The Hard Way — Legacy Forums — Strolen's Citadel

Re: The Hard Way

#161

Make sure the old man's out of the building, at the least. Don't want to set him on fire too. Drag the Mafiosa to the corner of the lot. Frank'd done enough murder in his life. Scavenge what's left in the Boss.

As he twisted the key in the Boss's trunk, the 'Cuda coming up, Frank swore silently to himself, even as he thumbed the hidden switch underneath the bumper. It didn't do much, just kept the alarm from going off. Pull the case, the duffel. Spin the little daisy wheels on the case till it's unlocked. It'd been dumb to leave it in the Boss, but he'd not wanted the attention. Made the CF more likely. Well, it'd already started to happen. Duffel over the left shoulder. Two changes of clothes, six pairs of underwear, and five boxes of ammo each for the pistols, and six for the Remington SP-10. Forty rounds of shot, 10 of slug.

As the car pulled up, Frank half smirked, as he pulled the longarm from the case, racking the mechanism as he filled its magazine. "I call shotgun."

Re: The Hard Way

#162

Reaching over to unlock the passenger side door and shove it open, Kate grinned at Franks unexpected show of humor, motioning for Cutter to get in the back. "Excuse the clutter, I've been living out of this car for the past couple weeks or so, there's probably some ice still in the cooler back there if you need it for your arm."

As soon as everyone was situated and her seat belt secure, Kate shoved in the clutch and slammed the car into gear, tearing out of the driveway in a spray of gravel. "Next stop we speak to that farmer with the night vision goggles to get some answers, unless either of you guys have another destination in mind?"

Re: The Hard Way

#163

Cutter shrugged, "back seat is as good as any, might find something fun to play with," he pushed some car debris out of the way, rumpled jacket a few discarded wrappers and the paper and styrofoam fair from the roadside eat'n'shit fast food joints. He picked some ice out of the cooler to put on his shoulder. He checked his bullpup rifle, engaged the safety and leaned back in the cramped back seat of the car.

Re: The Hard Way

#164

Frank grunted as he settled into the passenger seat, stowing his gear. The 1902, he decided, could stay in the case. It was a fine weapon, but not exactly appropriate to the current situation. "Way I see it, we have two choices. We can check out this guy with the goggles, or we can hide our asses and trail the 'huskers when they show up. That's risky though, and we don't know the yield. I think we're best off finding this geek with the glasses. I'll check for a bounty, maybe we can even nab him legally and turn a little profit. I want to check up on legs while we're at it. It was all too damn slick before the fecal impeller strike. "

As the smell of the burning building began to permeate the air, Frank shook his head slightly. He'd had enough fire down south. At least it didn't reek of napalm.

Re: The Hard Way

#165

Kate blushed at Cutters comment, realizing the innocence of it moments later and began mentally kicking herself for jumping to the wrong conclusion. "There's an old Gameboy back there somewhere near the box of crackers, if you're a fan of Mario Land, Tetris and Hunt For Red October you'll be entertained for the entire ride I'm sure."

Reaching over she adjusted her dashboard GPS, trying to recall the farmer address from the conversation earlier, and mostly succeeding. "Next stop the farmers then, chances are he'll have info for us that;s more relevant then the red neck posse's." Glancing over she hit the play button on the cars stereo, Poison's classic tune Every Rose Has It's Thorn, filling the song with its slow mournful melody.

Re: The Hard Way

#166

Old man no where to be found. Fat man ok. Well, ok considering he just lost a brother, and was still fucked.

But Frank made sure. No unnecessary deaths on his watch.

-----------------------

The 'Cuda burned rubber. Bret Michaels crooned. As they drove away from the motel they could see the building engulfed in flames, black smoke gushing from all windows. Kate looked in her rear view. Cutter looked back. Frank just sat there, staring straight ahead. Thinking...

------------------------

They barely drove 4 miles. Cop cars ahead. Two of them. Lights flashing. Sirens off. One trooper car to each side of the road. The two cops outside their vehicles, signaling Kate to stop.

