The Rescue Pt. 06

Michelle slows us down long enough for us to see the cops begin to surround the wreckage with guns drawn ordering those inside to come out with their hands up.

"Hotel now," She asks.

"Yes and then let's get out of the country before something else happens," I answer.

"I always wanted to see Greece," She tells me as we drive off towards the hotel.

"Greece is nice this time of year but let's try to get home first," I tell her.

"Home would be great. Think we get there before something else happens?"

"I'm hoping that we can."

"Don't sound so confident Kenny," She says the sarcasm not hard to detect.

"Hey you're the one that's coming up with the plans now; I'm just along for the ride."

"One plan and that wasn't very thought out."

"It worked, that's what counts."

"I suppose that it did. I feel bad about the poor guys scooter this was though," She says.

"We'll leave it right out front of the hotel. The cops will find it in no time and he'll get it back just a little worse for wear."

"I guess that's the best we can do huh?"

"Yep."

"All right then, let's get to the hotel and get our stuff. Dessert will just have to come later."

"Damn, now I really hate those guys!"

Inside our hotel room, Jeff is trying to get someone in the group to answer him.

"Micah, Darryl, Jay, anyone? Martin, I'm getting nothing"

"Maybe they're out of range or something," Martin suggests.

"It's the or something that worries me."

"We can leave the room and see if we can track them down if you want."

"If Grayson and the girl come back..."

"So what if they come back? I'm telling you Jeff, I'm through with this mercenary crap. If you're smart you'll walk away with me."

Jeff looks at him disbelieving the words he just heard spoken. "Are you fucking kidding me? This is the greatest gig ever. We get to do what we want, we get paid a hell of a lot of money and we travel all over the world."

"Killing people who probably didn't deserve it and placing tyrants into power who do far worse than we ever think about, it's bullshit."

"Micah said that no one can walk away from this. We all know too much."

"Fuck Micah. He's not answering coms so I'm taking that as a sign that now's my chance to get out."

"I'll have to stop you Martin," Jeff states but as he reaches for his gun, he sees that Martin already has his trained on him.

"Yeah, that's not happening,"

"This is it huh? After all the years we've known each other this is how you're going to end things by killing me?" Jeff asks more stalling than actually wanting an answer.

"I told you that I was done with all that," Martin states stepping over and relieving Jeff of his weapon. "You and I are going to walk out of this hotel together then you'll go your way and I'll go mine."

"Easy as that huh? And what about Grayson and the mission?"

"I don't care about the mission anymore but Grayson and the girl, they get a pass so don't think that you're going to hang around to try something," Martin explains.

"Boy when Micah hears about this he's going to hit the roof."

"Let him. I'll be long gone by then and I'd warn him off tracking me down if I was you because if you all decide to come after me, you die first."

"Never should have trusted you after that thing in Quebec," Jeff says.

"Your mistake. Now walk."

He leads Jeff out of the hotel room and to the lobby where they see us enter.

"Back door now," Martin says shoving Jeff out the door before they're spotted.

Outside in the alleyway Martin makes a quick decision and clocks his former friend in the head with his gun knocking him unconscious.

"Can't cause any trouble this way," He states after dumping him behind a garbage bin. He tucks his gun away, strips the firing pin from Jeff's and toss it into a storm drain before heading down the street not taking notice of the familiar figure waiting just outside the hotel.

Up in our room I get a whiff of some type of cologne but after checking the room I find no one and chalk it up to housekeeping since the beds been made.

"Nothing's missing," Michelle announces after coming back with our passports and cash.

"That's good. You ready to go?"

She casts a longing look at the bed. "Are you sure we don't have time for one last roll in the hay before we leave?"

"You have no idea how much I want to make love to you again. Over and over again for that matter but we do need to get moving unfortunately."

"Over and over again, I like the sound of that," she teases.

"Once we back home at your place I'll keep that promise."

"You'd better mister," She says and kisses me a sweet kiss before we head back to the lobby.

After checking out Michelle and I start to wave down a taxi when I feel a gun barrel being jammed into my ribs.

"Fancy meeting the two of you here," Trent says in a low whisper then reaching up he takes hold of my bad shoulder and squeezes tight.

"Son of a bitch," I whisper through the pain.

Michelle looks at me, then to Trent and her eyes go wide.

