"Sam! There are cops at the gate. They’re demanding entrance, wielding weapons," the shortest of the group pants while sliding to a halt.
"Do they have a subpoena?" Sam asks reasonably. I’m glad the camera is running and I know Jimmy is getting an eyeful. This must be what he was trying to tell me when I tuned him out. Oh well. I sure hope the kid has enough sense to grab the extra betacam and catch the action at the gate with it.
"No. They said they have probable cause and they’re not taking no for an answer."
As I pan back from Sam’s close-up to take in the whole group, I see an odd smile on Scamp’s thin lips. "And so it begins."
Huh?
We don’t consider his vague statement for very long before the men in the group that just came up the stairs all pull guns. In a blink of an eye, their short spokesman is shot in the back. Another crack of gunshot leaves Sam on the ground.
"Jesus Christ," I yell. I reach out my free hand towards Kelsey and am relieved when I feel the soft flesh of her hand meet my palm.
I close my fingers and pull her towards me, wanting her close to me and far away from them. When I take the time to focus again through the camera, I see a gun pointed right at us and Scamp grinning behind the barrel.
Jimmy’s babbling in my ear again and I try to tune him out as I tuck Kelsey behind me. She’s not willing to be protected and stubbornly remains at my side.
"You! Camera ladies," Scamp calls out. "You’ll come in handy. Pete, lock ‘em up."
Pete steps forward with a semi-automatic weapon and jabs me in the ribs.
"Turn that off for now," Scamp demands.
I think about arguing with him but something tells me this isn’t wise, and the batteries are almost completely drained by now. Protesting will get me nothing but broken ribs and no good footage. Not a good exchange. I take the camera off my shoulder without stopping it and let it focus on the linoleum at our feet but giving Jimmy all the sound he wants.
"Move it," Pete grabs for Kelsey’s arm but that damn chivalry I find in me when the blonde’s around makes me reach out and knock his hand away.
"Don’t touch us," I warn him. "We’ll do what you want."
Pete eyes me for a long moment, as if determining some kind of response. I wonder briefly if I’ve made a mistake.
"Get moving!" Scamp shouts over Sam’s shouts of pain. "Don’t mess with ‘em, Pete."
Our captor seems to be willing to abide by his leader’s requests and motions to the stairwell with his weapon.
We’re escorted from the building, across the chaotic compound, and to a smaller structure. I switch off the camera now, the antenna won’t work inside the building.
Once inside, our ‘escort’ points to a soiled corner. "Camera goes there."
"No way."
He levels the gun at my midsection. "Camera goes there."
I glance at Kelsey. "Can’t argue with that logic, can I?" I put the camera, the kit, the tripod, the antenna and everything else we’ve been carrying down in the corner gently. That’s a helluva lot of money invested in that squalid space right now.
Pete opens a door and shoves us into a tiny room, slamming the door behind us.
The room is nothing more than an oversized closet and is lit from a bare dangling bulb in the middle. The walls and floor are all seamless grey concrete. Looking up proves to me the ceiling offers no better possibilities. We hear the ominous sound of a deadbolt and chain behind us.
I glance over to Kelsey who is also taking in our surroundings, shaking her head. Slowly our eyes meet and hers look suddenly sad.
"Just another story, huh?" she asks with a raised eyebrow.
<to be continued>
Episode Nine: The Long Kiss Goodnight
Scenes from last week’s episode
"What’s up, Little Roo?" I nod to the package she has in her hand.
"Dramamine. I don’t fly well."
"You’re afraid of flying?"
"Not afraid, really. It’s more of a claustrophobic issue."
"Then," I lean over and whisper, "aren’t you glad you came out of the closet?"
<cut to>
As I pan back from Sam’s close-up to take in the whole group, I see an odd smile on Scamp’s thin lips. "And so it begins."
Huh?
We don’t consider his vague statement for very long before the men in the group that just came up the stairs all pull guns. In a blink of an eye, their short spokesman is shot in the back. Another crack of gunshot leaves Sam on the ground.
"Jesus Christ," I yell. I reach out my free hand towards Kelsey and am relieved when I feel the soft flesh of her hand meet my palm.
<cut to>
Pete opens a door and shoves us into a tiny room, slamming the door behind us.
The room is nothing more than an oversized closet and is lit from a bare dangling bulb in the middle. The walls and floor are all seamless grey concrete. Looking up proves to me the ceiling offers no better possibilities. We hear the ominous sound of a deadbolt and chain behind us.
I glance over to Kelsey who is also taking in our surroundings, shaking her head. Slowly our eyes meet and hers look suddenly sad.
"Just another story, huh?" she asks with a raised eyebrow.
Episode Nine: The Long Kiss Goodnight
It’s chilly when I wake. I can’t help but shake a little bit. The tiny room is empty except for Harper and me. There are no windows in this little room, just one naked bulb that hangs from the ceiling by a wire which looks like it could give at any second. This is a bad cliché. Jail was better than this. I try to sit up wondering when they’re going to come kill us, if the room doesn’t do me in first. I shiver again.
"C’mere." Her voice is soft and comes from the corner. I manage to focus on Harper. She’s leaning with her back against the wall, holding her hand out to me. "C’mere, Kels. You’re cold. I’m not going to feel you up."
I slowly scoot across the cold concrete floor to her and she wraps her arms around me as she settles her jacket over us. The leather is already warm from her body heat and it instantly feels good. "Thanks," I whisper as I lay my head on her shoulder. Under any other circumstance I bet I could really get into this, provided I was drunk as hell and out of my mind. Right now, though, all I want is her body warmth.
"You’re welcome."
"Harper? Do you think they are going to kill us?"
"Nah, cher, never." Her New Orleans accent comes out stronger with this reassurance. She looks down and gives me a smile. I like both the smile and the accent. "We’ll be fine, just fine." Her arms tighten around me, holding me close.
God, I never really noticed how good she smells before. Even after a day of not showering she still has a scent that is simply, well, for lack of a better word and noted in a purely detached manner, erotic. I can’t really describe it well without not doing it justice. It reminds me of the smell of summer rain and winter nights by the fireplace, all natural and primal and musky. No wonder she has women lining up at her bedroom door.
The door rattles as a key enters the lock. I jerk away from Harper, immediately missing her warmth. She lets me keep the jacket though. The last thing I want to do is give these maniacs any additional reason to hurt us; somehow I figure being lesbian is a big no-no here.
When the door opens, an armed guard lets a small brunette woman into the room with a tray of food. She sets it on the floor and slides it into the room without a word. They back out and the door closes again. Glad to see the Women’s Movement is alive and well in Omaha.
Harper pulls the tray over and uncovers it. "Hmm … looks like we’re going to live for sure."