Assets and Liabilities

"Back stairwell, report," commanded the Lieutenant.

No response.

"BACK STAIRWELL, REPORT," the Lieutenant repeated.

The officers all readied their weapons and drew a bead on the elevator doors.

"GODDAMMIT ROBERTS, REPORT," the Lieutenant shouted to the rookie, as the elevator slowed to a stop.

The ding of the elevator and the sound of weapons cocking were simultaneous, as the silver doors slowly parted.

"BACK STAIRWELL, CLEAR, SIR!" crackled the anxious voice of the rookie, "The reception down here is terrible."

The final report caused the team to relax. Two first two officers trained their weapons in either direction down the long hallway, and the remainder of the detail exited the elevator and escorted DeFazio toward the courtroom.

Captain Jones' earpiece crackled with a frantic report. "We lost Cassidy...repeat...Cassidy shook our tail. Be ready for anything!"

"Copy that," Jones said softly into his wrist mic and returned to his undercover detail.

Megan turned the corner at the row of cubes and screamed in the empty office, as a disheveled Cassidy burst through the stairwell door, with a heavy silver revolver in his right hand. She dropped her coffee and briefcase and put her hands out in front of her.

"Paul, Paul," Megan pleaded, "what are you doing?"

"She's dead you stupid cunt," Cassidy slurred, "and you killed her."

Megan instinctively started to back up away from Cassidy, hoping that Elijah was still outside the front entrance.

"What are you talking about," asked Megan, "who's dead?"

"ANNE'S DEAD!" shouted Cassidy, and then he steadied himself on the wall, the admission causing the pain in his broken heart to cut through the fog of the booze.

"Oh my god, NO!" wept Megan as he covered her mouth with her hands.

"And it was you that got her killed," shouted Cassidy as he gestured dangerously at her with the loaded gun and haphazardly wiped the tears away from his eyes with his other hand. "I loved her and was going to take care of her, but now she's gone, and you have to pay!"

Megan managed to back up enough where she could see out of the corner of her eye that Elijah was still near the elevators. He had his hand to his ear and she figured he could not hear them over the music in his earbuds. She wasn't sure what the kind custodian could actually do for her in this situation, but at this point, he was her only remaining asset.

"Paul, you know I never meant her any harm," Megan pleaded as she continued to inch backward.

"I should have never saved your life, bitch," Cassidy slurred, "so now I'm going to take it."

Cassidy cocked the gun and tried to focus through the blur of his watery eyes and the effects of the Tennessee whiskey.

"Dear God No!" shouted Megan and she took another step backward.

Unable to focus, he aimed at the Megan in the middle, gently squeezed the trigger, and shouted, "This is for Anne."

Megan's heel caught in the carpet and she fell backward, just as the shot rang out. As she hit the floor she heard a second shot, the sound of shattering glass, and watched as Cassidy grabbed his chest and fell to the floor.

"Target down," Captain Jones reported via his wrist mic as he ran inside the office to Megan. "Are you hit," he asked the girl, as he lifted the lapels of her jacket and checked for any signs of blood.

"What? Who? How?" she muttered confused, as she looked up at the big man and noticed the gold shield hanging down from around his neck. "Elijah, you saved my life."

"Actually, it's Ernest," he corrected, "Captain Ernest Jones, FBI."

*****

Megan woke up the next morning and felt truly safe for the first time in many weeks. She was relaxed and happy and looking to get her life back on track again.

"You know, Cassidy is in custody, DeFazio's bail was denied, so it's safe to go back to your place any time you're ready," Captain Jones said to the naked brunette, whose head was resting on his equally naked chest.

Megan lifted the covers and scanned down his ebony chest, over his six pack abs to the semi-hard black warrior lying over his left thigh. "I may be ready to go, but I think 'little Elijah' wants me to stay."