Chapter 46
This is not what Liz pictured Scott’s capture would look like. She had assumed the team would be cleared right away and they would be able to celebrate. But the reality is, his capture is just one small step in the fight, and they will never be able to fully undo all the harm he caused.
The room is somber. The team sits huddled around the fire, fighting off the demons of the day.
Once Liz had peeled herself out of her heavy jacket, she finally felt the searing pain and warm liquid coating her arm.
Riley insisted she let him take care of it.
Instead of joining her team, she is forced to sit on the rickety table while her arm is crudely stitched and bandaged.
She is lucky Riley was there, if he wasn’t, the bullet would have gone right through her heart instead of grazing her arm.
To her surprise, Scott stays silent the entire ordeal.
Liz wonders if he has something bigger planned, or if he truly knows it’s over for him.
She sucks in a sharp breath, hissing at the sting in her arm when Riley tightens the bandage just a touch too tight.
Hopping off the table, she mumbles under her breath, “Ass.”
“Don’t lose focus next time and I won’t need to sew you up, princess,” he retorts.
Her eyes drop to her feet, ashamed that he is right.
So much worse would have happened, all because she needed to see who lay beneath her boots.
He grips her chin, forcing her to look at him.
Tears well up when she meets his gaze. He doesn’t speak.
Doesn’t get mad or scold, simply kisses her forehead, lingering for a moment before pulling her into a tight hug.
“Reaper,” a voice calls out. Riley drops his arms. One more quick kiss, and he rushes to the radio on the opposite side of the room.
“Yes, sir,” he responds, smoothly sliding into the free chair.
“Success?” General Langford asks.
“Yes, sir. We got him. What do you want us to do with him?” Riley asks, looking back at their old general.
“I will have an evac team at your location tomorrow morning, it is your choice if he comes home or not.”
With that, the radio goes silent. Liz looks around the room, pain etched into every face.
Giving Scott a wide berth, she makes her way over to where the team is resting, half eaten MREs going cold on the floor.
No one has much of an appetite after the day they had.
Nestling onto Mikey’s shoulder, she stays quiet until Riley joins them.
“Okay. We went on the run as a team, planned as a team, and caught him as a team. So, we will decide what happens as a team,” Riley announces, looking around the tight circle of his soldiers.
“You’re making a huge mistake, Reaper. They think this is all your doing. I made sure of that. There is not a soul who will believe you,” Scott spits from across the room, craning his neck to look at Riley.
“Trying to scare me while your life is resting in my hands is probably one of the stupidest things you could do,” Riley says with a small laugh.
Scott lets out a huff of frustration, turning back to face the wall.
“I’m open to hear any and all thoughts on the matter. Why you think we should kill him, why you think he should live. Whatever you are thinking, now is the time to say it,” Riley announces, looking around the circle.
“I think you know I’m team kill the mother fucker,” Liz growls.
“Oh, surprise surprise. The mentally unstable, angry little gremlin wants to kill me,” Scott seethes.
“I second that. He has done too much to too many for him to be allowed to live,” Mikey says.
Neither Alex nor Tyler speak, they simply nod in agreement. Liz knew they would all side with Riley after having been on the front lines to the general’s madness. If Riley truly is leaving it up to a vote, they will have to convince the new members.
“Shouldn’t that be up to his superiors? Why does it have to be our decision? I have never agreed with the death penalty. I think he should have a trial for what he did,” Maya says, looking at Lauren.
“Yes and no. You saw what he was doing. If we take him back, we risk his higher ups letting him free. And, with his ties to the president he may very well get pardoned, putting him right back in this position to keep on doing what he has been,” she explains.
“If that happens, he will have a fresh list of targets. Everyone in this room will be in more danger than we have been. Not to mention every soldier on General Langford’s base will be targeted,” Alex explains.
“Is his life really worth more than all the lives he took in Montana? How about the ones he took from supplying Dmitri with weapons for years?” Neil asks Maya. Her face drops as the words sink in.
“I can make this all go away. Every one of you can be cleared, go back to your lives. I can make things happen. I will get you out if that’s what you want. An honorable discharge. You can move up in rank. Any promotion you want, it’s yours,” Scott pleads.
He is desperate now. Liz can hear it in his voice, the way he bargains for his freedom because he knows the vote is not in his favor. She watches him with morbid curiosity. Every so often, he will wiggle his wrists and ankles, as if gauging how hard it will be to break the ties.
“And what about you?” Riley asks Matt. “You look like you want to say something.”
“I don’t think it matters what I have to say,” Matt says, fiddling with his spoon.
“Why? He tells you he can get you a promotion, and you’re back to kissing his ass?” Riley snaps.
“No. But it’s not easy to admit you think someone you looked up to your entire life deserves to die,” Matt solemnly says.
Riley’s face softens. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have assumed. And you’re right, that isn’t an easy thing to admit.”
“Thank you, sir,” Matt says, still unable to meet his eyes.
Liz keeps watching Scott. From the corner of her eye, she can see him fiddling with the restraints.
She moves closer to Riley to get a better view.
His head swivels between the meeting and the door.
She only gets small glimpses of his face, but it looks to her like he is seriously considering escape.
“Do what you’re about to do, and I will take this knife,” Liz starts, pulling a knife the size of her forearm from the holster on Riley’s leg, “I will shove it under your knee, and shuck your kneecap like a fucking oyster. Let’s see how far you make it then.”
The air stills. Nervous eyes dart between Liz and their prisoner. A small chuckle escapes Riley next to her. He pushes himself off the floor with a groan, going to Scott and double checking each of the restraints. The loud rip of tape echoes in the room as he adds an extra layer of security.
