Chapter 21 #2
"No. But I wanted to give the option." Koda shifted, pulling a cell from his back pocket. He tapped the screen and then pressed it to his ear. "Bring her in."
Sterling froze. He'd gladly die for a lot of people in this world. It wasn't just because it's who he’d been trained to be. It was who he was at his core. But there were only two women in his life that he would do absolutely anything for without even asking why he was doing it.
His mother, and now, Juniper.
He fixed his stare on the door as it opened way too slowly.
Juniper crossed the threshold with her hands behind her back and her chin up.
"You motherfucking asshole." Sterling twisted, yanking his arms, not giving a shit that he was ripping his skin.
"I've been called worse," Koda said.
Her hair was loose around her face and abnormally messy. There was a cut at the corner of her mouth and a bruise on her cheek, neither of which had been there this morning.
The woman standing behind her had gray hair. She was fit, and if Sterling was forced to guess her age, he'd say she was somewhere between fifty and fifty-five. But regardless, Sterling didn't like the angle of the gun she had pressed against Juniper’s side.
"Where do you want her?" the woman asked.
"In a chair next to me." Koda snapped his fingers, and Charlie actually moved like he was on fire.
He raced across the room, yanked open a folding chair, and placed it about four feet from Koda.
The woman guided Juniper to the chair and shoved her a little too harshly into it.
"Are you going to introduce us?" Nick asked.
"This is Bea," Juniper said. "My handler."
"I'm not fond of the way she's handling you." Sterling continued to work his hands, but the zip-ties weren't budging.
"Now, bring me that black case," Koda said. "And bring the table too."
"I got it." Doyle pushed off the pallet. He curled his fingers under the small table and dragged it, screeching, across the floor.
Sterling hated that noise.
Doyle yanked his cell from his back pocket, tapped the screen as he paced in front of Sterling and Nick.
"Is there a problem? Is there something more pressing?" Koda asked.
"Still have a job. Still have cases I'm working," Doyle said. "Don't I Rutgers?"
"He does, and one of them can be a little needy at times." Rutgers shifted, pushing the laptop and then went back to typing. "Whatever it is, deal with it quickly."
"Yes, sir." Doyle tapped a few more times, then dropped his hand to his side, holding the screen so Sterling could see it.
Interesting.
But was even more interesting was the text string—to Dawson.
Location. Situation. Number of guns.
What the fuck was Doyle doing? And why?
"I really don't want to have to do this the hard way. But I will." Koda stood and slowly opened the black case. Inside, were syringes, vials, tape, tools that operatives used in torture that wasn't allowed in any kind of situation. It was considered a war crime to do so.
"Do you honestly believe I've never been captured and tortured before?" Juniper asked. "You can make me scream and bleed all you want, and I'll tell you what you want to hear, because that's what happens when you hurt people. But what do you think that’s going to do to Sterling?"
"Create cooperation." Koda yanked her chair closer to the table and held up a pair of shears strong enough to cut fingers. "Bea, you have the honors."
Bea held up her hands. "I'm not going to do your dirty work." She shook her head.
"Oh, yes you are." He shoved the shears closer.
"Fuck you," Bea said. "I've done everything you've asked. But I'm not going to cut off the fingers of one of my best agents."
Everyone looked.
"I'll do it." Doyle shoved his cell in his pocket, but not before Sterling saw the thumbs up text from Dawson.
Juniper's eyes went wide. Her lips parted. She glanced between Doyle and Sterling.
There wasn't much Sterling could do to ease her fear. Doyle was either on their side, or he wasn't. Based on the text, he was, which was weird, but maybe he'd grown a conscience. Stranger things had happened.
"But I want you to acknowledge that I stepped up." Doyle waved the shears. "I want credit, and I don't want to get passed over next time."
"We'll talk after."
"No. I want your word, now," Doyle said.
So, maybe Doyle wasn't to be trusted. Jesus, he was giving Sterling whiplash.
"Alright. You have my word," Koda said.
Doyle took the shears.
"You're a real piece of work," Juniper said.
"I'm aware." Doyle stood behind her.
Sterling pulled against the zip-tie until plastic dragged fire across both wrists. It got him nowhere. His shoulders were locked too tight behind the post, and his lungs had decided breathing was optional.
Koda stood four feet from Juniper, just off to the left. He fucking smiled, and Sterling wanted so badly to punch him and knock out his perfectly straight teeth.
“You can make this stop anytime,” Koda said. "Agree to be mine, and instead of hurting her, we’ll end her quick."
