Scrolling through her phone, Tora blows the strand of hair from her face and back into the bun, furrowing her eyebrows in concentration. Sat in the back of the long limo, wearing a black, long-sleeved, shin-length, tunic-style dress —a gold peacock with jewelled feathers embroidered on the front— and black heels, she shifts in the seat to pull at the skirt. "I could really use a cigarette right now."
"You know what you're doing, right?"
Dropping her phone down to look to the side as Ash pushes his hair back, Tora raises an eyebrow. "You're not questioning my reliability now, are you? I'm not actually going to smoke now."
He shrugs, adjusting the bow tie of his tuxedo. "It's not that I don't trust you—"
"Well, what is it?" She questions, fiddling with her fingers.
"I just know what's at stake here and how much you want to know this information." Ash raises his hands. "That's all I'm saying."
Nodding, Tora rests her arm on the window and looks outside, the rain pouring down. "I know."
Ash places a hand on the seat between them, leaning closer. "I'm right there with you. Just act like it's any other job, but with a reward that will hopefully give us some more answers."
She turns back to him. "I'm a professional, I know what I'm doing."
"Just listen for a sec, damnit." He shakes his head, pressing on the remote as the partition slides down. "You doing this tonight could be the next step for us. You can't tell me you haven't considered that this job is potentially life-threatening."
She furrows her eyebrows, crossing her arms. "What do you mean, 'life-threatening'?"
Ash raises an eyebrow. "I don't think Yut-Lung would double-cross us, but just keep an eye out. You've got everything you need to know, so do your thing but with extra caution."
"I know, I know." Tora slumps in the seat. "It's not like I haven't thought about the things that could go wrong. But I have faith that he wants this person dead more than he wants to mess with me."
He pushes his glasses up the bridge of his nose. "Let's hope."
-
Sipping her champagne flute, Tora smiles to him. "I'm so glad I ran into you, Mr Chang."
The trim, middle-aged, Chinese businessman grins, placing his glass down. "Please, call me Liu. But yes, I'm glad too."
"I'm not usually a fan of these events, too many business people," Tora says. "I think business should stay for the office and we should have fun."
"I couldn't agree more, these events are to unwind." He smirks, turning to his two bodyguards a few feet away. "I'll take it from here, enjoy the party."
They nod their heads respectfully to the two before walking away from them and into the crowd.
Tora giggles. "What would you like to do now, Liu?"
He raises a hand to her cheek, placing a finger under her chin. "One of my associates allows me to use his office for when I want to escape these things. Does that sound suitable?"
She nods, grabbing her purse from the table. "How about I use the bathroom and then I meet you at the elevator in five?"
He agrees, kissing her hand before grabbing their drinks and walking away. She makes her way over to the bathroom, searching the room for Ash. They lock eyes and he excuses himself from his conversation.
Reaching the entrance to the bathroom, Tora glances to check on Liu Chang, before ushering Ash inside the disabled cubicle.
"What's going on? Are you going somewhere with this guy?" He questions.
She nods. "We're about to go upstairs. I need you to watch out for his bodyguards. If he's gone too long then they'll suspect something."
Ash agrees. "I've got it covered. Have you got everything you need?"
"I'm set." She tells him, taking in a deep breath. "Okay, I'll leave first. Wait a few minutes."
Placing her fingers on the handle, she turns back to him.
"Be careful." He tells her.
-
Fingers tugging at his shirt, Tora batts her eyelashes at him before he hungrily kisses her lips. As his hands roam her sides, she unbuttons his shirt and he removes his lips from hers to pull the bowtie off from around his neck.
"You are amazing." He mumbles against her lips and she smirks.
She slides the sleeves of his shirt down and off his arms, tossing it to the side. He pulls away, sinking his fingers into her arm and around her waist.
Tora runs a hand through his hair before turning to the desk where she, with one sweep of her arm, knocks everything off and grins. "Get on the table."
"I like the sound of that." He winks, laying his body down on the hard surface as Tora reaches down to her purse. She pulls out the needle and gazes at it —the cloudy liquid swirling inside the syringe. Her eyes widen.
Her vision blurs and she places a hand down on the floor to steady herself.
