His eyes widened, "Lyle!" he bellowed.
The young boy, with tears in his eyes came running over to him. The very first words that came from his mouth were, "Officer Ace! Are you okay?! I'm so sorry for running away." He stopped short when he saw the bite on Ace's shoulder, and the black running up his arm. "…Are you sick?"
Ace forced himself to get to his feet and felt a wave of nausea crash into him. "No buddy, I'm not sick…Mina helped me." He winced at the pain throbbing through his shoulder, and leaned against the wall, "I'll be alright, I promise. Where is Mina?"
Lyle pointed to the elevator, "she told me to run and come find you, my friend Nadine is really sick, and her daddy wouldn't do anything about it. He kept dragging me with them, saying she was going to eat me."
Ace made a soft face, and gently placed his hand on the top of his head. "I'm sorry you had to see that buddy…do you know what was happening when you left?"
"No." He shook his head hard, "All I know is, he put my friend in a cage! Will Mina save her?"
Ace could feel the despair bubbling up to the surface, he didn't want to promise something to the child, and it not be true. "I…I don't know Lyle. But I know Mina will try her hardest, she loves her sister. She would do anything for her." He reached out and pulled the child close to him, "We just have to wait and see."
Ace could feel deep vibration through the floors of the basement, he looked up at the ceiling and watched lines of dust fall. "We're out of time…"
◆◆◆
Nadine was light, she easily carried her in her arms. Though her own body screamed for a break and ached each step she made. Her pain went deep, she couldn't believe she went through so much to save her little sister…
You did. You have her body. You can take her and burry her, she can be at peace finally. The elevator doors opened, and she could feel the rumble of tanks rolling into the city. She walked in, fatigue wrapping its arms around her.
The numbness of having her little sister die in her arms lingered in the corners of her mind. She kept rubbing the young girls back, knowing she would never open her eyes and look at her again. Never call out her name, never beg for mint ice cream—
The pain came in, sharp and stabbing in her chest. Mina let out a harsh sob as placed her forehead against her little sisters, feeling her cool flesh against hers. "I love you, so much…" She whispered to the young girl’s corpse. "I know I told you I hated you…but I didn't. I never did. All the bedtime stories…the fantasies I made for you. Just to see you smile." She held her closer to her chest, screaming.
"You were so innocent Nadine…so fucking innocent." Hatred leaked into her, hatred for the Company…the lust to kill their creator.
The one they had called father.
◆◆◆
As the elevator opened, she regained her composure. Ace was standing with his arm at his side useless. Lyle was next to him hiding behind him. As Ace saw her, she watched the joy in his eyes die.
"Is that…?" His voice fell short as she gave a slow nod. "Oh Mina…I'm…"
More tanks rolled through; she could feel the vibrations. Ignoring his comment, Mina nodded to the door to her right. "Are you feeling up to climbing the stairs? It’s the safest way to get to the roof. There's that other creature wondering the halls on the ground floor. We have to be careful with—"
"Naddie?" Lyles gentle voice came from behind Ace, "Is she okay?"
Ace was about to reply when Mina beat him to it. With a deep breath she replied, "She's not going to wake up Lyle. I was too late. I'm sorry."
Lyle blinked, as he came from behind Ace. He saw the young girl in her arms. First the tears welled up in his eyes, then there was hatred. "You were supposed to save us!" He shouted, "Naddie promised me that you would save us! You were the hero in every one of her stories! You were supposed to come in, kill the bad guy and take us away together!" The anguish in his eyes killed Mina.
"Lyle…now's not the time." Ace placed his hand on the child's shoulder, he started to explain again, "Myrna did everything she could, she really did. I was with her the whole time, she never stopped looking for you two."
Lyle started to scream again, "She was my best friend! She promised that we would grow old together!"
Mina winced, "We have to go…we can fight about this another time. The military is here to take us somewhere safe."
"How are you so sure about that?" Ace shot her a look.
