The Scarlet Phantom: Finding the Light in the Darkest of Times

Run and Hide

'How long till the airport?' Zereph's serious tone almost startled Yor as she spun the steering wheel at the U-turn while Zereph sat in the backseat with the handcuffed Ulterior.

'An hour.' Yor said 'I got the earliest privet plane I could back. We ought to interrogate him properly, by the book, back at the Garden-'

Yor was cut off by Ulterior's cackling 'One hour.... One hour. Trust me, Ms. Scarlet...This is going to be the longest one hour of your life.'

He then turned to Zereph, looking up at him with child like eyes 'Did you know, brother, that we will not reach the airport.'

Silence.

'Ask me why?' Ulterior jeered 'Ask.'

Yor and Zereph continued to ignore him.

'Well, suit yourselves...' Ulterior grinned, leaning back into his seat 'You know, I finally figured out why this drive has been so awkward. The chemistry between you two is all wrong.'

The two didn't speak a word but stole glances at him and each other by the corner of their eyes.

'We have a billionaire mafia boss who spent years rotting in jail after letting his mother die and his brothers rot on the streets,' Ulterior chided and not only did Yor feel that he was telling the truth but also Zereph's heart rate running faster than the Indy 100, his hands clenched.

'Ignore him,' Yor's voice came out drier than the Sahara dessert.

'And on the other hand,' Ulterior nodded to Yor 'We have a successful, respected, rich, law-abiding agent who was thrown into slavery because she wasn't good enough for her own mother and committed a murder at the age of 10...Huh, seems like you two are more alike than I thought.'

Ulterior pretended to mutter to Zereph in the loudest pitch he could 'Bit of a hypocrite, isn't she?'

Zereph didn't react but Yor felt his rage shoot through the roof. Ulterior leaned forward and whispered to Yor 'With that background, how in the world are you planning to save Agent Radius Rose? Want my guess? He probably wants you gone too-'

Her hands were clutching at his collar before her brain could cool from her rage. Her vision bled red as she buoyed him out his seat by the shirt.

'Hey, Zereph, Hey!' Ulterior chuckled 'Mr. Etharious, Control her, will you? Control your girlfriend, man!'

Zereph didn't even bother looking away from the window. Yor shoved Ulterior back into his seat so violently that he banged his head against the window. His eyes rolled in his head as Yor held a trembling finger at him 'Not. Another. Word. Understood!?! Not another word out of you!!!'

Ulterior nodded, imitating submissiveness, as he ran his figure across his lips imitating locking his lips and throwing the key away.

Ulterior shot her a wink and grinned widely like a child as he sunk low into his seat.

And then, out of nowhere, out of nothing, they were surrounded. Three bikers formed a vast "V" around Yor's bright red SUV.

Yor and Zereph's screams, Ulterior's maniacal triumphant laughter, a blaze of golden lights shattering the car windows. The bullets pierced right through Yor's coat and bounced off her bullet proof armor.

Yor momentarily lost sense of where they were. Streetlights above her, yells of civilians around her, she was cinging to the steering wheel for dear life.

'If you hadn't told me to not say another word, this wouldn't have happened. This one's on you, Scarlet.'

Ulterior's jab snapped Yor back to life and she spun the wheel, swinging the car into full speed. A second's relief, and then another burst of bullets.