Re: The Hard Way

#167

Kate slowed as soon as she saw the patrol cars, turning down the stereo and trying her best to look tired and not in the mood for delays, which given the past few weeks wasn't hard. "Even if these guys are on the Huskers payroll none of those red necks saw my car on the scene so they won't be looking for it. If we play this cool and calm and they'll probably just wave us on by, a high speed pursuit would get messy, and make my 'Cuda a wanted symbol across the entire county."

A firefight was also an option, with the element of surprise and the amount of firepower her passengers were packing the pork patrol would be cold cuts before they knew it. The downside was it would draw more attention to themselves and turn up the heat on the area another notch, something she desperately wanted to avoid. Hopefully words would be sufficient, she didn't really want the deaths of two innocent civil servants on her conscience this morning if at all possible.

Rolling down her window she pulled to a stop next to the closest officer, gesturing with a thumb back up the road. "Did you and your partner know there's a building back that way a short distance that looks to be on fire?" Distract them with a more immediate concern and with a little luck they'd forget all about her.

Re: The Hard Way

#168

"Ma'am, I ---"

Trooper#1 paused to look inside the Cuda.

"Ma'am, we have a tornado warning for this county, and it would be best if you--"

Trooper #1 paused again to eyeball Frank and Cutter.

Trooper #2 was eyeing Cutter only, from the passenger side of the vehicle. "You ok, son? Your shoulder is bleeding pretty bad..."

"Fire? The motel?" Trooper #1 woke up.

Re: The Hard Way

#169

"The hood of my 'Cuda nicked his shoulder this morning when he was topping off my washer fluid," Kate offered quickly giving Cutter a concerned glance before looking back at the trooper. "We plan to have it looked at once we get into town, I keep telling him he's gonna need a tetanus shot but he won't hear of it,"

"Yeah I think it's a motel, or a gas station or something, was smoking pretty bad when we drove past, I was planning on calling 911 once we got a pay phone, I sure hope nobody's still inside that place." Kate made sure to lace her voice with the proper amount of sympathy and concern, leaning out of her window to look back at the horizon, expecting to see a tell tale sign of smoke in the distance.

Re: The Hard Way

#170

It took little to slide the longarm back into its case as they rolled to a stop, quiet, easy, and hopefully unnoticed.

"If it was the motel, then probably some idiot smoking in his sleep." Frank shrugged, as he sighed. "We've got our buddy patched up here pretty well, enough to get him to the county hospital, anyway, Sarge. We'll take care of him, don't worry " Even if he's not quite there yet, the flattery never hurts, and sounding in control and helpful won you points with the cops, Frank knew.

Re: The Hard Way

#171

Cutter paid little attention to the cop or the conversation being held. He had something special, tetris. Few people know that the game was originally developed to keep crazy people calm and occupied, and the original version had five segment blocks rather than the four segment blocks seen in the original game. His shoulder hurt, but pain was a constant companion, one he shared booze and pain pills with. The rest was distraction. The trick to the game was that he only had one really functional hand to he had to prop the handheld up with his artificial hand while working the rotation of each piece, and its location with just one hand. Most people had the luxury of holding the gameboy with both hands and using some fingers from each hand to play. He could play the game until the batteries gave out, or he passed out from exhaustion, or blood loss

Re: The Hard Way

#172

Trooper #1 looked unconvinced.

Was about to say something.

Trooper #2 suddenly stopped to listen to some garbled update coming from his two-way.

Someting about a "convoy" on Route 27...

Trooper #1: "Ok, Ma'am, on your way, but you may want to get off the road soon. Twisters coming...more than one--" He paused to make sure they understood, then one last dubious look at Frank and Cutter.

After an eternity of silence (another 5 seconds or so), the troopers stepped back and waved the 'Cuda on, as they turned and got in their patrol cars.

Re: The Hard Way

#173

Somewhere north...

The semi was making good time. The driver began to relax a little for the first time since crossing the Canadian border. He was late but not too late. Almost there now. The only thing still nagging him was the strange sensation of being watched, which he couldnt shake. He even turned around a few times, to check the back, not trusting the rear-view mirror. Plus the weird whispering. Or was he imagining things? His PTSD was under control, but the last few days, things seemed--diffferent somehow.