"Rina?" He questions and her eyes widen, looking above the table at him.
"Sorry," She giggles. "My shoes are giving me trouble, one second."
He raises an eyebrow. "I don't like to be kept waiting."
She laughs, ducking back down to her purse. Holding up the needle, she wipes the sweat from her brow, hands shaking.
Noticing the bin by the desk, she crouches to the side and carefully squeezes out the liquid, covering the end of the needle and tucking it up the slit of her dress.
Gripping the sides of the desk, she stands up and runs her fingers up his leg until she reaches his belt. Smirking, she fiddles with the buckle, tugging at it and unzipping his trousers.
He rests his head back in satisfaction, closing his eyes. "Yes, yes."
It's sudden and his eyes shoot open, his complexion turning pale.
Slowly pulling the needle out from in-between his toes, Tora glances to his face. Sweat forms on his forehead and his chest rises and falls at a quicker rate.
Placing the needle back inside her clutch, Tora walks forward and places a finger under his chin. "I'm sorry you couldn't have your fun, I certainly had mine. This is going to be painless and over pretty quickly, which is much better."
His mouth opens and he gasps, eyes twitching and hands shaking.
"Trust me, this could've been much more painful for both you and me," Tora tells him. "That's what you get for doing business with a snake, I think we both know how ruthless they can be—"
A loud band is heard from outside the room and her eyes widen, grabbing the knife from her purse and guarding herself with it. Another crash follows and she glances back to his body, shaking as the heart attack kicks in.
Panicking, she groans, turning back to him and slashing his throat in one motion. Blood trickles down his neck and his eyes roll back.
The doors are thrown open and she holds up her knife to throw it when Ash charges in —a gun in hand and a furrowed brow.
"Ash?" She questions.
He runs over to her, lowering the gun and grabbing her arm. "You were right, his guards came up."
"What happened? Did you shoot them?" She questions.
Ash nods. "We've got to get out of here."
They hear footsteps coming towards the room and Ash holds up his gun when a handful of guards come running in. Tora shields herself as they open fire, Ash taking perfect aim and shooting the first two between the eyes.
"Damn," Tora's eyes widen. "You really are some kind of monster."
She kneels and throws her knife as it plunges into one of their stomachs and he groans, crashing to the floor. As Ash continues to fire at the men, Tora grabs her knife and slits the guy's neck, using his body to shield herself from bullets.
The bodies of six guards lay on the floor, pools of blood underneath their heads, and Tora throws the limp body to the side.
Snatching her purse from the desk, Tora runs her finger over the guard's slashed neck, rubbing his blood over her cheek.
Ushering her out of the room, Ash holds his gun up as they enter the lift and the door closes.
"Crap." Tora groans, punching the elevator wall as they descend. "I can't believe I trusted Yut-Lung."
Ash shakes his head, a hand to his own side as pain shoots through his stomach. "We don't know for sure he did this. The guards may have gotten curious and wanted to check on him."
Tora narrows her eyes. "He gave me a needle of Banana Fish, Ash. I don't think he's reliable."
"Damnit." Ash huffs. The elevator comes to a halt and Ash tucks his gun into his belt, grabbing Tora and pulling her into his side.
As the doors open and more men come running down the corridor, Tora cries out. "He's been killed! Someone help!"
One man presses a finger to his ear, hurrying over to the two and looking to Ash. "Can you look after this lady?"
Ash nods, pursing his lips. "Of course."
The other men rush past them as the two leave the corridor and into the nearby stairwell. A loud siren rings as they run down the stairs, shoes clicking against the steps and echoing throughout the building.
"There's a back exit. We can get out here and head to the front." Ash tells her.
They reach the end of the stairwell with the fire exit door in sight. Tora rushes over, grabbing the handle and twisting it, only to find it's locked shut.
"What? Who locks a fire exit?"
Ash moves her to the side, shooting at the lock and kicking it but it still won't budge. Taking in a deep breath, Ash thinks for a moment. "This way."
He grabs her wrist, running back up the first flight of stairs with his gun in hand as Tora follows. They reach the first floor and Ash pulls her close to his body again as they join the crowd of panicked people in the lobby area.