Looking down at her sisters’ body, the only words that came out of her mouth was the ones she tried to believe in herself. "Who else would help us?"
◆◆◆
Reaching the last flight, Ace was lagging behind breathing hard and trying to keep up. Lyle ran to the door with the big R on it. As his hands shoved it open, they were met with helicopter blades whirring. In front of it was a tall man in military fatigues and an AR strapped on his back.
When he turned around to look at them, she was face to face with a man who had seen so much in his life that she almost didn't want to walk any closer. He had a cigarette sticking out the corner of his mouth, unlit. His caterpillar thick eyebrows came together. "Are you project Yellow Cat?" His baritone voice reverberated around her, just like the helicopter blades.
"Her name is Myrna." Ace shouted back.
The man’s dark eyes went from her to her sister’s corpse, to the young boy and finally landed on Ace. Before he could even take the safety off his gun, she had Nadine over her shoulder and her hand on the barrel of his gun. "He's not infected. I gave him the one antidote that there was." She narrowed her gold eyes at him, squeezing the barrel of the gun enough to dent it. "I refuse to lose someone else I love today."
The man spit out the cigarette he had bitten through. "Fine. Let go of my gun Myrna."
She narrowed her eyes at him, "How do I know you won't shoot him, even after I let it go?"
Ace stood next to her, "Myrna, let it go."
Her muscles reacted, letting the gun go. She bent the barrel so far back; it was at a 90-degree angle. Mina didn't even fight it back. Ace's gentle voice brought a cooling sensation throughout her body, "Bastet."
The effects of before left her being.
Her body became weak as she collapsed to the roof top. Her body sang in anguish. But she still refused to let Nadine go, "W…what's happening…" Her vision began to fade.
"What did you do?" The man with the no longer working rifle began to shout at Ace. "What's wrong with her?!"
"I…I don't know! I just used her code to normalize her."
She laid down on the roof, pulling Nadine's body close to hers. "I won't…I won't leave you…"
Part Two
Chapter One
She woke with a start, the room she was in was bright white and covered in soft pale cream curtains. Her body still throbbed in anguish, but she was able to sit up. The machine next to her was off, and she could hear people speaking in the wall behind her.
"She's the only working one Captain. Besides, she can help us get into the Company without a hitch."
The baritone voice she heard from before, replied, "She's still a weapon, made for destruction. And her handler got his arm taken off. What use is she to us?"
Mina rubbed her face, next to her bed was a clean pair of jeans, and a tank top. On top of the folded-up clothes was her wallet. She tossed her legs over the side and got up. The voice continued again, "Sir…Ace is one hell of a shot. You saw him on the range. He can control her; besides he's been asking for her the last three months. Ace told us she's a damn good cat burglar too. She was at it for almost eight years, and they could never catch her."
The captain grumbled again, "Give her a few more to recoup. Then I'll interview her. I don't have time for this shit. Doctor Locklear took one of our best agents, the longer we wait, the less likely she will be alive."
That caught her attention. Mina stripped off the hospital gown and replaced it with her new, fresh clothes. Her wallet was a mess, covered in gunk and dried blood. She flipp
ed it open and saw the photo of Nadine. Smiling with her bright eyes and floppy hat.
The feeling of loss came crashing around her, she sat back down on the bed and rubbed the photo. "The way the story ended Nadine? The young girl got to stay with the stars, and never left. She was never alone again." She closed her eyes and hugged the photo close to her chest.
"Let me see her." A muffled voice demanded.
"Sir you can't—"
Her door was forced open, and her curtain pushed aside. When she turned, she saw Ace standing there. He wasn't wearing his cop uniform, instead he was wearing fatigues. He had bulked up quite a bit, and his hair was cut back. He still had a few scratches on his face, and a couple of bruises. His arm was up in a sling.
Her heart pounded in her chest, and she gave him a warm smile. "Hey."