The driver took out some pills, and popped them into his mouth. It wouldn't be long now. Just get a grip, Billy,he told himself. Soon, he'd have 50 grand for a job well done.

Re: The Hard Way

#174

"Shit!"

Heart beating, pounding, ready to rip its way out. Head foggy, sleep-deprived. Adrenaline ran out about a hundred miles back. Just tired now. So tired.

The world spins. Smoke pouring from the hood. Was it bad? Fixable? What do I know about engines? Looks at his hands, his soft, never-did-a-day-of-hard-work-in-his-life hands. What do these hands know about engines?

Stumbling, nice shoes sticking in the mud. Surrounded by corn. Corn. Not vineyards. Not ocean breezes. But fucking corn.

"What the fuck am I doing here? What am I doing?" He stumbles again.

Wind blows against his wine-purple, silk shirt. Purple. Like the sky. Like Gary's face under the garrote. Oh no, not Gary. He thought the tears were done, that they'd all dried away. But he was wrong.

He finds himself a quarter mile away from the wreck, looking at an empty highway. When did I walk so far?

Re: The Hard Way

#175

Mumbling and stumbling. Civic smoking like a chimney.

Up ahead another farm, this one with a large white house on the property. Looks like someone might be home. Tractor and old beat-up pickup by entrance.

Maybe he could ask to use a phone---where the hell did he drop his anyway?

He pauses. A large black muscle car, he can't tell which kind, cars not his thing, pulls up next to the farmhouse.

A young girl gets out, and a hulking spectre of a man. Another figure in the back seat it seems, but not getting out. The girl and man examine the farm house.

Then the girl notices him. Like an animated scarecrow, stumbling across the rutted field.

Now what?

Re: The Hard Way

#176

Kate pulls up.

This should be Farmer Nightgoggle's house.

Cutter on level 9, intense. Not paying attention.

Frank gets out to stretch his limbs.

Kate sees a man stumbling across the field about 100 yards away. Dressed pretty spiffy for middle of nowhere.

Tha hell?

Re: The Hard Way

#177

He's shivering now. Is that the cold? Shock?

A farmhouse. People. Oh, thank God. People.

Takes a minute, gathers himself. Closes his eyes for a moment, takes a deep breath. Brushes dust from his shirt. He's out of his element. Way out of his element. And his world has collapsed in upon itself. But he can get through this. Maybe.

Tries to speak but it comes out as a croak. Throat sore, he clears it.

"Excuse me? Hello?" Raises his hand in an uncertain greeting.

Re: The Hard Way

#178

Kate paused, doing a classic double take at the haggard man stumbling towards her, he looked to be a banker, or maybe a stock broker judging by his 5th avenue style of dress. But what the hell was man like this doing on a corn field? Unless he was from the IRS and doing an audit maybe?

Shaking her head to clear the jumble of thoughts from her mind she realized he was speaking to her, with the voice of someone who was on the verge of collapsing from exhaustion. "Are you okay sir?" She Glanced over at Frank, giving him a puzzled expression, a Wal-street Refugee was the last type of person she expected to encounter in a place like this.

Re: The Hard Way

#179

"My... my car. Back that way." Vague gesture.

"There was a truck. A big truck. In my lane."

Takes another step, stumbles, goes down this time as his legs finally betray him.

"I'm so terribly sorry. I don't mean to be so clumsy."

Re: The Hard Way

#180

With a glance, Frank looked over the stumbling man, watching him fall. Either one hell of a trap, or close enough to innocent. Either way, better to take the bait. Rolling his shoulder to put the shotgun in an easy to draw place within his long coat, Frank looked once to Kate, letting his eyes slide meaningfully to the injured man, then well away from the house. Patch what you can, get him out of the likely line of fire.

