Siren's Garter: Issue One August 2016 (10 page)

“
Yup. I know, stupid story. But
I’ve never gotten rid of her. I didn’t even know she was a female
until today. And today she sent an email, demanding the rest of the
money she wants.”

Elsie touched Kevin on the cheek.
She bit her lip, trying to hold back a laugh that demanded to be
released. Stealing puppy chow recipes? Puppy mills? Elsie would’ve
killed to have such ludicrous problems. The Wall Street executives
she seduced for a job were vicious assholes.

Dog food makers sounded…
quaint.

Her cell phone buzzed. A text
message.

A picture from her mother, of a
brown wooden sign that read “Mendota Bluffs” in white paint and an
arrow.

“
I know where Mom is,” said Elsie.
“Let’s go.”

Chapter
Twelve

Kevin shifted the LaSabre in gear
and drove five miles over the speed limit to Mendota Bluffs. It
wasn’t far, and would’ve made a lovely walk if money and
potentially lives weren’t at stake.

Hands on the wheel and eyes
laser-focused on the road, Kevin pretended to be in the zone. Truth
was, he felt sweet relief from talking with Elsie, and that was
mildly distracting. For so long he’d worried Elsie wouldn’t
understand him, that she would forever be an outsider to his inner
world.

Instead, Kevin had found a kindred
spirit.

Someone who could relate to the
difficulties and treacheries of the spy world. Kevin was on cloud
nine. The feeling of being understood both excited and scared him
at the same time.

Unfortunately, he had Biggins to
thank for how he found out the truth about Elsie. He didn’t know if
he’d ever find out the entire truth about Elsie. But the spy
business was hard with all the secrets, and both she and Kevin
could mutually understand the need for such secrets.

He only wished the blackmail would
go away, so he could be truly happy for his upcoming wedding. At
least he hoped Elsie still wanted to marry him.

She said something. She sat with
one hand hand in her lap, and the opposite elbow resting on the
windowsill.

“
Say what?” Kevin
asked.

“
You’re going to miss the turn!”
Elsie snapped, pointing at the street he was supposed to turn at,
nag-voice on full blast.

Kevin slammed the brakes and spun
the wheel lightening quick. The tires screeched as the Buick spun
270 degrees. Elsie pressed her palms flat against the dashboard.
Heart pounding in his head, Kevin righted the car with a fast turn
of the wheel and a gentle tap on the accelerator.

“
Well,” Elsie said, sarcastic
venom dripping from her words, “there goes the element of
surprise.”

She stared at him through slitted
eyes, face red and not at all pleased looking.

Kevin smirked like a boy with a
shoebox full of captured lizards. Yes, he was happy, all things
considered.

But why did the day have to be such
a roller-coaster?

“
Do you have a gun?” he
asked.

“
Yes,” said Elsie. “No. Never
mind. Can I borrow one of yours?”

“
What do you mean, yes but
no?”

“
Have a gun. But not on
me.”

“
You don’t carry a
spare?”

“
Fuck it, Kev. How many hiding
places do you think lady’s clothes have?”

“
What makes you think I have a
spare?” Damn it! Kevin had a spare in his ankle holster, a 9mm. Did
he trust Elsie enough to lend it to her?

“
Do you know a guy named Zack
Gibbs?” said Elsie.

“
No,” said Kevin. “Wait. Is he on
the guest list?”

The list was short. Basically
friends and family. Neither Kevin nor Elsie had much family, which
made sense now. Spies tend to cut ties early on in their career,
just something that happens. Kevin had wondered why Elsie only had
a mother and a small circle of friends. For a long while, she
didn’t even have a maid-of-honor, which surprised Kevin at the
time.

“
If you see Zack,” said Elsie,
“shoot him for me, will you? You’ll recognize him by the douchey
leer he gives me.”

“
Will do.”

Kevin pulled into the parking lot
at the base of Mendota Bluffs. A wooden “Welcome” sign graced the
entrance. Only two other cars were in the lot, one was a Lincoln
Towncar, the other a red GTO convertible. At least the park would
be quiet. Fewer bystanders, the better.

Kevin bent down and unholstered the
9mm. “Here,” he said. “Take it.”

“
Thank you,” said Elsie. She
weighed the gun in her hand, and then slipped it in her front
pocket, under her blouse. “It’s similar to my Smith &
Wessen.”

“
Glad you appreciate
it.”

“
A lady should know her guns,” she
squeezed his thigh and glanced down at his lap. “Of all
kinds.”

A little tingle shot through Kevin,
making him feel warm. He smiled, and thought about leaning forward
to kiss her. Just a peck on the mouth, to show her how he
appreciated her.

But they had other things to
do.

He got out of the car.

All business now, they walked
across the hot black top parking lot to the trail that wound up to
the bluffs. Kevin wanted to hold Elsie’s hand, comfort her. Seemed
the romantic thing to do when hiking on a nature trail.

But he resisted the urge, and
simply walked close to her shoulder. For her protection, of
course.

“
Why did Biggins take your mother
here?” he asked.

“
I don’t know,” Elsie said. She
peered at him from her periphery, behind her hair. “I used to go up
this trail as a kid. To get away.”

“
Your mother know you up
here?”

“
Probably. No telling what she
knew. Hell, the woman was a spy long before I even knew what that
meant. I’m sure she knows more about my private youth life than I
care to remember.”

“
Such as?”

“
What’s with the twenty questions,
mister?” Elsie nudged him with her elbow, a crooked grin gracing
her lips.

Kevin nudged back, gently but
enough to unbalance her in her wedge sandals. Elsie staggered, arms
flailing and a light-hearted giggle accidentally escaping. Kevin
caught her by the upper arm and righted her.

She pressed a hand against his
chest, sighed, and then pushed him away.