"Don't scream," He warns her, "unless you want to be wearing his insides on you."

"I take it that you're Agent Trent?" She asks.

"You told her too much Grayson. I was just gonna kill you and sell her like Ballo planned but now... guess I gotta do you both. Now walk," He orders and starts steering us down the lightly packed sidewalk. Michelle reaches down and grasps my hand.

"Aw, how sweet," He mocks. "I think she likes you Grayson."

"Fuck you Trent," I growl at him and get another squeeze on my shoulder for my trouble.

This time I groan in pain and feel blood begin to flow from my reopened wound.

"I thought you might have taken a round, the way you were favoring this arm. He take a bullet for you babe, is that it? Not so tough now are you Navy SEAL?" He says wiping his blood covered fingers on the back of my shirt.

"Stop it! You're hurting him!" Michelle says.

Trent looks at her mildly surprised at the ferocity of her tone.

"I think she'd claw my eyes given the chance Grayson. What do you think?"

"I think you should let her go and just take me." I tell him.

"After all the trouble you both caused me already, not going to happen."

"How in the hell did you get away from the cops anyway? Were you even in that van that was shooting at us?"

"Who do you think started shooting at you? My guys can cause a bit of confusion when needed. That allowed me to slip into the gathering crowd unnoticed. Looks like I got back here just in the nick of time too. What'd you do to my guys that were in the room waiting on you?"

"There wasn't anyone in the room," I tell him.

"They must have heard the commotion on their coms and went to see if they could help."

He steers us off the sidewalk and into a back alley. The alley is devoid of life except for the rats that are scurrying from trash bin to trash bin in search of a meal and the smell of urine permeates the air.

How'd you find us Trent?" I ask trying to buy some time.

"She called her friend Addison from your hotel room last night, very sloppy Grayson. I thought you'd have told her to use a pay phone."

"Kenny I'm..."

"It's all right," I tell her not letting her apologize. "It's not your fault. He's right, I didn't tell you."

"Gotten sloppy since you got booted from the Navy huh? Well I guess it's understandable but hey, look what happens when you make one mistake. I was just going to wait until you popped in the states and take you out but this place has so much more... ambiance, don't you think?"

"It's nice, not as nice as the deal you worked out with those mine owners. You wipe out Ballo and the aid station and they move in and get a new diamond mine. Let me guess, you get a nice cut from the profit it generates."

"Figured that out did you? No matter, I got paid enough to walk away from this alleyway with a new life. This is a nice place for you to go out, right Grayson. Fucking legend gunned down by a mugger in a piss stained alleyway," He chides me.

"You've got me Trent, let her go. She won't say anything about any of this, you have my word on that," I tell him.

"I don't need your word Grayson, I have the fucking gun and neither of you are leaving this alley. Oh and you won't be needing this either," He says pulling my knife from my back and tossing it aside.

It sails through the air before clattering to somewhere into the alley. "If my people found out that I made a little side deal with a couple of diamond mine owners to get rid of Ballo and that place, they'd bury me. So you and your lady friend, you've both got to go."

Michelle lets out a wail and drops to her knees in the alley. I drop right next to her and pull her close.

"When you get the chance, run," I tell her quickly as Trent is caught off guard by her falling.

"What about you?" She asks not crying at all and I realize she faked it to give us this brief chance to make a plan.

"You can't worry about me, he'll kill us both. When I tell you to run, you run and don't look back," I tell her but can see the denial on her face. "Michelle, please?"

"Hey!" Trent says. "Get back on your feet."

Michelle whimpers begin growing in volume and Trent points the gun towards her head.

"I said stop..." He starts to say but I'm on my feet in an instant tackling him away from Michelle.

"RUN!" I shout as Trent and I go tumbling into a nearby trash bin.

She scrambles to her feet and takes off running back out the mouth of the alley. I'd breathe a sigh of relief right now if I weren't in a fight for my life.

"Hey!" Trent shouts as he tries to wrest his gun hand free.

While I'm holding it with both hands so he can't shoot at her, I'm open to his free hand and he uses that advantage to pummel my face with a couple of quick punches. The coppery taste of blood fills my mouth and Trent manages a well-placed kick to my stomach that knocks me back and onto my knees. He brushes himself off and aims the gun at me with a smirk.

