“They’ll get the owners, sure. Us though, we get to disappear and let them take the fall. Those guys are idiots but I figured what the hell. Pull off the job, let them get busted. The lower level guys are never searched for that hard anyway. Let those idiots get busted, we will be gone. Right after you are. So are you going to come quietly or are we going to have to just shoot you here. I have a silencer,” he told them helpfully. Mel did not know why but all she could think about was, stall, girl, stall! So she tried that.
“Dead bodies in a room that you talked to the desk guy about. You are calling your bosses idiots, come on,” Mel said.
“Yeah jeez, I am not a criminal, but I would now better than that. Come on, do you guys let him call the shots?” Janey said to the other two men who were just standing by silently. They looked at each other and then the leader who laughed.
“Nice try ladies, but these two came up with half of the plans,” he said.
“That explains it then,” Mel said looking at Janey with her hands raised as if giving up on the men’s intelligence. She could see the fear in her friend’s eyes, but Janey stayed strong with her.
“Yeah it does. This is going to be embarrassing, being killed by such dumbasses,” she said sarcastically.
“Silencers it is,” said the leader reaching into his pocket. Both ladies stiffened in fright. Mel was just deciding whether she should rush them when the door clicked and flew open behind the bad guys. Mel’s saviors stormed in with a fury, as well as a bunch of armed cops right behind them! Mel and Janey jumped backward, trying to stay out of the way. Two shots were fired and Mel felt her arm burst with white-hot pain. She cried out and fell; as she did she saw Janey falling to the floor too. Her shoulder felt like it was on fire. Lying next to her, Janey looked pale. There was shouting around her and she could hear her Max and Dave’s voices as she faded out in shock.
*****
All’s Well That Ends Interesting
Mel was just glad it was over. It all seemed a little surreal while at the same time exhilarating. She had learned a lot from the ordeal and gained a few friends. She also felt she had gained some courage. She had always spent her life with her head down, doing her job. She did not want to live her life like that anymore. Janey was feeling the same way. What the crime had been about was still confusing.
“So the whole thing was built on revenge against the government?” she asked Max. She was sitting with Max, Dave and Janey in Darrel’s Deli, finishing a wonderful lunch.
“Yep, the government wanted the buildings for government offices and the owners felt they were not getting a good enough offer. Due to the laws around government usage they had to take what was offered. So when they were given a year to get ready for the buyout, the three companies got together and decided on a plan,” Max told them, popping the last bit of his corned beef sandwich into his mouth.
“The plan was to strip their companies of all the assets and then burn the buildings down, so the government would not get to use them as planned. Amongst the many problems with the plan, they hired some low level thugs to do the dirty work. I have heard the mob wouldn’t even hire these guys. Which explains the stupidity of their actions,” Max told them.
“The owners are on the defensive now and claim they had no idea that the thugs would kill anyone. The problem with that is the leader that shot you Mel, has a message from one of the owners to do just that. Like you said Janey, idiots,” Dave said.
Mel looked over at her friend. Janey was sitting sideways to the table due to the brace around her injured leg. She had been shot in the leg while Mel had been hit in the shoulder.
“Do you want to know the funny thing?” Max asked with a grin.
“Sure go ahead,” Mel said.
“They had cashed everything out, not trusting wire transfers due to traceability, and all that cash was in the getaway van, with the driver. Once everything went down at the motel the driver panicked and took off. He has over five hundred million in the back of the van and no one can find him,” he said. Everyone laughed.
“I guess the smartest guy got the money. Part of me hopes he doesn’t get caught,” Janey said. They laughed again. They had been laughing a lot at this meal. Partially, she was sure, in relief. Mel had been trading little glances with her two boyfriends and knew that soon they would be getting together. Janey was a little jealous of her relationship and asked if Max or Dave could set her up. Her boyfriend Mike had decided Janey was dangerous to hang around with and left her. She wasn’t too upset by that.
