Stranded [ 6 ]

>With the three other men dead, it was a one on one here.
>He had the upper hand, wielding an MP5.
>The adrenaline in your veins was dissappearing, leaving you exhausted, in pain, and with a definite disadvantage.
>You had ten rounds in the pistol, though you could not aim well.
>You heard the man yell out at you.
>"Give up! You`re going to die no matter what. There will be more, even if you kill me."
>You`ve had enough of this.

>You grabbed a sizable piece of gravel from the side of the road.
>This would work, but you`d only get one shot.
>You hurled it to the other side of your car.
>He fell for it, the sound and movement causing him to shift his aim to the source.
>And within that moment, you peeked over your cover, drew your pistol...
>And fired.

>The man exclaimed as a wound opened up in his chest.
>Fucking idiot, not wearing a vest, as well as falling for that trick.
>He pulled the trigger as he fell over, spraying everywhere for a moment until the magazine ran dry.
>That was it.
>But the damages were astounding.

>Your car was still functional, but definitely not able to be driven in public.
>Way too much attention.
>You grabbed various bags and moved them to the car your assailants were driving.
>The wound in your shoulder was definitely an issue though, creating excruciating pain.
>You found the kit in your trunk and applied some self medication.
>As you waited for the meds to kick in, you wondered what you would do about this grisly scene.
>The pistol that you used had other parts changed out, including a different barrel, so no need to worry about rifling.
>And maybe you should just use the bomb installed in the car.
>Yeah, that would get rid of any evidence.

>As you drove away, the car that was now loaded with bodies exploded.
>With this car though, there may be a tracker.
>Fuck.
>You needed to find someone willing to get in there and dig it out.
>There were a few mechanics that did dirty work like that.
>And now, you needed to find one.

>Or a hospital.
>Fuck, your arm hurt.
>After a while, you couldn`t take it.
>You pulled over onto the side of the road.
>Time for some self-surgery.

>The kit was on the dash, and so was the bullet.
>Now some disinfectant, some medicine, and then a bandage.
>All patched up.
>You were going to be driving, so another small dose of weak painkillers would have to do.
>Luckily, you were still on a side road as you did all of this, so nobody saw you do any of this.

>As you drove down the road, you searched for a certain place.
>A friend of yours owned a shop that did some of the more... illicit work.
>A nice guy, overall, and he did it rather cheaply.
>It would take a little longer, so you opted to call Jennette again.

>Ring.
>Ring.
>Ring... click.
>"Anon, that`s you, right?"

"Yeah. I just needed to tell you that it`ll be a while before I get back."
>"What`s going on?"
>A bit of worry crept into her voice.
>"You don`t sound good. Are you hurt?"
>Shit, you didn`t want her to freak out or anything.
>You would have to play it off.

"No, just a bit tired. Traffic`s still kinda hectic."
>Would she accept that?
>"Okay... but please come home soon. I`m a... a little scared."
>You assured her you would.
>She sighed, said goodbye, and hung up.

>It was a lot of responsibilty, taking care of this woman.
>But she was kind, and you hadn`t known kindness from anyone in a long while.
>You couldn`t help but smile when you imagined her with her new clothes.

>The mechanic place you`d been driving to was right there.
>It was a family business, been there for about as long as you could remember.
>Glenn, the guy who did most of the work there, was a nice man.
>He`s got a thing going with the underground though.
>Everyone protects him for his services; the guy`s a friend of everyone.
>You wish you could have that deal.

>You pulled into a parking space and got out.
>Walking in the place, you spotted Glenn and a civilian talking.
>There was a vending machine, and you were actually rather parched at the moment.
>A moment later, you had a nice, chilled cola in your hand.
>You finished it and waited for them to get done talking.
>A few minutes later, the guy headed out and Glenn noticed you.
>"Ah, sorry about the..."
>He noticed the bandage on your arm, eyes widening slightly.
>"Oh. I`m guessing you need something else."

"Yeah, possible tracker. Can you get it out?"
>He nodded.
>"Show me the car, and I`ll see what I can do."