“
Come on,” she said. “Mom could be
in trouble.”

“
You’re right,” said Kevin, hands
held out. “I’m professional now.”

He checked his pistol in the
holster, and straightened his jacket.

“
Good.” Elsie turned and headed up
the dirt and wood-chip trail. She was a sight to see, hiking up a
hill in wedges. She didn’t seem to think too much of it.

Kevin’s patent leather shoes
weren’t much better, but at least he had some support. The shoes
would need a lot of polish afterwards, if they could even be
salvaged.

The trail wound through a thick
forest of pine and maple trees, the canopy thick enough to block
out the late afternoon sunlight. It was like walking into a church
with high vaulted ceilings, being closed in from the outside yet
still communing with the larger world.

Kevin tried to walk quiet, but the
trail had far too many twigs that snapped with each step. Elsie was
right about the element of surprise being gone.

The trail got steeper, winding
criss-cross back and forth up the bluff.

Voices were up ahead. Kevin tapped
Elsie on the shoulder, finger to his mouth. He pointed ahead, and
she nodded. They stopped to listen, but the voices were too far
away and the words hardly decipherable.

So they climbed slower now. Kevin
got out his gun, and held it behind his back. Elsie checked to make
sure the 9mm was still in her pocket, but she didn’t
draw.

The voices got closer. Up ahead,
through the trees and around the bend in the trail, was Gertrude,
Biggins, and Nikolai. A shovel was stuck in the ground near the big
man in the badly tailored suit.

“
Where is it Gertie?” said Molly
Biggins, a rough and impatient edge to her accent.

“
Do you expect me to remember this
after five years?” Gertrude’s voice. She sounded tired, but
confident. A little cocky.

“
Da. I am surprised at your
ineptitude, darling.”

Kevin grabbed Elsie by the wrist
and led her further up the trail. Closer to trouble. They walked
even slower, almost a crawl, avoiding every stick in the
path.

“
Look,” Gertrude said loudly.
“There’s a lot of damn trees up here. Give me a minute to find
it.”

“
I love you, darling,” said
Biggins. “But things will get ugly if you don’t.”

A revolver clicked. And then a
second. Kevin could see Nikolai and Biggins both holding guns at
Gertrude now.

Kevin drew his pistol and stepped
in front of Elsie, holding an arm out to keep her back.

He ran. Blood and adrenaline pumped
through his brain. His thighs burned from the uphill
exertion.

Gertrude, Biggins, and Nikolai were
standing in a clearing that overlooked sleepy Wenakaga.

Kevin leaped around the corner, out
of cover.

“
Kevin!” Elsie yelled. “Watch
out!”

Too late. Kevin was already
committed to his action. He ran even faster.

He stopped just at the edge of the
clearing.

And then he felt the muzzle of a
gun behind his head.

And the click of a bullet being
loaded in the chamber.

Shit
.

Chapter
Thirteen

The practical thing would’ve been
to take off her wedge sandals before running up the incline to the
bluff. But that would’ve taken precious seconds.

The even more practical thing
would’ve been to wear actual shoes.

Far too late now.

Elsie was fit and strong, but her
calves and ankles were going to pay for this later. She ran after
Kevin, who got the not-so-smart idea to jump into the fray and be a
hero.

She felt a little weak in the knees
watching her man be bold and confident. Heat swelled between her
thighs as she charged after him. If he didn’t get shot, she’d make
passionate love to him all over again.

But that was later.

Right now, everyone in sight had a
gun.

Out of the corner of her vision,
she saw a glimmer of red pop out from behind a tree. A blond haired
man in a red jogging suit.

He also had a gun. Her Smith &
Wessen 9mm.

Elsie yelled for Kevin to watch
out.

Once again, she was too
late.

The man in red put the gun behind
Kevin’s head.

“
Zack!” Elsie shouted, pointing
her borrowed gun at him. “You ass douche! Back off from my
fiancee!”

Molly Biggins and Nikolai pointed
their guns at Mom, who had her hands in the air. Kevin had Biggins
in his sights.

Elsie was ready to shoot Zack a new
asshole.

And take back the gun he stole, not
to mention the dirty pictures he took with his cell
phone.

“
Back off
my fiancee
,” mumbled Zack, confident
sarcasm oozing off his words. “Make me, bitch.”

“
Just what the hell do you think
you’re doing here?” Elsie said, voice shaking. She was losing her
cool, and she knew it. A warm breeze blowing in the wrong direction
could set her off, and make her pull her trigger finger. Elsie
didn’t want it to come to that.

But every nerve in her body tingled
with energy, as if somebody lit a fuse to a bomb and she had only a
few seconds left before it blew up.

“
Molly, baby,” Zack said. “You
look fantastic. Love the white suit. Makes you stand out in the
woods more.”

Odd thing coming from a man in a
bold red jogging suit. Fuck! How did Elsie not see him
coming?

Biggins shifted her aim from Mom to
Zack and, unfortunately, Kevin who was in the way.

“
Darling,” she
said. “Zack? Is it? I have to ask the same question as my
dear
friend
, Elsie.”

With the word “friend,” Biggins
curled her lip in a cruel Elvis-style pout, and winked. Elsie
wanted to vomit.

“
Collecting debts,” said Zack.
“One from you,” he pointed Elsie’s gun at Mom. “Another from you,”
pointing at Biggins.

“
I owe you nothing,” Biggins
hissed.

“
And one from you, baby,” Zack
pointed the gun at Elsie. He slapped Kevin on the shoulder. “Sorry
bro, you’re the odd man out today.”

“
You owe me,” Elsie said, finger
on the trigger.

“
Easy there, girl,” said Zack.
“Don’t blow your load yet. We can do this the easy way, before
someone does something stupid.”