Angels, Pop Stars, and...More Spies? Oh My!

Chapter 15

Chapter 15

"There you are! Come on, we have to get out of here." I yelled above the music, grabbing the arm of a familiar blonde haired girl.

She was either too tipsy (she was drinking. Shit) or not paying attention because it took Ariana at least three minutes to figure out someone was dragging her out of the famous Intensity nightclub. She protested, slurring heavily and stumbling over her own two feet. How the hell was she even allowed to drink a drop of alcohol? Her ID clearly says she's seventeen. Last time I checked, seventeen wasn't the drinking age. And I'm sure as hell seventeen and twenty one aren't the same ages.

"Where are we going?" Ariana slurred, slumping against me as we left the club.

I wrapped my arm around her shoulders for support and quickly sat her down on the nearest metal bench I could find. Ariana's eyes drifted around aimlessly, a sloppy smile crossing her ruby red lips as she started to sing about cats and bananas. God, for her small size, she's heavy. I rolled my shoulders and exhaled an exasperated sigh. 

"We're going to sober you up before your father has both of our heads. Ariana, I thought I told you..."

I trailed off as I saw the pointlessness in lecturing a drunken teenage girl. I pulled out my phone, which had been tucked into my bra (still the best hiding place for anything), and called the first person I know would help. 

"Ember?" 

"Joshua, I need your help." I said when he answered on the third ring.

"What's wrong? Are you hurt? Is Ariana?" his voice grew urgent and deeply concerned.

I almost smiled at his sudden concern.

"No, everything is fine with me. I...um...well..."

"Yes, Ember, go on."

I bit my lower lip.

"Ariana's drunk. I need your help to sober her up before I bring her home. Do you think you could meet us somewhere?"

Silence filled the line. I pressed the receiver to my ear with one hand and steadied Ariana with the other. Judging from how she's so tipsy, she must have gotten on of those girly cocktails. Or took a bunch of shots. I should complain to the owner. Maybe he'd fire the bartender for serving alcohol to minors.Or, even better, I should call the police and have the whole club shut down. The owner may already know and doesn't care. All of the club owners I've met in the past (all for mission purposes) were douches anyway. Only one was ever polite to me, but he owned a country club in Germany.

"Sure. Where do you want to meet?" Joshua finally answered.

I bit my lip, trying to think of a place that was still open. Glancing over the shoulder of a passing late-night tourist, I read the time on his iPhone. 11:30. Oh, so it's not that late after all. Most places are still open. I mean, come on, it's Los Angeles.  I came up with a place almost instantly. 

"Meet me at the Walk of Fame. You know that gift shop there?"

"Yeah. Okay, I'll be there in ten." 

"Thanks, Josh. I love you." I said before hanging up. 

Ariana started screaming at the top of her lungs next, slurring every other word and laughing hysterically when her shoes clicked on the cement of the sidewalk. Shoving my phone back into my bra, I hoisted her up again. My car wasn't parked that far away. From here, the Walk of Fame is a two minute drive. 

"Ember, do you wanna know what my grandma once said?"

I gritted my teeth as her weight slumped against my side. Lord, she's heavy. Note to self: next time don't let Ariana run in by herself. I practically carried her for three minutes until my car was finally in sight. Using one hand, I slipped it under my dress and grabbing my keys from my holster. Another great hiding place. I swear, I love being a girl. We can hide stuff practically anywhere. In boots (during the winter.) In our bras (year round.) Garters (or holsters, for all the other lady spies like me out there.) I unlocked my car and plopped Ariana down into the passenger's seat. She slumped back and fell asleep. I sighed a sigh of relief as I shut her door and rounded the car to the driver's side. Good. Now I don't have to deal with her for a little while. I placed my hand on the handle of the door when I heard a muffled popping sound I knew all too well. My head shot up as I looked around frantically. 

Standing in a dark alleyway, a shadow amongst darkness, was a man. He was holding a familiar object in his hand, which was aimed at me. The silencer extension on the end of the gun reminded me of the one James Bond used in Skyfall. Pulling my own gun from the holster, I swiftly jumped into my car and sped away. The gun remained in my hand as I sped through the streets of Los Angeles, narrowly avoiding other cars and pedestrians. It wasn't until I passed the Walk of Fame that I realized I was being tailed by a midnight blue BMW. I watched the car in my rear-view mirror, flicking back and forth between the road. Ariana was too drunk to wake up. Hey, sleeping is a way to recover from getting drunk. She'll have massive hangover headaches tomorrow but...

Suddenly, my back window broke. I shifted to the rear-view side mirror on my car and saw that, indeed, a man was sitting in the passenger's seat of the BMW and shooting at me. I swore under my breath. Why does it have to be when I'm all alone? Just as I was turning to shoot back, while keeping my hand on the steering wheel, Ariana shot awake and puked all over my car. I swore loudly. Just freaking great! I'll deal with that later. She leaned back in her chair only to throw up again all over her lap. She seemed oblivious to what was going on. I preferred it that way. She panics too much in situations. Like her mother.

I shot back at the BMW, and without a silencer, my gun shots were fully pronounced. The tourists and pedestrians ducked, covering their heads with their arms and throwing whatever they'd been holding into the streets or onto the sidewalks. I swerved around cars, driving like a madwoman. I feel like I'm in a James Bond movie. Car chases like this don't usually come along in spy work. They just don't. Yet, strangely, I found my adrenaline pumping. 

I drove around frantically, hearing police sirens in the background. I glanced at the rear view side mirror. Indeed, three police cars were chasing both the BMW and my car. I made a snap decision. Tugging the steering wheel over, I screeched onto a side road that would lead me to the desert. The police cars and the BMW passed right past. I smiled, driving up the winding side road. Suddenly, just as I was about to turn around, another car came swerving around the curb. I slammed on the brakes, the sound of screeching rubber filling the silent night, and I missed hitting the car by an inch. Suddenly, my head hit the wheel and I was out cold. 

(Hey guys! Sorry again for any mistakes in grammar or spelling. My laptop is still being stupid and I'm writing this on my iPod. Bad news guys, I'm starting school soon so my updates won't be as often. I'm so sorry! :( But, I won't stop writing completely. I have three Honors classes and a language class so I'll be pretty booked. Please be patient with me. Bye-bye for now!)