A/N: My little tribute to Claws (general insanity) and Carl Hiaasen (henchmen getting what they deserve). There might be an epilogue to this at some point, but I hope this last full chapter wraps up the story enough to hold you over until then!
Chapter 11 - Hibbs
While two of Hibbs' goons took James from the car, one more joined Montgomery inside the bank. They were polite, and Juliet believed them when they said no one would get hurt as long as she went along without a fuss. The gun peeking from their suit coat helped convince her they could make trouble if she didn't comply.
She was quiet as they drove back to the hotel, even when Montgomery mocked her for it.
"Nothing to say now, eh little lady? No judge you want to call to save your boy ?"
Juliet listened to him gloat, and took none of the bait. Monty provided all the exposition she needed as he asked their new driver all sorts of questions.
Had James been taken separately? Were they going to rough him up a little on the way?
Hibbs' goon showed no interest in playing along, keeping their answers brief and clipped. They seemed annoyed by Monty's presence, which was a relief for Juliet. It gave her hope that they were not, in fact, going to rough James up on the way. And yet their cold disposition made her wonder if they weren't capable of doing worse, later on, once they were all together…
They had Juliet unlock the door with her keycard. Once it was open, they took the keycard and shoved Juliet into the room by herself. She might have enjoyed it, if it had been James with his big, strong hands wrapped around her arm. But these hands were clammy, and their owner was not interested in turning her on. Once she'd been delivered back to her room, they closed the door and left with Monty to retrieve James.
There was another man waiting inside the room. He wore a sharp gray suit, and he sat in the armchair holding a cell phone to one ear, just listening. His legs were crossed, one ankle resting on the opposite knee. Resting on his ankle was a slimline Glock pistol. His finger wasn't on the trigger; his hand was relaxed. It was up to her whether or not he should use it. For now it would simply rest on his ankle, and its presence would speak for itself.
"Take a seat," he said casually, gesturing with his chin to the bed in front of him.
As Juliet walked toward him, she remembered the things James told her about this man, and about the criminal network he ran in the south. Montgomery had been an easy target. This man was an entirely different breed.
He ended his phone call and smiled faintly. His eyes stayed on her face as she sat down and placed her clutch beside her. She smoothed her dress and crossed her ankles, waiting patiently for him to explain what they were doing here, and why they'd taken her when the money they'd withdrawn was readily available.
"Do you know who I am?" the man asked.
It wasn't intimidation. He was genuinely curious.
"Hibbs?" she guessed.
"You've done your homework." He nodded, impressed. "So, if you know who I am, and you came to this town in the company of James Ford, that means one of two things. You're either stupid, or you're crazy."
She'd heard that before. From her sister, the day she married Edmund Burke.
"You don't seem particularly stupid," Hibbs went on. "So that leaves crazy."
Juliet returned his faint smile. "I hide it well."
"I bet you do." His genuine curiosity was growing, and his faint smile was bordering on flirtation. "How do you know Ford?"
"He carjacked me in Los Angeles."
"Los Angeles? After the bank?"
"Right after the bank."
Hibbs nodded slowly, and his eyes narrowed as he pieced together their relationship.
"You're pretty far from home," he remarked curiously. "Did you just…forget to escape?"
Juliet shook her head. "I didn't want to escape."
"Yeah, he can be pretty charming when he wants to be."
A smile tugged at the corners of Juliet's mouth.
"Why'd he drag you all the way out here?" Hibbs asked her.
"He didn't drag me anywhere. We're here to recover his share of the bank job that Montgomery stole from him."
Hibbs' brow furrowed deeper, and he chuckled at the utter lack of humor in her response. "You really are crazy."
"I'm worse than crazy, Mr. Hibbs." said Juliet. "I'm easily bored."
His incredulous smirk transitioned to a genuine smile. It was beginning to make sense to him, why James had walked back into the fire. Hibbs could see himself following Juliet wherever she may lead.
"You can call me Lyle."
"Lyle..." Juliet practiced it. "Do you let anyone else call you Lyle?"
"There've been a few, over the years," he admitted slyly. "The ones I like."
"Do you like me?"
"So far. Are you going to give me a reason not to?"
"I'm not going to betray James," she told him plainly.
"You won't have to. He's already on his way to meet us. You won't have to do anything but sit there and watch."
Juliet wouldn't allow emotion to show on her face - she refused to give that satisfaction - but her heart thudded in her chest after his last statement.
They woke James up with a slap to the face.
