Shadow

  Chapter Eight

  “Is all this really necessary?” asks the Japanese man sitting behind his desk.

  “If you want to live,” answers Century who is standing with his back to Yoshi Baino, the next targeted member.

  “But we have three guards in the hallway, two patrolling the stair well and two monitoring all elevator activities. Undercover patrolling the outer parameter, men on the roof and even a helicopter overlooking the building.”

  “And your point?”

  “This seems more like a prison then a place of business. And why in the world would she still come here with all of this?”

  “Cause she wants your head on a platter.”

  Baino’s mood changes, “Not funny Mr. Century.”

  “Not at all.”

  Century with his back still to Baino asks, “So what do you know about her assignment involving the tomb?”

  “Not much. It was only supposed to be a retrieval mission.”

  “Retrieving what?’

  “Some mythical object. But I don't even think the mission was real.”

  “Why not?”

  “Come on. A place sealed in time? I don't even believe the place existed.”

  “I know it existed.”

  “How are you so sure?”

  “That’s not important.”

  “As a board member, aren't you supposed to know all about the important missions? You’re not supposed to be left in the dark.”

  “Not in an ideal world, but the world we live in is far from ideal.”

  “Agreed.”

  It’s midsummer and Jack is waiting on a park bench for his girlfriend to show up. Jack thinks how ironic it is that the last time they had a meeting to reveal something big, she was the one nervous and holding earth moving news, but now it’s his turn. Betty has no clue why he asked her to meet him here. It’s a hassle to get out of the house but since its summer time, she has a small window when Mark is at work between lunch and the time he gets home because school is out. Betty walks up and sits next to him on the bench.

  “You look beautiful today,” he said to her. She smiles. It seems that Jack is the only person who can get her to smile.

  “Thank you. I wore this dress for you, but I got to change when I get home. Mark doesn't like it.”

  “You might not have to worry about that jerk much longer.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “I got amazing news, that why I wanted to tell you in person.”

  “What is it, Jack?”

  Jack says with a huge grim, “You're mother... she’s not dead.”

  Overwhelmed with emotion Betty cannot believe her ears. Even though she has allowed herself to dream this, now that it’s reality, all she can say is, “What?”

  “What? That's all you can say?”

  “I’m sorry... how? How is it possible? I saw her get shot and the ambulance took her away. She never came back.”

  “When you told me you couldn't remember much of what happened, I did some research. You used to live in a little town named Norris. After the shooting, Mark got a restraining order on your mother and later, because of her mental state, she was considered unfit. Mark won custody easily because of your mother’s huge state of depression. Then he moved you two here. She had no clue where you two had moved. Mark never told her.”

  “How did you find out all this?”

  “Well, your last name is not that common, and remember that I'm going to college to be a journalist. It took a while, but isn't it worth it?”

  “Yes it is! Jack, yes it is!”

  She gives him such a huge hug and kiss that they both fall off the bench onto to grass with her on top.

  “I love you, Jack!”

  “I love you too, Betty Jean!”

  They kiss, then she asks, “So did you talk to her?”

  “Yup.”

  “How is she?”

  “She went back to school, remarried and has one young son and can’t wait for her only daughter to come home.”

  Betty’s eyes opened wide, “What? You better not be kidding me. I have a little brother?”

  “Yes you do, and no I am not kidding you. She wanted to make sure you wanted to meet her too. Before she came here.”

  “Of course I want to, you silly head!”

  “Silly head?”

  “Yup, that’s what mom and I would call each other. So when is she gonna come here?”

  “Next Friday.”

  “For reals?”

  “Confirmed. The hallway is clear, no sign of her. Over.”

  The buzz of the walkie-talkie brings Shadow back to the current day. She is in a vent looking down into the hallways beneath. There is one man walking the hall and two in front of room G-50.

  Besides these men in the hall, there has been no one else on this floor for hours. Shadow looks at the watch on her wrist. It clashes with her outfit. It’s a Barbee watch. The stop watch display is doing a two minute countdown. Meanwhile back in the office, Century is standing looking out the window.