Staff members attempt to move people along to the exits as Ash ushers her through and round the side. The side exit in sight, they hurry past officers and he places a hand on the door handle when Tora's shoulder is pulled back.
"You need to leave safely by the main exit. That's an order." He tells them, chaos ensuing behind them.
Tora kicks his knee, knocking him to the floor and punching his face as she snatches the gun from his holster as he falls to the floor.
Grabbing her side and pushing the door open, Ash peers around the corner, cursing as he spots guards scattered by the entrance.
"We need to be quick." Ash tells her.
Tora furrows her eyebrows. "Not going to shoot them?"
"Not if we can help it." He holds the gun under his blazer, an arm around Tora's shoulder as they run behind a pillar to take cover.
Tora pants. "If we can make it around the front, there should be a car waiting for us—"
Tires screech round the corner and a black, BMW Sudan swerves to a halt. The back door opens and a man peers his head out the car. "A car from Yut-Lung?"
The two look at one another, eyebrows raised. Tora calls out. "Does Yut-Lung know the situation going on right now?"
"We've been checking the exits looking for you as the Master heard you'd need saving," The man says. "Come inside quick, before you're seen."
They run forward, Ash climbing into the passenger seat as Tora slides into the backseat and the man closes the door for her. He climbs in the other side and slams the door, the driver pulling away as soon as he does so.
Fingers fumbling, Tora swats her hair out of her face and places the gun inside her purse and zips it shut. Ash holds his gun in his lap, wiping his forehead as he ducks his head slightly.
The car speeds past the building and through the dark streets of the Upper East Side.
"Are you okay?" The man next to her asks.
Tora raises an eyebrow, nodding to him as she flexes her wrist. "Just fine."
The driver looks through the rear-view mirror at her and she clears her throat.
The man turns to her again. "Yut-Lung got word of what was happening so we circled the block for all the exits. It's a good thing we found you before anything else happened."
Tora nods slowly, Ash glancing to the driver as they continue to drive.
"Well, we need to see him now," Ash says. "Tell him what happened."
The driver interrupts. "I'm afraid Mr Lee isn't at his usual home, but we can take you to where he is now."
Ash hums in response, briefly looking in the side mirror.
The car falls silent, until the driver and the man in the back begin their own conversation, talking in Chinese.
"Take the next left, there's a tunnel not too far." He says. "That's the best way out of the city."
The driver mumbles under his breath. "She doesn't even realise, they both have no idea. Ask her something so she doesn't get suspicious."
The man next to her smiles, talking back in English. "How long are you going to be in New York for?"
"I'm not sure..." She says, leaning down to her shoe, removing her left heel.
He nods. "If you get the chance, there's a brilliant bar not too far from—"
She grips the sole firmly, turning and jabbing the heel into his eye. He howls in pain and blood pours from his eye socket as he clutches at his face.
The driver's eyes widen and he grabs his gun from the inside of his blazer when Ash shoots his shoulder and the car veers to the side.
Tora rams the heel into his other eye as he screams and attempts to grab his gun. She dives forwards, clicking open the car door and he flails his arms around.
Ash punches the driver, bashing his head against the steering wheel and the horn honks as the car swerves.
With the back door open, the man's head scrapes against the pavement and his scalp turns raw. When the car swings around, Tora yelps as she falls on top of him.
He clutches at her hair and she huffs, grabbing his gun and shooting his head. His grips releases as she shoves him out the car and slams the door.
Ash brings a leg up and kicks the driver in the stomach when Tora leans forward and unclips his seatbelt, turning the wheel sharply.
"Hold tight, Ash!"
His eyes widen. "What are you doing?!"
The driver looks up, disorientated from the blows, as Ash dives into the backseat.
They grab their seatbelts tight and, before the driver can steer them away, the car soars up the pavement and crashes into the wall. The bonnet crushes from the impact and the windows shatter.
The car twists from the knock, glass flying everywhere as it spins. The tires shriek and the car slides across the pavement.
They shield themselves and they grip the seatbelts tighter, before the car judders and screeches to a halt in the middle of the road.
-
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"won't you leave all your fears at the edge of the world?" - 5SOS