Look for the lights. Head up to the porch. Hope Cutter has the attention and sense to flank. Maybe he will, maybe he won't. Don't stand directly in front of the door. Stand to the left side, where the frame is in the immediate line of fire from inside, but he can roll the long arm out easily enough to point in through the frame. Just far enough to be visible if he opens it, close enough to dodge into the wall. Breath. No nerves, you've done this a hundred times. Knock HARD.

Re: The Hard Way

#181

Kate nodded at Frank, reaching back inside her vehicle to grab a blanket form the bank and nudging Cutter hard enough to get his attention. "Frank needs you to back him up, I've got my hands full with the new arrival."

Stepping towards the purple shirted man Kate paused long enough to make sure her pistol was securely fastened and then knelt down next to him, pulling the blanket across his shoulders as she pulled him into a sitting position and began to speak slowly and gently while trying to guide him towards the back of her Cuda, safe from any initial gunfire. "My name is Kate, you're on a farm in Nebraska, can you remember your name and where you're from?"

He seemed shaken, but didn't look to be seriously injured, most likely worn out from wandering lost through the cornfields half the night. From the sounds of it a truck ran him off the road, probably one of the Rednecks on their to or from the motel, hopefully no one else was injured in the crash.

Re: The Hard Way

#182

His face is pale, his eyes glazed over in shock. Dried tears still streak his cheeks. The girl wraps a blanket around him and he almost breaks down again.

Human contact.

Hours, or days?, spent fleeing from the spectre of death. All alone in his misery. All alone for the first time in 10 years.

Finally, feeling safe again. Just a little.

"Stefan. My name is Stefan. From Seattle. Actually, it's Portland now." He smiles weakly. "But, I guess that's neither here nor there anymore."

His eyes focus a little. "You're very sweet for helping me, dear. Thank you. I'm on my way to my sister's house. I lost my phone... somewhere." His eyes blank out again, horror flashes across his face briefly.

"I need to call her. Let her know I'm coming."

He allows himself to be led to the car.

Re: The Hard Way

#183

There is subtle, and then there was Cutter. Frank has heading for Farmer McGoggles place, but he wasnt going entirely alone. He had the P90 ready, the butt of the gun in his good shoulder and his finger on the trigger. He squatted down along the rear quarter panel of the car, putting the house in his field of fire. He could move quickly and put Kate and GQ Zombie in a similar field. Kate probably had that taken care off, zombies are easy to fight one on one unless you were a banker, lawyer, kid, or the plucky but weak female lead in the zombie flick.

Should have grabbed the first aid kit from the truck.

Hindsight is a bitch

Re: The Hard Way

#184

Kate debated informing the shaken man he'd stumbled into a worse situation then was previously in, but decided there was no need to further panic him with the truth, and instead take things a little slower. "Was there anyone else with you when your car went off the road? Also your sister, where does she live?" He seemed innocent enough, and likely uninvolved in the mess they were all in. So far.

Frank and Cutter seemed to be preparing to greet the farmer like he was enemy combatant, perhaps they forgot his was in his seventies and could die of a heart attack if they scared him bad enough. Then again, an old man with night vision goggles might not be quite so fragile, and there was no telling who his younger family members were, or if they had been involved in the firefight earlier.

She kept a close eye not only on Stefan in front of her, but also on the road and barn near by; places like this usually had hired help, and that hired help may not take kindly to people with military weaponry prowling about their front yard..

Re: The Hard Way

#185

"Anyone with me? No." But there should have been. He feels the heartache take hold again, the same heartache that had dogged him since Vegas. Seemed like every couple of minutes there was a reminder of Gary, just waiting to clamp its jaws around his heart.

Fresh tears trickle down his cheeks. He fans himself. "I'm sorry. Here I am, a thirty-year-old man crying his eyes out like a ten-year-old girl."

Eyes suddenly widen.

"Is... is that man holding a gun?"

Looks to Kate, looks to Cutter, looks to Kate again.

Re: The Hard Way

#186

Tears, whatever the man had been through it must've been painful, much like her own past. Before she could inquire further he voiced another question, the realization of what he'd stumbled into evident on his face.