  “So do you have to stand in here the whole time?”

  “I have to make some business calls.”

  “So, make them.”

  “Well, they are business calls, as in private business calls.”

  “So, tell your mistress I said hi.”

  Baino is angry and turns his back to Century. The monotonousness of Baino tapping a pencil finally makes Century turn around. Baino hears this motion and turns around also. The look on Century’s face lets Baino know it’s time to put the pencil down.

  “So Mr. Century, why do you think she’s killing us off?”

  “Revenge.”

  “For what?”

  “For using her as a lab rat.”

  “No. I don’t believe that. I’ve seen her work, I was there the whole project and for her five years of service. She was very content.”

  “You wiped out her memory, why would she be anything but content? She was anything you programmed her to be.”

  “Exactly my point, how often does a computer get angry at the manufacturer? There wasn’t enough of the old her left to even remember her real name.”

  “Do you even remember her real name?”

  “No, and why should I?”

  Century hates people like Baino and has no problem expressing this fact, “And why am I protecting you?”

  Before Baino could answer there is a small explosion in the vent behind Baino’s desk. Smoke starts to pour into the room. Century takes a whiff, “Nerve Gas! Quick, we got to get you out of here!”

  The fumes have already started taking effect on the chairmen who was on the way to the floor. Century catches him before he collapses completely. Century throws him on his shoulder like a rug and heads through the door. He looks down the hall to his left and two bodies are laid out flat in the hall. The nearest exit in that direction is about two hundred feet. Century looks to his right, there’s only one body and the exit is fifty feet away. He heads that direction. As he is running, he passes underneath Shadow and she drops from the vent in which she was hidden. With one motion she removes the head of the board member Century was carrying. The motion was so quick and the blade so sharp that Century barely noticed it but he could feel that Baino suddenly lost several pounds, “Shit.”

  He lifts the body and finds it missing a main part, “Damn it!” He tosses the lifeless body to the ground. Century looks back at Shadow, who had the board members head held by its hair at arm’s length

  Century has seen a lot in his long life but what he sees in front of him makes him wonder even more what exactly is going on in her head. Shadow tips her head, as if she’s looking to notice something about the head. She frowns and growls, then tosses the head against the hallway wall. She runs toward the stairs.

  As Century gives chase he thinks,” What was that all about? Did she expect candy to fall out or something?”

  Shadow takes the stairwell and Century follows about two floors behi
nd. He’s gaining ground. She drops a smoke bomb similar to the ones on the roof. Century has no way to improve his vision against this, so as blind as a bat he continues down the stairs, tripping every so many steps. This slows his pace and he is no longer gaining ground. She continues one bomb every floor it seems. Century says, “Damn, how many of these does she have?”

  When Shadow reaches the lobby she opens the door and finds several guns aimed at her. She runs for the main door. As she is running she tosses ninja stars with deadly accuracy as bullets fly past her. Four security guards have received stars to their head and/or neck. Two others caught them with their chest. Back up had arrived. This left six more guards shooting at her. Back on the stairwell, Century trips over the body of the guard who was patrolling the stairwell. This sends him crashing into the wall. Luckily this was the lobby floor. He opens the door to see Shadow executing several back flips with the grace and skill that an Olympic gold medalist would have been jealous of.

  “Wow, pretty impressive. But you’re not getting away this time.”

  She finishes this display by doing the splits in front of the entrance. She drops two high-powered grenades, one on each side of her. She stands and exits through the glass revolving doors.

  Century yells, “Everyone get down!” He is running towards the door. The explosion sends glass shrapnel through the air. Plants, curtains, and rugs catch fire, while smoke flows from the front of the building through all the spots where glass used to be. Century runs full bore out of the front of the building where the revolving door used to be. He is unharmed and in hot pursuit of Shadow. Shadow crosses the street and Century is about twenty feet away and gaining. Shadow dives into a bush and two seconds later Century leaps at the same bush, “Gotcha!”

  But he was one second to late, Shadow roars out of the bush on a motorcycle and Century catches nothing but dirt. He pounds his fist on the ground as he is forced to watch her speed away.