"Mmnh! God dammit…" he muttered while his eyes were still closed. Blinking his eyes open, he found himself in the hotel room, seated on a folding chair with his hands tied behind his back. Juliet sat across from him, in the armchair where Hibbs had been sitting when she met him. Hibbs now stood behind her, his hand resting lightly on the back of the chair, and the Glock tucked into the front of his pants. He smiled at James, relaxed in his position of power.
James and Juliet got a good look at each other in the quiet that followed James' rude awakening. There was a bruise on James' cheekbone, and a small amount of blood at the corner of his mouth. His eyes were full of told-you-so's and I'm-sorry's but Juliet seemed relaxed. He envied her calm in the moment, and he wondered if she really understood the depth of their situation. She showed no fear, and had no visible damage. Hibbs hadn't even tied her up.
"Hey, baby." James said. "Sorry I'm late."
Juliet smiled, but Hibbs spoke up before she could reply.
"Tell me something, Sawyer."
James looked up at Hibbs.
"When you were a kid, did you go around kicking hornets' nests for fun? Or is that a hobby you developed later in life?"
"I was usually the one getting kicked," said James. "When I was a kid."
"Sounds about right." Montgomery muttered from somewhere behind him.
Hibbs glanced briefly at the older man. James could see disdain in that glance. Nobody liked Montgomery Wyatt.
James turned his head far to the left, looking for the men that accosted him at the bank. There was only one other person aside from Monty, and they didn't look familiar. It made sense, if Hibbs had gone after Gordy's side of the business. There would have been some turnover in the goon department.
"You got balls," said Hibbs. "I'll give you that."
"What, coming back here?" James attempted to sit up straight. It was tough with a sore back and his hands tied. "What can I say?" he sighed. "The missus wanted a Caribbean vacation. Who could say no to that face?"
James looked at his lady, his eyes warm with affection. Juliet smiled back at him, the weight of Hibbs' presence disappearing for just a moment when she met James' gaze.
"She's very beautiful." Hibbs agreed, keeping his tone friendly. Then his hand shifted to her shoulder.
Kilo was right; James had a tell. His jaw clenched, and the tension from his body was palpable as he watched Hibbs place his hand on Juliet. There was fire in his eyes telling Hibbs to fucking watch it, or else.
"I almost checked her for a wire," Hibbs confessed. "But I don't think there's any room in that dress. Not even for a teeny, tiny microphone."
Hibbs massaged her shoulder muscle with a tight grip, digging his finger tips into her flesh. For her part, Juliet didn't flinch, though she felt bad for enjoying James' reaction so much. When this was all over she was going to enjoy letting him relieve that tension in, on and all over her.
Hibbs let James suffer a few more seconds. More than the teasing and torture, he wanted answers.
"You coming back here was so stupid, so reckless, I have to wonder if there isn't something bigger going on. Something I'm somehow unaware of?"
"He wanted revenge," Monty piped up. "On me."
"I wanted some decent gumbo." James countered. "They just can't get it right on the west coast."
Hibbs, disregarding both statements, glanced at Goon #1 and gave them a subtle nod.
The test-buzz of an unholstered taser startled Juliet and put James in a more obedient posture.
"Careful with that thing," said James, side-eyeing them nervously as they took up a position next to him. "It tickles."
"Is that really all it was?" Hibbs asked. "You wanted revenge, and your share of the bank job?"
"Pretty much." James sneered. "I wanted to see the look on his face, after leaving me high and dry."
"And how'd that work out for you?"
"Pretty damn well." James blurted matter-of-factly. "Til your boys showed up and electrocuted me within an inch of my life."
Goon #1 smiled and gave his taser another test. James unconsciously moved away from it, as much as he could while being tied up.
Hibbs maintained a calm, detached smile. "Do you think Montgomery just decided to cross you out of the blue? He's about as stupid as you are, but he's not that stupid."
Juliet watched Monty's smug smile disappear, replaced by a pout on the old man's face.
James was watching Hibbs. Where was he going with this?
"I asked him to leave you there." Hibbs explained. "I wanted you gone, for good, and I figured if an LA cop didn't kill you in a shootout, at least there'd be some prison time attached to your capture. The important thing was that I wouldn't have to do it myself. But, not only are you still alive, a free man…you're back here, in Florida, minding my business when you should have stayed gone minding your own. Seems like if I want you gone I'm gonna have to do it myself after all. So you tell me: what am I supposed to do with you?"
"If I tell you I'm out of the business now, would you let us go?"
"Out of the business..." Hibbs repeated dubiously.
