Read #2 Shades of Gray: From Moscow, With Love Page 53

  Chapter Forty-four

  Here They Come

  7:07 P.M...

  In between platform one and two...

  The twin Closers stopped before the curve and looked to one another. Gore still covered Natasha's hand where she smeared blood from the vagrant's bullet wound, and Nikolai no longer held the Tommy. He left the empty submachine gun back at the hall where they killed the two bodyguards.

  "We let one escape," she said. "It was sloppy of us. He is most likely with the Mark."

  "Do not worry, my sister." Nikolai removed a Glock 25 from his shoulder holster; he had taken the Glock 19 from the vagrant and placed it in the holster on his back. "It does not matter if they know we are coming. We will complete the Closing. We will return home."

  She stroked the side of his mask with the back of her hand, smearing a little blood on his WM-D. "Let us bring doom then." Natasha removed the second canister from her satchel. "What do you think, my brother? Are they in the subway train or have they escaped through another tunnel?"

  "I would be on the train, if I were them, and it gives them some protection." He turned to his sister and pointed. "Tasha, how many more of those do you have?"

  She looked to the canister. "Five. Why?"

  "It is time for another wall of smoke. We cannot make it too easy for them to kill us."

  On the subway train...

  "Hades... I hate waiting." Kim impatiently stared out the window to the curve. "I would never make it as a bodyguard." She tapped her foot anxiously. "Being a Closer is much easier," she told Kat. "All I have to do is show up at the spot, wait maybe an hour or two, and bang! The job's done."

  "Not so loud. Do you want everyone to hear?" Kat glared at her. "And how can you say easy? Killing someone isn't. Every time you take a life it does something to your soul." She turned her attention back to the curve. "Anyway, I thought you hated your job. I thought you hated what you do for a living."

  "What are you babbling about?" she asked as she gave that woman a you don't know what you're talking about look. "I don't hate my job."

  Kat knew she lied to her again. She questioned her, "If you like what you do, why don't you smile? Why do you always look so miserable?"

  Her dismal expression worsened as she said, "I don't look miserable." Agitated over that woman's comments, she added, "And mind your own business! I never asked your opinion." Kim tapped her foot faster.

  Kimberly's view...

  That woman can't be right, no, there's no way she's right.

  I can't help but consider her statement. Am I doing something I hate? I do blame my father for getting me into the business. Is it because I despise my job?

  Sure I don't have a life; I have no friends and really no family, but does that make me miserable? I convince myself that it doesn't.

  Katharine's view...

  Maybe I should drop it, and we can talk about it later. I stare at Kimberly's nervous foot. She has enough to think about right now, and there's no need to make her feel worse than she already does.

  End Katharine's view...

  Kim noticed her looking at her and stopped the distracting thumping as she said, "Sorry."

  "Don't worry..." Kat rubbed her left thumb nail against her index finger and rubbed it red. "We all have bad habits."

  "Bad habits aside," Kim said. "I never said I liked my job. I don't hate it, but I don't like it."

  "Oh..." Kat couldn't believe it. "That's too bad."

  "Too bad? For Ares' sake!" Kim shouted and lowered her voice, "What's too bad?"

  Kat started to answer, "That..." She paused, realizing Kim honestly didn't see it. Kat answered, "It's too bad that you lie even to yourself."

  "I don't! Hades! I don't..." Kim stopped herself.

  Kimberly's view...

  I know myself, and I haven't become so used to deceiving others that I also lie to myself. For Ares' sake! I've let that woman get to me for even considering the notion.

  I blurt, "I didn't want to tell you so you wouldn't get all freaky around me, but of course I enjoy killing people! Why else would I be doing it?"

  End Kimberly's view...

  Kat put a finger to her mouth and uttered, "Shh..." She glanced across the cars in the direction of Melissa, Johnson, and the children then turned back to Kim. "Don't talk like that. The others might hear you."

  "Fine, but it's not like it's going to matter. We're probably all dead unless we can take out one of those Closers, and I do mean kill them."

  "Quiet," Kat ordered.

  "Why are you yelling at me again?" Kim asked. "I didn't say anything about me being a..."

  "Closers," Kat interrupted. "They're making their move."

  "Oh..." Kim turned to where Nikolai and Natasha stood, and they were out of range of the handguns, at least out of her range. She yelled at Kat, "Shoot them already!"

  Before Kat reacted, Nikolai and Natasha threw the canisters at the subway train, and smoke engulfed the cars. "I don't like this," Kat said.

  Kim gave her a frustrated look as she said, "You're not supposed to like this." She shook her head in a this is ridiculous manner. "What kind of statement is that? If you don't have anything useful to say, I would suggest you keep your opinions..."

  "Go back and help Johnson," Kat interrupted as she started to pry the side doors open.

  Kim looked to Melissa, remembering her Closing. "I would prefer to stay with you."

  Kat pried the doors open and said, "Please, go back and help Johnson." She had turned her attention back to Nikolai and Natasha. "I have a feeling he'll need you."

  "Fine, but what are you going to..."

  Kat raced from the car into the smoke.

  "Wait! Don't go out there by yourself!" Kim griped, "Idiot!" She made her way to the back, staying low so not to stand out as a target as the smoke rose up to the windows. "What's that woman thinking?"