Orla didn’t answer his question and remained in place. She desperately wanted to look at her friend and reassure Kelli that everything would be alright, but that wasn’t a promise she felt she could make.
The more she observed Mr.White, the more she saw a spoiled child, used to having his own way. A very self-entitled, and dangerous child. Over the years as a foreign correspondent, she’d faced the most dangerous men on the planet, but most of them had their own agenda and never acted out of emotion. This man was doing both, which made him volatile.
He threw the briefcase to one of his men and stormed over to stand in front of her before slapping her. The pain almost didn’t hold back the sudden giggle bubbling up. She wasn’t sure if it was caused by nerves or the fact she’d been right in her assessment of his character.
“Give me the code now!” He spat in her face as he shouted. And before she could utter a word, he whipped out his gun and aimed it at Kelli. “Maybe you’ll be less annoying if I start putting bullets into your friend.”
“And if you put a single bullet in her, you’d better put one in my head, because I won’t give you the codes. And as I said, cracking the new one will take quite some time. If you want the code, let her go.”
The silence in between the containers was revealing. Either she’d made a tactical error, or her plan would work.
Without waiting for his answer, Orla reached into her pocket and produced Devin’s car key. “It’s simple, let her take my car, and I stay. As soon as she’s safely away, I’ll give you the code. You’re a businessman from what I gather. This is a simple transaction, and one that’s to your advantage.”
After a minute when she thought he’d stomp his feet in irritation, Mr.White looked at her before gesturing to the guards holding Kelli. They pushed her forward, and she fell to her knees before scrambling up and falling into Orla’s arms.
She wanted to hold her friend close and warm her, but there was no time for that. After a quick embrace, Orla pushed the key into her cold hand and whispered in her ear. “Go back to the road. Take the car and leave. Once you’re on the road, toot the horn. That way I’ll know you’re safe.”
It was clear Kelli didn’t want to leave her, and in an act of courage, was about to decline the offer, but Orla pushed her away. Kelli stumbled as she looked back. After a brief hesitation, she ran, disappearing in the dark.
Not soon enough, she heard the distant sound of an engine starting, and a few seconds later, the sound of a car horn.
The feeling of peace that descended upon her filled her eyes with tears. Kelli was safe. If she’d only managed that one thing, it was enough.
With a haughty smile on his face, Mr.White put his hands in his pockets and rocked on his feet. “Now, Ms. Karlsen, you can’t say I’m not a man of my word. Give me the code.”
The circle of men tightened around her again. What did they think? That she’d sprout wings and fly away?
When she hesitated, Mr.White got in her face. “Give me the code, now!”
The punch to her gut was unexpected; the pain of it robbing her of breath, making her cough as she fell to her knees. Her head buzzed as she tried to catch her breath and she wasn’t sure she’d heard correctly when a loud boom sounded. Her vision cleared when something heavy fell by her side. It was a masked guard.
Her brain took a few seconds before the shouting and gunfire finally made sense. It was at that moment someone roughly dragged her up. Mr.White. There was an attack, and he was using her as a human shield, barking orders to his men against her ear.
“Take that bastard down! Now!”
The vigilante. Elation almost overtook her, but Mr.White’s grip tightened around her, reminding her she was far from saved.
The gunfire all around her was deafening, rendering it impossible to guess where the vigilante was attacking from. Was he alone? Most of Mr.White’s forces disappeared from view when they reached the opposite side of a container. With two guards remaining, Orla knew she was still outnumbered, and couldn’t wait on her savior.
When he finally released her, or rather let her fall on the ground, Orla used all her strength to bounce up and tackle him. With her unexpected move, White fell back, and Orla’s goal was to make sure he stayed down. With all her might, she started punching him, aiming primarily at his face. For the hits she got in, the pain of bone hitting bone, and the incredible satisfaction of shattering his nose and having his blood covering her fist, was worth it.
But it was short-lived as someone pulled her by the hair. Nonetheless, she continued to kick and even had the satisfaction of giving him a good kick in his balls.
Whoever had torn her from White caught her by the arm and threw her against the side of the container, her shoulder and head hitting the rusting wall hard enough for her to almost lose consciousness. This was the end. They didn’t need her, really. It was only a matter of time before they broke the code.
From the corner of her eye, she saw shadows moving, and her last thought was of the vigilante. Under his mask, she’d seen a good man, even if he was a criminal and a killer. His intent to protect Chicago was all she asked, all she hoped for. She wanted him alive and well, and to survive until he took care of Phantom, and even beyond. The memory of being in his arms, of his warmth surrounding her and his lips on her temple, were the images she clung to like a comforting blanket as she waited for the end.
“Orla!” It was his voice. The Vigilante. His voice without the modulator, as she’d heard it when he made love to her, over and over again, less than twelve hours ago. “Orla! Damn it!”
This time, when she looked up, the mask she saw was the one she’d never thought she wanted so much. “Hey!”
One knee on the ground, he almost picked her up when he gathered her in his arms. “Good God, woman. You shaved a few years off my life with that stunt.”
Before she could enjoy his hold, he held her at arm’s length. “Are you all right? I saw him slap you, punch you.”
Orla wanted to forget about that and instead looked around, searching for any sight of White, but the man had disappeared. The silence hit her then; all she could hear was the rustling of tall grass and bare branches in the autumn wind.
She saw new shadows emerging from the darkness. Standing a few feet away, Orla realized how similar they looked to the vigilante, wearing similar outfits, body armor, and masks, but there the comparison ended. She could see at least two of them were way bigger than the vigilante, one resembled a giant, and another was definitely a woman.