"I'm happily fake-married to my beautiful fake wife, and I'm pretty sure she doesn't want me workin' for a living."
"After all you did, you get to walk away and be a kept man?"
"After all I -?!" James sputtered. "You seem to be doing pretty damn well yerself, Hibbs! Didn't my little blunder set you up to take Gordy's half of this whole territory?"
"Did Kilo tell you about that?"
James hesitated. It had been the private investigator that shared that nugget. The last thing he wanted to do was repeat his past mistakes and throw two more guys under the bus.
Hibbs took his hesitation another way.
"Yeah, I know about your visit with Kilo. We've had eyes on you since you crossed the state line. My man followed you right to the bank with Montgomery here."
"Always five steps ahead of you, boy." Montgomery taunted.
Hibbs turned to Monty now. He was sick of the old man's interruptions.
"If you're five steps ahead of him, how the hell did he catch up to you so quick? I seem to remember you promising me the Sawyer problem was going to be solved in California, not brought back here and dumped right on my door step."
Monty's pout was renewed at this scolding. "How was I supposed to know he'd carjack a deranged sexpot willing to bankroll a cross country trip?!"
James and Juliet smiled at each other while their captors bickered.
"She's an interesting variable, I'll give you that." Hibbs leaned down and draped his arm around Juliet's neck, getting up close and personal, face to face. "Do you know what James did?" he asked her.
Juliet turned to look at Hibbs, and she didn't say a word.
"Did he tell you," Hibbs went on. "How he got a family man killed just to save his own hide?"
Juliet stared at him a moment longer, then asked lightly,
"...Was he the one who pulled the trigger?"
Hibbs' expression hardened as he recognized the intense accusation in her eyes.
"Something tells me," he drawled casually. "You wouldn't mind it if he was."
His tone was deceptively kind, but after a moment of gazing at Juliet's impassive face, he grabbed a fist full of her hair and squeezed tightly, yanking her head to the side as he straightened and pulled the gun from his waistband.
James jumped reflexively in his seat and pulled at his restraints, but succeeded only in moving the chair forward an inch on the thick carpet. A heavy hand came down on his shoulder, and pain stabbed where he'd been shoved and kicked in the earlier scuffle. The buzz and crackle of the taser reminded James to sit still and watch.
Hibbs had Juliet's neck exposed, his gun pointed vaguely at her head.
"No, James didn't pull the trigger." Hibbs admitted. "He was always too squeamish for those kinds of jobs. But he knows I'll do it if I need to."
Juliet winced when Hibbs gave her scalp an extra harsh tug.
"I didn't know you were such an accomplished driver," Hibbs addressed James in a conversational tone. "Hard to believe you really drove away from that bank job without a scratch on you."
"I'll put it on the résumé." James promised, his voice husky from the tenuous control on his rage. "You need me to drive you somewhere?"
"Honestly I'm looking for any reason not to kill you." said Hibbs. "Body disposal is so expensive these days."
"Let her go, I'll do whatever you want." James offered.
Hibbs chuckled. "I don't know…" He eased up on Juliet's hair, letting it fall through his fingers. He tucked the loose locks behind her ear, and looked down at her looking up at him. "She's the one I want to keep."
He leaned down again, keeping his gun on her while he creeped in close.
"What do you say, Ms. Burke? I heard you like bad guys and money. You want to stick with me for a while? I can take this little crime spree of yours to the next level, if that's what turns you on."
"I'd have to measure your dick first."
Hibbs laughed. "I can arrange that. It'll be less awkward once I shoot your boyfriend in the head-"
As he raised his arm to point the gun at James, Juliet made her move. She threw her head back, using the back her her skull to cave his nose in, and as she stood up, she grabbed his arm and plucked the firearm from his hand. By the time he'd covered his smashed face with his hands and refocused his eyes, she was standing in front of him, holding his gun with two hands and pointing the barrel at his chest.
"It was Doctor Burke," Juliet corrected him. "And it's Mrs. LaFleur now."
"You ever fired one of those?" Hibbs asked through bloody hands.
"I was married to a Republican. What do you think?"
Without turning from Hibbs, Juliet ordered Goon #1 to untie James. Hibbs nodded his assent, and Goon was smart enough to follow the instructions.
James stood as soon as his hands were free.
"Gimme that," he muttered to the goon, snatching the taser from his hand. James put the taser to the goon's neck and gave them a nice, long shock, about five seconds longer than was really necessary. James scooted out of the way as the goon dropped like a felled tree, and did nothing to break their fall. "There. How do you like it, spud?"
