"I don't understand," he said.
"Maybe you'll understand this..." Stephanie removed the cigar from her mouth and placed the Cuban in Bentley's. "One for the road." She stood and shot him in the heart then made her way to the remaining men.
"Oh my Zeus! Stephanie, what have you done?" Robert questioned.
"What I was told." She grinned, aimed for Dr. Seeker, then changed aim and shot Charles between the eyes, and the assistant slumped to the floor then blood pooled around his face.
"Hades! She's here to destroy the station," John said, backing up against a wall. "I take it you work for the Council?"
"She's here to kill us?" Robert blurted and shook his head. "No, my work."
"Yes, I work for the Council," Stephanie answered. "And I'm here to secure Vulcan Station, but I'm not here to kill you two."
"You aren't going to kill us?" Robert sounded relieved.
"No." She motioned with her weapon for them to go into a small lab, and Stephanie closed and locked the door once they entered and then turned to them. "The Council said to leave you two alive, that your work could be valuable to them." She leaned the assault rifle against a wall and walked over to a table, and there she found a laser cutter that was used to slice the ice cores into pieces. She tested it on the table, and the laser burned small holes into the top. "But they said nothing about torture." Stephanie made her way to them.
"Be reasonable," John said. "If you hurt us, why would we work for the Council?"
"Fear," she answered.
"Fear?" Robert questioned.
"Yes, fear. Fear I'll do it again if you do not do as the Council wishes." She turned the laser on them and seconds later, the men screamed as she began her fun.
* * *
Somewhere in Noir...
The Chamber...
"Cerberus has completed its mission," Ms. Nona reported. "With one test, Cerberus has surpassed Pandora."
"Yes, the new experiment did not hesitate to kill the S.C.Ms. or Charles Smith." Pleased, Mr. Decuma smiled. "Cerberus did not disobey orders."
"Yes, a fitting first trial," Ms. Nona added.
"Pandora never disobeyed," Mr. Morta retorted. "We never gave it any orders but one. Stay alive, and that it did."
Mr. Decuma smacked his hand on the table. "You must admit it! Pandora is a failure!" He calmed himself. "It is time for its termination."
"Yes," Ms. Nona agreed. "And what better way than to have Cerberus kill Pandora. The test will prove the superiority of the new project."
Mr. Morta said, "I believe it is premature to eliminate Pandora. We can still learn..."
Mr. Decuma interrupted, "This time you have been out voted."
"The first time this Council has not been of one mind," Ms. Nona said. "And hopefully the last."
"Pandora's fate is out of my hands." Mr. Morta nodded to an analyst. "Give Cerberus its orders. The new experiment is to find Pandora and report in."
The male analyst nodded and relayed the order.
Mr. Morta realized Pandora's era was coming to an end, and he hoped what little time she had had been put to good use.
Chapter Fifty-seven
Prelude to:
Book Two
From Moscow, With Love
9:45 P.M...
Hellenistic Sector, Old Business Vicinage...
Nikolai and Natasha walked into Jack's Hard Luck Pawn; it was one of many dealers on Wayfaring Lane. They removed their Winnow Masks. The colossal man with a buzz cut wore a black trench coat, and he stood by the front door as his sister proceeded to the owner. Natasha waited till the only other customer left the shop.
With her heavy Russian accent, she started, "I heard you're the man to see." Natasha raked her hand through her long black hair.
"What are you looking for?" Jack lit a NicPhake cigarette and took a long drag as he looked her up and down. "Jewelry? Watches?"
"We're bird hunting," she replied.
"Bird hunting, you say?" Jack raised a gray eyebrow.
"Yes, a very rare bird."
"Rare? What are..."
Nikolai moved forward and interrupted the owner, "We arrived from Moscow, and Voice said you could help us."
"Puck... Why didn't you say so to begin with?" Jack waved for the two of them to join him behind the counter. "Come with me. I've got some stuff in the back that should be to your liking." He rang a buzzer at a door and waved at the security camera. "You guys look professional. You here to hit anyone I know?"
Natasha and her brother moved behind the counter and stood behind Jack.
She answered, "All you need to know is that a mistake was made."
Nikolai added, "And we are here to rectify it."
The door unlocked, and Jack proceeded in as they followed. Five rough looking men stood in the next room. Two hung out talking, while the other three cleaned guns. The room fell silent as all five men watched the two outsiders enter.
Impressed by their arsenal, Nikolai stroked his black goatee as he looked around. "You have enough weapons in here to supply a small army."
"Yeah." Jack puffed on the cigarette. "I inherited the place from my cousin, Wayne. He was well connected, but couldn't keep his mouth shut. Pucking looser... His loose lips got him killed." He took the cigarette out of his mouth and flicked white-pink ash in a Styrofoam cup of old coffee. "What do you need?"