"You're going to kill all of us anyway, might as well get it over with," Sterling said.
"Torture isn't going to change that. And it's me you're going to have to put the pain to, because the real problem is I don't make attachments.
He rolled his neck. "That's why the government let me walk the way they did.
They knew I'd never care for any one person so much I couldn't stand to be without them.
I'd pretend to, like I did with that one.
" He hated himself for the words that dribbled from his lips.
He could only hope that Juniper knew they weren't true.
"But at the end of the day, you can kill her, Nick too, and I'll live.
I'm still not gonna tell you what you want to know.
I won't be happy about it. But it's what I signed up for when I went to work for the CIA. "
"You're not a socio or psychopath," Bea said. "Your file is very clear about that. You have feelings. Real ones for real people."
"I never said I wasn't capable. Just said I didn't commit to feelings. There's a difference, Bea." Sterling lowered his chin. "You’d know about that considering you've dedicated your entire life to your job."
"Cut her finger off," Bea said.
"This is going to be fun." Koda rubbed his hands together.
Rutgers stopped staring at his computer. And Pike inched closer.
Doyle opened the shears, the movement creating a thick metallic scrape.
Sterling swallowed as the shears disappeared behind Juniper's body.
The next sound was the brutal, unmistakable crack of metal jaws biting together with enough kinetic force to crush bone into powder.
For half a second, nobody moved. There was no scream. No blood dripping to the concrete floor.
Then everything shifted. Sterling wasn't sure where to focus. His eyes shifted back and forth.
Doyle lunged at Koda, the shears driving into his side. Koda's eyes grew wide with shock as blood immediately soaked his shirt. He glanced down, hands grabbing wildly for Doyle.
Juniper leapt from the chair at the same time Bea dove for her.
Juniper swiped her hand across the table.
A glass vial hit the floor and shattered.
Two syringes rolled. In a matter of seconds, Bea had her hands around Juniper's throat, but before she could get a proper hold on her, Juniper flipped her to her back.
She reached for the pre-loaded syringe as she sat on Bea.
"You bitch," Bea said.
Sterling twisted and jerked, fear for Juniper numbing the agonizing sensation of his skin tearing away.
Koda had dropped to his knees, and Doyle hauled him backward, one arm across his chest, the bloody blades tucked under his jaw while Pike and Rutgers aimed weapons at him.
“I wouldn't do that if I were you,” Doyle said, “put the guns down, or I slice his throat wide open.”
Charlie had disappeared, which wasn't a good thing. Probably hiding somewhere with a firearm pointed at someone's head. Or maybe he was just a coward.
Pike turned, disappearing behind the forklift. Rutgers knocked over his computer as he flipped the table and ducked behind it.
Strategic planning and smart. Sterling would've done the same thing. But what he needed to do right now was get out of these fucking zip-ties. He twisted hard, and the plastic chewed deeper. Blood slid warm along his thumb.
"What the hell have you done?" Bea demanded, her voice suddenly raspy.
Sterling shifted his gaze.
Juniper rocked back on her heels, dropping her hands at her side, syringe sticking out of Bea's thigh. "I have no idea. But you were going to let Doyle chop off my fingers and then kill me." She leaned forward. "Don't care that he got cold feet. That was the plan."
Bea opened her mouth, but no words came out. Only a gargle.
"I'm gonna kill you, Malone," Koda said as Doyle zip-tied his wrists and ankles, then propped him up against the far wall.
“Better men than you have tried.” Doyle turned and pulled a sidearm off the table.
Pop!
His body jerked. Doyle grabbed his side, and dove behind the table.
The shot had come from behind the forklift.
"You okay, Doyle?" Nick called.
"Just a graze," Doyle said.
Juniper shimmied across the floor and leaned against the post, snapping his zip-ties, and freeing his hands.
Pop!
That shot came from the far side of the room. They barely had enough cover.
"I need to get to Nick." She leaned forward, freeing his legs.
"You got a weapon for me?" Sterling asked.
"I got a knife, and shears."
"Here." Doyle kicked a rifle and handgun across the floor. "That's all I got. You three are gonna have to share."
"I'll get Nick. You stay here." He pressed the small firearm into her hand. "We're outgunned but not outmanned."
"That's one way to look at it."
Sterling took a deep breath then raced the ten paces to Nick.
Pop. Pop.
He jerked his shoulder as the first shot grazed his arm. The second missed all together.
Fucking assholes.
Nick had his cheek pressed to the post, blood dried along his jaw. “You okay?”
“Pissed off.”