He turned to check on Monty, and saw him inching his way toward the hotel room door.
"Where do you think you're going?" James asked the old man.
"This confrontation is getting a little rich for my blood," Monty said with a nervous chuckle.
The taser crackled as James took a step toward him. Monty could see the mean smile in James' eyes before it reached his mouth.
"Now, hold on, son…" Monty put his hands up.
"Call me 'son' one more time," James threatened. "I'll sterilize you with this thing."
"Jimmy," Monty said. "Be smart, for once in your life! Hibbs' folks, they're not gonna be too happy when they hear about this."
"Who's gonna tell 'em?!"
James took the last few steps toward Monty and backhanded him with the taser arm.
Monty grunted. "Shit!" he hissed as the pain truly hit. The strike had drawn blood.
"That's for touching my woman." James told him. "The rest is for pulling a gun on me at the bank."
James touched the active taser to Montgomery's gut. Monty yowled at the shock, huddling against the wall. James made sure not to linger too long in one spot. He didn't want Monty passing out on him.
"Sit down." Juliet told Hibbs calmly, while the duet of taser shocks and yelps went on behind her.
Blood dribbled from his broken nose down over his lips, but Hibbs was a tough son of a bitch, and he was more impressed than upset. He took the proffered seat, ready to admit he'd underestimated her. He sighed in pain as he settled in the armchair.
"You mind getting me a towel?" he asked, voice muffled with his hand still covering his nose.
"Ask your friend when he wakes up." Juliet said mercilessly. "James?"
"Yeah, baby?"
"Stop tasing that sad, old man."
Monty gasped for breath during the brief reprieve, as James turned to check on Juliet.
"Already?" James asked, disappointed. "I was just getting started."
"We need to tie them up."
James gave Monty one more long shock for good measure, and got a nice throaty gurgle out of him.
"No more torture." Juliet said. "I have something that will knock them out, and keep them asleep long enough to let us get away without being followed."
"You been holding out on me?" James joked.
"I haven't needed an Ambien since I met you."
Aww. James smiled. He left Monty against the wall and walked over to Juliet. He gave the sleeping goon a nudge with the toe of his boot. "What about this one?"
"Hog-tie him." said Juliet.
She hadn't hesitated with that one.
James glanced at Hibbs with a smug smile. "You see why I love her?"
Hibbs eyed them both warily, as much as he could eye anyone while blinded by tears of pure pain. Juliet's aim was as steady as her grip, and she hadn't turned from him once. When James finished with the goon, he forced Montgomery into the folding chair and tied his hands too, using the rest of the wire the goons had brought with them. Only then did Juliet hand the gun to James, letting him keep an eye on Hibbs while she looked in her pocketbook. She produced two little pink pills and held one out for Hibbs.
"You are something else." Hibbs muttered, taking the sleeping pill without argument.
"Sweet dreams." said Juliet.
When she tried placing the other pill in Montgomery's mouth, he leaned away and turned his head.
"I'm already tied up," he whined. "Do I really need to be put to sleep too?"
"Do you want me to shoot you instead?" Juliet asked, as if to a child.
Montgomery glowered. Impatient and fed up, James handed the gun back to Juliet, took the second pill from her fingers and grabbed Monty's face.
"Eat it!" James growled. He forced the old man's lips to pucker just enough to get the pill into his mouth, then covered Monty's mouth and pinched his nose shut.
"MmmMmMM!" Monty screamed through his closed mouth, already desperate for air.
James waited until he was sure the pill was swallowed before letting go.
"I'm gonna get you back, youngin." Monty muttered between ragged breaths. "This time I'll make sure you're dead, you hear me?!"
James ignored him, and turned his attention back to Hibbs. The arguably more dangerous man was sitting obediently in the armchair, breathing through his mouth, too tired and too hurt to make any sudden moves.
"How long will these take to knock 'em out?" James asked Juliet.
"It depends."
"Then I better tie him up too."
James walked to the phone on the bedside table and yanked the cord out of the wall.
"She got me pretty good." Hibbs said. "Might bleed out if I don't stop it."
"Don't worry," James assured him. "We'll call the cops right after we skedaddle. Just tip your head back, maybe you'll drown instead."
In spite of it all, Hibbs chuckled. "Ow," he said soon afterward.
James quickly tied his hands together and then tied the binds to a nearby table leg. As soon as he finished, Juliet relaxed her aim and accepted a tight embrace from James.
