9 - Watching, Waiting
Sept 7, 2021 18:04:13 GMT -6
Church, Ripped “Tide” Taylor, and 2 more like this
Post by L. A. Blackwater on Sept 7, 2021 18:04:13 GMT -6
Blackwater sat inside the dimly lit bedroom of his Downtown Las Vegas apartment. Leaning on the edge of a small armchair; he watched over his girlfriend, April, as she slept following her traumatic kidnapping.
I can’t imagine what they put you through, the British Army veteran thought to himself as he gazed at his sleeping beauty. He held a small tumbler in his right hand, half-filled with whatever budget whiskey he had purchased from the liquor store. He drank another sip, fuckin’ hell that’s like paint stripper.
He returned the tumbler onto a side table, next to his trusted Browning 9mm, which he had managed to retrieve from the wreckage of his old Dodge Ramcharger after it had been destroyed in the pursuit of the Mara Salvatrucha convoy. The safety was off - Blackwater was ready in case the gang returned.
After a moment; Blackwater reached for the inside pocket of his leather jacket to retrieve something. I feel like hammered shit, he thought as his arm pressed against his painful ribs.
The Number One contender’s match was fiercely competitive, Blackwater had not only successfully won the right to challenge Church for the BPW Championship, but more importantly, he won the $250,000 cash prize needed to secure April’s freedom.
He slowly removed what he aimed to retrieve from his pocket - the picture of the man responsible for April’s capture.
Who are you? He thought once again to himself, the same question had repeated in his mind over and over again since April had brought the Mara Salvatrucha file to him the week previously. Blackwater closed his eyes and pictured the moment he first set sight on the stranger, after securing April’s release - those two, malevolent eyes staring back at him from within the safety of the Hummer as it drove off.
April whimpered in her sleep; Blackwater concealed the photo, determined not to show the evil face to his love again. She had been somewhat of a closed book since he had secured her safety. Apart from proclaiming her abductor to be a monster as she fell into The Soldier of Fortune’s arms - it was as if she’d been mentally damaged by the experience.
BANG!
What the hell? Blackwater reached for his trusted Browning 9mm, grasping the handle tightly, his index finger immediately caressed the trigger as he leapt to his feet and ran to the window.
More rioting. Rioting had been rife since the last BPW event, it appeared to be a corner shop only several blocks away had just exploded.
April was awoken by the loud explosion, sitting up in bed as she rubbed her eyes. “What is it, baby?” she asked her protector.
He turned and smiled at his love, staring at the beauty with his one remaining eye. He then concealed his firearm in the back of his trousers as he quickly sat next to April in an attempt to reassure her. Taking her within his arms, he stroked the back of her head as she nestled into his collar bone.
“Just more rioting,” he told her, keeping her close to him, “It looks like they looted Gust’s”.
She pulled back, a look of sadness etched on her face, “No, not Gust’s, poor Nathaniel, is he still there?” she asked.
“No, he was closing up early tonight,” he said in an attempt to reassure her. That was a lie, or at least he didn’t know. His priority was to keep April safe - not the city.
That’s not my job, he thought to himself. He had previously protected the city against aliens, underground mole people, battled the Yakuza, and even tried to prevent the city's streets from being filled with a new, highly dangerous drug.
But what had he achieved out of it? He nearly died, April was abducted, God only knows what they did to her. And his trusty old Ramcharger had been completely destroyed.
He kissed her on the brow and eased her head back down to the pillow. “Try and get some more sleep, my love. You are perfectly safe here”.
She spoke softly to him as he ran the back of his finger down her cheek, “I love you, Lucas”.
I love you so much, he thought to himself, before kissing her tenderly on the lips. “Love you too, baby”.
He slowly eases back up to his feet, “Now sleep...I’ll join you soon”.
Blackwater turned his back as he walked to the exit, reaching out and collecting his tumbler of whiskey as he carefully closed the door behind himself. He downed the remaining contents of the glass and left it next to the sink before heading out onto the balcony, sliding the door shut. Proceeding to light a cigarette, Blackwater cycled through several old messages on his phone as he took a long drag of his cigarette.
Where are you, Church? He thought to himself, having been unable to contact the new BPW Champion following his inaugural title win. The messages sent to him had remained unread.
Next, he began to cycle through his contact list whilst taking another drag of the cigarette. Being a former mercenary, Blackwater had always used burner phones, this habit had remained. He scrolled through the list of unregistered contacts until he stopped on one and dialled.
After several rings, the call is finally answered, yet Blackwater is met with silence at the end of the line.
“Foxtrot-Delta-Papa-Uniform-9-3-6-9-5,” said Blackwater quietly.
After further silence, finally a voice, “Blackwater, I’m glad you're safe, how are you holding up?”
“Vegas is getting really bad now, the rioting is getting completely fuckin’ out of hand, they just blew up our local corner shop. Brandt and those Jabberwock arseholes have brought this place to its knees”.
He took a smaller drag of the cigarette, holding his breath for a moment before exhaling - he continued.
“Did you receive the photo of April’s abductor? Like I said before, I got a glimpse of him. But he was safely inside a heavily armoured Hummer and accompanied by at least a dozen biker gang members of Mara Salvatrucha. I had to let him go, couldn’t risk April’s safety”.
After another pause on the line, Blackwater waited patiently until he finally received a reply.
“We had a couple of leads, but we keep coming up short. He seems to have taken great care in concealing his identity, we’ve had no hits on the facial recognition software either”.
Blackwater began to appear agitated, he pulled one final drag before he flicked the butt over the balcony.
“I need you to pull double time on this one, please buddy. I need a name ASAP - something, anything to help me find him”.
He finally exhaled
“I know you’ve never backed down from a fight, old friend. But I feel like you’re getting in way over your head with this. They gave April back to you - perhaps take the free pass and leave it”.
Blackwater chuckled to himself as he leaned against the railings of the balcony.
“Now come on buddy, when have I ever chosen the easy road huh? And left shit alone when I should have walked away? If I did that, I’d still have my eye…”
A chuckle can be heard down the end of the line.
“True… very true”.
Blackwater soon regained his composure, a serious look spread across his face.
“Perhaps I do need to get April out of this city, and stay off-grid for the time being. Fighting in BPW is probably the worst thing I could do right now”.
“I get it, you don’t want to be in the public eye at the moment, but this might actually work in your favour. If this stranger sees you fighting to the death on the TV, well perhaps it will serve as a reminder of how tough you are. Also, you signed a contract, so break that contract and you’ll have to contend with those Jabberwock goons, and you can ask your new friend Church how that played out?”
Blackwater closed his eyes, lowering his head in a sign of acceptance that he must continue to fight in the ring.
“As much as it pains me to say it, I think you’re right. I will show the BPW roster why I’m the baddest motherfucker here, I will show this mystery opponent why I’m the Number One Contender, and eventually, I will take my opportunity against Church, whenever he shows his face again”.
Suddenly, another explosion can be heard.
“Did you hear that? That’s the sort of shit I’m dealing with out here currently. I’m going to go back inside and sit with April, baby needs her sleep. I’ll check in with you in a couple of days to see if you have any more leads on our mystery man”.
“Ok, stay safe old friend. Fight hard against your mystery opponent, I’ll be watching you”.
“You wouldn’t expect anything less would you, brother. Speak soon, over and out”.