“So one more thing, just to be sure,” Janey asked suddenly.
“Go ahead,” Dave said.
“I was shot by the bad guy, but Mel was shot by one of the cops?” she asked.
Mel sighed. Janey had been teasing her about that.
“The big guy shot you and one of the cops returned fire and missed. Hitting Mel, yes,” Max answered. He wasn’t quite as amused by it as Janey was. The compassionate look he gave her warmed her. She couldn’t help smiling though.
“Fortunately the three companies had enough left in their assets that reparations are going to be made,” Mel said. She was glad about that, for the sake of the janitor’s family at Super Shoes and the deaths at the other companies. They deserved something for their suffering. They all agreed on that and then they went up to her apartment. Janey was going to be staying with her for a few days. The previous day she had been informed her apartment needed fumigation. She had no place else to stay.
Dave grinned at her. “We were wondering if you ladies would want to go out to dinner. You just got out of the hospital and deserve something. A bunch of our co-workers will be getting together for a weekly beer and burger fest and we would be glad if you joined us,” Dave said. Janey’s eyes lit up and Mel felt herself pep up even more. She had a feeling Janey surrounded by handsome firemen would be fun to watch. They both agreed with gusto. Mel had no idea what direction her life was going in, but she knew it would be interesting to find out. Fun too.
THE END
Bonus Story 18 of 40
Highland Rapture
September, 1745
The north wasn't quite as cold as Isabelle Wharton had been lead to believe, but she still missed the warm fields of the south and the familiar bustle and noise of London. She was surrounded on all sides by men in uniform, only a handful of which she had met before the morning last, and the air stank of horses, but at least the view was nice. Izzy had to admit there was a certain charm to the north, despite its reputation as a haven for the backwards thinking and uneducated, at least compared to London's standards. The area she had travelled through over the past week had been beautiful and varied, and the last stretch of her trip was no different.
The trees towered over the path Izzy and her escort travelled on like giants. The trail itself was barely wide enough for two people to ride abreast, but made up for it by being well marked and tightly packed. Two men rode before Izzy and four behind, their red jackets bright against the muted tones of the forest around them. At her side was the most important man of the group, and the most handsome, at least in Izzy's opinion. Alan Wharton, a respected and well-liked captain, obedient soldier, and most recently, Izzy's husband.
He was only three years older than her, a recently commissioned officer, and set to inherit a rather sizeable amount when his father passed. While it wasn't that the other men accompanying them weren't good looking, it was simply that Izzy only had eyes for Alan. He was very tall, with broad shoulders, and his eyes were of the clearest blue. He looked absolutely dashing in his uniform. His smile was lopsided and charming, his jaw strong, nose shapely. A perfect specimen of a man.
She hadn't thought he would give her a second glance when they had met all those months ago at a ball being held by a mutual acquaintance, despite dancing together twice, but she had found a calling card waiting for her the next morning, and the rest was history. He had proposed in the gardens at the home of Elizabeth Chesworth. Izzy looked down
at the ring on her finger, the diamond glinting even with the trees shielding them from the sun. The gold of her wedding band shimmered as well. Izzy ran her thumb along it. Alan reached over and placed a gloved hand over hers.
“We'll be there shortly, my dear,” he said. “It's a lovely little hamlet. A bit close to the border, but, the deal was simply too good for me to pass up.” He sighed, as if finding a house on sale for so little was such a great burden, and fixed his hat on his nut-brown hair. “At any rate, it's only temporary, until the estate passes to me.”
“It's worth it to be able to stay close to you even whilst you are at your post,” Izzy replied. “I'm just thankful that all our things arrived without issue. I've heard terrible things about bandits along the roads from the ladies. Dreadful talk, absolutely dreadful.”
“All superstition, my darling Izzy,” Alan said. “You know how those friends of yours love a spot of gossip. These roads are routinely patrolled and I promise you they are completely safe.”
