“I said no weapons,” Rock scolded Vitori Delega. The old man held a small caliber handgun to Anna’s temple. She looked remarkably calm for the situation.
“Do you want to leave,” he answered back.
Rock wanted to say yes. Michael had not shown up like he was supposed to and instead Rock had forced a government agent into a closet at gunpoint. Things weren’t exactly going to plan. Without Michael Cooper’s support, this was going to have to play out a little differently. The original arrangement had been to make the exchange while Michael dealt with Delega, then leave. At that point, it would be out of their hands.
“No, I’ll stay. If you need a gun as assurance then keep it. But if we stick to the arrangement, you’ll have no need of it.” He locked eyes with Anna. He held her gaze for a moment and in that brief time knew he couldn’t leave without her.
“Then how’s this going to work?”
“I thought that you’d let Anna walk over and I’d hand over the flash disks and pages. Simple. But you hold the gun, so you hold the cards. You tell me.”
“Show me the copies,” he said.
Rock nodded. He casually walked into the cubicle behind him and picked up three flash drives and the wooden box with the hidden pages. He came back around the wall and held it out for Vitori Delega to see. “Here they are.”
“I need to verify them,” he said. “Those disks could be blank for all I know. I had a computer in my bag but your girl wouldn’t let me bring it. She said you’d have a way to verify. So?”
“There’s a laptop on the desk to your left, you can look at everything on there. I yanked out its network card so don’t try to connect to anything.” Rock kept his casual pace over to the computer. He didn’t want to use sudden movements and spook the man any more than what he already appeared to be. Vitori Delega didn’t hold the confidence he had shown the night before. Tonight, he was alone.
Rock slid one of the drives into the port. Delega inched over, still holding Anna close. Rock smiled when she came within arms reach. “It’s ok,” he said softly. She didn’t return the smile. She wore a frown and squinted her eyes. He could tell she was pissed off.
Rock clicked on the folder and opened one of the files. Delega bent down to start reading Wallace’s notes and looking at the pictures. Rock opened two more, let Delega read, and then slammed the cover. “That’s enough,” he said. “Let her go.”
Vitori reeled back in surprise. “I wasn’t done.”
“That’s all you get, until she’s allowed to go.”
“Fine!” Delega pushed Anna into Rock. He caught her in his arms and steadied her. When he looked up, Delega had the pistol aimed between his eyes.
“What are you doing? You have your copies,” Rock’s hands were far from his gun and Anna was pushed up against him, he couldn’t reach it unless he moved her. There was no way he could get to it before Delega fired.
“I saw the handle peeking out of your pants Rock. You also brought a weapon. Were you going to kill me as I packed up my things, pull the weapon and take everything. Is that why you wanted me to come alone? Not smart. I’ve seen right through you.”
“I didn’t have a plan,” Rock replied. “Take your things and go, we just want to be left alone.”
“I don’t think so. You know too much.”
Just then, the closet door from the other side of the room opened. Agent Sieb stepped into the light. Vitori whirled at the sound and pointed his gun to the new threat. Rock took the opportunity and withdrew his own weapon and pointed it at Vitori. The old man saw the movement and pointed his weapon back at Anna just as Rock’s came to full extension.
“Don’t move,” he yelled, “ or I’ll shoot her. His arm shook in angst.
“Back off, Delega, put the gun down,” Rock answered back.
“What the fuck is Sieb doing here,” Vitori said, glancing to the side to see how far the man had come. He was within ten yards of them. “Stop fucking moving Sieb or I’ll kill the girl and shoot you next.”
“If you fire I do too Delega,” Rock said.
Vitori’s breaths were coming in large gasps. “What the fuck is Sieb doing here Rock?”
“I don’t know. I didn’t invite him.”
“You do know who he is, he’s got this place fucking surrounded by now.”
“He came alone,” Rock said. “There’s nobody with him.”
“Yeah fucking right,” Vitori said.
“It’s true,” Sieb entered the conversation. He paused his walk and held his hands up. “I just want to talk.”
“I told you Sieb I’ll shoot you if you come out,” Rock said.
“You sounded as though you could use a little help,” he replied. Unfortunately, he was right. Rock had been only moments away from Delega pulling the trigger. He had saved them, for now.
“What do you want Sieb,” Delega sneered. “You used my son and now’s he’s probably dead.”
“You drove him away, but Seth isn’t why we’re here. I want the copies, just like you.”
“If you get your way, the US will take over all safe areas on the earth. That’s not how we are supposed to move forward.”
“How do you know, I believe it to be precisely the best way. No more wars, or infighting, only progress. And if we work together, I’m prepared to let you and your people a high place when everything settles. Very high.”
“That’s not my purpose in all this.”
