Kill Contract

Rogue | 5

Run. RUN!

She was tripping over her feet and crying and she wanted to throw up and curl up in a ball at the same time.

The scene kept replaying in her mind.

The gun, the shot, Austin falling with a blank stare and hitting the ice-

No! She screamed in her thoughts.

The world spun around her, fractured and blinding through the tears that froze on her face. She couldn't breath, she was choking on her own sobs, she was running for her life.

Look at the perfectly glistening iced sidewalk. The snow now-turned-slush that clumped over the edges of the road.

Austin's dead.

Despair surged to her brain. Spasmic gasps and cold terror filled the silence of the town as everything blurred past her. Her footsteps pounded through her bones and hammered against her head like a drum.

Street lights. Vans. Asphalt.

I could die here and no one would know.

Russian letters.

They shot him and they were going to shoot me-

A house with a blue sign.

I'm never going to get back home-  

"Hey!"

The one word shattered the cage of terror that was crushing her lungs.

"Hey, missy!"

She slammed into a gray wall.

Her vision cleared partially, and she jerked back. A policeman in uniform, complete with gloves and scarf.

She was in front of a police station.

Chrissie gulped and wiped an arm across her wet face. The cold air hit her all of a sudden, stinging the back of her throat and pricking her skin.

Where are they? Are they here?

She turned around wildly, her breathing still sharp and erratic. No one in sight. The town was void of activity. It was just shaking really badly. And being clouded with spots. And blurring in and out of focus-

A large hand clamped onto her shoulder.

Chrissie whipped around dizzily. The policeman, a pale-faced man with a chunk of blonde hair, was saying something but his mouth was moving without making sound.

"They...he...he's dead." Chrissie whispered hoarsely.

The man pulled her inside.

-------

The radio was one of those old fashioned ones, with all the knobs and antennae and bulky wooden frame. It was a dark brown, with grain that etched from one side to the other in swirly patterns you could get lost in.

Papers lied at the foot of the radio and spilled over the table.

"What did you see again?"

Chrissie sighed. She cupped her hands around the mug. Precious warmth flowed from the tips of her fingers. A delicate aroma filled the air.

The policeman, whose name was Andrei Serj-something, was leaning on his desk and staring out of the window.

A computer sat on the table, repeatedly blinking out a message. Pens and post it notes were scattered around it. The rest of the police station consisted of dull metallic lockers that lined the other wall, three of which were unhinged and rusted.

"Two men." Chrissie repeated. An involuntary shudder tickled her spine. "They came out of nowhere, and- and told me to give them everything I had. I screamed and they pulled out a knife."

She lifted the mug to her lips and took another sip of the hot liquid. Her heart rate had fallen back to its normal rhythm, but she was still feeling very jumpy and teary eyed.

"And I can't do anything- they're driving me down a little alley- and Austin appears, I don't know how he heard, thank goodness-"

"He pulled out a gun."

"Yeah, I-"

"How did he get that gun?" Andrei turned his attention back to her. He speaks good English, with a rough accent though. "Where are you from again?"

"Uh, he...we...we came here with the- the TranSiberean Railway, um."

"Is he licensed to have a gun?"

"Yeah, I think, I mean, this isn't the point here."

Chrissie took another sip and tried not to notice her trembling fingers. The hot drink- a strange mix of sweet and liquor-like flavor- was on the line between soothing and making her feel sick again.

"Is this- is this the only police station?"

"It's not a very big town. These men. How were they?"

"Like- dark- dark jackets and...one had a broken nose."

Chrissie wiped an arm across her face again. "This is a small town, so- like these people... You've never heard of them?"

"Can't say I have."

Andrei stared into the distance while tapping a pen to his chin.

"But, can you do something?" Chrissie implored weakly. "They- they're still out there and-"

"Are you sure your friend is dead?"

"He- they- shot him in the head..." She trailed off as a sob shook her suddenly.
"Please! can you just..."

Andrei huffed and got off to reach inside a drawer. Weird items clanked with each other till he pulled out a small box-like object.

"They have guns! That's a Taser?!"

"There are no gun shops in this town." The policeman growled. "I need to know where these men came from and who they are."

A set of keys jingled coldly in his other hand. "Can you show me where they were?"

Chrissie nodded blinking back tears.