Burning Revenge

40

It was loud.
So loud I could still hear the ringing in my ears minutes after I fired.
A shiver went down my spine and I froze, pinching my eyes closed. Did I kill him? As realization hit me that I might just have killed a human being, a mixture of fear, dread, and guilt spread inside me. Not in any way did I feel like I thought I would when I imagined myself killing the murderer of my parents - there was no relief or even happiness. It felt awful, as though there was a shadow over my heart.
"Liv," Will murmered, his hand under my chin. I dared to open my eyes and looked at his familiar face. "You didn't kill him, just look."
I let my gaze travel to the body lying on the floor and let out a breath I didn't know I was holding.
Prior was alive. The bullet had gone through his arm, and he was groaning - but he was alive.
"I'm not a murderer," I breathed and I let out a shaky laugh. I'm not a murderer.
Prior's choked laugh cut through the silent room, making me spin my head towards him and point my gun between his eyes. "Oh come on, Olivia," Prior panted, cradeling his arm, "Kill me allready. Take your revenge."
Revenge. That's all that I really wanted wasn't it?
"Kill me, Firestone!" he growled. It almost sounds like a plea.
My hand tightened aroud the trigger.
And I let the gun sink back to my side again.
"No."
"What do you mean 'no'?" Prior hissed. "I killed your parents, and many other people. Kill me allready! You weak, disgusting failure-"
"If I kill you Prior, what would that make me?" I asked, my eyes flicking to Will. He was smiling at me, and it wasn't a smile of relief. It was almost as though he knew I wouldn't have killed him.
"I am not a murderer." I felt stronger with every word I spoke, and a sudden flow of words was pooring out of my mouth. "I don't want to live my life with the pain of knowing I killed someone, even if he wasn't innocent. Because that would make me like you. A killer." I finished off with a disgusted look on my face. "You don't deserve my pain."
Will's hand engulfed mine and I felt the reasuring tingles again, strengthening me.
Prior smiled. "You won't get to live your life, Firestone. And nor does your stupid friend-"
"Boyfriend." Will growled.
"I don't care. You won't survive the next minute let alone live a long, happy life," Prior sneered. He looked absolutely mad - this couldn't be a leader of an army. He was a psychopath-
"The suicide room is open. The virus is allready spreading, and it will suck the life out of all of us one by one. First it eats your windpipe, then water fills your lungs and you slowly choke to death. We're all going to die, and my men will carry out my plan - I win."
Will snorted, his eyes narrowing at the man's face, "Didn't you ever wonder why we're still alive, Prior?"
Prior choked and started coughing, and he crumbled to the ground. I knelt beside him, the gun still in my hands.
"I- y-you can't-"
"You know, the trick of lying is actually telling the truth - just not the whole truth," I smiled, a sense of victory spread inside me at the sight of Prior's widened eyes.
"I don't know where exactly the antidote is," the ground was pooling with Prior's blood and it was making me sick. "But I do know one thing."
Prior coughed and I stood up straight again, staring down at him with a look of pity and disgust. "I am the antidote," I smiled, "And I'm going to destroy this virus. So no, Prior," I threw the gun to the side. "We win."
The man at my feet looked dispicable - hair stuck to his forehead with sweat, eyes wide and disbelief written all over his face."N-no, that can't be-"
Will tugged me towards him and whispered, "C'mon, we have to get this over with."
"What about Prior?"
Will nodded in Prior's direction. "He's allready dying, we don't need to worry about him."
I flinched at what he was saying. Rest assured I had no idea why. Perhaps it was the fact how casually we were talking about someone dying. Or perhaps it was the task that stood before us - but I couldn't escape the nagging feeling that I was doing something wrong.
Ignoring it, I turned my back to Prior and made my way towards the tubes, Will hot on my heels.
"To kill the virus I need to get some of my blood into the tubes," I said, glancing at Will.
"I picked up a knife from one of Prior's men, you can use that," Will pulled out a short knife and held the handle towards me.
He must have seen the fear that flashed in my eyes because he pulled me closer towards him, his arm around my waist.
I instantly calmed down and found myself remembering the date-night in the orphanage. I smiled at the memory of his arm around my waist, his hand in mine - at the memory of Jemma, Juma and Alyssa, Miss Dawson and all the others.
I closed my eyes and took the knife from Will's hand. I'm doing this for them.
It didn't hurt. When I looked at my hand there was blood trickling down the side of my palm, looking like ruby coloured beads.
I shook my head at myself and held my hand over the tubes. Just one drop will do it.
"No!"
Prior's voice filled the room - just as the first drop of blood landed in the tube. There was a sizzle and I watched in awe as the original greenish colour changed into a clear blue.
"You did it," he breathed. Three words that made the world seem lighter and relief wash over me. I couldn't believe it... The virus was destroyed.
"No!" Prior wheezed, "You bitch, you destroyed my lifeswork you-"
I swirlled around in a sudden anger, glaring.
"My parents lifework was the cure," I spat at him. "You made it into something it wasn't supposed to be-"
Suddenly, alarms were going off. The hole room was flashing in red, an agonizingly loud sound making me want to rip my ears out.
I looked around the room for what might have set it off and when my eyes landed on Prior's weak body he was grinning - a little device in his hands.
He had set the alarm off.
How could I have been so stupid? To not check his pockets? Gosh, I'm so-
"Liv!" Will shouted over the sound of that annoying alarm. "We have have to get out of here, Prior's men will be here in a few seconds!"
