Paradise Burns by J. P. Sumner Page B

why are you
showering and walking around in a towel in my hotel room?’ I asked, still a bit
dumbstruck.
    She turned to look at me.
    ‘You got your ass kicked last night, you
know that, right?’ she asked.
    ‘You should see the other guy,’ I
replied.
    ‘I followed you to the club last night.
Thought you might need some help.’
    ‘So where were you when Pick Axe threw
me through a window?’
    ‘Who?’
    ‘The other guy.’
    ‘Ah, right. Strange name.’
    ‘He carried a pick-axe with him. He
liked to throw at people.’
    ‘Oh, that makes more sense.’
    ‘So, wait - why did you follow me? Why
would you care if I needed help?’
    ‘Well, forgetting for a moment that I
pulled a gun on you, then you elbowed me in the face and pulled a gun on me -
more than once, I might add - yesterday in the hotel suite was somewhat of an
eye-opener.’
    ‘Now there’s an understatement,’ I said,
remembering the uranium mine and the reason I went to the club last night in
the first place.
    ‘Why did you offer me that money?’
    I sat back down on the bed.
    ‘Honestly? I felt sorry for you.’
    ‘Do I look like I need your pity?’ she
said, with a hint of hostility in her voice.
    ‘You look like you need to get dressed.’
    She glared at me, clearly pissed about
what I’d said.
    ‘Look,’ I began. ‘I meant no offence,
alright? While I’m sure you are an extremely capable and highly experienced
assassin, I could tell yesterday that you had no idea how bad this situation
with Dark Rain was. You looked out of your depth, and you looked mad at
yourself for letting it get away from you like this.’
    Her expression softened and she looked
away. I continued.
    ‘As soon as I realized that you had no
idea how bad this whole thing was, I admit I kinda felt bad beating on you the
way I did.’
    She looked back at me and pulled a face,
but remained silent.
    ‘I don’t need the money, and I didn’t
want you getting caught up in this any further. Easiest way to leave a
situation like this is quickly, and with a boat-load of cash. I thought it was the
right thing to do.’
    She let the smile she was trying hard to
hide slip just a little.
    ‘My hero,’ she said.
    ‘I think of it more like your big
brother.’
    She smiled again, this time without
trying to hide it.
    ‘Thank you,’ she said.
    ‘I think I should be thanking you,’ I
replied. ‘I’m guessing I got back here because of you last night?’
    ‘I was keeping watch on the club. I saw
you enter, and when I saw everyone running out screaming, I guessed the mob
didn’t take your news too well.’
    ‘I didn’t tell them about the deeds. I
just said I killed Jackson and he didn’t have them on him.’
    ‘And they bought that?’
    ‘They seemed to. They were certainly mad
enough to suggest they did.’
    ‘That was simpler than I thought.’
    ‘Yeah, sometimes the best lies are the
most straightforward ones.’
    ‘So, what now?’
    ‘Not sure. I definitely need to shower
and change. Are you sticking around then?’
    She stood up. Her towel wasn’t anywhere
near long enough. I made a point of keeping eye contact with her.
    ‘I can’t just walk away from Dark Rain,
they’ll find me,’ she said. ‘I don’t care how much money I have. I’ve seen too
much of their operation for them to allow me to leave.’
    ‘I could use some help finding them,’ I
replied.
    ‘Are you as good as the stories say you
are?’
    ‘Stories?’
    ‘Come on, you must know what I’m talking
about? You’re Adrian Hell !’
    I swear to God, she air-quoted when she
said my name.
    I said nothing. I knew what she meant. I
knew why there were stories about me. Maybe I’ll tell you about them some day.
For now, let’s just say I’ve managed to remain in control of my emotions since
I came to Heaven’s Valley, which is something I’ve not always managed to do in
the past.
    I looked at Clara, my blue eyes fixed on
her green ones.
    ‘I’ll burn them to the ground,’ I said.