Okay I'm going to start out by telling everyone to ignore the teaser at the end of the last chapter. As it took a month to write this chapter, and review everything that I had written up until now, I am not going to have them making it back to Isabella's house in this chapter. Sorry about the confusion. Hopefully everyone enjoys it though. *Sassiersphinx*
Bitter winds slammed into the window panes of the side windows, making them shake from the force outside. The storm had come out of nowhere, laying siege to the city, and all that inhabited the concrete jungle that was Montreal. Rebecca huddled under a thick comforter, a mug of steaming jasmine tea clutched between her cold fingers. Her shoulder length black hair still damn from her trek through winter's fury. It had taken nearly three hours to make it the nine blocks from Abstergo to the place three blocks away where her van had slid on the forming ice and hit a curb.
The tire was a complete loss and thank the heavens above her boss was not pissed when he got the call. Rob just told her to leave the van there, he would call a wrecker to come get it and bring it back to the shop when they were able. The local police were informed as well, so she was in no danger of losing her one ticket into the viper's nest.
Shaun sat in the armchair, glasses perched on the top off his head, eyes glued to the computer screen in an attempt to solve a puzzle that she herself didn't understand a lick of. Something about the next coming of Juno, and some vessel she needed. After he had rambled on for about twenty minutes and thoroughly lost her, she had tuned him out until he realized what she had done. Now he refused to even talk to her, calling her many unsavory names.
As she sat there, trying to get feeling back into her frozen limbs, one of the many phones they had in the apartment went off, and she grabbed for the lit up one to her left. Her work phone. Hitting the call button, she spoke. "Hello?"
'Rebecca, Abstergo just called to inform us that they are closing the building for tomorrow. If the storm keeps up, they may be closed the following day as well.' Rob Flashet sighed into the phone. 'Since your van is down for right now, I'm guessing this is a blessing for you.'
Not really, she thought to herself, but if they closed the building, then that meant Jack would be off work as well, and that thought brought her a small amount of comfort. Putting a little cheer in her voice, she spoke. "That's good to hear. I could always use a day off, but this was not how I really wanted to get it."
He laughed. 'Don't I know it! I just finally made it back to the office from getting Mallory out of a small ditch. Her van slid into one an hour before you called me.'
"Hopefully she's alright." Mallory was a college student and had taken the job to pay for her tuition. Nice girl, but a little ditsy. She was about to say something when her personal line began to ring. "Hey, I need to go. Call me if anything changes."
'Will do.' And he hung up.
Dropping the first phone in her lap, she picked up the second one and answered. "It had better be good."
'Well, that's a hell of a way to greet someone, Becca.' The line crackled a little bit, but the voice was unmistakably that of Desmond Miles.
"Holy shit! Where the hell did you come from? The last I heard you had made a run. What are you doing calling me?" It was quite the surprise to hear from him. She thought she would be the last to hear anything about him.
She could tell he had a smile on his face, because that was just the way he was. 'Well, I missed you so much that I couldn't wait to hear your voice. So that's why I'm calling.'
"Bullshit. What help do you need from tech support?" Leaning back, she looked over at Shaun, who mouthed 'Who is it?' "It's Desmond." She answered him, and rolled her eyes at his expression. His eyes widened, and the computer in his lap abandoned now to curiosity.
'I don't have a whole bunch of time, but needless to say, Isabella and I are kind of stuck in North Carolina with no ride, and I have not a damn clue as to if there's a safe house around here.'
"Isabella's with you?" That was something new. The last she had heard the other woman was down in Mississippi with her son, and mother. She wasn't even supposed to leave the house without someone.
His voice took a serious tone, the playfulness all but gone from his voice. 'Yeah, but we won't be together much longer if they catch up to us. Agents caught us on a connecter flight from Washington D.C. to Montgomery. Took off running, and haven't looked back.'
Setting her cup on the end table, Rebecca pointed to the computer and waved for Shaun to bring it to her. He did so with no question. "Hold on, let me see what we have. Where in the state are you?"
The phone crackled again, and this time there was a lot more static than the last time, but she managed to hear the word Dunn, and she knew where they were. Typing quickly, she pulled up the list of all the safe house that were still, well, safe. And low and behold, there was one nearby. "If you said Dunn, then you're not too far from a safe house. It's about twenty minutes from you in a town called Lillington. Did you catch that?"