"Bet you thought that I was just some out of shape desk jockey didn't you Grayson? I kept in practice since there isn't hell of a lot to do in Morocco. You know, it's almost a shame what's going to happen to your girlfriend when I catch up with her."

I'm bent over trying to catch my breath but I manage to talk. "You won't catch up with her because you aren't walking out of this alley."

"That's tough talk coming from the man without his gun," He say as he raises the gun and pulls the trigger.

The click of his hammer falling fills the air but without the accompanying gunshot.

"What the hell," He wonders and continues pulling the trigger sending more clicks into the air.

He looks over at me and I'm waving his clip at him with a smile.

"They usually work better with these in them," I tell him before tossing it up on a nearby rooftop. I toss the chambered bullet into the air and catch it.

"Hope you didn't use all your clips trying to shoot us during the chase otherwise this is going to be a long afternoon," I mock him hoping to piss him off enough to by Michelle more time to escape.

He shakes his head. "Guess I was in too much of a hurry."

He takes the gun by the barrel like a club. "We're doing this the hard way then."

I chuck the single bullet behind me and nod. "I guess we are."

He rushes me swinging the gun butt down intending to bash my skull in but I block it with forearm and punch him in gut staggering him back. Recovering quickly he catches me with haymaker to my jaw spinning me on my heels and follows it up trying to kick my knee out. I manage to bend my knee with the kick so he doesn't shatter it but his follow up punch lands solidly to my face. Blood flies from my mouth and splatters onto the dirty stone floor of the alleyway mixing crimson against the grayness.

Before I can get my bearings, he brings his knee up and catches me in the mouth and nose. I drop onto my back spitting more blood. My vision starts to darken and I feel my eyes starting to close on their own as unconsciousness threatens to overtake me.

"Really Grayson? You're gonna let this CIA prick kick your ass like this?" Ricky asks as he appears out of nowhere.

"Just bidding my time," I tell him.

"Bidding your time and getting your ass handed to you look a lot alike," he jokes.

Despite the pain I start to laugh through the crimson mask of blood covering my face as I lie there catching my breath.

Trent begins to ask pausing to kick me in my ribs turning my laugh into a cough.

"What's so fucking... Funny? Huh?"

Another kick. "Tell me!"

Another kick and I feel at least one rib go from it.

"Speak up Grayson!" He backs off and lets me get up on my knees.

I spit out a mouthful of blood and manage a smile.

"The more time... you waste on me. That was a good kick by the way," I say as I try and breath through what feels like some cracked ribs. "The further away she gets... probably already at the police station as we speak."

He laughs at that. "I'd bet she'd just cream her little panties if she could hear you right now, wouldn't she? You being so god damned heroic. I think when I catch up to her, I'll tell her how you died and watch that spark of regret linger in her eyes as the life drains from them."

"Don't fall for that," Ricky warns but it's too late.

"You... won't ever... touch her, you son of a bitch!"

I get to my feet and stupidly rush him out of anger. He deftly dodges my assault and nails me good to the side of my head with the gun butt. I see stars and hit the pavement nearly to the point of passing out.

He steps over and pulls me up to my knees.

"I want you on your knees for this you piece of shit," He says. "Look at me Grayson. LOOK AT ME!" He shouts and slaps my face.

I wobble a little and finally open my eyes. "When I catch up with that little bitch of yours... stay with me Grayson... I'm gonna rape her and tell her that it's all your fault... you hear me? I'm going to put her through hell before I end her suffering and send her there to join you."

"Take this fucker out Ken. You can't let him walk out of this alley now!" Ricky yells at me.

With that said Trent brings his gun butt sailing towards my temple for the killing blow. I move back at the last possible second and watch as the gun butt misses its target. I grab his wrist with my right hand and pull back while I slam my left forearm forward right at this elbow. There's a sickening snap followed by a loud shriek as I bend his arm the wrong way. Tendons snap, bone breaks and muscle tears dropping Trent to his knees, his right arm hangs uselessly at his side as I move behind him and get him in a rear chock hold.

"You're never going to touch her!" I tell him as he cradles his shattered arm to his chest and moans.

My forearm cuts off his moans and he starts to struggle in vain for air. "I'm going to kill you Trent, to make sure she never sees your face again you sick fuck!"

"Grayson," A voice shouts from the alley. "Enough!"