So much for keeping him distracted while her allies made contact with the farmer. Stay calm, and the civilans you're dealing with will remain calm, panic is infectious, never let fear or uncertainty show when others are in need of support. More words from her father echoing in her head, god how she missed him.

Shoving thoughts of her family from her mind Kate nodded in agreement, noticing the early morning sunlight reflecting off the smooth finished exterior of the weapon. "That's Cutter, he's carrying a P90 assault weapon, arguably one of the most lethal close quarter firearms invented within the past couple decades."

Explaining everything that happened so far would take too long, but lying to the man would be just as troublesome, especially when he saw through it. He had the look of a college educated person, far brighter then the hayseed hicks common to this part of the country, even if was he partially in shock at the moment.

"The other guy up near the door with the long arm is called Frank, he's a bounty hunter, I'm-" She paused for a second trying to find the words to describe herself, realizing she didn't really classify as anything other then an arson and murder suspect on the run from the Russian Mafia. "I'm helping them look into the murder of a young man; my father was a detective in the NYPD." A slightly rose tinted version of the truth, but it would do for now.

"Once we're done following up on this lead here we can give you a lift to the nearest town, and let you borrow a cell phone to call your sister." Hopefully this influx of information wouldn't send the man screaming back into the cornfields, although in his condition she doubted he'd make it to the end of the driveway before collapsing again.

Re: The Hard Way

#187

Stefan blinks a few times. Trying to process, trying not to go completely out of his mind.

Bizarre reactions surge. Run screaming? Laugh hysterically? Curl up into a ball until it all goes away?

Kate's matter-of-fact tone cuts through the haze. Mindless thugs didn't bother to explain things to men like him. He fastens onto the phrases "bounty hunter" and "murder investigation."

Wipes his face, dirt streaks through the tears. Nods. "You're the good guys, then?"

Pause.

"I'm a little... worn out right now, so I'll just sit for a bit while you guys take care of business."

Close to two days without sleep, hardly any food, driving mile after endless mile. A wonder he hadn't been the one crossing lanes.

"Besides, I think I'm a little out of my depth. Unless you think a former U-Dub professor can be of assistance somehow?" Flashes a tired but sardonic smile.

Re: The Hard Way

#188

Frank knocks hard.

"Yeah, yeah, come in. Its open. Coulda' raised the dead with your arrival. You think i don't know you're there?"

Old raspy voice, but one full of pride and gumption.

Suddenly Frank hears a low growl coming from inside, accompanying the old voice. Doggy. Sounds like a big one.

No one comes to the door though. No welcoming committee.

Re: The Hard Way

#189

Kate did her best to give him a reassuring smile at his mention of good guys, it was accurate enough from what she could tell, so far. "We're not gang bangers or hit men if that's what you mean, think of us as independent investigators."

She stood up and popped the trunk of her car at his mention of being worn out, passing him a bottle of watter and half empty pouch of beef jerky. "After stumbling around these cornfields half the night you could probably use some water and protein, just don't guzzle it or you'll be hurling it right back up again."

A university of Washington professor, quite a long way from home, either on vacation, heading across country because of a family emergency, or running from a past. Given he was driving and not on a plane, Kate doubted it was either of the first two, unless he had a fear of flying and being groped by airport security.

Nodding in understanding she tried to shift the subject away from Frank and Cutters initial breach of the building, not something this guy should be paying too close attention to in his condition, in case things got bloody. "A professor? If you don't mind me asking what was your major?"

Re: The Hard Way

#190

Reaching to the door to open it, Frank shifted the long arm under his coat so that it would stay there on its own, just in case he was going to have to grab Doggy. He knew how to deal with that, if he needed to.

"Call it being polite," he said as he opened the door, his voice soft and unthreatening as possible. "Rude to sneak up on a man's home, wouldn't you say?" It's with a slight smile that he looks about, even as he says, "Name is Castiglione. I suppose you could call me a private eye, but right now, I'm just looking for one of my friends, and they tell me you were the last person to spot his car."

Re: The Hard Way

#191

Stefan takes the water, grateful. Sips at it a little, sees how it settles. Looks at the jerky. Nausea and hunger go to war.

