Danni California, Part 28

Continued from Part 27, here.
Start the story here.

* * *

At this point, Jasper, the man in black, sat back, lowering his stack of meticulously typed up papers down onto the table in front of him.  His eyes came up to survey his stunned audience.

Whether she was truly the first to find her voice again, or if Old Hillpaw simply let her speak, Jenny became the one to break the silence.  "It... exploded?" she asked, sounding more bewildered than anything else.

Jasper nodded.

The waitress shook her head.  "But... but why?"

Danni California, Part 27

Continued from Part 26, here.
Start the story here.

* * *

The metal grappling hook sailed out, trailing rope behind it as it flew away from the building.  I stared after it, feeling the rope flying out through my fingers and watching the little black dot zoom away.

It landed on the closest nearby building, and I heard a clink as it hit.  I waited a moment, feeling the rope drop to slackness, and then carefully gave the line in my hands a gentle tug.

For a heart-stopping second, it slid loosely, suggesting that the grappling hook had failed to catch on a target.  But then, just as I cursed and prepared myself to haul it in for another throw, I felt the line suddenly flex with tension.

Danni California, Part 26

Continued from Part 25, here.
Start the story here.

* * *

Both Jenny and Old Hillpaw audibly gasped.  "What?" they both stammered out in unison, staring at the man in black.

Jasper couldn't help grinning at the stunned looks on his audience's faces.  "Wait," he said, glancing back down at the pages in front of him.

"It will make more sense soon."

Danni California, Part 25

Continued from Part 24, here.
Start the story here.

* * *

Inside the tower, the receptionist behind the counter was already rising to her feet.  The Organization didn't pay a full Priest to sit behind the front counter and take messages, but every employee went through basic training.  Everyone was supposed to know how to fight back in an emergency.

For some people, however, that training was a while ago, and there's been no call for that information in their head ever since.  They get rusty.

I put a hole in the woman's head from across the lobby before she had taken two steps away from her chair.

Danni California, Part 24

Continued from Part 23, here.
Start the story here.

* * *

The next morning, I rose solemnly from where I had spent the night sitting on the floor.  My joints felt stiff for a moment as I stretched them, but they quickly limbered up.  I still went through the full range of exercises, making sure that I had a full range of motion for all of my limbs.

Once all of my muscles were loose and ready for action, I began to dress myself.

I didn't let myself stop to consider that this might be the last time I ever did so.

First, I pulled on the lightweight armored vest I had picked up.  It wouldn't stop a direct slug, I knew, but it might slow down and deflect shrapnel or ricochets.  More importantly, it let me keep the flexibility and speed that I knew would be my best defense.

Next came the two belts of ammunition, bandoliers that slung across my chest.  I made sure to tighten the straps so that they wouldn't catch on anything.  I couldn't let them slow me down.  The bullets slid into their little leather loops weighed me down a little, but I knew that the belts would grow lighter as I expended their contents.

The revolvers slid snugly into their matched shoulder harnesses.  I made sure that they were loose enough for me to draw in a single, fluid motion, without any snags.

To cover it all, I pulled an item from the bottom of my pack.  I hadn't worn my Priest coat in weeks, now.  To do so would be to draw attention to myself.  That wasn't what I wanted.

But now, for my destination, it would serve as my camouflage.

And finally, finishing the ensemble, I pulled out my old black, flat-brimmed hat.  Its time in the pack had flattened and crushed its shape somewhat, but I smoothed it back out with my hands.  Only once it was once again somewhat crisp, as best as I could manage, did I carefully fit it on my head.

I was walking into the place where I would be most known, most likely to be recognized.  Every other man and woman in the building would know me, would instantly know the price on my head.  Each second of anonymity I could buy was precious.

I looked around the room, gazing down at the bed for several minutes.  I didn't speak.  What else was there for me to say?

And then I left.

The sun was still barely a red shard above the horizon, and the streets were not yet filled with people.  It was nearly silent as I made my way through the maze of little back roads I'd mapped out.  My eyes remained up on the horizon, locked on the black tower that rose up from the other buildings, directly ahead of me.

The Organization.

My first challenge lay in front of the tower.  A large courtyard, covered in stone, with no cover, stood between me and my destination.  Even in building their headquarters, the Priests had thought defensively, strategically.

Despite my focus, my heart quickened slightly in my chest as I began crossing the courtyard.  Keep calm, betray nothing, I thought to myself.  Don't let anyone question you.

I made it more than halfway across the courtyard before someone noticed me.

