She Will Persist

Origins pt. 3

The cold sweat that encoated me was making me tremble. My body's intense adrenaline was fighting back against my instinct to run away, which did not make my nerves any better. I had never done a direct attack like this before, normally I snuck in, grabbed what I could, and then ran, only using self defense if I absolutely had to.

Sure I had hidden from gangs and mobs before, them hunting me with guns and knives trying to take back what I stole. Drugs make big money depending on who you sell them too, and a lot of people pay more money for them from me rather than buying them from the gangs because they don't want to get caught up in their violence and blackmail.

But this was completely different. I was on top of the most dangerous gang in Chicago's home base, barely keeping myself from falling right into the middle of their house where if I did fall I would be mercilessly torn limb from limb. I also had smoke bombs, which was great because if I fumbled those then I would pass out from gas and then fall right into the middle of their house where I would be mercilessly torn limb from limb.

I swallowed and precariously balanced my weight on the roof of the house. The thin wooden boards below me creaked and I froze.

"I thought I told you to be still."

I jumped at his words right in my ear.

"I'm trying," I attempted to keep the shaking out of my voice as I spoke to Vasile over the radio in my ear. I was still getting used to the idea that he could hear me and I could hear him even though he wasn't even here.

"On our count, okay?" Jake said.

"Okay," my voice trembled. The two agents were across the street looking through the house with cool x-ray goggles that they showed me. I was still not fully convinced this wasn't some elaborate dream I was having after hitting my head too hard on a wall or the pavement again.

Vasile still wasn't confident in me that I could do this, muttering in my ear a string of words in what I was informed was a language called Hungarian. I didn't even know that Hungary was a country, far less a language. Jake was American and spoke reassuring words to me, thankfully in English.

"3...2...1."

I used the machine they had given me to burn a precise hole in one of the rotting shingles, pressed the buttons on the smoke bombs that were in my pocket, and dropped them one by one.

"Now run!"

I scrambled off the roof as quick as I could without falling, as coughing and shouting erupted under me. Gun shots sounded and suddenly bullets started shrieking their way up and piercing the roof. I took a wild jump off the house before one could hit me, just barely managing to grab the end of a limb of the tree right next to it.

I dangled from the branch and then swung down and landed evenly on my feet. Suddenly one of the boarded up windows on the second floor busted open. White steam curled out of it, and so did bullets.

Jake and Vasile appeared next to me, their guns out and pointed at the house.

"Now get back," Vasile yelled.

I scuttled behind the tree I had jumped out of, as he and Jake advanced and started shooting at the open window. One opposing bullet spiraled out and hit Vasile in the shoulder. My breath got caught in my throat as the Hungarian fell to his knees. He kept his gun up and managed to shoot at the man who shot at him, striking him in the chest and causing the mobster to fall out the window and crash into the ground right in front of them.

I dug my nails into the bark of the tree as the sounds of shooting merged with the sounds of coughing and shouting. Sirens started wailing and I involuntarily tensed up at the noise. Sirens meant police. Police means someone gets in trouble. Or, more accurately, that I'm the trouble. But Jake warned me that the police and the FBI would be waiting a few blocks away, waiting for me to drop the smoke bombs and then they would be rushing in, and he told me that I wouldn't get in trouble for doing anything. It was something I kept asking as the two agents explained their plan to me. I can't get caught, it's my family's number one rule.