“Isn’t it? When you give all the locations out to those countries that own the land, where will you go?”
“We will choose a place to be. A neutral location.”
“No such thing. You’ll first choose a place to save yourself. And there’s no shame in that. But if we do this my way, I can guarantee that you’ll have a prime location. You have my word. Let’s work together.”
Vitori glanced to Sieb. “No. Our agendas have nothing in common.”
“Delega,” Rock brought his attention back to them. “Let’s put our guns down together, then we’ll both just walk backwards.”
“What about him,” Vitori said.
“Ok, if you’re worried about Sieb, then lets both point our weapons at him and back away slowly with what we came for. Everyone gets out alive.”
“Or nobody,” a new voice interrupted from the doorway. A click of an armed weapon sounded from the portal and then another one behind Rock. “You’re all in a very bad position.” Rock glanced to the doorway and a large man filled the frame with one gun pointing at Agent Sieb and one at the back of Vitori Delega’s head. “Rock, I presume,” he address him, catching his eye. “There’s a man behind you aiming directly at your head, I’m sure you can tell by looking at old fart Delega that I’m telling you the truth. Now lower the gun.”
Rock knew he was caught. Michael had betrayed him. This was a set-up the whole time to get all of them together. The keepers of the rose now had him and Anna and Delega and Agent Sieb. It was a trap planned to perfection. He lowered his gun. In front of him, Vitori Delega did the same.
“You must be Elias,” Rock said. He straightened as Anna hid behind him. “Where’s Michael?”
“Michael said he was talking with you. We are also aware of his dealings with you Anders. Funny isn’t it, you’re all alone, no back up or anybody on the radio coming to help. I didn’t expect that.”
Agent Sieb didn’t respond to the taunt.
“Where is he so I can tell him what a fucking backstabbing asshole he is before I die,” Rock said.
“I don’t think you’re going to get that chance. Michael Cooper is dead.”
Rock looked away from Elias, confused. “How? You wouldn’t kill the man that set this whole thing up for you.”
“Yes I would. He always held it against me that I kept his brother as a hostage. Don’t know why but I could tell. He wanted to kill me.”
“Good, he deserved to die,
he killed Nate and Wallace,” Anna said unexpectedly.
“I believe you have that wrong, Ms. Riley,” Elias smiled. “That pleasure was mine.” Anna’s teeth clenched and Rock saw her ball up a fist. He grabbed her arm and squeezed. “For all the good it did me, he didn’t know too much. But enough chit chat, all of you over there.” He motioned towards the right, into an open area near the closet Sieb had been held in. The four of them shuffled over.
From the door another man came in, pushing Sayla in front of him. He threw her into the grouping. “Ahh the little bitch is found,” Elias said. “I’ve been looking for you,” he smiled at her. Sayla spit at him.
Elias turned his attention to his new man,” go back to the perimeter and make sure nobody else is here.” The man left, running into the dark hallway.
“Get it over with Elias,” Vitori said.
“I’m the type to savor my victories,” he replied. “Now where is everything? I’ve heard there are copies, and new pages and all kinds of good stuff.”
“On the table,” Rock said. “Behind you.”
Elias turned around and walked to the table while one of his men kept a weapon pointed at the group. He opened the laptop and started skimming through the documents. Rock thought this could be their chance. If he could get the five of them to charge the man, some of them might be able to overtake him. The only problem was the weapon he held was an automatic. He could take them all out in one pull. He watched Elias thumb through the new pages, and then look back at the computer. “Is this everything,” he said without looking up.
Nobody responded.
“I said is this everything,” he said in a more urgent tone.
“What if I said no,” Rock answered, trying to find some way of gaining a slight bit of leverage.
Elias unhooked the flash drives and threw them on the ground. He put his foot over them and then put his weight down. The electronics crunched underneath his boot and when he lifted it, there was nothing but little plastic and metal bits. Rock heard Vitori sigh next to him. Elias straightened up and started walking back over. “Then I’d say you’re all in for a very long night. Because I need every copy you ever made before I’ll be satisfied.”
“Then you’ll kill us,” Rock stepped forward in a threatening manner. The man with the gun pointed it at Rock’s chest. Elias smiled.
“Confrontational for a man with a gun pointed at him and nothing to exchange.”
“Well, at this point I have nothing to lose either.” Rock took another step forward. Elias didn’t move. Rock launched forward and pushed the man in the chest with both arms, sending Elias backwards to the door. Before he could swing to the gunman, he felt a foot in his gut and glimpsed the weapon flying towards his face. The butt of the gun struck him in the chin and sent him reeling from his feet. He crumpled to the ground, falling on his side. When he opened his eyes he felt dizzy but managed to get his feet under him and stand back up. He could feel the bruise starting to form on the left side of his face. In the distance Elias was resting against the doorframe, smiling. The gunman was a few feet back from his original position, with the gun trained on them once again.