Nikolai answered, "The guns are on this list."
"And throwing knives," Natasha interrupted her brother.
Jack took the list, looking it over. "This I can do." He pointed to two of his guys. "Get what they need." Jack handed the men the list, turned to a computer, and typed out an invoice.
The two men left and returned a few minutes later, and one of the men walked up to Natasha.
"Which one of these bad boys is for you, babe?" The man patted the guns. "By the way, the name's Ron."
"None of those." She studied the man that was about six inches taller than herself. "The knives are mine; they are my Sweets."
"Sweets, huh..." Ron handed them to her. "A fine babe like yerself likes to play with sharp things. You like to play with dangerous things. How about we step out for a little while? I'll show you something dangerous, and maybe something a little sweet."
Nikolai moved toward the man, and Nikolai stated, "She is not interested."
Natasha said nothing, knowing what was coming. She removed her white fur-lined black coat, revealing tight fitting red leather pants, vest, and boots. Natasha placed the coat on the back of a chair and inserted a set of throwing knives in a sheathe around each wrist.
"You her boyfriend?" he asked the Closer.
"No," Nikolai replied. "I am her brother."
"Stay out of this then," Ron said. "It's none of your business."
Natasha almost felt sorry for the man. If Ron had dropped it, her brother might have only punched him in the mouth.
Nikolai controlled his anger. "She is not interested in the likes of you."
Ron jabbed his finger in the colossal man's chest. "You're her brother, not her mother. Let the babe decide."
Jack hit the print button on the computer for the invoice. "Don't do anything stupid, Ron."
"I know what I'm doing." Ron caressed her butt. "What do you say, babe?"
The veins in Nikolai's neck bulged with fury, and his eyes went wild like a mad grizzly bear, and with one massive hand, the Russian reached out, grabbed the man by the throat, and choked him. The other men in the room drew their weapons and aimed at the siblings. Ron pulled a Glock 19, and Nikolai grabbed his wrist and squeezed it till Ron released the gun, and it hit the floor.
"Wait!" Jack cried out to his men and motioned with his hands. "Put your guns down." Sweat beaded his face, fearing the situation would get out of hand. "You don't know who these two are. If Voice sent them... Well... They'll kill you." He swallowed hard. "Puck! They'll kill all of us."
> His men reluctantly complied as Nikolai continued to choke Ron. Natasha put her coat back on.
"You do not touch my sister in an impertinent way. No one treats my sister that way."
The man clawed Nikolai's arm, unable to breathe, and his eyes bugged out.
"Please, be reasonable," Jack pleaded. "Puck, let him go, and he can apologize."
"No." Nikolai squeezed harder, and the veins in his hand bulged. "I warned him, so I offer no mercy."
Natasha walked over to her brother and rubbed her hand up and down his back. She moved to Ron, leaned to him, and whispered in his ear, "From Moscow, with love." Natasha nodded to her brother, and Nikolai forcibly turned the man's head toward her. She French kissed Ron as he clawed at her brother's arm. She finished, stepped back, and said, "We will have to write up extra paperwork on your death, but I am pleased, and that will make it worth it."
Ron's eyes rolled back, Nikolai released his corpse, then reached down, and picked up the Glock 19. "His weapon is now mine." He tucked the gun in the back waistband of his pants.
Natasha looked down at the dead man and smiled. "You had asked me a question. You wanted to know what I say. I say you should have listened to my brother." She turned to Jack. "How much do we owe you for the weapons?"
Unable to say anything as he stared at the dead man, Jack handed her the invoice with a shaky hand.
She stated, "Voice will have the funds in your account by tonight."
Still shocked, Jack nodded.
Natasha and her brother headed out with the guns in two large duffle bags and once they were outside, they put their Winnow Masks on and checked the streets for police. They placed the duffle bags in the trunk of their black Cadillac. He unzipped one, removed a case, and opened the container.
"Finally, I have Tommy." Nikolai smooth his hand across a machine gun. "And I can be the Hood I dreamed of being."
She rolled her eyes. "Whatever makes you happy. Now come and let us be on our way."
He put the machine gun back and within a few minutes, they got into the car and took off their masks. Nikolai removed the trophy he took off of Ron and placed the Glock 19 in the glove box.
"Let us hurry with our assignment." Natasha glanced out the passenger side window at the darkness surrounding the city. "I grow to hate this place."
Her brother pulled the car out into traffic. "Our final task is four days away and once we have killed the Phoenix, we can leave Noir."
"Voice is as forgiving as you, my brother. Voice must never be crossed."
"Yes," her brother agreed. "We must always complete our assignments with no hesitation and with no remorse. Our hearts must not rule our minds or our actions. In our line of business, it can only bring death."
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