“Of course. I don't doubt you, not in the slightest.”
“Good,” Alan said, and flashed Izzy that smile that she loved so much.
“How far are we, exactly?” she asked.
“No more than two hours, perhaps less. We're making quite good time.”
“I can hardly wait,” Izzy said. “Have you seen the house?”
“You'll love it,” Alan replied. “It's not quite so large as the estate, but it's a good size for such a small village, right by the market as well. It has a sturdy feel to it. And, like I said, it's only temporary.”
Izzy smiled. She was excited, although under it she did feel terribly homesick. The village they were headed was a little place called Longtown, in Cumbria, that sat just south of the Scottish border and on the banks of the River Esk. Izzy had never been farther north than Chester, and only on one occasion, but Alan said it was a quiet, quaint place, home to mostly sheep farmers, and near to a two-hundred year old battle site. She knew little else, but she thought maybe there was something to be said about a quiet life away from the city, especially for a couple as new as her and her husband. They had been married barely a month before Alan received his new posting and decided it would be best for the both of them if Izzy went north with him. After all, he had argued, the English had held the town for almost two hundred years, and it seemed very unlikely that the Scots were interested in reclaiming it again, despite its closeness to the border.
Izzy shifted her weight in the saddle. Her rear was starting to ache from having sat so long, despite the softness of the leather. Another two hours was likely the most she could handle without needing a stop to stretch her legs, so thank God they were close to the village. There was really nothing Izzy wanted more than to properly start her new life with her husband. Their honeymoon had been spent down at the shore in a rented house, but the weeks following were in the company of Alan's family at the estate; not exactly the most comfortable situation for two people freshly married and in love.
One of the horses in front suddenly startled, and had to be wrestled back in line by his rider. He grumbled something under his breath that must have been inappropriate to say in the presence of a lady, for the man next to him flashed him a look even as he looked up into the trees rising up on either side of them.
“Probably just a fox,” Alan said, despite Izzy not having expressed any concern. “Or a deer. That horse is young still, startles easily. Don't you fret.”
“I didn't think it was anything else,” Izzy replied. “I am not a coward, husband. I do believe that's one of the reasons you married me.”
Alan grinned, revealing straight, white teeth. “Indeed it is.”
Two hours, Izzy thought, and then she would be at her new home.
A loud crack made all the horses break formation, ears flickering back. Five voices rose in surprise, and Alan began to shout orders. Izzy managed to keep her beast under control, at least until there was another boom and the unmistakeable scent of gunpowder filled the air. Izzy's horse whinnied and reared up so suddenly that Izzy couldn't keep her balance and toppled to the ground. Terror seized in her throat. In the dirt and mud she was vulnerable to the sharp, heavy hooves of the beasts around her. She tried to scramble for safety in the brambles along the side of the road. Sharp twigs and tiny thorns pricked at her exposed skin and tugged at her clothes. One of their escort was dead, his eyes staring lifelessly up at the sky, a bloom of dark red spreading across the front of his shirt. Izzy clapped a hand over her mouth to keep from screaming and pushed herself back into the bushes.
The men burst from the trees, screaming like devils, their ammo spent, and drew swords to engage the soldiers in a frantic melee. Izzy fought to control her frantic breathing as her eyes sought out Alan in the press of men and horses. She finally saw him, dueling with a man a good head taller than he was, with russet colored hair and a well-trimmed beard along the edge of his jaw. Bodies lay at their feet, English and Scot both. Izzy wanted to cry out a warning to Alan, but fear of being discovered kept her silent. Until, that was, the Scot knocked Alan's hand aside and thrust his sword through Alan's gut. Izzy screamed so loudly it made her throat ache, and tears sprung to her eyes. The Scot looked right up at her as he pulled his blade free and let Alan's body crumple to the ground.