“Okay. Before Liz turns this place into an oyster bar, let’s vote,” Mikey announces. “All in favor of ending this for good, raise your hand.”
One by one, hands go into the air. In the end, even Maya’s hand slowly raises.
Come morning, Scott will die.
Liz wakes to find Riley hunched over a small map.
The rest of the team is either sleeping or beginning to pack up.
She peels herself from the sleeping bag and tightly rolls it before checking in on Riley.
She wraps her arms around his neck, resting her chin on his head.
Wondering what he is thinking, Liz opens her mouth to ask three times.
Each time she can’t form the words and snaps her mouth closed.
“I can feel that, you know,” he says, craning his neck to look up at her. “Are you up for a little walk?”
“A walk? In the freezing cold?” Liz asks, confused.
“I would go myself, but I knew you would never let me,” he says, looking over at Scott.
That’s when it clicks, Riley is right, she needs to be there when it happens.
Not just for Riley, but for her own closure.
“I don’t want them involved. This is hard enough on everyone without this weight on their shoulders. ”
“I’m glad you realized I wouldn’t let you do this alone. Let me gear up and we can go,” Liz says, placing a kiss on his temple before releasing him to go find Lauren. If she is going to hike through the snow again, she will need a jacket free of bullet holes.
No one tries to stop them as Riley slices through the tape holding Scott to the chair. Liz follows Riley as he leads them to the door. Holding up one finger, she rushes back to where Matt is sitting with his head hung.
“Hey. I can’t imagine how much this sucks. No one will judge you if you want to say goodbye,” she says, offering him a small smile.
“No,” he says, barely meeting her gaze. “I said goodbye to the man I remember a long time ago. The man he is today, that’s a monster who deserves exactly what Riley is going to give him,” Matt says.
Liz turns“Thank you, Liz. For checking on me, for giving me the chance to say goodbye if I needed it. I don’t deserve that level of kindness, especially from you,” he says.
She turns back to face him, unsure of how to feel.
“You saw him for who he really is and changed the path you were on because of it. You fucked up and did some awful things for him, but when you saw his true colors, you risked everything to stop him. I may not be able to forgive you yet, but you do deserve kindness,” Liz says, keeping her tone soft.
“If you change your mind, Riley has an earpiece. And if you need to talk, we are all here,”
Matt gives her a small, forced smile. She doesn’t push the matter.
Liz rushes back to Riley’s side, quietly filling him in on their conversation.
Snatching a small chainsaw from the floor, Riley opens the door, shoving Scott out into the cold.
Once outside, Riley takes the lead. Liz flanks them with her gun ready should Scott try to attack.
The cold bites into her nose, making her eyes sting.
The hike is short, just a few miles from the airstrip.
Liz hadn’t been told the plan before leaving, but seeing the frozen lake in the distance, she can imagine what Riley has planned.
The ice is solid under her feet. Liz stands guard while Riley cuts a hole in it. She had pressed him about the chainsaw he carried, and the pry bar strapped to his back. The only answer he gave was Tyler found it in the shed and made it run.
Her arm is on fire when he is finally done cutting the large square. Using the pry bar to push the block down, Riley tucks it neatly under the rest of the ice. Liz pokes the barrel of her gun into Scott’s back, urging him to step toward the hole.
“This is how you’re going to do it? Throw me to the bottom of a frozen lake? Drown me?” Scott stammers, spinning to look at them with wild eyes.
Riley finally lets his anger show, kicking the back of his knees to make him drop onto them.
“You’re fucking monsters! Both of you,” Scott screams.
“Shut the fuck up. Everything you have done to us, to all those fucking men and women who were under your command…” Riley yells, pacing behind Scott, looking as if it’s a fight to keep himself in check.
“If I had my way, you would spend the rest of your life suffering. But we have a plane to catch, so you get off easy,” Riley shouts, cocking the pistol in his hand as he walks away.
Knowing Scott can’t go anywhere, Liz slings her rifle onto her back and goes to him. She may not be able to be there for him the same way he was when she killed her brother, but he won’t be alone.
“Princess, close your eyes. You don’t need to see this,” Riley orders.
“Not this time, Ry. I hid from my brother, I won’t hide from him, too,” Liz says, holding her ground.
A soft click sounds from beside her. There, in the center of Scott’s head, is a small green dot.
The very same dot she last saw sitting between her brother’s eyes.
One hand drops from the gun, instead sliding into Liz’s.
He gives her a squeeze, and she sucks in a sharp breath, mentally preparing for what comes next.
She has made a lot of comments about ending his life over the past year, but she never pictured actually doing it.
The sight of death in such a brutal way still makes Liz queasy, she can only hope this time will be different.
Riley stays perfectly still, like a towering statue of an executioner.
The only movement comes from his lips, silently counting, just loud enough for Liz to hear.
One. Two. Three.
The deafening crack rings out, sending the birds in the trees fleeing. Scott falls face first into the snow. A thick pool of red already forming around him, staining the pristine snow.
Silent tears form a steady stream down Liz’s face.
She refuses to let go of Riley’s hand, even when the sight of the golfball sized hole of mangled flesh threatens to make her sick.
She fights past it, knowing this is what they fought so hard for.
The fight may not be over, but they finally took a major threat out of it.
Snow crunches under her boots when she finally drops Riley’s hand, walking to where Scott lies dead.
She pushes him with her foot, sliding the weight of his body across the blood-soaked ice.
Once he reaches the edge, she gives him one final kick, hard enough to send him splashing into the frigid water below.
Her eyes don’t leave his body until he sinks so deep into the black water he disappears. In one smooth motion, Riley pries the ice block from where it rests under the water. Forcing it back into place, he seals Scott in his icy tomb.