Moriarty's Musician

Purging the Demons, Part 8

"We have her signal, boss. What do you want to do?"

Moriarty rubbed his chin. He didn't blame Annabelle for leaving with that lying, double-crossing snake. How many countless times had she told him she wanted to go? She had even tried to text her uncle to have him locate her, but she had quickly found out the phone was useless for that purpose, or so she thought. 

Moriarty smiled as he thought about how much Annabelle loved music. It was the music that had compelled her to take the phone which was exactly what she needed to do.

Then there was the snake. Soo-Ling knew the phones were integral to knowing the location of each of the members of his network. Since Annabelle didn't take anything but what was in her handbag, Soo-Ling would've easily found the phone by now. She knew they were coming, that was a certainty.

The question was, how could he take down Soo-Ling without harming Annabelle in the process?

"Where are they, Seb?"

"Somewhere in the ruins of the old Killarney church, not far from the coast."

Moriarty nodded. "Mmm, I know it well. I wonder if Soo-Ling realizes she's still on the land owned by the Moriarty clan. Now, why would she hold up at the ruins unless she was planning an ambush?"

"Maybe she left the phone as a decoy then went to town?"

"The towns are loyal to me, and she knows that. Dan, make a detour right on the next road." Moriarty pointed at Sebastian's laptop. "There's a cluster of trees right behind the ruins, Seb. We'll drop you off then double back. Find a position then wait for my signal." He thought about Annabelle under Soo-Ling's mercy. "But don't kill the snake. Just disable her. I'll go and meet her so her attention's off of you."

Sebastian raised his eyebrows. "How do you know Soo-Ling isn't going to shoot you on sight?"

Moriarty smiled, his eyes darkening. "Oh, she will, but she'll want to rub it in first." Moriarty leaned forward and tapped Dan on the shoulder. "Stop here."

The car pulled over, and Sebastian handed the laptop to Moriarty. He lifted a large bag from the floor and pulled out his dismantled sniper's gun. Moriarty watched him screw in the pieces of the gun and check the position of the eyepiece.

"Seb?"

"Yes, boss?"

Moriarty pursed his lips as he looked down at the gun. What was bothering him? He rubbed his bottom lip with his finger. Soo-Ling knew they were coming. She also knew Sebastian was his best attack dog. If Seb wasn't with him, she was bound to get suspicious.

"Seb, change of plans. You're going to stay with me. Dan," Moriarty clapped his driver and pilot on the shoulder, "did you see Sam's body?"

Dan turned and solemnly nodded. "Yes, boss. I helped Matt and Seb bury him."

"Good. Soo-Ling didn't just betray me, Dan, she betrayed all of us. I'm counting on you to take over for Seb. You need to take her down. Can you do that?" Moriarty stared into Dan's eyes. "But it's important she stays alive."

Dan nodded as he looked at Seb's rifle. "I won't let you down, boss."

Moriarty smiled, "I know you won't."

They all got out of the car. Seb slapped Dan on the back and passed him his gun. Dan took a deep breath and nodded at Moriarty before he set off running through the dense underbrush, towards the back of the ruins.

"Let's give him some time to get into position," Moriarty said, as he leaned his hand on the car.

He pulled his phone from his pocket, flicked it on and stared at the blinking dot still showing Annabelle's position at the ruins. He wasn't sure if she was still there, but the thought that she may be in the midst of their confrontation with Soo-Ling made his insides heave.

Moriarty let a long sigh escape as he remembered how much he enjoyed Annabelle's company. Even when she was battling him, he couldn't refuse the attraction he had for her. From the moment he saw her at the library, many months before he had confronted her there, he was drawn to her. 

As much as he wanted to fight it, Annabelle was a part of his life that he wasn't ready to let go. If she was his weakness, then so be it. Thankfully, Magnussen wasn't alive to find out, Annabelle, his own daughter was Moriarty's pressure point.

Seb kicked some sticks lining the ground. "How much longer? I'd be there by now."

Moriarty smiled. "Patience, Seb. Let Soo-Ling stew a little more. The one thing she lacks is patience. I want her good and mad when I see her. That's when she'll make mistakes," he chuckled, "and then I'm going in for the kill."

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