Crushed (11 page)

Sophie's captor stiffened when he saw Robert. Instead of relaxing his grip on Sophie, he held her tighter.

"I'm surprised Max heard about this one. I guess I need new sources." Robert glanced at Sophie with unconcerned eyes.

Realization hit Sophie like a bullet.

Robert hadn't wanted Sophie to be a distraction, he'd wanted her to be the bait. The subtle difference between the two became apparent now. While the gun was pressed to her head, Robert could do as he pleased.

"Why don't you show me this painting, Luke?" Robert asked with a smile. "I've been dying to see it."

"Stop joking, Robert." Luke threatened in a deep voice. "I'm the one in control here. I'm the one with the gun."

Sophie's eyes pleaded with Robert to stop. Did he not realize this stranger had a gun pressed to her head? No matter how you looked at the situation, Luke was not bluffing.

"I'll shoot." Luke said coldly.

What Sophie heard next caused her knees to buckle.

"Go ahead." Robert replied, shrugging. His eyes were unforgiving. "See if I care."

There was a truth in his tone that made Sophie realize he wasn't bluffing either.

CHAPTER FIVE

The game I'd entered had only just begun, and the consequences of my actions wouldn't be felt until much later.

The chilling evening air brushed through the college campus, as the rolling thunder in the distance caused the few remaining students outside to rush for shelter. The oncoming storm could be felt in the atmosphere, though neither Sophie, Robert, or Luke realized anything beyond what they were experiencing in the moment.

Everyone had been frozen by Robert's last statement, though their shock was gradually wearing off.

"I didn't think you could be so cruel." Luke commented finally, sounding like he was genuinely shocked by Robert's coldness.

"I don't remember you ever caring whether I was cruel or not." Robert said, shrugging. "Let's not forget who's the bad guy in this situation. You're the one with the gun pressed to the innocent damsel's head."

"Damsel?" Luke asked, turning to glance at Sophie.

She couldn't make out his features clearly, as the only light source around them was too far away. She squinted through the darkness, trying to see the man who was willing to kill her. His voice sounded young and inexperienced, though she believed he would kill her if necessary.

"Max should've told you about her...or him I should say." Robert laughed, rocking back on his feet casually.

Sophie jerked in Luke's arms, feeling another wave of betrayal. What the hell was Robert doing? First he'd told Luke to shoot her, and now he'd blown her cover?

"Let's not talk about pointless things." Robert continued, his voice bored. "I have a busy schedule to keep, so if you're going to shoot, do it."

"Pointless." Luke muttered, laughing darkly. "You're too cocky, Locksley. I'm not getting anywhere near you."

Luke shoved the gun to Sophie's temple, causing her to whimper in shock.

"You'll have to try harder next time." Dragging Sophie backward, Luke made sure that Robert was still in his line of sight. "You should start thinking about what you're going to say to poor Cleo. I imagine she'll be disappointed."

Robert laughed, strolling forward without a care in the world.

Sophie noticed Luke stiffen. The gun in his hand was pressed even harder to her head.

"Don't come closer." Luke warned, his voice deadly.

Sophie watched Robert with begging eyes. There was no longer any grain of trust within her, but she hoped he wouldn't be this heartless in the end. Her life had to be more important than this painting, and she couldn't begin to believe how far he was taking this. No matter how much he hated her, this was too far.

Robert ignored Luke's warning, just as Sophie had feared he would.

"I told you to shoot her." Robert continued, only a few feet away now. "It won't matter to me. You know just as well as I do that she won't be missed. This girl's a nobody, like the two of us. Her body will be just another tragic mystery that will remain unsolved." Robert's voice was determined.

He continued to walk forward, closing the distance between himself and Luke in seconds. He lifted his hand and placed it on the gun.

"If you don't have the confidence, should I take over?" Robert asked, a wicked grin on his lips.

It was only now that Sophie realized Luke was shaking. His grip on her was loosening, and he quickly brought his hand away from her mouth.

"What the hell are you two doing?" Sophie screeched. Feeling a sharp sense of courage overcome her, Sophie reached up and knocked the gun out of her captor's hand. The weapon went flying through the air, landing only a few feet away in the grass.

Sophie turned on the two of them with eyes filled with fire. Now that she wasn't playing the damsel any longer, she was ready to fight back. Remembering all the self-defense she'd learned in the past, Sophie clenched her hand into a fist, and socked Luke in the jaw. Her punch wasn't nearly as effective as she'd wanted it to be, so she tackled him as hard as she could to break his hold on her.

Her captor had been so intent on watching Robert, he was too late to respond. Even though he was still too big for her to take down with one blow, her hit took his breath away.

"Robert!" Sophie turned to stare at him in anger. "Hurry up!" She motioned for him to help, and he reacted immediately. By the time Robert had begun to fight, Luke had already regained his breath. The two of them began to wrestle in the grass, punches and curses flying between them. Instead of waiting for the fight to subside, Sophie dived for the backpack that Luke had dropped mid-fight.

There was something in the way Robert and Luke were fighting that made Sophie realize their pent up frustration was about more than the painting itself. The way they were slugging each other was filled with too much hatred for them to be strangers.

Ignoring her thoughts, Sophie decided she needed to keep moving. As she had the benefit of being the only one of the three not engaged in combat, she now had the time to come up with a plan of her own.

Screw whatever Robert had been planning. He'd left her to defend herself in her moment of need, and now she was going to take control. Her mind was a jumbled frenzy, but she'd unexpectedly been able to think clearly in the moments of chaos. Now that she had the time to think through a plan of her own, the pieces clicked together easily.

