Michelle Maddox - Countdown

"Nothing immediately comes to mind," Rogan growled.

"Did you miss us?"

"No."

"We missed you the last eight months you were in solitary. We had big plans for when you got out."

"Yeah, I bet you did."

"Okay," I said out loud, trying to keep my teeth from chattering. My arms already ached from trying to hold the heavy gun steady. "Look, guys. We're all in this together. We don't have to fight one another. Maybe we can get out of this if we work together."

Mac laughed hard at that. So hard that he had to stop walking and put his hands on his knees to support himself. "That's priceless. Where did they find this bitch? I thought Sesame Street went off the air decades ago."

My jaw clenched. Okay, so much for trying to make friends with the enemy.

Kurtis eyed me slowly, from the toes of my combat boots, up my thigh-high black stockings, to the bare skin the ridiculous skirt showed off. It barely covered the thong underneath. He licked his lips.

"Long time since I had me a woman," he murmured. "I miss how they screamed for mercy while I fucked them."

Mac laughed. "How about I let you have her first? We got time."

"Lay one finger on her and you'll be spending the rest of the level searching the city for your severed cock." Rogan's voice held no humor.

"Don't be jealous, Rogan. We'll get to you, too."

To say this was a bad situation would be an understatement. The food I'd eaten in the reward room churned unpleasantly in the pit of my stomach.

"I don't mean to interrupt," I said. "But I do have a gun. See?" I waved it. "Why don't I shoot the both of you and we end this level right now?"

Kurtis was staring at me and absently rubbing the crotch of his pants. "Kira, right? Yeah, during a rest period the show let us tune in to you and Rogan getting to know each other a bit better earlier. You give great head, honey. Made me hard as a rock just watching."

I felt bile rise in the back of my throat at the thought of him watching us.

Mac's grin widened. "And your skin's so perfect. I can just imagine this knife sliding over your neck while I take you from behind."

"Shut up." Rogan's voice quaked. "Leave her alone."

The men's taunts were making my hands shake even more than they already were, but I tried to focus. I raised the gun a little and pulled the trigger. The bullet hit the wall just over Mac's right shoulder. His eyes widened and he took a step backward.

"Didn't think I'd do it?" I snapped at him. "I'll do it. I'll shoot the both of you. I'm thinking it's no big loss for humanity."

"There are fifteen minutes remaining for this level of The Countdown."

"She's got some spirit to her," Kurtis commented. "That why you like her, Rogan? Does she remind you of the women you killed?"

'That was a lie," I said. "He's innocent."

"Is that why you spread your legs for him? Did he convince you he was wrongfully convicted?" Kurtis snorted. "Yeah, we're all innocent here, aren't we? That's why we're playing this game."

"Go to hell," Rogan growled.

"We're glad to be here," he said. "And we love to watch you, Kira. We were watching when Jonathan told you that Rogan killed your family."

I went cold inside. Of course there were cameras in the room with us then. There was no privacy in this game. Everything was fair game as entertainment for the subscribers. After all, if they tuned out, Gareth wouldn't be able to get his juice, would he?

Dammit. I needed to tell Rogan about that. He had to know his brother was trapped somewhere inside that thing and wasn't responsible for betraying him four years ago.

Kurtis lightly rubbed his blade along his chest, as if the act gave him pleasure. "See, the funny thing is that your convo with Jonathan made me remember something."

I looked at him. "Oh, yeah? And what's that?"

He had a grin on his ugly face. "Just before I went to prison seven years ago I'd been hired to kill a little girl with psi abilities."

My stomach turned at his words, but I kept my face blank. "Fascinating."

He laughed. "My employers hated psi freaks. So do I. They're a dark stain on humanity-a product of the plague. They singled out those they thought were of special interest and hired guys like me to take care of the problem." His expression darkened. "Your daddy put up a good fight trying to protect you. He knew it was only a matter of time before somebody came to get you-he knew what you were. He had tickets for your whole happy little family to go to Offworld later that week. Did you know that? He managed to take a hunk out of my leg with a big butcher knife. I wasn't going to kill him or your mother and sister, but I shot them all. Unfortunately your mama was still slightly alive after I'd finished with her, and she managed to call the police before she finally croaked. I had to bolt before I got to you, but I've remembered you all this time." He took a step closer and peered at me. "So, I'm curious. Can you read my mind, you psi bitch? Can you see into my soul like they said you could?"

I squeezed the trigger, and he jerked backward. Blood flowed from his shoulder wound, although it was barely noticeable against the black fabric that covered it in the darkness of night. But he was standing just under a street lamp and I could see I'd gotten him. Not good aim, though. I'd been shooting for his heart.

He yelled and clamped a hand to his shoulder, his face contorted in anger and pain.

Pure red rage filled my vision and pushed all other thoughts out of my head. "You're the one? You killed my family?"

"Kira …" Rogan said, still pressed up behind me. He was breathing hard. I felt the muscles in his back tense tighter than they were before.

"I'm going to kill you!" I yelled, and I aimed and squeezed off another shot at the murderer.

The chamber clicked empty. I pulled the trigger again and again, but there was nothing.

Only two men.

Only two bullets.

The show had given us just enough to kill them and nothing more.

"Dammit!" I threw the gun at Kurtis, who had slumped down to his knees, staring at the blood that gushed out from between his fingers. I heard Rogan's crowbar make contact with Mac's, a crash of metal against metal, and then a grunt of pain as Rogan managed to clobber Mac. He dragged me behind him as we began to run again as fast as we could, trying to put distance between us and the two injured murderers.

I was shaking with fury. He'd admitted what he'd done so freely, as if he were proud of it.

"I'm sorry that had to happen," Rogan said, his words pinched.

"Stop apologizing for everything," I yelled, directing my anger at him instead of the man behind us.

"Here." He stopped running in front of a door, and I skidded to a halt next to him. The streetlight was angled like a spotlight showing us the way. There was a chain across it, and he whacked it a few times with the crowbar until it broke. He tried the handle and it swung open. "Let's go inside."

"I'm sorry I yelled at you." My cheeks were wet with tears of frustration and rage. I wasn't sad; there was no time for that. I'd finished being sad a long time ago, and now there was only anger left behind.

"How about neither one of us apologizes anymore." He squeezed my hand. "At least not to each other, okay?"

I nodded shakily. "It's a deal."

We went into the building and he shut the door behind us. Then I felt his arms around me, hugging me against him while I sobbed against his shoulder. He slid his hands through my hair.

"I'm right here with you. I'm not going anywhere."

I finally stopped crying and nodded against his shoulder. There wasn't much light inside, only some from a bare bulb dangling from the ceiling, but it was enough to see we were in a small foyer that led to a staircase. Rogan moved toward the door and slid the lock across about two seconds before there was a loud, resounding bang on it from the other side.