"Hey…" He huffed, walking further into the room. "You're looking really good Mina." He stood in front of her.
She gave him a warm smile, "So are you. How's your arm treating you Ace?"
He took the sling off, from his elbow down was gone. Nothing but a stump was left. Mina could feel the deep guilt inside her gut. "It's my fault. If I had hurried to you, you wouldn't have gotten bit. I'm sorry."
Ace gave her a wave from his good hand, "It wasn't my shooting hand, so don't worry." He made a face before putting his arm back in the sling. "There is one thing we have to talk about."
Her heart pounded in her chest, "What?"
He sat down next to her, placing his good hand on her thigh. "We have to be interviewed by…good people. They want to stop Alfred, he slipped out before they got a chance to get him. With you and me, we can stop him. We have to go through some vigorous training, but we won't be apart. I promised we wouldn't be apart from one another, and I mean to keep my promise."
She swallowed again, and looked at her hands, "Who are they?"
"They're a branch of the military, fighting against people like Alfred. They're an organization specializing in—"
"In fighting monsters?" She made the light joke, and Ace chuckled.
"Yeah. In a way." He wrapped his arm around her shoulders and pulled her in. "The captain is going to interview you tomorrow; I've already done my three-month training."
She gave him a once over, "I know. I saw when you came in. It looks good on you."
"You should see me out of uniform." He teased.
Her cheeks warmed, and she gently nudged him. "Stop it…"
Leaning down he kissed her cheek, "I'm sorry about Nadine, Mina…you did everything you could. We will save more people by doing this."
"I don't have much of a choice, now do I?" She glanced at him through her eye lashes.
"I didn't either…they knew I…" He rubbed her arm, "They knew I activated you. So, we're doing this together. Do you think you can handle it?"
She lowered her hands and looked at the photo of Nadine. "For her…I will."
Chapter Two
She sat across from Ace, he had placed the steak and mashed potatoes down on the table. Her eyes never left him. His arm had been replaced by a temporary metal one. Soft jazz music played from the record player in the living room.
Two red candles were lit on the table, and a bottle of red wine. Ace grabbed it and popped the cork and poured two glasses for them. He gave Mina one. "Are you excited about tomorrow?" He asked, sitting down on the chair across from her.
Mina made a face and poked at her steak. "I'm more nervous than anything…" She cut into it and saw the cool red center of the meat. Her mouth watered, and she took a bite. The sweet taste from the cooking wine, and the bite of the rosemary made her roll her eyes. "So…good…" She chewed and swallowed.
Ace had a smile on his face, as he started cutting into his own steak, and took a bite. "I know it seems like a lot, but I promise, what we're doing is going to be for the better good Mina, the captain may seem…cold at first, but he's going to love you."
She lost her smile, "Can we please not talk about work? We're supposed to be celebrating our new apartment that the military so happily gave us—"
"I'm sorry." He replied, putting his knife and fork down to pick up his wine. "You're right. We're supposed to be celebrating our move and enjoying ourselves." Ace gave her a warm smile.
Mina relaxed as she took a sip of her wine, her eyes staying on Ace as the flame of the candles danced between them. The soft ambient light made her heart flutter and her stomach tighten in excitement. The flame brought the blue of his eyes, and she sipped at her wine again, "The steak is amazing Ace, thank you so much for dinner." She placed the wine glass down and went back to cutting her steak.
"Eh it was nothing. I know you've been working really hard in college, so I thought I would surprise you." He gave her a wink, "How has your classes been? Your big test is coming up right?"
Mina smiled again this time brighter than before, "It's going great! Professor Simms said I'm at the top of his class. He thinks that I'll pass with flying colors, he said he could let me bypass the test if I have to with the training coming up."