"Hey, you're coming in early!" a voice called out behind me, nearly making me jump in surprise before I clamped down on my reactions before they could betray me.  "Wait up a moment!"

The other Priest jogged forward; I could hear his footsteps on the smooth stones.  It wasn't until he came up alongside me that he slowed, and I saw his expression shift from open greeting to one of confusion.

"Wait a sec," he said, his brow furrowing.  "Hold on, aren't you the rebel-"

I spun towards him, my hand flashing out.  The knife blade extending from my fist buried itself to the hilt in his neck, silencing him forever.

But now, my cover was blown.  The man's body sagged, his eyes already glazing over.  I pulled the bloody knife free, but the man was dead weight, and he sagged down onto the ground.  Already, blood spurted out from his body to puddle beneath him.

As soon as I'd released him, I broke into a run.  I was scarcely thirty paces from the front doors of the tower.  I could make it.

Thankfully, luck was on my side.  There were guards stationed outside the front doors of the Organization's tower, of course, but their reactions were slowed, by some combination of the early hour and their surprise at a direct frontal assault by a lone man.  My knife cut deep across the left guard's throat before he could even draw his weapon.

The right guard was drawing his gun, but I didn't slow down.  I spun around, pulling my arm back in against my chest to increase my speed, and let go of the knife with my hand tilted sideways.

The blade flew true, disappearing into the other man's chest.

I got to see the man's eyes go wide as he tried to sluggishly comprehend what had just happened.  He looked down, down at the handle protruding out from his chest.  He opened his mouth, trying to say something, or maybe ask me a question.

I reached out and grabbed the handle of the knife, pulling it free.

It was as if I'd flipped a switch.  With the blade out of his chest, the other guard slowly toppled forward, falling to the ground like a felled tree.

I didn't watch him drop.

My eyes were up, on the doors leading into the tower.  I didn't see any panicked movement inside, not yet.

That would soon change.

The time for subtlety was over.  I drew one of my revolvers, wiped my knife blade clean of the blood and tucked it away.  I took a deep breath, several breaths, filling my muscles with oxygen.

And then I entered the tower.

To be continued . . . 

Danni California, Part 23

Continued from Part 22, here.
Start the story here.

* * *

When I arrived in the Iron Range, finally reaching my destination, obtaining the supplies I needed proved to be surprisingly easy.

Gunpowder and dynamite both were in no short supply, and in these areas, a little extra money could ensure no questions about the purchase.  I still made certain to buy from several different vendors, not allowing any of them to know the true amounts of explosive I obtained, but the extra caution didn't seem necessary.

Danni California, Part 22

Continued from Part 21, here.
Start the story here.

* * *

For just a moment, as the air turned to fire around me and violently threw me back, all I saw was blinding light.

An instant later, I hit the ground, the violent blow knocking the air from my lungs and splaying out my limbs.  My brain was already racing, however, and I scrabbled like a spider to get up.

Once back on my feet, however, my hand dropped away from my side, away from where it had rested on the butt of my revolver.

There was nothing left for me to fight.

Danni California, Part 21

Continued from Part 20, here.
Start the story here.

* * *

The next morning, both Jenny and Old Hillpaw kept their eyes glued to the door.  Each time it opened, they both turned and looked, wondering if the man in black was even going to show up and finish his story.

A little later that morning, however, the man in black came in, making no fuss and heading over to his usual table.  Both the waitress and the old man at the bar managed to hold back for several seconds before they headed over.

Danni California, Part 20

Continued from Part 19, here.
Start the story here.

* * *

The first step in my plan, as I explained to Danni on our first night back in civilization since the train crash, was getting our hands on supplies.

"We can't just go around buying up everything and showing our faces," I explained as I rubbed stable dirt into the creases on my face, checking my reflection in the silvered glass piece in the hotel room.  "We have to assume that the Organization knows that I'm with you, and they'll be watching for either of us - or, even worse, both of us together."

The hotel that we had chosen was slightly nicer than the average, and I'd circled carefully through the town streets before I decided that it was acceptable.  The building was tall but didn't stand next to any comparable adjacent structures, preventing infiltration.  The manager and staff were paid well enough to ensure the privacy of their visitors, but not so well that they wouldn't accept a bribe to make sure they kept their mouths shut.

Against the Priests, however, I didn't know how much good that bribe would do.  When a man's got a gun to his head and he can feel the last few seconds of his life trickling away, money tends to not matter too much to him any longer.

Danni California, Part 19

Continued from Part 18, here.
Start the story here.

* * *

At the latest revelation from the man in black, Jenny let out a gasp, her eyes going wide and looking as though she was about to topple off her chair.