I look up in surprise and find a man in a dark suit and two Marines all with handguns pointed at me. The man in the suit steps forward with his gun trained on me.

"It's over Grayson. Let him go," he orders me.

"Don't do it Ken, you heard what he said he'll do if he gets the chance," Ricky argues.

"You CIA too," I ask. He nods. "Then you know I can snap his neck before you can pull that trigger," I tell him.

All three men tense up and I feel the side of my mouth slide up into a smirk.

"Looks like you were right Trent, I am gonna die in this alley but I'm going to make sure you never get your hands on Michelle by taking you with me," I whisper to him.

My arm tightens getting ready to apply the torque needed to snap his neck when suddenly a voice calls out.

"Kenny, don't!" Michelle shouts as she comes rushing into the alley.

She tries to run to me but one of the Marines hold her back.

"Michelle? What are you doing here? I asked you to run," I say confused.

"She did, right into us. We'd been tracking Trent's cell phone since he left Africa and got here as soon as we could," The man tells me. "Now let him go and we can talk about this."

"There's nothing to talk about, he's never going to touch her. I won't allow it."

"No he won't," The agent says as he pulls the cell phone I gave to the Marine. "We've got enough to send him away for a lifetime."

Several anxious seconds pass then Michelle speaks. "Kenny, please let them take him so you can take me home."

A part of me is telling me to just end this here and now to be sure but when I look up at Michelle and see her pleading eyes I let Trent's semiconscious body slip from my grasp. I get to my unsteady feet and place my hands on my head.

"All right Grayson, now interlock your fingers for us," The CIA man says and I comply.

"Wait, what are you doing?" Michelle asks him.

"It's all right Michelle," I tell her.

"No it isn't. He's the one that tried to kill us twice already today," She says.

One of the Marine's steps over and cuffs my hands in front of me instead of behind me. A wave of dizziness hits me and I almost fall over but he catches me.

"I've got you sir," He says as he tries to steady me.

Michelle comes over and grabs me under my wounded shoulder to help me walk.

"Careful... my ribs," I tell her as I wince from moving.

"Jesus Kenny, you're a mess."

"Yeah well, you should see the other guy," I try joking but when I try and laugh it hurts too much.

"I can see the other guy and he's not covered in blood," Michelle points out then turns to Agent Jackson. "Do you have a towel or anything I can use to clean him up with?"

"Yes, there's a first aid kit in the SUV," He tells her.

"I broke his arm pretty good," I tell her as she guides me towards the vehicle.

"Concentrate on breathing and not talking right now Kenny, okay?" She tells me.

I nod at her.

Behind us, I hear the CIA guy reading Trent his Miranda Rights as he too is placed in cuffs.

"I'll get you for this Grayson!" Trent shouts. "I'll hunt you down and make you pay! Watch my arm you asshole, he snapped the fucking thing."

"Oh I'm sorry. Did that cause you some discomfort?" The Marine states jerking his broken arm just a little causing another squeal of pain from Trent who wisely stops complaining to him. I on the other hand is not as fortunate.

"Grayson, you should have killed me when you had the chance you piece of shit! You're gonna regret this day Grayson, both of you are going to regret this!"

Can someone put a muzzle on that asshole?" Michelle asks as she returns with the kit.

"I wish that were allowed," Agent Jackson states. "What I can do is keep recording all of this for evidence however."

"Good," She nods then turns her attention to where I'm leaning against the front of the SUV. Laying the kit on the hood, she opens it up and begins to mop up my face.

"Here we are again Kenny. It seems like only yesterday I was fixing you up with a medical kit oh wait it was just yesterday."

"Technically it was two days ago that you were fixing me up."

"Don't argue with me about what day is what Kenny. I'm saying is fixing your wounds are getting to be a pattern and not one that I like. I'm a biologist; I'm supposed to work on fish and sea life not you."

I point to myself and say. "SEAL."

She grins for just a brief moment before telling me to shut up.

"You should think about settling down Ken, maybe have a kid of your own. Michelle would be good for you, ya know?" Ricky tells me before fading into the ether.

"Maybe I should." I say.

"Should what?" She asks.

"Settle down."

"You think?" She asks dabbing at a particularly nasty gash above my temple. "Hold this here."

"I meant with you," I tell her as I try and follow her instructions.