Hot Revenge Box Set 2

*****

James

The message from Charlotte’s abductors…

Finchby…

Baxter…

… replays in my head…

Marsh Street under Barnbridge Road overpass 9pm

Bring the money

No police. No other people or she dies

If late she dies. So does the baby

Brandy and rage burn inside me.

The bag containing the ransom money swings heavy in my hand. I'm the decoy and at some level, I know I may not come out of this alive. Klempner's Kevlar vest gives me a little comfort, but it’s the fury inside that warms me against fast falling temperatures.

I should be afraid…

But I’m not.

Jade-Eyes…

My beautiful Jade-Eyes…

Cara… Your gift

I met Charlotte, my Virgin, we have helter-skeltered from one crisis

has constantly pursued her, ruling her, robbed her of what she deserves. None of it her fault, she has

change

No. Nothing.

in the dire situation she’s in, imprisoned in her cell, racked

for

And me?

I’m the decoy.

night is dark, icy and with the merest hush of a breeze. High cloud makes a haze of the stars but does little to blanket in what passed for the heat of the day. The streets are glazed to a hoared sheen, except for where streetlamps glare yellow over

trek of perhaps half a mile to reach the rendezvous point, near enough to get there quickly. Far enough that, hopefully, they won’t spot

that late, but the cold is keeping people indoors and, after all, Christmas is coming. Most folks will

signs. In my own home, we never finished the trimming up. Charlotte’s abduction killed off any thoughts of celebration and our tree stands

I pass by.

of the residential zone and passing into more uncertain territory. This end of Marsh

boundary of the City, it was built before the main highways were developed, a remnant of the old town, under the overpass which carries the modern road to Barnbridge. It's a risky spot for the unwary, noted for assaults

area is noted for hoax calls of fire or medical emergency followed by muggings for cash and drugs, and attacks on medics and fire officers

I'm feeling windy

Better than the alternative.

has to

my destination. The road lies straddled by two great concrete supports for the overpass, dim under inadequate sodium lighting. From the road

the overpass, late evening traffic

“Hello?”

briefly, then

I pace, circling,

Nothing…