STEAM & SMOKE | 18+

CHAPTER | 21 |

GHOST REACHED OVER ME and pulled out a gun after removing his suit jacket. He rolled up his sleeves then glanced at me. "You're going to drive away from here," he ordered. "Don't leave the car. Even if you run someone over. These guys will kill you on sight."

"I work for the f*cking FBI. Why am I staying in the car?"

"These are trained killers."

"I've been trained too."

Screams from outside made us turn. "I'm not discussing this with you. If you leave the car, I'll shoot you myself," Ghost threatened, pressing the metal of the gun into my head. I pushed it away and rolled my eyes.

"I don't doubt that but you're not going to kill me anytime soon."

"I'm not making any promises. I need to kill those people first for interrupting me and I have a bad feeling the police are on their way."

He brought out another gun and sighed. Opening the door, he immediately shot down the two men that were on my side of the car.

"Time to go," I muttered, climbing into the driver's seat and trying to move out of the street. I didn't have time to enjoy driving a sports car before another vehicle rammed into me. My head slammed against the window and I groaned, trying to see who hit me. A group of men came out of a black van holding weapons.

There was no way I could fight them. I had nothing to defend myself. I began reversing the car trying to put distance between us. Suddenly, a small metal ball landed on the ground causing us the look at it confused.

BOOM.

It exploded, releasing a white gas. The men began coughing and I watched them fade away as the fog became thicker. I squinted trying to see something but the moon wasn't bright enough to see through it and the yells weren't helping me figure out what was going on. A woman slammed her hands on the window, smacking the roof of the car with her gun after pointing it at me.

"Open the door, b*tch!" She growled.

"About that... How about f*ck no?" I replied under my breath then hit the gas pedal.

She fell to the ground but there was no way I was going to help her. I began driving at a speed I knew would get me arrested but the image of a vehicle following me in the rear view mirror made me speed up. Aimlessly, I drove until there was point where the only lights came from the car and there was no one in sight. My stalker had disappeared but I had no clue where I was, with only the shadows of buildings around me.

I parked on the side of the curb. Wincing, I touched my head and felt blood. I exhaled. My night wasn't going well and I was sure that I wasn't coming out of this alive but I wasn't going to wait for my death in the car. Reaching under my seat, I felt the metal of a gun and a blade.

"He really is mad," I grumbled and unlocked the car door. The moment I stepped outside, I started second guessing. I had no protection, most of my body was out and I had no phone. "It'll be fine."

In the distance, I could hear the squealing noise of wheels which meant they had caught up. Quickly, I ran down a street of houses, searching for a fence that wouldn't lead to a vicious dog shredding me to pieces. I peered over one to see a back garden that was empty and I spotted a key under a plant pot.

Bingo.

I jumped over as quietly as possible and unlocked the back door.

"She has to be around here. Find Ghost's b*tch now."

"B*tch?" I scoffed at what a man yelled as I entered. "He's my b*tch if anything."

The house was silent with all the lights off which made it easier to tiptoe around and find a first aid kit. I found the kitchen and began looking around. A picture of a family caught my eye. Two children. I froze when I heard coughing as someone descended the stairs and swiftly hid behind the door.

A woman appeared, yawning, her eyes barely open as she picked up a cup and filled it with water. I didn't dare breathe as she drank it, not even noticing me in the shadow of the room then stumbled back up the stairs. I waited a few moments before moving but before I could even step forward, a body blocked my way. Instinctively, I drew out the knife and swung. The person ducked and grabbed my wrist, squeezing which forced me to drop it. I wanted to scream, frustrated and punched blindly until I made contact with their body.

Using the hand that had a hold on my wrist, I was thrown on the floor. Breathlessly, I got up, my head spinning from the loss of blood. "F*ck you," I spat. It was clearly the wrong thing to say as their hand went to my throat, pinning me against the wall. I tried to loosen their hold but it was too tight.

"You don't listen," Ghost growled. "One job, angel. Drive."

"I'm not good at following orders," I gasped out.

I couldn't see his face but I could feel the anger rolling off him. "Do you know how hard it is to kill people and try and find you? It's very f*cking hard. Now you have five trained killers running around a quiet neighborhood looking for your sweet ass."

Tapping his hand, I narrowed my eyes at him as he only slightly loosened his grip finally letting me breathe. "I would have died in that car."

"You're not dying until I say so."

"They were following me," I whispered annoyed. "They called me a b*tch."

Ghost didn't reply and grabbed the gun out of my hand. "Let's go."

He walked out of the kitchen and went to the front door. I grabbed his arm. "You're not going through the back?"

"Of course not," he replied and opened the door, motioning that I should leave. Hesitantly, I walked out, looking for suspicious characters but I heard nothing. Ghost walked beside me with his hands in his pocket, completely calm as we went to the destroyed sports car and a new one parked behind it.

"That's it? They're all gone?"

"No," he answered. "They're in the trunk."

My mouth dropped open. "Why?"

"I'm not leaving bodies around. There going to be sent back to the person who ordered them in the first place."

Dizziness came over me. "I'm going to faint," I muttered, my eyes fluttering shut.

"Huh?"

My vision went fuzzy as I groaned in pain. I stumbled and fell to the ground, darkness consuming me.