"Are you okay?" she asked between kisses, hooking her wrists behind his neck.
"I'm fine, now that you're out of danger."
"We weren't in any real danger."
"You say that now -"
"Would you two get out of here already?!" Montgomery snarled.
James turned his head slowly. "Well excuse me, Mr. Cranky Pants! Are you upset your shitty plan to get rid of me didn't work out? And for a second time, no less?"
"If I wanted to hear the two of you slobberin' all over each other -"
"I don't give a fuck what you want to hear, old man. Matter of fact, I don't want you sayin' another god damned word either."
James broke away from Juliet and crouched beside sleeping Goon #1. He pulled the goon's shoe off to get to one dirty, black sock, and Monty had time for one more shout of protest before James stuffed the entire sock in his open bass fish mouth.
"I should kill you," James told him. "But I don't have the time or inclination to get rid of a dead body today. So enjoy the view while you can."
James dragged the chair a half turn so Montgomery could see more of the bed, moving it so haphazardly that Monty almost tipped over until the two raised chair legs came back down.
"You ain't never gettin' rid of me." James said, as much to Juliet as it was a parting statement to Monty.
Juliet smiled as James returned to her waiting arms so they could pick up where they left off. James kissed her deeply, and she melted against him while his hands moved smoothly down to her hips.
"We got time to have a little fun?" he asked, his voice a little lower in his chest.
"We're paying for the room." Juliet purred. "Might as well use it."
James smiled. He liked that. He reached for the hem of her dress, hiking it up to feel up her bare thighs. She jumped and he lifted, and together they wrapped her legs around his waist.
"You think they'll fall asleep before we finish?"
"He's already nodding off." Juliet said, gesturing with her chin toward Hibbs.
"Then let's see if we can wake this one up." James joked, stepping around the hog-tied henchman to place Juliet on the bed.
When he climbed on top, Juliet pushed his hair away from his face, running her fingers through it and holding it back to preserve the view. She saw a few more nicks and bruises than before.
"Are you sure you're okay?" she asked.
"I'm fine," James insisted. "What about you? You clocked him good. You don't have a concussion, do you?"
Juliet chuckled to herself. "No," she assured him, accepting another sweet kiss.
James smiled wickedly. "You give real good head."
She giggled that time. "So do you."
"Do I?" He asked tauntingly.
"Mmhm." Juliet bit the inside of her lip and nodded.
"You want some?"
Juliet nodded again quickly. "Yeah, I do."
James gave her lips a long, slow kiss, letting it linger before he slid off of her, down to his knees on the floor. Juliet pulled the skirt of her dress up - it was a reflex, seeing his face between her knees, and she'd lost count of the number of times she'd done this for him in just the past few days - and she drew her legs apart. James pushed her thighs up, holding them in place as he laid his tongue on her. Juliet rested her heels on his shoulders and held his head by the hair the entire time, pulling and pushing while she ground her hips against the tight grip of his hands.
The others didn't get to see what came next. Their companions had slipped into the blissful darkness of drug-induced sleep before Juliet had a reason to shout.
James crawled back onto the bed, and Juliet took care of him with her hands while their mouths fused together in an endless kiss. She thought he would have been more dominating after their recent harassment, but James only wanted to feel her next to him and know that she was his. He spilled a fountain onto her hands and thighs, his kiss hard and deep while he moaned into her mouth.
As they returned mentally to the hotel room, Juliet, one hand still cradling his softening cock, took a peek around and confirmed everyone else was still unconscious.
"The cops are going to be so confused when they get here."
The police arrived at the hotel in the late afternoon, following an anonymous phone tip about wanted criminals meeting in a rented room. When the officers were let in, they found one person hog-tied and shouting for help, another groggy with blood from a broken nose poured out over the front of his shirt, and a third, an oldster, still fast asleep, tied to a folding chair with a note pinned to his chest. The note was a confession, with mention of a specific bank in California and Detective Keamy's direct phone line at the bottom.
"This all seems…really weird…" Officer Friendly muttered slowly.
His partner Officer Picket looked it over and shrugged. "We've seen weirder. Least these ones have their clothes on."
Friendly grimaced at the memories, and all the paperwork in his near future.
They were back in Alabama the next day, walking toward Uncle Frank's puddle jumper where it sat, tarp-covered, in a dusty private hangar. James had a gentle hold of Juliet's elbow, making sure she didn't trip in her heels over any of the cables and wheel chocks strewn in their way. Frank was at the plane opening the hatch door when they all heard it.
