Part Four
(Cadie paused, peering out from around the corner.
No one seemed to be watching, so she moved out into the darkened room.
She moved silently, like the great cat she admired, the cougar. But
this time, silence was not enough.
She'd been overconfident, too sure of herself. She'd
been sure she'd found and disabled all the sensors; so it was a
complete shock when the alarm started blaring and the lights came up.
True to her training, she didn't freeze; she whirled
and ran, dropping her bag of tools and diving through the French doors
to roll over the edge of the terrace. Her hands grabbed for the
railing and missed and she fell two stories into the shrubbery.
She scrambled out of the bushes, prepared to renew
her flight, and charged right straight into the waiting arms of the security man.
Before she could blink, or make eye contact, he'd
had her immobilized. And then, to her horror, he had produced a
Genoshan inhibitor collar and placed it around her neck. She was
completely helpless, save for her wits.
She'd been taken back inside and placed in a holding
cell with another man, whose eyes were bandaged. She sat down on the
bench across from him, straining to remain silent; he heard her anyway.
"Who're you?" he growled. "I ain't talkin ta nobody bout nothin. Get it, bub?"
Her temper snapped. "I ain' no 'bub', mon
ami....... an I don' know what you're doin here, but I'm aimin t' get
out. Now." That's when she saw the collar around his neck. *Mutant?
Like me. I can't let him stay here, den...... have t' bring him
'long.* She slipped a tiny lockpick from her boot.
"So what're ya doin in here, if you're not one of
the help?" he asked, shifting. He gave off a feeling of enormous
power, surprising in a such small man. "Or are you the thief they been worried about?"
In spite of herself, she smiled. "See my reputation precedes me, mon ami,"
she said lightly. "How y' know, hehn?" She went to work on the lock.
"I heard you take somethin from your boot, darlin."
His words cut through her. *He heard dat? Must have hearin' like a
damn bat.* The tumblers clicked once, and she slowly worked the latch.
A quick peek out showed her no one was near. She
turned to her fellow prisoner and gently took his hand. "I won' leave
you here, mon ami. No one deserves de collar, hehn? I show you de way out."
He followed her quickly, moving as silently
as she. *Damn, but he is good. He would make a good t'ief, I t'ink.*
They made their way up a flight of stairs, into a long hallway.
"Dis where you gotta listen ta me, mon ami," she
cautioned. "Dere be light beams crossin de floor here, ever two feet.
Trip one an we be right back where we started, compris? Keep your feet clear."
He nodded once, curtly. Then they moved forward,
careful to keep their feet within two foot intervals. At the end of
the hallway was a door, and she could see the plates for the sensors.
"Listen for anyone comin, hehn? I open de door in a jiffy."
"Better hurry, darlin. Sounds like someone just opened our cell."
The klaxon began to sound, and she abandoned
subtlety in favor of speed. A well placed kick sent it crashing open
and they ran into the night. She was careful to guide her companion
through the grounds, avoiding any tripwires she saw. Then helping him
over the fence and into an alley. "We be safe now, mon ami," she gasped as she tried
to catch her breath. "Dey won't come off de grounds to find us, hehn?"
He nodded again, not as winded as she was. *How does
he do dis? He hasn't even broken a sweat, an me, I am gaspin for every breath.*
"Darlin, thanks for gettin' me out. Stupid mistake
got me caught in the first place." He sounded disgusted with himself,
and she understood it. She felt the same way about her reasons for
being caught. "If you're so good at locks, think you can get this
thing off me?" He indicated the collar. "Once it's off, I get my eyes
back quick and we'll be able to see em comin."
"I can see dem well for myself, mon ami, but I take
de collar off. Hold very still while I work, hehn?" Her lockpick
flashed in the dim light as she went to work. Five minutes later, she
held the collar in her hand and he was tearing at the bandages over his eyes.
*I can't let him see me. He would take me in, I
t'ink.* She began to edge toward the corner.
She never heard him, never saw him start to move.
Suddenly, he was just holding her arms to her sides. "Don't be takin off just yet, darlin."
She squirmed, but she couldn't break free. "I think we need to talk."
"Not'in t' talk bout, mon ami," she began, but he
was turning her to face him. She kicked, as hard as she could, and his
grip slackened just enough for her to dance away. She felt no qualms
about leaving him now, he was no longer defenseless. So she ran.)
"What you t'inkin bout, petite?" Gambit's voice cut
into her thoughts. "Pretty serious, hehn? So quiet. Ain' like you."
She forced a smile and lied. "Just t'inkin bout
someone I used to know, cher. No one important." *No, no one
important. I just almost broke his mind last night. Never thought to
see him again.* "Why did your friend call me a child, hehn? Surely I
don' look dat young."
"Called changin de subject, petite, but I'll let it
go. Don' t'ink you realize jus how young you do look." He reached
over and ruffled her flaxen hair. "Look bout sixteen."
She blushed furiously as she moved out from under
his hand. "Remy, don' be usin dat charm on me, hehn? You know it don'
work on me. An I know you got someone. Heard you callin her name las
night in your sleep, mon ami. I won't mess wit' someone else's man."
*And because I gave my heart t' someone a long time ago. He jus don' know it yet.*
[ 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 ]
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