>He glanced over the sedan, asked for the keys, and pulled into the place.
>You waited for a while, then Glenn came out with the tracker in hand.
>It was a small piece of tech, about the size of a cell phone.
>You were right to come here.

"So, what are we going to do with this thing?"
>Glenn looked at the ceiling for a moment, then handed it to you.
>"Take it, drive somewhere, and hurl it. Or, tape it to someone else`s car. Either way."
>The latter sounded better.
>You handed him some cash, not bothering to count it.
>It was probably around $700.
>Good deal, considering it only took him about thirty minutes.
>You took the tracker and pocketed it, waved to the mechanic, and left.

>With the tracking device, you really didn`t want to keep it with you for long.
>So, you began to drive in an erratic pattern, until you found a pick-up truck.
>Now was your chance.
>Aim it, throw it, goal.
>It landed in the bed with a clunk, and with that, you could finally go home.
>You didn`t need to worry about fingerprints because they`d been burned away.
>It was a requirement for the job.

>On your way home, your phone began to ring.
>You immediately answered it.
>"Anon, it`s almost been the entire day... are you coming home?"
>Jennette`s voice sounded a bit rough, like she`d been crying.

"Of course... I`ve just been caught up in something. I`ll explain once I get home."
>No more excuses.
>Considering that she would find out soon enough, you resolved to tell her the truth.
>No matter how it turned out.
>There was a pause, then she spoke up again.
>"Okay. Just promise me you`re alright. Promise me you`ll get back."

"I promise. I will be home soon."
>Another pause.
>"Please."
>Clunk.

>Jennette was a bit emotional at times, so you`ve noticed.
>You could understand it though.
>She was quite literally trapped in a different world, or so she said.
>There was no reason not to believe her.
>Your thoughts were interrupted by the sound of distant thunder.
>The weather had worsened.
>Mother Nature sure knew how to set the mood.
>Oddly enough, rays of light peeked through the clouds, creating an odd contrast with the mass of raindrops hitting your windshield.
>It gave you an odd feeling in the back of your mind.
>The white noise and stormy sights provided a chaotic, yet serene background to drive through.

>It was six twenty-three when you arrived.
>You breathed a sigh of relief when you saw Jennette in the window.
>Nobody had been on your tail on the way home after you killed the assassins, and you`d survived another day.
>The car was now in the driveway and you walked to the door.
>The door swung inwards and you were greeted with a hug from Jennette.
>You had to try to avoid recoiling in pain when her arm bumped your shoulder.
>"You`re home! I... I missed you. You`re okay, right?"
>She couldn`t see the bandage because you had it covered by your jacket sleeve.
>She would have to find out eventually though.
>That could wait for a bit though; you had gifts for her.

>Her face was priceless.
>You had gotten her plenty of clothing.
>Then you handed her the chocolate bar.
>She gave you a funny look as she inspected it.
>"Is this... food? Like candy or something?"

"It`s called chocolate. And yeah, it`s pretty much candy. Just take a bite."
>Jennette peeled the wrapper away and broke a piece off.
>A single rectangle of the stuff.
>She popped it into her mouth, then her eyes closed.
>"This is actually... really good."

"Once you finish that, try on your clothes."
>She looked at you and smiled.
>"Sounds like a good idea. But I need to make them fit-"
>She gestured to her wings and tail.
>"-these. And my horns may be a pain to deal with."
>Right...
>Wait, you had sewing equipment, right?
>You went to check while Jennette went through the clothing.

>After searching for a few minutes, you found some needles and thread in a drawer.
>Hopefully it would work.
>You headed back downstairs with the supplies in hand.

"Jennette, here. You need anything else? Scissors, maybe?"
>She took the sewing supplies from you and shook her head.
>"My claws`ll work just fine."
>She picked the jeans up and inspected them closely.
>"I`m going to put a hole in here for my tail. I think it`ll work."
>For some reason... her words were slow.

>No, your perception was off.
>This much was obvious, as the world around you began to spin and distort.
>You realized something that should`ve been obvious.
>The bullet that had hit you was probably coated in poison.
>And it was too late for any help.
>You slumped to the floor.
>Jennette`s distant screams echoed through your mind as you lost consciousness.
>"Anon!"