The virus is still in this room.
I took Will's hand and rushed to the door. But instead of running out of it, I locked the door.
Turning to Will I shouted, "We have to let no one in here or they will all die - The virus is still inside this room!"
Will looked confused for a moment. Then he nodded in understanding and pushed some of the desks and chairs to the door, barakading them even more just incase they decided to kick it down.
Panting, I turned to face Prior again. He was earily still, except for the occasional twitch of his body. It's too late for him. He's allready dying.. and he was willing to take his men with him to his grave.
After walking towards Prior's twitching body, I knelt beside him. His eyes found my grim face when I spoke.
"You're a monster," I said quietly. I wasn't angry, or afraid - I said it mater of factly. "You're a monster and a suicidal mentally disturbed pyschopath."
I looked back at Will, who was calmly regarding me.
Sighing, I grabbed Prior's arms and heaved his upper body up.
"And you deserve a life-time prison sentence," I finished, looking at Will's shocked face. "Come on we've got to get out of here!"
Will hooked his arms under Prior's body and we heaved him up.
"I can't believe I'm saving this fucking scumbag," Will murmered, clenching his jaw.
"Will, a lifetime sentance in jail - where he put many terrorists and criminals allready - that's worse than death," I panted while we carried Prior's twitching body towards the suicide room. "Every day in there will be beatings and many other things I don't want to get into. His life will be hell - and that's just what he deserves."
Will stayed quiet for a while as we set him back down onto the floor to catch our breaths.
"He killed my dad," Will whispered, his blue eyes looking so fragile. "He killed them Liv, and I'm saving his ass."
A look of guilt flashed over my face and I bit my lip. I shouldn't save Prior if Will doesn't want me t-
"God I love you, Firestone," Will's exasperated voice made my head snap up again. He looked uncertain about saving Prior, but there was complete trust in his eyes when he grabbed Prior's legs. "I'm doing this only for you. If it were me I'd let him die slowly in here."
The familiar warm feeling had returned inside me. It was the feeling I got everytime he was close or said something that made my heart flutter.
Shaking my head as though to clear it, I pulled Prior's limp body up by holding him under his arms.
"So what's the plan?"
Will signalled towards the suicide room. "When I still worked here I came across this room quite a lot. I was never allowed inside, but when we were dragged into here by the Hulk twins I noticed something."
"The suicide room has to be opened right?"
I nodded, not sure where he was going with this.
"But how were they going to put something or someone into it without letting the virus enter the room?"
Will ran a hand through his dark hair and glanced at me from under his long lashes. Scratching his neck he flicked his eyes towards a switch behind me.
"It's just a theory, but I believe they have a device built in here somewhere that is supposed to suck the air and virus out of this room, followed by a replacement with new oxygen - you know, those things you always have in chemistry classrooms in order to prevent harmful chemicals from staying in the same room."
I nodded and with a swift motion clicked the switch.
"LIV!" Will shouted, dropping Prior to the floor and rushing over towards me. "I DIDN'T EVEN KNOW IF I WAS RIGHT OR NOT, WHY'D YOU-"
"Because an idea that isn't certain yet is better than no idea," I answered quickly stroking his cheek. "And it looks like my guy is a genius."
Loud sucking sounds and clicking was to be heard from all of the walls, and although I was the antidote and the virus didn't affect me, I felt the air change slightly as the virus was sucked out of it.
"Well, I wouldn't say I'm a genius but-"
Will was cut off by a loud bang on the door. I jumped and let go of Prior's body and grabbing Will's hand. There was a loud bang at the door again, and the chairs and tables we had stocked up agsinst the door began to shake and topple.
"Will-" I whispered, my voice laced with angst.
"BSS, WE'RE COMING IN!" a deep yet familiar voice yelled and before I knew what was happening, the door exploded.
Will pushed me towards the floor, shielding my body with his while I screamed.
I whimpered and dug my face into the crook of his neck. It's too much. Who are they? Are they here to kill us? Are we going to die?
I was panting, and so was Will. My heart was racing -
There were armed people standing around us, their guns pointed at us from every direction.
Who are these people?
Will stood up and placed himself infront of me in a protective stand. "I swear to god, if you hurt her I'll kill every single one of you-"
"Take your guns down," a cold voice ordered from behind the men.
They did as they were told and parted to make place for the man who had such a familiar voice.
"Inspector Black?" I whispered almost inaudibly.
He was standing there - the living Sherlock Holmes. Black curls and icy blue eyes that were red at the moment - big baggy sacks under them making him look ten times older than when I had seen him a week ago.
"Olivia," he said softly, pushing past Will and crouching down beside me. His usual cold gaze was still there, but I could see a little flash of relief before it vanished again and he muttered, "Firestone, what did you get yourself into?"
I knew then that his men wouldn't hurt me. Inspector Black had come for us. He had found us. And he wasn't going to hurt me. "I didn't want all this to happen Sir," I breathed. "Never."
"Well," Inspector Black patted my head awkwardly, "We've got you. You're safe now."
With that he stood up and ordered the men to follow him. I could hear his commanding voice echo through the room as he told the men to pick up Prior, check up on the 'victims' and collect all the evidence needed for court.
I'm safe now...
I hadn't noticed my tears before. But as Will stood up and held me close to his chest, reasuring me that everything would be fine and kissing my temple, I believed him.
I believed that this was the end of it all. It was over.
And I'm coming home.