"You shot another Priest?" she exclaimed, her voice loud enough to make another couple patrons glance around.

Old Hillpaw, perhaps possessing a bit more self-preservation instinct than the young waitress, hurriedly shushed the woman.  "Keep your voice down, girl!" he hissed.  "That kind of talk still gets folks into hot water!"

Danni California, Part 18

Continued from Part 17, here.
Start the story here.

* * *

When I next awoke, I was able to sit up, groggily lifting up my hand to press it against my forehead.  My eyes scanned around and I saw that I was still in the same room, still sprawled out across the same rough bunk, as where I last remembered being, just as Danni...

Danni had kissed me!  My mind seized onto that fact, clung to it like a drowning sailor clings to a spar of wood.  There were a million other thoughts circling around the periphery of that fact, a million ways to interpret it, but I didn't let them emerge from the shadows.

Looking around, my eyes caught a flash of red-orange hair.  There she was!  But as I turned towards her, I immediately saw that something was wrong.

Danni California, Part 17

I wonder how long this is going to end up being...

Continued from Part 16, here.
Start the story here.

* * *

When I next woke up, my first thought was a fervent wish that I had remained unconscious.

Everything was pain, almost blinding, sparks of red and white shooting across the blackness of my inner eyelids.  I couldn't hold myself still, and immediately curled forward, wincing and gritting my teeth to keep from screaming.

Then I felt something cool and damp press against my forehead, and a soothing voice murmured words I couldn't understand.

I opened my eyes.

Danni California, Part 16

Continued from Part 15, here.
Start the story here.

* * *

Most people, seeing the bridge ahead of their speeding train explode in a wave of fiery ignition, might have paused in shock, gasped, or wasted time on some other useless activity.

Those people weren't trained Priests.

As soon as my eyes registered that burst of flame, I knew the train was going down.  I spun around, rising up from my seat as I shoved my gun roughly back into its holster and out of the way.  One arm shot out, wrapping into a fist around a handful of Danni's shirt, and I hauled her up and out of the compartment.

A moment later, even despite the screeching of brakes as the train conductor frantically attempted to bring the massive vehicle to a halt, I felt us starting to tip.

The train was going over the edge.

Danni California, Part 15

Continued from Part 14, here.
Start the story here.

* * *

Jenny still didn't look fully convinced, but the young woman knew her place.  She closed her mouth, and although the man in black could tell that she was still full of unasked questions, she chose to let him continue with his story.

So, after giving her one last second to expel any outbursts, the man began speaking again.

*

I slid into the luxury car compartment across from Danni, making sure that she saw my pistol drawn and pressed against my thigh.  "One wrong move, and I'll shoot you before you can even think of standing up," I warned her.

The girl barely spared the gun a glance.  "I'm sure, Priest," she replied back to me, tossing her hair back over her shoulder.  She was the picture of carefree.

I waited perhaps a second longer, and then opened my mouth again.  "What do you have to say?" I asked.

Danni pursed her lips for a minute before replying.  "It just seems a bit cliche, doesn't it?" she finally remarked.  "I mean, I'm out here running around, living life, and you're the plodding hunter, sent here to chase after me and put an end to my fun."

"Fun?  You're stealing people's livelihoods!" I exploded back, surprising even myself with the intensity of my reply.  "Don't you think this is the punishment you deserve?"

But as soon as the words were out of my mouth, the girl was leaning forward, her eyes alive with blazing fire.  "I'm not stealing from anyone who doesn't have enough to give it up!" she shot back, glaring at me.  "The bank replaces all the money - and besides, if we all weren't dirt poor, I wouldn't be bothering with theft in the first place!"

"We?" I repeated.

Danni waved an arm around her.  "What, you don't think I'm hauling all my ill-gotten gains around with me, do you?" she asked, her tone making this remark seem cuttingly obvious.  "Where do you think it all goes?"

To my surprise, it was a question I hadn't considered.  And as I tried to figure out the answer, feeling my brain squirm as it was forced down new and unexpected pathways, Danni leaned forward.  She reached out, and I jumped slightly as her fingers landed on my knees.  My gun was still resting along one thigh, but she ignored it completely.  Her eyes burned holes straight through mine, into my soul.

"There are people, thousands of people, starving and dying out there," she murmured to me, her eyes not blinking or pulling away.  "There's no one helping them.  No one except me."

For a long moment, I was paralyzed.  I could do nothing but gaze into the bright, burning eyes of this young woman in front of me.