"Antiquities. Bronze Age of the Mediterranean and Near East were my broader focus, though I always had a special soft spot for Mesopotamia. Did you know they unearthed some cuneiform tablets from ancient Sumeria, almost 4,000 years old, detailing a father's diatribe against his layabout son? He asks all the usual questions: Why are you skipping school? Did I pamper you too much when you were young? Why can't you be like your cousins?

"Look how far we've come as a species, huh?"

Turns sheepish. That tired, self-deprecating smile again, but at least a little life has crept into his eyes. "Probably more than you were asking. I tend to become a little long winded. Professional hazard.

"Maybe I will try a piece of that jerky after all."

Re: The Hard Way

#192

"I have some Chinese heritage on my mothers side, never followed the culture back that far..." Kate let her voice trail off as she realized her utter lack of knowledge about the subject made any in depth discussion mostly one sided, time to switch topics to something less complicated.

"You mentioned you had a sister? Is she from around these parts?" Given the mans gentle demeanor and purple shirt she very much doubted he grew up in red neck country, San Fransisco maybe, but nowhere even close to this part of America, not that it didn't mean his sister hadn't moved out this way. "If you don't like Jerky I think there's a bag of fried pork rinds in back seat." She offered helpfully, gently closing the trunk link with a soft thud.

Re: The Hard Way

#193

Things seemed to be very calm, almost sedate. One walking wounded and Frank seemed to have McGoggles in hand. Cutter felt the small coil of tension that had been building unwind and relax. He let the P90 drop, slowly at first, and then left it to dangle from its shoulder strap. He pulled the pack of smokes and lit one.

"Hey buddy, need a smoke?" he asked the shuffler in purple.

Re: The Hard Way

#194

"I have some Chinese heritage on my mothers side, never followed the culture back that far..."

"I'm sorry. Here I am prattling on about ancient civilizations and you're dealing with murders and escaped felons. Feel free to ignore me when I go on like that."

"You mentioned you had a sister? Is she from around these parts?"

"My sister, Lisa, she lives out toward Lincoln. She, uh, doesn't exactly know I'm coming. This trip was kind of... unexpected."

"If you don't like Jerky I think there's a bag of fried pork rinds in back seat."

His gut clenches on him; high emotions, fatigue, and nausea all rebelling at once.

"It's been..." Pauses as he tries to figure out just how long. "At least a day since I've eaten anything. I should probably take it a little slow."

Wry grin. "Unless you happen to have a bottle of Pinot and some crab cakes in there?"

"Hey buddy, need a smoke?"

Stefan turns, looks at Cutter. Intimidated. One arm, stump bleeding, big fellow, haunted eyes, letting the gun (is that a rifle? a wierd pistol?) dangle with such practiced ease. Nothing in the bubble he'd been living in had prepared him for anything like this.

"Um. I appreciate the offer. Truly. But I don't smoke.

"You're, um, bleeding. Can I help?"

Re: The Hard Way

#195

Kate nodded in sympathy at the unexpected part, lately her life had consisted of nothing but one long unexpected nightmare. "Unexpected? I remember the last time I had an unexpected visitation from someone who was in too much of a hurry to send me a text or call ahead of time. Her parents had just tossed her out in the middle of the night when they found out her prom date wasn't a guy." She paused, smiling at the recollection of those simpler times.

"The bitch of it was she stole their car to drive over to my place, and traded it to a couple punks down the street for a six pack of beer and bottle of Captain Morgan. When my dad came home and found us drunk off our ass he-" She stopped talking abruptly as she realized she'd been divulging waay too much info; spending the last couple weeks alone with no one but herself to talk to had taken its toll, especially now she ran into someone seemingly just as bad as off as she was, if not worse.

She cleared her throat to avoid the uncomfortable silence, focusing back on the present, registering his inquiry about crab cakes, and the mention of Cutters wound. "Don't tell me you've been bleeding all over my back seat the whole drive here? Shit!" Genuine leather, and her few clothes were back there, along with some blankets, too late to worry about it now. "Here I've got a first aid kit in the trunk."

