Pathline (24 page)

He chuckled.
"I can understand your anger, but let me
tell you, anger on its own won't help you.  What will make you feel better would be a nice healthy dose of revenge." 

She sat back, looking into her empty glass.  "I was thinking of just taking off, leaving them hanging on this, starting over abroad.  Maybe returning to mercenary work." 

H
e raised his eyebrows at that.
"
Y
ou used to do merc work?  That explains how you were able to track me down so quickly, I'm impressed.  Why'd you leave in the first place?" 

She sighed.
"I was young.  I got involved with a merc who liked staying in the
shadows;
I got tired of living hidden away.  I foolishly thought that working for the agency would allow me more freedom." 

Mana shook his head.
"
T
here's no freedom greater than mercenary work, you just fell for the wrong merc.  Girl like you should never be hidden away."  He got up from his seat and refilled her drink a third time, coming back and taking a seat next to her on the sofa.  "You know, if you're serious, I can find you plenty of mercenary work abroad.  I've got many contacts that would pay top dollar for a Wanderer of your skill." 

She eyed him suspiciously
.
"
A
nd why would you help me?  After all the reason I'm in town was to track you down and hand over your location to the agency." 

He laughed.
"
Y
ou're suspicious of me?  Shouldn't it be the other way
around?
  For all I know you're here to distract me while the agency surrounds the place." 

Rune gave him an
irritated
look
.
"
A
nd what would that accomplish exactly?  I'm not stupid; like I said I used to do mercenary work, I kno
w what the odds are in a battle
between a high level
C
harger and a bunch of media supers who don't have a clue what that really means." 

He gave a hearty laugh.  "They wouldn't know what hit them, ignorant fools.  Maybe we can help each other out.  I can put you in contact with my people abroad and maybe you can tell me what the agency has planned for me.  How does that sound?" 

She thought about it, holding her drink and swirling it around a bit.  "What do you get out of putting me
in touch with your contacts?" s
he asked him. 

He grinned.
"
S
mart woman.  I would get a finders fee for every job you get from a referral of mine. 
Now my turn, why would you help me against the agency?"

She looked him over, leaning in towards him so that her lips where only an
inch away from his.
"
T
his isn't about you
hun
, you'd just be a means to an end."  She turne
d and whispered into his ear, "Y
ou said earlier that revenge would make me feel better"
.
S
he pulled away and placed a hand on his chest.  "I have a feeling you'd make a very good form of revenge, don't you agree?" 

He smiled at her
and ran a hand through her hair.
"
O
h, I'd make the best form of revenge, no doubt." 

She smiled and leaned back into the couch.  "Can I ask you something?"  She took a drink from her glass.  "Why hit the power plant?  Other than making the government look like incompetent fools what's the payout in it?" 
She frowned, a confused look on her face.

"Well that is a good question.  Making them look like fools is definitely nice, but it was just the set up, the point my dear is bigger. 
T
hey would undoubtedly send their so-called best to come after me, as if that would scare a man of my caliber.  Let them come, let them see face to face what real power and strength actually looks like."  He spoke with utmost pride and confidence.  It was obvious that he had no doubt about his ability to defeat anything the agency se
n
t at him. 

She finished her drink and put the glass down.  "Beating their best would make you a celebrity in the mercenary world."  She smiled and move
d
closer
, leaning into him.  "Why wait for them to come to you?  You could go to them.  Show them that not only are you more powerful but you're also more resourceful.  You
find them before they find you."  She looked up into his face.

He smiled slowly thinking about it.  "Yes.  They would never expect me to attack what they probably consider an unbeatable team.  They probably think I've been slinking around in hiding.  Fools!"  He looked into her
face then grabbed her and pulled
her onto his lap.

She put her hand on his chest.
"
F
irst things first, y
ou give me one of your contacts as a sign of good faith, then I lead you to their little command center." 

He grinned, his hands on her hips pulling her closer.  "You give me their location, I go and take care of them once and for all, then I come back here and we celebrate our new partnership."

She looked at him skeptically.
"
H
ow do I know you'll keep up your side of the bargain?"

He laughed.
"I am a man of my word.  After I'm done with the agency idiots I will personally introduce you to several of my overseas contacts.  You and I, we could make an obscene amount of money together, and you would never have to hide away." 

She raised her eyebrows and leaned into him wrapping her
legs around his waist.  "Oh yeah
?  You expect me to believe you'd be any more loyal to me than your little sluts." 

He laughed.
"I'm not looking for a girlfriend, and I don't think you care about that.  Ours would be a business arrangement with some side benefits that I think we both would appreciate." 

She grinned at him.
"
H
mm...
we'll see."  She ran a hand along his shoulder and whispered into his ear, "
T
hey're watching your club tonight, so I recommend staying in."