“That was it. Your best shot. Pathetic Rock. I was expecting more. It seems, due to all the stories, I overestimated you.”
Then, suddenly, from the space behind Elias, a shape came shooting from the darkness and delivered a crushing blow to the left side of the man’s head. Then a gunshot flared through the room and Elias’s man fell to the ground with a bullet split between his eyes.
Rock watched in disbelief as Michael Cooper stood over Elias, kicking him repeatedly as the larger man covered up. He was supposed to be dead.
Quickly, Sieb burst from behind Rock and ran for the gun that had fallen to the ground but stopped as Michael placed another round between him and the weapon. “Back in line Sieb,” he said.
Elias took the opportunity to look up and take in what had happened. His eyes grew large at the sight of Michael. “Now that we got the randoms out of the way Elias, maybe its time to talk.” Michael allowed him to gain his feet but kept a few paces back. “I don’t make the same mistake twice. One more step and I shoot you, that’s it.”
“Good to see you Michael,” he said. “You seem to be a hard man to kill. “
“Everyone is until they die,” he replied. “And you can wipe that smile off your face, I already killed your back-up, all four guys.” Michael winked. Elias lost the smile.
“I suppose you want me to release your brother but if you recall, I had him killed.”
“I remember you giving the order to kill him to the same guys you gave the order to kill me. Those men never completed either. So my guess is he’s still fine and you’re going to make that call right now.”
“I won’t.”
“You will. You see, I figured out a short while ago that the only way I am getting Malcolm back is to put a gun to your head and have you release him. And if you don’t, I will kill you, but you know that.”
“You’ll kill me anyway,” Elias said. “You’ve wanted to from the moment you met me.”
“True enough, but I’m telling you now, if my brother goes free, I won’t shoot you.”
Rock watched this unfold, trying to piece everything together. Michael had betrayed him but also betrayed Elias, all for Malcolm. He truly didn’t give a shit about anybody else.
“What about my men,” Sieb interrupted. “My men were supposed to get Malcolm out. What happened to them?”
“Your men are at the location I sent them to. You played your part perfectly. Your men were never meant to rescue Malcolm. They never would have succeeded. I know the keepers protocols. As soon as there would be any disturbance Malcolm would have been killed. Your men, Sieb, were to save me.”
“You knew,” Elias said.
“Of course. You’re transparent Elias, I know everything about you. Now make the call.” Elias didn’t move. “Make the call,” Michael pushed harder.” When Elias made no effort Michael aimed low and shot him in the hand.
The sound reverberated in the room and Elias started whimpering, holding up his hand missing the tops of three fingers. Blood poured from the stumps. Michael looked over to Sieb. “Give him your shirt,” Sieb immediately took off his shirt and threw it to Elias. He quickly wrapped his hand.
“You fucking bastard,” he grimaced in pain.
“You make the call now, or I’ll make sure to shatter your knee caps next.”
Elias slowly took out his phone and started dialing. “You let me go after this. You said you would.”
“If I get my brother, I won’t kill you,” Michael said for the second time.
Elias held the phone to his ear. “Yes. Let him go. No. Just let him go, I don’t need him any longer. Yes.” He hung up. “There, he’s being let out.”
Michael smiled. “Now we’ll hang here for a few minutes while my brother gets a safe distance away and calls me.”
“Can I ask you something,” Rock said.
“Yeah Rock go ahead.”
“Was anything you told me true, or did you use me like everyone else.”
“You’re going to get Anna back safely and you’ll get to decide where to go from there. Also Sayla is going to be safe and Benji is in the trunk of my car out front, alive. Does it matter how we got here, I told you the truth in what you were going to receive.”
“Can we go then, right now?”
“No, not yet.”
Rock didn’t like that answer. If they didn’t have any part left to play and Michael truly was going to let them out safely, what would be the difference.
“Why not,” Anna said.
“And what about me,” Sieb involved himself.
“What about you,” Michael returned.
“What do I get?”
“I brought you here, this is where everything is happening. I involved you. That’s up to you.
You get nothing else from me. We’re even.”
“At least kill the little bitch,” Elias said. Anna moved in front of Sayla in a protective gesture.
“I don’t need to,” Michael said, “She picked a side when things got heated. I can’t blame her for that.”
“She betrayed you and the whole organization. The penalty is death.”
“I believed that once, until those rules somehow got twisted to be used against me.”
“She deserves it.”
“As much as I did?”
Rock was still trying to figure out how this was going to end. The atmosphere had gone from electric to calm once Michael entered the room. Nobody knew where they stood. They were each trying to figure it out.