The English were outnumbered and outmatched. The Scots had surprise on their side, and they had used it to their full advantage. Not a single man was left alive. They were searched, valuables taken, the horses that remained ignored. Izzy scrambled back further into the brush, looking for a way to escape, but the man who had slain Alan had already seen her and strode through the massacre to grab her by the arm and haul her from the bush before she could so much as scream.
“Let me go!” she shouted, pulling uselessly at the strong fingers that gripped her. “You great beast let go of me right now!” Her voice cracked, and that combined with the ineffectiveness of her attacks made her feel as harmless as a kitten. The Scot easily hauled her back towards his companions, a stern look on his face, her struggle appearing more of an annoyance than any actual threat.
“Ye can't bring her along like tha',” one of the men said. “She'll bring th' 'ole town down on us.”
Izzy's captor glanced down at her. “I don' feel righ' tying up a lady,” he said in a deep, rumbling brogue.
“Give 'er 'ere, then,” the same man said, and reached for Izzy's other arm. She jerked away from his first touch, but then he backhanded her across the face so hard her ears rang and pulled her in so he could tie her hands behind her back and stuff a gag in her mouth. Trussed up like a pig for slaughter and her head still spinning from the blow, Izzy was escorted to where the men's horses waited, grazing peacefully as if there hadn't just been a slaughter a hundred yards away. The Scot's grip around her arm almost made her wish for her husband's murderer to be holding her instead. At least he seemed to have some qualms about taking an innocent woman captive.
Luckily, if she could call it luck, it was he she would be riding with to... wherever it was these vile men made their home. She expected to simply be thrown over the saddle, but instead the Scot took care to lift her properly onto the horse's back before swinging up behind her and enclosing her body with his arms as he reached to grab the reins. He fell into line with his companions, of whom an older man was clearly the leader.
Izzy closed her eyes and forced away the tears that threatened to choke her. It was difficult enough for her to breathe with the gag in her mouth, and there was no reason for her to further her discomfort. Instead, she used her unique vantage point to look for any possible means of escape. She couldn't twist her wrists around without attracting the attention of the man behind her, but it was merely rope. If she could get far enough away to find a sharp stone to rub it against...
They were travelling west, away from Longtown rather than towards it, of that much Izzy was certain. They were taking her back over the border, to do God knows what to her. If these men were the only ones in thei
r little group, then she would stand a chance. If there were more... Likely they planned to ransom her. Hopefully her family could come up with whatever sum they demanded, and it was bound to be exorbitant. Izzy had little choice but to bide her time. She tried to find something, anything, to focus on that would stop her from replaying Alan's death over and over again every time she so much as blinked. It was his murderer that her mind settled on.
He smelled like the dirt after a good rain, and Izzy hated that she found it so pleasant. His arms were strong, she could tell that despite them being covered by his shirt sleeves, and circled her just tightly enough to keep her from bouncing around too badly with the horse's gait, but not so much that she felt suffocated by him. His hands were rough and dirty. They must have been travelling for some time. He didn't speak a word to her, and Izzy didn't dare try to twist round to face him. The aching in her head, at least, was fading, leaving behind only a faint sting where her captor's friend had left a mark on her cheek. The flesh was swollen and warm, but otherwise only a mild annoyance, far eclipsed by the numbness in her chest. They had barely started their life together, and now... now... She felt her throat tighten and her eyes sting, and sucked in a sharp breath through her nose, willing herself to calm. She would not show weakness in front of these men. Not even a touch of it.
They rode for what seemed like a very long time, in a loose formation, determined more by who each individual wished to ride by than any actual order. Izzy and her captor were more towards the back of the line, and no one was speaking to them, probably because they didn't want Izzy to catch wind of any of their plans. It gave her an odd sort of pleasure that they were seemingly wary of her escaping and informing the nearest garrison of everything that had happened, for that was exactly what Izzy planned to do. She had no intention of remaining prisoner to a group of barbarians.
Alien Mate Page 65