"Unhand her!" an exhausted voice echoed from the doorway.
All three of them turned to look.
It was Edmund Burke, and he looked absolutely miserable. He was limping, hobbling as fast as he could with a right leg that did not currently bend at the knee. His head was wrapped in bandages, one of his eyes completely covered from some recent injury, and his half-tucked dress shirt was torn near the waist.
"Un! Hand! My! Wife !" he warbled, clearly on the brink of complete exhaustion.
Strolling awkwardly behind him was Miles, the P.I. they thought they'd dispatched chapters ago. It was like he knew he'd taken the wrong guy's money, and was embarrassed to be seen with him now.
"Edmund?" Juliet wondered aloud, even though he was unmistakable. Only one man could be so demanding while being thoroughly victimized.
"Juliet! Oh, sweet baby, I found you." Edmund laughed with relief, clutching his side as if internal injuries made it hurt to share such mirth. "When you disappeared, I hired a private investigator right away. Thank god , I was put in touch with this man, this - Mr. Straume, please, come closer-"
Miles was busy avoiding eye contact with James, which was warranted with the look James was currently giving him. Miles grimaced, waved, and stayed where he was, ignoring Edmund's beckoning hand.
"Edmund…" Juliet murmured.
"I did it," Edmund gushed. "I put the pieces together and I found you. We can go home now, and I will keep you safe from this filthy kidnapper-"
"Did you sign the divorce papers yet?" Juliet interrupted.
"No!" Edmund said, thinking he was reassuring her. "No, I didn't sign, we can tear those up, I didn't even look at them -"
"I'm gonna need you to sign those." Juliet interrupted again.
"I forgive you, you can come home and we can forget this ever hap-" Edmund blew past her last few words, until they finally sank in. "You…you what?"
"I need you to sign those," Juliet nodded, repeating herself patiently. "You can send them directly to my lawyer. As soon as possible. Okay? We can do the rest through email."
Edmund stood before her with mouth agape, the pain of his injuries paling in comparison to the insult of being rejected after going through hell to find her.
Juliet glanced over the various bandages and knew with certainty he deserved every single one of them. The urge to ask what happened died before it reached her tongue. She was in a hurry, and she didn't really care.
"Juliet…" Edmund warbled feebly as she turned from him, possibly for the last time.
James finally succeeded in willing Miles to look him in the eye.
"You owe us some money." James said darkly.
"I said I'd throw Hibbs off the scent," Miles pointed out. "Not the cuckold husband."
"Little late on both counts." James sneered and pointed at his relatively light scrapes and bruises.
Miles shrugged with attitude. "You shouldn't choke people in alleys and smash their phones!"
"I should, and I will!" James promised, starting toward the private eye.
Juliet grabbed his arm and stifled a laugh. "We have to go."
They had an appointment with a beach in Mexico she did not want to miss.
"I'm calling the police!" Edmund announced, close to tears.
"Ah, hell…" Frank muttered when he heard that part. He'd disappeared into the cockpit to prep for flight, and now his head poked out of the plane's open hatch. "Don't make me open fire on an already injured man."
He leaned further out and brandished a Magnum hand cannon that dwarfed the Glock Juliet had tucked back into Hibbs' pants before leaving the hotel room.
"I don't care!" Edmund shouted petulantly. The hand in which he held his cell phone had a splint on its broken middle finger, mocking them as the fingers on his other hand punched the touch screen.
Frank squinted and aimed. The shot p'twang 'ed off of Edmund's cell phone, and Edmund yelped as he let the shattered rectangle fall to the asphalt.
"Holy shit," James blurted at the unbelievable accuracy. "Did you get laser eye surgery while we were gone?"
"Uh…" Frank put the safety back on and tucked the gun in his jeans. "Yeah. Yeah, I was definitely aiming for the phone…"
Frank ducked back to the cockpit, and the plane engine started up soon after.
"Juliet!" Edmund shouted over the noise. "Please, I'll do better! I'll stop sleeping with other women, I'll go to counseling, whatever it takes!"
"Goodbye, Edmund." Juliet called over her shoulder.
"Juliet, I love you!"
"Don't contact me directly!"
It was the last thing she said to Edmund before the hatch closed behind her. Edmund and Miles watched the tiny plane taxi out of the hangar.
"So…" Miles began slowly, once the sound had faded enough for them to speak normally.
Edmund could only stare at the empty space on the runway where the plane had just been.
"Can you, like, pay me?" Miles asked. "So I can get out of here?"
