Nightingale: The Vigilante || EDITING

Chapter Two

I was running, weaving through an abandoned war zone. Branches from trees and bushes scraped my face as I zoomed by. A round struck a trunk to my left, the sound of screaming soldiers followed. My earpiece made a sharp sound. I collapse, pressing my ears to the sides of my head. I remember screaming, feeling as if my brain was turning mush, my ears felt like they were bleeding.

"Johnson!" A voice screamed from my earpiece. "Get your ass back here! You signed a contract! You belong to the corporation!"

My hand shook as I reached for the earpiece. I dug my fingers into my ear, trying to pry the thing from inside. It only made the sound worse. I screamed until my throat was raw. Soldiers began to draw in closer. I knew I had to run. I struggled to my feet, the noise had began to cloud my vision. I had only taken a few strides until it hits me.

I crumble to the ground, clutching my leg. It went limp in my arms. A purple welt began to form upon my thigh. I felt another bullet pierce the back of my shoulder. The pain became so unbearable that I pass out there on a cool patch of grass, soldiers surrounding me to take me back home.

~*~*~*~*~*~

I spring up from my bed, sweat rolling down from my forehead. I didn't scream, I didn't cry. I just sat there, trembling in fear. I had been on the run from that place for years. No doubt they are still trying to find me. I reach under the strap of my tank top feeling the scarred skin on the back of my shoulder.

The soldiers had shot me with rubber bullets. They were hollow, and weren't as painful as an actual bullet, but they did enough damage so it left an impression on your skin. Commander Scott had the bullets custom made so if any of his lab rats were to escape, he wouldn't have to use lethal force to take them down. I never found out if the bullet that pierced my shoulder was real, rubber, or a new gadget Commander Scott had whipped up himself. It was hard to determine anything when it came to him.

Commander Scott was one of the reasons I left. He had told me the night before I left that he had plans for me, for all the teens in the corporation. I disagreed with his plans, and left it all behind. When I returned to the base to retrieve my things and see if I could bring anyone else with me, the base was in flames. And then I saw him, the only person I cared about, sprawled dead under a broken cement block.

I shake my head, brushing tears aside. I couldn't think about him right now. I have to be focused on saving the city and trying to go to school at the same time. I glance over to my phone charging on my nightstand. I turn it on, it's bright screen blinding me as I attempt to determine the time. I blink the haziness out of my eyes and revisit the screen. The time read 2:54.

Great. How am I going to go back to sleep now?

Just then the sound police sirens approached by my apartment complex. I run to the window to see what the commotion was all about. Across the street a man was swinging his arms wildly around, pointing a gun towards a hostage. The police pulled out of their cars, aiming their guns at the man.

I had managed to put on half of my suit when I heard gunfire. I run to the window to see both the man and the hostage on the ground. Pools of blood surrounded the two people. The screaming had ceased.

I cursed under my breath as a ran my hands through my matted hair. I should of been there to stop it. I could have saved those people if I wasn't drowning myself in sorrow from things I couldn't of fixed.

But that was just it. I couldn't of saved those people. I knew when I started this career of being Nightingale that there will be people I couldn't save, but it still hurts to know that I could of tried.

I begin to unzip my suit, delicately placing back on my table, switching it back to its regular countertop. I wobbled back to my bed and pulled the covers over my face, hiding my body under the sheets. I laid there for several moments before I am consumed into sleep.

~*~*~*~*~*~

Hey guys! Hope you are enjoying the book so far! I have decided that I am going to post a new chapter every week since I have a lot of school work and sports to take care of. Thanks for the support!

@-AgentSecor-