'Yeah, I caught it. Look, we're out of time. A few trucks just passed us up and heading in the direction where we ditched the car we stole. They're going to find it soon.' His breathing was coming out in pants now, so the only thing she could guess was they were running when he said where they were.
"I'll text you the address and buddy, you had better call me when you get there, or so help me I will drive down there and find you myself." And she wasn't playing. Her personal car was just in the garage, and full of gas. It would take her driving all night, but she could make it there.
More static, but she made out what he said. 'I will. I promise you that. Thanks Becca, I owe you one.'
"Hah! You owe me more than one, Des. Be safe out there." But she doubted he heard most of it, because the phone was silent. Pulling it away from her ear, she looked at the stars that swirled in a pattern across the screen. The call had been dropped. "Please be safe." She whispered at the phone as it entered sleep mode, and prayed that luck was still on his side.
Shaun sat on the couch next to her, taking the phone from her hands. "I believe those two will be fine. They haven't survived this long to have it all dashed away now. If luck was a form of currency, Desmond and Isabella would be bloody millionaires by now."
Chuckling lightly, she nodded her head, because she knew he was right. "That much I can imagine. It must run in the genes, because all of his ancestors were the luckiest sons of bitches to ever walk the Earth. Don't know about hers, but I know for a fact about his."
*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*
"Well, that's the last window." Seth held up the drill and gave the trigger a pull, looking over at the man that was curled up in the corner, probably thinking that he was going to use the drill as a torture devise. "Think about trying to get out now, and well, I think you can use your imagination." He let a slow sly smile spread over his lips. "Someone will be in to check on you in a few."
Opening the door, Olivier moved forward a bit. "What do you plan to do to me?" His voice shook and his eyes wide like a doe caught in the headlights of a car.
Shrugging, he answered truthfully. "I don't have a damn clue. I'm not up high enough on the food chain to know that. So, my advice to you is, keep your mouth shut unless they ask you a question. Answer truthfully, and you will probably get to walk out of this with all your fingers and toes. If not, well, let's not think that far ahead now."
And leaving that as the parting shot, he walked out of the door, closing it firmly behind him. Tori sat in the camp chair just outside the door, her face an unreadable mask as always. "You shouldn't threaten him like that. He might decide to clam up."
Frowning, he sat the power drill on the table. "You would be surprised what just the smallest amount of fear can do to a normal person. Oh wait, you wouldn't know because you, Victoria, are not normal." Seth spat her name out like a foul taste in his mouth.
Her cool demeanor didn't change as she stood up, pulling down the pack of her shirt to cover the grip of the gun that he knew was there. The woman didn't go ten feet from anywhere without some form of weapon on her. Paranoid bitch, he thought to himself.
"We are assassins, Seth. None of us are normal." She countered and walked from the room.
Grinding his teeth in frustration, he wanted nothing more than to grab her, and shake the dog shit out of her until some form of emotion came from her dead panned face. It was the same song and dance when they were together. She was a damn unfeeling and uncaring robot, and no one could tell him differently. Even when they were dating, she was like that.
Deciding the best course of action was for him to get out of the house for a few minutes before he actually acted upon the thoughts he currently had, he headed in the opposite direction she went, and upon exiting the back door, he found his father in a heated debate on his phone.
"You let her leave?" He was on the verge of yelling, and it took a lot to get him to that point. "You know she wasn't supposed to leave the house without someone being with her."
Taking a seat on the cold, concrete step, he watched his dad make ruts in the snow. "Sarah, you know how she gets, and if she gets into something over there that she can't get out of, none of us will be able to get there in time."
From what he could piece together, his mom had let his sister fly the coupe, but for what? So, deciding to sit there quietly, he waited until the call was completed to find out what was going on, and he was rewarded by only waiting a minute or two later.
Damien shoved the phone into the breast pocket of his thick coat, and with a heated glare that could melt the snow around, he turned to his son. "I swear, nothing I say matters to no one in this damn family."
Seth actually laughed. "Did you really think that Mom would listen to anything you say when it comes to Izzy? She never has and probably never will." But his laughter died when his father's glare got even colder.
"I was hoping that she would just one time. One time! Is that asking too much? Now your sister is off on some wild goose chase, going after that bastard's son." His thumb jerked towards the house. "I knew telling her that he was alive was the worst thing that could have ever been done. Should have told her he was dead, and left it at that."