With a click she reopened the Cuda's trunk and pulled it out, passing it to Stefan; if he wanted to play doctor for Cutter he was more then welcome to, she needed to properly bandage her own injury anyway. Hopefully they'd be to preoccupied with his bleeding arm to notice her lack of undergarments while she tended to the puncture on her thigh.

Re: The Hard Way

#196

"I'm no doc so if you can better than wrapping a shirtsleeve around it be my guest. It's mostly a flesh wound, didn't hit anything hard, and no arterial bleeding. Probably a .38 or something small like that. I've had a bit of granny's pain medication so I can't tell if it went all he way through or if I have a tiny passenger in my shoulder."

Cutter swings the p90 behind his back and undoes the strap that holds his artificial arm on. He lays in on the trunk of the 'cuda and let's Mr. PurpleSleeves see the damage to his shoulder. It's not a sight for the squeamish as the war would is still ugly years later. There is little to nothing left below the point of the humorus where the shoulder muscles attach. The missing bicep is obvious and the pucker in the end where most of the bone was removed can turn a weaker stomach.

"I've thought about getting it tattoed, but never could think of anything to put on it," he says, puffing his third smoke and feeling a tad light headed from the third round of nicotine.

Re: The Hard Way

#197

Stefan wobbles a bit. Cutter's words sound like they're coming from the end of a long tunnel.

Oh, please, dear God, don't let me faint!

Stares at the old wound, bloody from the fresher one. Closes his eyes, thinks of something familiar and pleasant. Like walking across the Golden Gate on a foggy day, smelling the fresh ocean breeze, sounds all muffled, Gary's hand entwined with his own. I must remember Gary as he was back then.

Better.

"I'm no physician either, my friend." Hopes his voice is steadier than it feels. "But, we'll see what a little antiseptic and some gauze will do for things.

"My name is Stefan, by the way. I understand you go by Cutter? Is that a last name?"

If he keeps talking, maybe he'll be able to get through this without making a total fool of himself.

Re: The Hard Way

#198

"It's my tag from the marine corps, real name is John. My therapist would be glad to hear me say that," Cutter says. "You look pretty rattled man, and thats bad coming from me. Maybe you should sit down and have a cig even if you don't smoke." There was a look a man got in his eye, that shell shocked thousand yard stare that comes after getting hit by your own air support, or getting caught in a crossfire between RPG and machine gun nests. The way he sort of imagined how he looked after the blast that took his arm off.

"you know I've been to Mesopotamia? Even seen the ruins of Babylon and all that."

Re: The Hard Way

#199

Kate half listened to the conversation between the two men, focusing mostly on quickly hiking up her skirt and bandaging her leg as she sat on the edge of the bumper. Compared to Cutters injury her leg was nothing, barely a scratch she'd had far worse injuries in her Krav Magha classes before.

As she applied the disinfectant and clenched her teeth against the pain she hunted for another distracted to keep her mind focused on something else. "So how's Washington Stefan? I heard there's some lovely country up that way, prettier then all these cornfields anyway." The wound seemed clean, without any wood fragments lodged inside; some gauze and a little medical tape it'd be good as new.

Re: The Hard Way

#200

"you know I've been to Mesopotamia? Even seen the ruins of Babylon and all that."

"That must have been magnificent. You know, I've studied the history, even seen a few artifacts, but I've never had the opportunity to go there. Of course, if you served in Iraq I don't know how much I should envy you your experiences."

The toll of the last few days is becoming too much. He listens to Cutter and sits down, his knees and hands shaking.

"So how's Washington Stefan? I heard there's some lovely country up that way, prettier then all these cornfields anyway."

He turns a little so his attention is divided between the two.

"I wish I could tell you, but I didn't get to see much beyond Seattle. We only lived there for three years and I was a new hire, desperate to achieve tenure, so I spent most of my time at the University."

He holds his hands out, palms upward, and looks at them. His voice becomes ragged, defeated. "All that work, and what do I have to show for it?"