He leaned in and reached over, taking her hand, and rubbed it. "Mina, I am so proud of you. I want you to know this." Ace brought her hand up and kissed her knuckles. "You have come so far from Crusa, the therapy…everything. I know the last few months have been so hard on you, losing Nadine…looking for Alfred and hunting down the company, and being forced to work for Scarlet Corp…"
Her smile faltered for a moment, "Ace…I thought—"
"Just listen to me for a moment, please?" He rubbed her knuckles with his thumb again, "I understand things have been really difficult for you, and I want you to know that I will always be here for you, no matter what. I love you, Mina."
Her eyes brightened and her vision fogged over, "I love you too Ace…so much."
While holding her hand he helped her stand and brought her close to him. Mina looked up at Ace through her eyelashes, and a deep blush crept up her neck. "What are you—?"
He leaned down, capturing her lips with his. Mina closed her eyes, letting his hand go she snaked her arms up around his neck, and pressed her body against his. Her breasts grew heavy, and her nipples tightened as she tangled her fingers in his hair.
He ran his hands down over her ass and picked her up, carrying her to the couch in the living room. Ace laid her down gently, as he slipped his hands underneath her dress. His fingers caressing her legs up to her lower back.
“I love you; I love you so much Mina…” He breathed against her lips, “I’ll never let anything, or anyone hurt you…”
Myrna opened her eyes, and saw the truth radiating through his, “Make love to me Ace...make love to me.”
◆◆◆
Myrna laid on the couch, running her fingers over Ace’s face. They laid there in the quiet basking in each other’s presence. She leaned forward and gently kissed his lips. “You’ll never let anyone hurt me, right?”
Ace couldn’t stop the smile spreading across his lips, “Of course. You’re my Minna, I told you before, I don’t care about what you are. I’m in love with who you are. You have a heart of gold, and you always think about other people before yourself. You put your life on the line to save Lyle and your sister. A real monster wouldn’t do that. A real killing machine, wouldn’t do that.” He kissed her forehead. “But someone with deep compassion would.”
Myrna wrapped her arms around Ace and laid her head against his chest. She listened to his rapid beating heart, the very sound of it was comforting, but she could feel his anxiety and worry. “Ace, what’s wrong?” She lifted her head from his chest.
His fingers ran across her lower back, and he had a deep blush creeping up his pale flesh. “I’ve been thinking about things, how close we are. Our new apartment...and the future.” She watched him bite the inside of his lip. “I was wondering, Myrna, will you marry me?”
Myrna could feel the surprise running through her. In all of her life, she never once thought about marriage. Not even when she was a child,
when Nadine would talk non-stop about finding her prince charming, get married and have as many kids as God would allow.
“Uh…” Her cheeks darkened in a deep cherry red, her eyes filling with tears. “Ace, do you think that’s a good idea? I mean what if someone--”
He took her face into his hands and kissed her lips, “How many times do I have to tell you? I don’t give a fuck about other people, I care about us, you, and me. That’s it. we can go to Vegas and get married by Elvis for all I care. As long as I have you by my side, I can do anything in the world.”
Myrna didn’t want to fight him; she didn’t want to argue. But Jesus Christ...what if something happens to him? To me? It would break us...him...me...she touched his bottom lip and her tears tumbled down her face.
Disappointment filled Ace’s eyes, “Is that a no Minna?”
“No! No... it’s not a no Ace...it’s a maybe. Let’s wait till after we’re done saving the world yeah?”
That brought hope back into his bright blue eyes. “Okay!” He had a big cheeky grin, “When we have a kid, I’m naming our son Dante, and our daughter Clare.”
Her eyes widened, “Kids?!”
◆◆◆
Her palms were slick, her heart kept racing. She pulled her long hair back behind her ears. She kept chewing nervously at her bottom lip. No matter what preparation she had from Ace, she couldn't stop herself from being nervous. This was a huge risk.
Not just for her.
But for the world.
The company Alfred works for knew what happened to the city of Crusa, and knew she was activated. Oh Jesus Christ. What if they come after these people too? She wanted to leave…but she had no choice but to stay.
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