“You know if you kill me it changes nothing,” Elias grinned.
“Why is that,” Anna replied. “I’d be fine if he killed you.”
“Because we still have the rose and the copies are destroyed. There is nothing any of you can do. In a few months you’ll be powerless to stop anything. The organization will continue on without me, less controlled and more violent, though.”
“Nobody is more violent or heartless than you,” Anna continued to attack him. She seemed more interested in Elias’s death than her own predicament.
“What are you doing,” Rock whispered to her.
“Trying to keep the focus on Elias. I don’t want anybody thinking about us and what we’ve done.” Rock could understand that. He realized each person in the room was deciding how to play their hand. Anna’s was to keep the focus on Elias. Delega, Sieb and Sayla had chosen the silent route. Elias the antagonist, waiting for his time to strike. Rock saw that in his eyes. As for himself, Rock wasn’t sure how to manage Michael. He was still trying to grasp his sudden change of fate.
Michael’s phone buzzed. He answered.
“This is Michael,” he smiled. “It’s good to hear your voice. I’m fine. You know where to go. Yup, go rest, I’ll see you shortly. You’re clear and safe, right. Good.” He put the phone back in his pocket.
“That was Malcolm. He’s safe.”
“I told you,” Elias said. Now follow through on your part.”
“Not yet,” Michael backed towards the doorway. “Sieb, Delega, next to Elias. Now.”
Vitori and Agent Sieb took small steps towards Elias and eventually came to a standing position next to him. That left Rock, Anna and Sayla together, huddled on the other side.
Michael looked Rock in the eye. Then he tossed him one of his guns. Rock caught it, surprised by the move. Then Michael reached towards his back and took out another weapon, this one he tossed to Anna.
“Why,” she asked.
“One more thing,” he said. He took a step back and reached to the side of the door. He lifted up a big blue duffel bag. He tossed it over to Sayla. “That, I was going to have a little trouble with until you let me know where it was Elias. By the way, Dr. Redman says hi.”
Sayla opened the bag and Rock saw that the rose was tucked safely within. “It’s the book,” Anna said. “Again, why?”
“You piece of shit Michael! I’m gonna kill you, I’ll rip you’re skin off one inch at a time if I find you. I should have never let you out of the room when I had you that first day.” Elias’s face was red, his anger flared uncontrollably.
“Shut up Elias. The rose isn’t out of reach yet. It’s with Rock. And now he has a choice. The three of you represent three options, or he can do whatever the fuck he wants with it. All you have to do is convince him. Instead of threatening, you must persuade. And in this, he has the last say. This decision can’t wait any longer. It needs to be made today, whatever that decision may be. I think he’s the man to make it and I think we’re in pretty good hands. So I’ve now given each of you a chance, talk to him and convince him and the rose could be yours.”
“I know whose it isn’t,” Anna said. She brought her gun up and stepped towards Elias. He shied away.
“What are you doing? Didn’t you hear? I have a chance to tell my side.”
“Anna,” Rock called, “don’t do it.”
She didn’t listen to him. She walked right up to Elias and from two feet away, pulled the trigger. The gun fired and she jerked backwards with the force. Elias caught the bullet in the middle of his chest and fell backwards. He writhed on the ground. Anna retained her balance and walked a couple steps. She stood over him. “This is for Nate and Wallace,” she pulled the trigger three more times until he stopped moving.
“Good for you,” Michael said to her and then, “good luck Rock,” he smiled a crooked smile and disappeared down the hallway. They heard his footsteps echo until they faded completely away.
Rock swallowed, wetting his throat. It had gone dry when Anna pulled the trigger. Now, she stood next to him and he put his arm around her shoulder. “Are you ok?”
“I’m much better,” she said. “Let’s hear them out and make a decision.”
“What I know is that Vitori wants to give each country their place and Sieb wants the US to control everything in private. Those are the choices.”
“There’s more to it than that,” Vitori said, “let me tell you.”
“What you said about what I want isn’t entirely true either,” Sieb said. “There’s more to it and it could easily be changed to accommodate what you need.”
Rock looked at the two men, worn out from the change of events. Their faces were the color of ash and their eyes were spread wide open. They looked like desperate men.
“Sayla,” Rock looked down at her. “What do you think?”
“I think I’m going to go get Benji out of the trunk. This isn’t my decision.”
“Go on,” Rock told her. She went out the door.
“How about you, what do you think,” he asked, looking down at Anna.
She took his hand in hers and squeezed it reassuringly. “I think you’re going through the motions,” she said. “I know you Rock Tilton. You’ve already made a decision.”
THE END
Thanks to:
Laura
Mom
Dad
Darren
Derek
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