Sophie's eyes fell on the gun lying only a few feet away. She walked towards it, no longer in a hurry to act. Both Robert and Luke were so wrapped up in their own fight, they barely noticed her.

Picking it up in her small hands, Sophie considered firing a shot to get them to stop. Instead, a few cold raindrops interrupted them before she could decide.

Thunder rumbled in the distance. In moments the few raindrops turned into a downpour and soon all three of the thieves were soaked to the bone.

Aiming the gun at where Robert and Luke were lying in the grass, Sophie scowled at the two of them. She was trying to seem threatening, but as Robert stood up he began laughing. The sound of his laughter was muted by the thunder, though Sophie could see his amused expression through the buckets of rain streaming down around them.

Suddenly, Sophie felt amused as well. Not in the same way, of course. She'd just experienced the most terrifying few minutes of her life and the shock had yet to wear off. No, she felt like laughing for another reason entirely. Now that she had miraculously taken control of the situation, she realized just how much power she wielded in her hands. For the first time since leaving with Robert this afternoon, she finally felt like she was thinking like a thief.

"I really don't see a reason you should be laughing." Sophie commented, raising her voice so that both of the men could hear her. "Unless you're under the impression you've won." Sophie tilted her head to the side, a slick smile spreading across her face. "Surely you don't think I'm going to share this painting with you?" She asked, laughing coldly at him.

Robert's laughter faded as realization passed over his face. He hadn't thought she'd have the guts to turn against him, but he hadn't calculated how beyond pissed she was at his betrayal.

"It's cute how you assumed I was going to let you take credit for finding the painting." Sophie glanced between the two men, who were watching her with shocked expressions. "You really shouldn't trust a thief. Not if you value yourself."

This time it was Luke who began to laugh. "Your own partner's turning against you. I believe this is what they call irony." He pulled down his hood so that Sophie could barely make out his features. Luke seemed only a few years younger than herself, and his shaggy black hair fell down into his eyes as rain slid down his face.

As he began walking towards her, Sophie lifted the gun at him. Luke raised his hands in surrender, a small smile on his pale lips. "I'm not going to hurt you." As he approached, Sophie saw he was watching her softly. "If I had known you were a girl, I wouldn't have touched you." He said, his voice lowering as he came closer.

"It seems everyone's having a difficult time remembering who's side they're on." Sophie commented bitterly. "I don't need your pity." She kept the gun pointed at his chest, not trusting him for a second.

"I wasn't giving it." Luke reminded her, laughing again. "You can have the painting. You deserve it after beating that guy." He motioned to Robert, who was staring at them expressionlessly.

He nodded once at her before trudging away from the building.

"Luke!" Robert called out, turning to the other man for a moment. "Max can't find out about who she is."

Sophie glanced at Luke's retreating figure, and swore she heard him mutter "I understand," before disappearing into the night.

Now that she was alone with Robert, Sophie felt her resolve wavering. She was fighting the urge to trust him, but she still had a point she hadn't made yet.

"Toss me the keys to your car." Sophie ordered.

"I'm not scared of you." Robert began walking towards her just as Luke had. It seemed like neither of them had been worried she would fire. This thought ignited Sophie's temper. When Robert took another step Sophie fired the gun up at the sky, just as another roll of thunder resounded overhead. It had been years since she'd last fired a gun, but the shock wasn't unfamiliar. Her grandfather had taken her to a shooting range when she was younger, and she knew enough about guns to use one when she needed to.

Robert's eyes widened as he watched her, obviously shocked that she knew what she was doing. It seemed like he was always doubting her, and she was continuously proving him wrong.

"You should be." Sophie replied, grinning.

"Stop messing around." Robert ordered sternly. "Someone could've heard that."

"You realize this is the second time you've screwed me over in one day." Sophie mentioned, her voice turning casual. She was becoming more confident by the minute.

"I told you not to trust me." He reminded her coldly.

"This is me learning from my past mistakes." She shrugged, trying to mock how he'd acted before. "You know, for such an amazing thief you definitely slipped up on this one."

"If you hadn't been here, I would've had him." Robert replied, his eyes narrowing.

"Keep telling yourself that if it makes you feel better." Sophie turned and began backing away from him, heading for the street.

"What about the car keys?" Robert asked, obviously trying to bide more time until he could turn the situation in his favor.

Sophie slipped one hand into her back pocket, and brought out her cell phone. She was surprised it was still working with all the water damage it must've experienced, but she was grateful nonetheless. "I'll call a cab for myself. Think of this as me being generous. Now you'll have plenty of time to explain to Cleo how you failed before I get home."

Robert's expression darkened and Sophie grinned.

"I didn't realize it before, but messing with people is kind of fun. Thanks for bringing me out tonight, I learned a lot." Sophie waved at him as she turned towards the street ahead of her. Without waiting for him to make his next move, she bolted down the sidewalk.

He wouldn't catch up to her now, not in the middle of this storm. Robert might've been a good thief, but he was also smart enough to know when he'd lost.

Sophie grinned at the realization that he had lost. He'd thrown her under the bus to get what he'd wanted, and she'd survived by using her own skills. She acknowledged that her victory had been mostly due to luck and Luke's odd personality, but she didn't let that dampen her elated mood.

She'd finally found her footing in this world made for thieves, and the realization was enough to block out all the terrifying moments she'd experienced.

*  *  *

The feeling that she'd won followed Sophie all the way back home. As she sat in the back of the cab, she shivered in delight at what she'd just accomplished. Nothing was sweeter than the realization that she'd beat out two trained thieves for the painting.

She wondered what Cleo would say when she found out how Sophie had taken control of the risky situation. All thoughts of the repercussions of her actions flew to the back of her mind, as she basked in her pride.