"Dad, she would have eventually found out, and then what? Blamed you for not telling her, that's what." Standing, he brushed a small amount of snow from the edge of his pants. "Now, I'm not saying that I like the idea that she ran off, but you knew it was going to happen."
Damien was quiet for a minute, staring hard at the ground. Finally, he spoke once more. "You're right, but she didn't have to pull something so dangerous. Your mother helped her get to Russia three days ago when we were in Florida."
So that's why Isabella wasn't answering her phone. "I was wondering why when I called to check on her she wasn't answering. I just chalked it up to me pissing her off before we left."
"I don't trust her to do this alone." Moving towards the house, he brushed past Seth, and walked up the stairs.
Following his dad back into the warmth, he asked, "So what do you plan to do? Fly over there yourself?"
"No, you are." He called over his shoulder.
"What?" His feet stopped moving as he stared at his dad's back in complete and utter surprise. "Uh repeat that one more time." He had to be hearing things, because he just thought he was being volunteered to fly half way around the world to find his crazy sister, and her escaped prisoner of a boyfriend, all the while dodging Abstergo agents.
But his hearing was not wrong, because Damien stopped, turned and said once more. "You are going after them. Do I need to repeat myself a third time?" The brow arched and Seth ground his teeth once more.
"No, I heard you, and sorry Dad, but fuck that." That sent both brows straight into the hairline. "Yeah, you heard me right, fuck that. Izzy can handle herself, give her that much credit. If she gets into trouble, you know she'll call, or find a way to get a message to us."
"Your boy's right." William walked into the room, and he could have sworn the temperature dropped by like ten degrees. The icy glares the older men were giving each other made a tundra feel like a tropical oasis.
Damien squared his shoulders as his met the other man's eye. "And how are you so sure that my daughter is fine?"
Holding out his phone, his father took it from him. "Because Desmond just sent this text about forty-five minutes ago from her phone. They're in the States, and that's all that it said."
'maDE it back. we're both fine, So don't worry. Meet up sOoN, Dad'
Walking over, Seth looked over his shoulder to read the text. "You sure it's from Desmond and not someone else?" He asked.
Taking the phone back, he scrolled through a few of the messages, then handed it back. "This was a message from Desmond a year ago. He always makes sure that his name is in capital letters in the text. See? That's how I know it's from him."
'daD, sorry about thE fight. Dumber thingS have Made us OpeN up on each other. hopefully this last mission will be the enD of all of this. see you back there'
Seth caught on, and he was right. Looking at the text that was from a year ago, to the one that was sent from Isabella's phone, the only letters that were capitalized spelled out 'Desmond'. "Okay, so they're in the States, but where?" He asked as William took back the phone once more, and placed it in his pocket.
"Haven't a clue. That's the only message I got from them. I sent one back, but no reply. Phone could be dead, or they ran into some trouble. Isabella called me two days ago telling me that she found him, and that they were heading back here. That's all I got before she hung up." He took a seat in the chair that was once occupied by Tori. "But I'm willing to bet that if we find a high concentration of Abstergo agents, we're going to find them."
*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*
"Isabella, we need to keep moving." Desmond whispered as he looked at the clearing in front of them. It was the last hurdle to get over before they made it to the safe house. "It shouldn't be much farther." He risked it, and lit up the screen on the phone. According to the directions he got off the internet, they were only a few miles from the address. Becca had said there should be a car there, but the condition was unknown.
He heard her fall in behind him. "I hope you're right." Isabella stopped at his right, and looked out as well. "They have been on our asses for at least the last seven miles."
Abstergo had been closing in on their position all night, and it hadn't been for a few good breaks, they would have been caught already. The clouds had been obscuring the moon, plunging the land into darkness. It seemed that someone wanted them to survive another night. "Think we should cut straight across or skirt the edge?"
Lights could be seen off in the distance, but he couldn't tell if they were headlights, house lights, or street lights. All he knew was they were being hunted, and just like a game hunter stalking his prey, if they were caught in the crosshairs, they were as good as dead.
Isabella looked over the field as well, then down the edge of the wood line. "If we take the woods, it's going to take us to the wrong side of town. Then we'll have to cross over more streets to get where we need to go. I say we just make a run for it, and pray for the best."
