A/N:

Suicide-girl: Holy hell, thanks for the “hurry up” review. Would you believe that I totally forgot that I said I’d post what I had? And that was, what, like two months ago? Ouch.

WARNING: This is NOT a full chapter, nor is it of any discernable quality. Read at your own risk.

IIIIIIIIII

James rapidly went back up the stairs, and was forced to stop running once he hit the ground floor. As much of a hurry as he was in, James knew it would be extremely foolish to draw attention to himself. He settled for a brisk walk, heading for the stairs that led to the catwalks.

Fourteen minutes.

Abandoning a fraction of subtly, James craned his neck upward as he walked and tried to locate the rooms Zack had mentioned. There was an enormous amount of space above him, which seemed to only be filled with a random assortment of catwalks. It was as though a construction crew had simply forgotten to add in the second, third, and fourth –potentially even fifth and sixth- floors, and had later filled the void with a mass of stairs and walkways as an afterthought.

It was difficult to see anything specific, but he had a fairly good idea of where Samantha had to be –that was, assuming Zack had been telling the truth. He reached the stairs and began to climb as quickly as he dared. He figured he could increase his speed as soon as he got a little higher, as it appeared as though the catwalks were vacant. As far as he could tell, he had yet to draw a shred of attention to himself, and he intended to keep it that way for as long as possible.

He suddenly noticed motion on one of the highest levels of catwalks. There were two people, one with a large frame, and one substantially smaller, with long brown hair down his… down her back.

Sam. Sam and Brian.

James knew it was too early to be smiling, but he couldn’t help but exhale a small sigh of relief. “Way to go, Brian,” he said softly, continuing to climb. “Way to g…”

He paused on the stairs, staring up in dread as he saw Brian make a stopping motion with his hand. Brian then walked further down the catwalk, leaving Samantha standing there by herself.

Jesus! He and Brian could blend relatively well, but Samantha blatantly stood out, if only because she was female. Langston’s crew was, and always had been, strictly male. James could barely make out what was happening, and he was almost a third of the way up the stairs. Chances were the people on the ground floor weren’t noticing a thing, but still…

What the hell was Brian doing?

James hastily resumed his ascent. He took the stairs at two at a time, frequently glancing upward in an effort to keep tabs on what was going on. Brian was leaning over the railing, and as James drew closer he could see the gun in his hand. James hesitated on the stairs and looked down, following Brian’s gaze.

Immediately he saw what Brian had set his sites on. None other than Oliver Langston was walking across the ground level of the warehouse, accompanied by five burly men. It would have been very hard for Brian to make out anyone from that height, but Langston’s chalk-white hair made him a very clear target.

James returned his attention to Brian, and continued to climb. “Christ, Brian,” James muttered. “Don’t do it. He’s too far.”

James knew Brian’s aim wasn’t very good to begin with. Even if he had a sniper rifle James doubted Brian could land a killing shot on the first try. All he would do was alert everyone in that warehouse to their presence when their only escape route was back down those stairs.

Thus far Brian had yet to raise his gun, and James was praying he would keep his word and leave Langston alone. If he would just hold off for a few more minutes, James could reach him and tell him that the building was going to explode.

James had never wanted a simple walkie-talkie so badly in his life. Damnit, they should have thought of that! He grabbed for his cell phone, and even as he dialed, he knew it was useless. Already Brian was straightening his stance and lifting his gun.

James rapidly stopped dropped into a crouch on the stairs, abandoned the ringing phone and pulling out his own gun. His only remaining option was to shoot Langston first. Then hopefully all attention would be on him, giving Brian a chance to get Sam out. He took aim, and-

Too late.

Five rapid shots rang out, and the best Brian did was clip Langston’s arm. Immediately all of the bodyguards drew their guns and began shooting upward, and the consistent activity of the warehouse was sent into a tumultuous uproar.

Swearing, James rose and bolted further up the stairs. The damage had been done. Irreparably.

He knew how reality worked. Even from that height, Brian couldn’t have a slew of bullets whizzing around him, and miraculously dodge every one. James was too far away to see where he’d been hit, but he plainly saw when Brian collapsed and fell face forward. A second later Samantha dropped down as well, and for one heart-stopping moment James thought she’d been shot as well. Then she slowly started crawling toward Brian.

The gunshots had all but stopped, he noted with relief, but there were a significant number of men heading toward the stairs. He realized that from their current vantage point it would have been very hard to see Samantha, especially while she was crouched down. Right now, James assumed no one on Langston’s side knew exactly what had happened; only that gunfire had come from the catwalks. As soon as they got further up the stairs, that would change. James and Samantha both would soon become shooting practice for a whole slew of Langston’s men. And that still wasn’t their biggest problem.

He glanced at his watch again, and willed his legs to go faster. Nine minutes.

IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII

Samantha stopped on her hands and knees next to Brian’s motionless body, inhaling in shuddering breaths. Though blood was slowly seeping through his clothes, she could make out three distinct areas where he’d been hit. His left thigh, his right shoulder, and one in almost the direct center of his back.

“Oh god, oh god,” she mumbled incoherently, rising slightly to try to turn his large bulk over. It was difficult on the narrow catwalk, and she didn’t know if it was smart to move him, but she was desperate for some assurance that he was alright.

“You got a machete stabbed into your stomach… this is nothing… this is nothing… this is nothing…”

She was unable to turn him, and as she reached for his neck to try and find a pulse, she realized her hands were now covered in blood. Brian’s blood.

This wasn’t nothing.

There was a creak on the catwalk, and Samantha looked up to see a man approaching her. She remembered seeing him earlier, when she’d been locked into one of the rooms. There’d been five other men lurking around that top landing, and Brian had quietly and quickly killed all of them. The sole remaining one was now stopped just feet away from her, his face contorted with fury.

“I was told to kill you if there was any trouble,” he snarled.

Samantha just stared up at him, eyes glistening with tears, as he raised his gun toward her. She felt very distant from it all. Brian had been trying to save her. And now he was…

A shot fired, and the man sagged onto the railing. The catwalk creaked again, and abruptly her would-be assailant was flung over the side the catwalk, plummeting down, down, down to the ground floor.

She morbidly watched him fall, averting her eyes just before he hit the concrete, and suddenly very aware of how high up she was. It was only afterward that she realized someone had to have shot him, and someone had to have pushed him over the edge.

She slowly raised her gaze to where the man had been standing, and in his place was James.

“Are you hurt?”

Seeing him made her want to smile on reflex, but the grief was keeping every other emotion at bay. “Brian… I don’t… he just…”

“Are you hurt?” James asked again.

“No. Zack… he said he sent you to the wrong… the wrong building… that there was a bomb, and-”

“There is. We have to move.”

“Wh… what? Here?”

He grabbed her arm, pulling her to her feet. “Yes. Now come on.”

“But what about…? We can’t just leave his b… leave him…”

“We don’t have a choice.”

“But…”

“Sam! We have got to go!”