He looked at her.
"I'm not
hiding from them.  I can take them then and there." 

S
he shrugged.
"
S
ure, but that would probably create some friction for you with the community.  Why don't we just stay in and enjoy a night off huh?  When they realize I'm missing they'll be confused, they won't k
now what to make of it at first;
it will give you the advantage."

He looked at her thoughtfully
.
"
T
hey don't know you're gone yet?"

She shook her head.
"
T
hey don't expect me back for another hour or two." 

A slow grin appeared on his face
.
"Okay, we need to sober you up
.
"  He unwrapped her legs from around him and stood
,
placing her back on the couch next to him. 

She frowned.
"
W
hy?"

He made his way over to the small kitchen area and flipped on a coffee machine.  "Because right now you're more useful to me if they don't realize you've gone rogue.  You can go back and feed them false information, set them up for me to take out."

She slumped
her shoulders in disappointment.
"
Y
ou want me to go back?  I can just give you their location, why do you need me there?"

He glanced back to her and shook his head, as if amused.  "They think they're better than us, smarter.  Imagine how much sweeter the revenge will taste if we beat them at their own game.  Picture it baby, the looks on their faces when they realize they were betrayed by one of their own."

She
let a smile spread at his words.
"What do you want me to tell them?"

She wandered back to the service entrance she had left through earlier and made her way to the meet poin
t where the unit was convening before setting out that
evening
.  They were all there and seemed to be waiting for her to arrive, the last one missing.

"Where were you
?
  We've been here waiting for over
fifteen
minutes" Felix said as soon as she walked through the door. 

She glanced at her watch.  "I was doing my job."  She didn't offer up any other explanation, she just went
over and took her place with Tactical
-II. 

Serk frowned at her.
"
W
hat do you mean?  I thought you and Blythe were done with recon?" 

She sighed and shrugged.
"
D
idn't really feel like sitting around here all day, so I decided to try to track down the hostile Charger again." 

Serk cr
ossed his arms looking her over.
"
A
nd?"

"I found one of his
girls;
got the impression he wasn't expected at the c
lub tonight."  She met his gaze.
"
I
f it means anything I think we're looking at this all wrong.  We should be near the op camp set up by the field, if he knows the agency is working in the area he's likely to try to attack.  The girl said he mentioned a 'special project' he had to 'take care of' tonight, I may not have any evidence to support my theory, but I believe that the command camp
is
the 'special project'.  Donovan said in her first briefing that she believed the hostile must have had some ulterior motive for the attack...
what if this is it?  What if he's just been waiting for an agency team to arrive so that he could force a public confrontation?" 

She felt hollow inside, a dull ache around her heart
;
a
deep and spreading exhaustion permeating her soul. 
This is all she could do now, she could set the game board as best she knew and hope it all worked in the end.  There was a sense of finality to her role here,
she knew deep inside her that there was no going back after
this;
this would be her final act as part of the agency.  The others were discussing what she'd said, some wanted to stay to the original plans but others thought her theory had merit.  She stepped back to lean against the wall nearest to her, looking at the group discussion not really taking any of it in.  Malik stood on the other side of the group, he looked over at her but she didn't meet his gaze.  She stared out blankly, empty inside.  She realized she just had nothing left, she'd given all she had and it had not been enough.  There were so many 'ifs' in the air, and too many power players in the mix, she didn't know how this could possibly end well. 

Serk and Malik came to a consensus to switch the play up from the original plan.  Blythe would watch the club in case the hostile showed up, Tactical-I would take position at the command camp and Tactical-II would set up at the field.  If the hostile tried to attack the camp they would easily maneuver
him into the nearby field.  Rune knew it wouldn't come to that
though;
Mana would be making his stand on the field ready to take out the teams before going after command.  She could only hope that
because of
the short timeline Mana wouldn't have called in his plans to whomever he was working for.  That he would, in his hubris, attempt to fight the teams alone.  That was the only way they stood a chance of winning. 

The teams armed themselves and headed to the transport vehicles standing by.  Blythe wanderer to the club and Rune stayed behind as she still had to change into her gear and could meet her team at the location.  As she stepped out of the room she found Malik standing next to the door waiting for her.

"Your
team will be waiting for you" S
he said.

"They can wait a couple of minutes"
H
e responded. 
He looked at her for a moment.  "I don't intimidate easy, I can take wh
atever they want to throw at me;
I'm not going anywhere."

She looked at him, numb.  "I'm tired Marcus.  In my heart, my mind, my body.  I'm so tir
ed."  She gave him a weak smile.
"
B
e careful out there, don't underestimate the hostile."

He brushed her hair back with one hand, his expression concerned.  "You too, we'll talk after this."

She watched him walk way.  "Sure"
s
he said to the silence around her.