"Not a very solid plan, but hey, I've done far worse." The mission to Brazil came to mind, or base jumping off the top of a crane to reach the roof of a skyscraper. Memories of what he did when he was in the Animus we're there as well. None of them real sane, or really thought out. Running across a vacant field seemed tame compared to that shit. "Ready whenever you are."
A quick nod of her head, and they both took off. They pushed their weary bodies for more strength than what he knew they had at that moment. Traveling all night with little food and no rest was beginning to take its toll on them. He was also still recovering from his run in Russia. Gaining precious strength back during the flight, only to have it dashed from him running from the Templars once more.
His breath came out in labored pants even before they were three quarters across. His muscles cried out for a rest, but he kept going. They would be able to rest once they made it the last few miles, but until then he had to keep pushing, keep fighting for more.
The main road came into view as the rushed up the small incline from the ditch. It was probably the most glorious sight he had seen in a while. The address wasn't too far down the main drag, but disaster struck when they were about to round the corner.
"They have to be in this town somewhere." A male voice spoke, causing the two of them to slide to a stop at the end of the building. "It's not like it's that big."
"Yeah, but from what we were told, they are probably two of the most dangerous. Worse than that Cross fellow."
A broad, smug smile came across Desmond's face when he heard that he and Isabella were two of the most dangerous. That actually felt good coming from Templars and their lackeys. Isabella, on the other hand, just rolled her eyes, as she pressed her back against the brick side.
"Well, smart ass, if they're here, then where are they?" The first man spoke, and Desmond could hear their footsteps moving towards the alley where the two of them were currently hiding.
"I don't have a clue. All I know is we were told to come check out this town because they were heading in this direction. Hell, they could have doubled back and are hiding out somewhere else." The second man snorted, their voices even closer.
Grabbing Isabella's hand, he bolted towards the back of the building, hoping to find some way onto the roof, or even just higher ground. Get a lay of the town and go from there. It was the only option besides trying to outrun the men, which he didn't have the strength to do then. His muscles were already screaming for him to stop, but there was not a snowball's chance in hell for that. So he kept telling himself to keep moving, keep fighting, to keep forging on. It was the only way they were ever going to get out of this alive.
Spotting the dumpster just to the left of them behind the building, it gave the best course to get to the windows just above. Then it was just a small climb to the roof and some sort of cover. Careful to not make much noise, he got onto the lid, and pulled Isabella up.
"Your arm." She whispered, placing her hands on the sides of the bicep that had been shot. She turned it to face the minimum light that was there, and he saw what she saw. Crimson blood seeped through the tan material, turning it a grotesque color of mud. "It must have reopened."
"Later." He told her. It was not something they could take care of there on the top of a dumpster. It was going to have to wait until they either found a way out of town, or made it to the safe house. If they could make it there.
Her lips formed a thin line, and her eyes narrowed, but she gave a stiff nod. He knew she was pissed, but he was more worried about getting to the roof than his arm. "Come on." She grabbed the window ledge and began to haul herself up to the roof.
The climb shouldn't have been that hard. He had done it what felt like a million times as Altair, Ezio, Connor, and himself, but by the time his hands grabbed the edge, his body shook from exhaustion, and if it wasn't for Isabella already being on the top and grabbing his arms, he probably would have fallen. She pulled him over the edge, and both laid there on their backs, breathing labored.
"I really think you have a curse hanging over you." Isabella finally spoke when her breathing was back under control.
Desmond laughed quietly. "And why do you say that?"
"Because every time we're together, we end up out of breath, and hiding from the Templars. Hon, something has got to give." Turning her head, she smirked at him.
"Maybe it's you that's the curse, not me." He grinned broadly. "And it seems to me that every time I'm with you, I end up flat on my back on a roof somewhere, or wounded."
Giving an unladylike snort, she sat up, and looked down at him. "Excuse me, if memory serves me well, it was you and Ezio who picked the fight that time. I was just the poor bystander."
Following her lead, he sat up as well. "Innocent my white ass. You jumped in alongside us, and loved every minute of it."
She gave a simple shrug. "Alright you got me. Now, where to next, oh fearless leader?"
"The safe house. If only to get the car and the money that's there. It's the only way we're getting out of this alive." At least that was what he was aiming for. He hadn't gone through hell for the last year to die now. Not when he was so damn close.