She nods and takes in everything I just said.
“So, there was no way you could’ve gone after the other guy?” she asks.
I shake my head. “Not without being killed, no.”
She nods slowly. “Okay.”
“You sure? It seems like something’s bothering you about it?”
“I just…” she sighs. “I wouldn’t have forgiven myself, or you, if coming to save me meant innocent people suffered and died at the hands of some lunatic extremist.”
I smile. You can’t help but love her.
“Babe, I’ll do whatever I can to stop these assholes, but there’s no way I’d want to save the world if you weren’t gonna be in it. End of story.”
She’s quiet for a moment, and then the smile creeps across her face.
“Adrian, you’re a very… impressive man. And I love you.”
I feel my cheeks flush slightly, which I’m very glad Josh isn’t around to see.
“I love you, too,” I say.
“Right, now what was that crazy bitch going on about before?” she asks, her mood changing in the blink of an eye. “You killed her father?”
I sigh. “Yeah, I killed her Dad.”
“Why?”
“Because he was a terrorist who was trying to detonate a nuclear weapon in Nevada.”
“Oh, well… wait — wasn’t there something in the news a few years back about a bomb going off in Nevada?”
“The Nevada Incident?” I offer. “Heaven’s Valley?”
“Yeah, that’s right!”
I nod. “Yeah, that was me.”
“Holy shit! So, that thing she said about you being an assassin… is that for real?”
“It is. Or, it was. I retired. But that’s why those men originally came to the bar. They wanted to recruit me because they knew who I used to be.”
“And who did you used to be?”
“Adrian Hell.”
She’s silent for a moment, and then she bursts out laughing. A real belly laugh. She laughs so hard she stops breathing. Then she starts shaking and doubles over, wafting herself with her hand.
“Oh… my… God!” she says. “Adrian Hell? Really? Who thought up that name?”
I shift uncomfortably in my seat, unsure how to react. I think my feelings are hurt…
“Well, I did,” I reply. “What’s wrong with it?”
“You sound like a villain in those comic books!”
“Hey! I was, and still am, the most feared killer who ever lived, I’ll have you know.”
“That maybe so,” she says. “But, to me, you’re simply Adrian. You own a bar, and while you’re strong and tough, you’re the most loving man I know. I can’t imagine you being a… contract killer.”
“To be fair, I did just kill, like, thirty guys to rescue you… I hijacked a tank, Tori.”
“Like I said, tough and strong!”
She smiles, and I honestly don’t understand why she has no issue with my past.
“One more thing, then I’ll go back to kissing you,” she says.
“Shoot.”
“What happened to your wife and child?”
I take a deep breath. “Tori, I… that’s a long story. And to be honest, now isn’t the time. Do you mind?”
“I understand,” she says with a smile. “But I do want to know, okay?”
“Okay.”
The stewardess walks over and politely clears her throat. “Sir, I’m sorry to interrupt, but there’s a call for you.”
She hands me a cell phone, and I put it on speaker.
“Yeah?”
“Adrian,” says Josh. “You alright?”
“Yeah. Thanks for the plane.”
“No worries. Tori, are you there? How are you holdin’ up?”
“Hey Josh,” she says. “I’m fine, thank you.”
“Good. Both relieved Clara’s dead?”
“Honestly?” I say. “I can’t say I’m bothered either way.”
“Check it out — my boy’s all grown up!” Tori smiles at me, and I roll me eyes. Josh continues. “Listen, I’ve radioed the pilot and got him to re-direct your flight. We’ll meet you at Fort Worth.”
“Texas? What’s happening?”
“Tell you when you get here,” he says, somewhat cryptically. “Get some rest.”
“Okay, see you soon.” I hang up and look at Tori. “Something’s not right,” I say.
“What makes you say that?” she asks.
“My spider sense is tingling.”
“Your what?”
“My spider sense.”
She shakes her head and laughs. “My God, I got rescued by a cartoon character!”
I finish my beer, trying really hard not to take offense.
“Try to get some sleep,” I say to her. “You’ve been through a lot, and it’s a long flight. You need to get some rest.”
“So do you,” she says, curling up in her chair, tucking her legs underneath her and leaning back.
“I don’t have time to sleep.” I pick up the pile of papers and files that we took from the underground lab. “I need to prepare for when we land.”
Tori snaps awake as the pilot’s voice comes on over the speaker system to announce we’re half an hour out from Fort Worth. I look up from the papers, which have kept me distracted for the best part of six hours, and smile at her.
“Feel better?” I ask.
She nods and smiles back, looking half-asleep still. I gather up the papers I’d strewn across the table next to me and massage my temples. My head hurts. These files contain a lot of information. Some of it classified, but irrelevant. Some of it very relevant, and a little disturbing. But mostly, they served to help me piece together this whole mess and figure out who’s doing what, and why. And that’s why my head is hurting. I’m pretty sure I’m right about my conclusions, but I really don’t want to be.
“You manage to get any rest?” she asks me.
I shake my head, and she looks at me, full of sympathy.
“Honey, you really need to sleep. What’s it been? Twenty-four hours?”
“At least.”
“You’re going to be no use to anyone if you’re walking around half dead. When we land, you’re getting some rest before we do anything else. No arguing.”
“Tori, I can’t. This whole thing—”
“This whole thing can wait,” she says, interrupting me before I can protest further. “GlobaTech can handle it, or they can hand it over to the authorities and let them handle it. The whole world isn’t resting on your shoulders, Adrian, no matter how much you think otherwise.”
I try to smile, but I don’t manage it.
“Tori, that’s just it — right now, this whole thing is on my shoulders. GlobaTech basically doesn’t exist at the moment. Josh and Bob Clark are on the run because the NSA closed them down. The CIA has been trying to kill me for the last week or so. The government has been convinced it’s me behind all this, working with the bad guys, and I’ve been trying to figure out why their intel is so off. And thanks to all these,” I point to the papers next to me, “now I know. And we can’t trust the authorities. We can’t trust anyone.”