Finally, one of her hairs shifted a little, crossing her gaze, and the moment broke.  "That may be," I retorted, staring back at her, "but this isn't the way to help them.  You're going to get caught, and they'll be right back where they started."

The girl didn't back down.  "Caught by you?  Because this doesn't seem so bad."

I shook my head.  "After I missed, that first time, the Company sent others after you," I told her.  "They're probably hunting you, right now - I doubt they're far behind me."

"And what would they do?  Storm the train?" the girl asked.  Fortunately, she didn't ignore the serious tone of my voice, and she glanced around.

Once again, I shook my head back and forth.  "Trust me - I'm selective compared to some of their methods.  They're not above dynamiting the entire track, not caring about collateral damage."

Leaning forward, I glanced out the window of the train car.  "There - see that bridge, up ahead?  A few sticks of dynamite at the base of that, and the whole train would go tumbling into the river below.  A few hundred deaths, but you're the only death that matters.  That's a likely choice."

I caught Danni starting to open her mouth to reply, but before she could speak, a flash of orange lanced into my sight.

And just ahead of the train, that bridge I had pointed out was now disintegrating in a roar of flame...

To be continued . . . 

Danni California, Part 14

Continued from Part 13, here.
Start the story here.

* * *

With my gun in my hand, turned slightly at an angle to present less of a target, I stepped into the luxury car of the train.

I had seen the flash of red hair through the window before I entered, and my senses were on high alert.  The high seats here obstructed my view, making it impossible to see where Danni had gone, but I knew that she had to be here somewhere.  My instincts were screaming at me, warning me to be ready.

Beneath my feet, I could feel the rhythmic rattle of the train as it rolled over the tracks, the whole car shaking slightly side to side.  I had to be aware of that motion, of how it could potentially throw off my aim.  I needed to sense it, to let the motion into me so that I could compensate for it when I took the shot.

Danni California, Part 13

Continued from Part 12, here.
Start the story here.

* * *

I didn't even bother to call this sighting of Danni in to the Organization.  I had too many other thoughts, too many other conflicting questions in my head to deal with first.

I couldn't deny to myself that now I was obsessed.  There were others out there, after Danni, but I had to get to her first.  I was going to beat the rest of them out, no matter how much of me it took.

"But why?" asked the little voice in the back of my head, still slinking around at the periphery of my mind.  "Are you looking for her to kill her?  You've failed at that twice already.  And if you want her dead, why does it matter whether the bullet comes from your gun or from another's?"

I didn't have answers to those questions.  But I was still determined, driven despite not knowing why I was so motivated.

Danni California, Part 12

Continued from Part 11, here.
Start the story here.

* * *

I stared up at the fiery-haired girl on the floor above me.  Danni's gun aimed right at my face, and I knew that my time had run out.

"Sorry, but it's you or me," the girl repeated - and before I could even open my mouth, her finger tightened.  She pulled the trigger.

The gun clicked.

Danni California, Part 11

Continued from Part 10, here.
Start the story here.

* * *

A month later, I caught up with Danni.

A girl with fiery red hair, a Southern twang in her voice, and far too much cash to throw around.  It wasn't the easiest trail to follow, but Danni was certainly recognizable - and she didn't bother to change her name, either.  Slowly but surely, I hunted after her as she fled west.

When I finally found her, she was just on the east side of the Rocky mountains, making her way through the mining towns.  Always with her big .45 cannon ready, of course - that detail stuck out even more strongly than anything else.  No matter what the big, strong man in front of you might say, he remembers staring down the barrel of that gun.

Danni California, Part 10

Continued from Part 9, here.
Start the story here.

* * *

I knew two things that I hadn't known before, I reflected, as I leaned back against the springs of the uncomfortable hotel bed.  The springs beneath me squeaked and groaned in protest against my weight, but I paid them little mind.  I had slept on far worse.

First, I knew the girl's name.  Danni, she was called.  The girl had an accomplice, a boy waiting outside with a stolen car, and some of the bystanders heard him call out her name.

The name wouldn't do me much good, however, now that I knew the second fact.

Danni had flown the coop.  She was nowhere to be found in Indiana.

Danni California, Part 9

Continued from Part 8, here.
Start the story here.

* * *

Two weeks later, I was in Indiana, sitting outside and sipping at a cup of lukewarm tea.  The tea was not especially good, and there was still a chill in the spring air - but the view from my table was just perfect.

I picked up the cup of tea, lifted it to my lips, and repressed a shudder as the foul liquid hit my tongue.  And they had the gall to charge for this?  I was half tempted to demand my money back.  Indiana wasn't that far from New York, but the hicks out here had definitely lost something in translation.