gonna be alright baby girl. It hurts, believe me I know. But you get better. You have too."

With that he got up and left. Without my cold tea cup, I didn't know what to do with my hands. So I picked it back up again. It was reassuring, the weight of it. Making everything feel more real.

Barney's POV

Tool came back out of the office, eyes a little watery.

"She ain't ready for all of you yet. But she agreed to let you in," he said looking at me. I moved forward, my stomach in knots. I hadn't been so afraid in...I couldn't even remember. As I passed by, Tool grabbed my arm, stopping me.

"She wouldn't let me clean her up, couldn't stand the contact. She's bad brother, go gentle."

Avolene's POV

The door opened and I looked up. Barney was standing there, black cargo pants, black t-shirt. He was dirty, like Tool said. I gave him a small smile, the most I could manage.

"Oh Avie..." And then he was there, holding me. I couldn't cry anymore, it physically hurt me to do so. But his warmth, the contact made me feel better. Solid. Like I wasn't floating around anymore.

"I'm sorry Avie...I'm sorry this happened to you." He sounded a little chocked up, which made me pull back to look at him. He looked...I couldn't say sad, or angry, because it was both. His brown eyes were boring into mine.

"This man...the man who wants to hurt me. What did you do to him?"

Barney ran a hand over his face before speaking.

"I pissed him off."

"I think I deserve to know a little more than that, don't you?"

He nodded his head.

"Guys name is Marcus Valentine. Runs a crew like mine. Got hired for a job, missed the deadline, and got the boot. We cleaned up the mess, finished the job. Been pissed off ever since."

I rolled that around in my mind a little bit. I was targeted because of some grudge match? Some imaginary slight? Now I was angry.

"I'm being targeted because he is incompetent and overly sensitive?"

Barney looked at me before smiling.

"He thinks we're scooping work from him."

"Are you?"

"No. We don't look for work, it comes to us."

I nodded. This seemed a little more personal, but maybe it wasn't. Maybe it was a mercenary thing.

"And one of our jobs was to collect this younger brother, Argus."

Cogs clicked together in my brain, and everything made a little more sense, now.

"Argus Valentine, the cult guy who bombed all those power companies?"

"Terrorist. Yeah, that's him."

"Well it makes a little more sense now. He died in prison didn't he?"

Barney nodded. I could vaguely remember hearing about him on the news. The FBI were closing in on him before he fled to South America. Then a few months later he was captured by Brazilian military officers...

"So it wasn't the Brazilians who captured him?"

"No. We turned him over to the headhunters in Brazil."

"Headhunters?"

"CIA operatives who's job it is to find people."

I nodded my head.

"Does he blame you for his brother dying in prison?"

"Yeah."

I let out a breath of air. This was...way more than I had ever expected when I agreed to see Barney.

"Bet you want to run for the hills now." I looked at him, saw the sadness in his eyes. I had a feeling that's what everybody else did. I was scared, I knew that for sure. But I also liked him.

"I'm scared, and my natural response is to run. But I won't. I can't leave you behind."

He kissed me then, despite the dried blood and other things on me. He held my face in his hands gently and kissed me softly. A knock on the door had him pulling away from me. Tool came in and gently shut the door.

"How we doin' in here?"

I smiled up at him.

"There she is. I knew you could do it honey."

"It's not easy, I don't know how you all do it. But I'll be okay, in time."

"Sticking around then?" Tool asked.

"Yes. Despite any misgivings I may have on what you do, professionally, I like all of you. And I like you especially." I said looking at Barney when I spoke the last. He smiled at me, and I smiled back, blushing slightly at my own forwardness.

"One big, happy, dysfunctional family," Tool smiled.

"I wouldn't have it any other way," I replied.