LOLA

 

Before heading out of the factory, Zach and I stopped in to see Marcus sleeping in his room. We startled him from a deep sleep, which was quite the funny scene and a bit of levity on a day when storm clouds circle the inside of my mind.

Knowing that most likely the world thinks I’m dead again, I knew I couldn't risk picking up the explosives from my source I had originally made an arrangement with. And without the explosives, the plan would fail. So, I inquired to Marcus about using the remainder of his stash of explosives instead.

Maybe it was because he was groggy and wanted to go back to sleep or maybe he really believed in my mission, but he offered us up enough explosives to send the Grimm Industries building to kingdom come.

I had a brief talk to him, outlining the reasons I was doing what I was doing. I think at the end of that conversation, he understood exactly why I had to do this. And though I would never take lightly the act of killing more than thirty people, I knew for the better of the people still living in this world, it had to be done.

And now, Zach and I are on our way to the site where the event is supposed to go down. Now that Richard believes we are dead, I have no doubt in my mind that he will still gather everyone onto the roof top and finally get what he's been wanting all of these years.

Men like him are predictable. They’re after nothing more than money and power, and right now he sees this void in the world as his opening. He's not going to risk losing that chance.

It's too important to him. It's like there are a thousand gold bars lying right in front of his face. It's simply too irresistible to pass up. I almost feel bad for the guy.

Almost.

With ball caps that hang over our eyes, Zach and I pull up into the parking lot of Grimm industries. We know that we have to be careful because if Richard or anyone else whoever knew me sees me here, the plan will go to shit.

I'm not taking any chances, though.

As Zach parks the vehicle, parks right between two other cars so as to blend in as much as possible, I climb out of the car and land on my feet against the hot asphalt.

For being a winter day, the sun burns hot against us. It's hotter than it has any right to be, even for California. But maybe it's because we are dressed in dark costumes. We're dressed as if we are deliveryman, coming here to deliver the goods. But we're not delivering anything these people are going to enjoy.

We're delivering the bombs that are going to send them all to hell and they won’t even know what hit them. They’ll go from listening to a God-awful speech to finding themselves in the fiery pits of hell the very next second, and they’ll wonder just how they got there.

I peer over the top of the delivery van as Zach steps onto the opposite side. We both circle around to the back of the vehicle at the exact same time and meet just as I pop open the first of the two back doors.

He grabs a dolly and places it onto the ground as I climb into the back of the van and grab the first of four boxes. I carry the first box to him and he sits it gently down onto the dolly. We pile all four of the boxes before I jump out of the back of the van and close the doors behind me.

The boxes don't look like anything suspicious. They are marked with the logos of a popular and luxurious beer brand, Zed’s Lager.

Zach leans the weight of his body against the dolly and looks at me in a way that makes my heart melt. He looks at me almost like he's never going to see me again.

"Don't look at me like that,” I say. “Don’t look at me like this is the end."

He can't help but to laugh. "I'm not looking at you any kind of way. I'm just looking at you." He furrows both brows, a moment of levity before the shit hits the proverbial fan. "Am I not allowed to look at you?"

"Don't be ridiculous," I scowl under my breath and roll my eyes. "Aren't you nervous at all?”

“I am." He shrugs and clicks his tongue against the inside of one cheek. "I just don't think there's any reason for me to carry the nervousness on my shoulders, you know?"

"Because you've seen it all before, right?"

He cocks his head at me and flashes a cocky grin. “Are you just going to continue answering my questions with a question?"

"Touché." I cross my arms. "Are you ready?"

With the weight of his body still pressed against the dolly, he straightens himself up and wags his finger at me with a shit-eating grin. "See, there you go again. That's another question."

I let out an audible groan before reaching forward and punching him playfully in the chest. He recoils in faux pain and really hams it up, as if I actually hurt him or something.

“Do you enjoy hurting me?" he questions me with a shake of his head.

"See," I point at him squarely, "that's another question."

"Smart ass…”

###

The elevator doors slide open and I'm going to be honest, I'm scared as hell. My hands shake and my fingers tap against my pants to a non-existent beat. Zach looks over to me and tries to calm me with just a simple look. But it's not enough, not right now. I take a deep breath before I follow Zach out of the elevator.

Zach pushes the dolly forward and onto the rooftop. Nobody really pays either of us much attention as we pace first to the middle of the rooftop and then finally over to the far right corner. There's a tent set up with tables underneath to be used for catering. There’s an assortment of appetizers, soda products, and bottles of both whiskey and wine on the tables.

The caterer passes me a quick look and I freeze in place. But I don't stay frozen for long because I remember that I have never actually met her face-to-face. When I hired her, I only talked to her over the phone using a fake identity.

She won't be up here for long. Her job is to simply drop off appetizers and drinks and then leave before the event starts.

Everyone helping set up the event understood that it was a private affair. So there will be nobody on the roof or in the entire building who shouldn't be here. The only people that will still be in the building when the bomb goes off are the people who are being targeted.

I've gone to great measures to ensure that there is no collateral damage. Although there's a sinking feeling in my gut that either Zach or I could become the collateral damage I fought so hard to avoid.

Zach understood the risk just as I did too.

He steps towards the caterer, a woman in her mid-thirties with dark chocolate hair and blue eyes. He sets the dolly upright and leans against it. "I was told to drop off this beer over here, underneath the tent."

"Oh, I didn't realize." She purses her lips and frowns. “So I assume you will need a table to set up the beer?"

"Yes, I'm so sorry." I reach out my hand to shake hers and cock my head sideways. "Did Emma not tell you?"

"I'm afraid that she didn't. But it's not a problem." She glances around her surroundings. There are three tables underneath the tent forming an L shape. She points to the table nearest the stage and says, "Here, you can use this table.”

"Thank you." I force a smile. "It's kind of strange, don't you think, that we are all being asked to leave?"

She shrugs and smiles a warm smile. I can tell she's a good person and for the first time, I start to think about how this could affect her. Even though she will be long gone before the explosion, I can't help but feel bad. For the rest of her life, she will remember that she was almost here on this fateful day.

"This is my job. I do what I'm asked by the client." She drops her head low and chuckles with bright eyes. "And to be honest, it's a well-paying job so I wasn't going to turn it down. So I'm going to go pick up my kids from cheerleading practice and then come pick up my equipment when the event is over."

Little does she know, she won’t be picking up anything. When she returns, there will be quite the scene. Ambulances, fire trucks, police, and most likely the FBI. When and if she returns, she will be met with a confusing scene of chaos.

And she won't know it, at least right away, but the world will be a safer world when she comes to pick up her stuff that will be burned to the ground, nothing left but rubble and bones of the men left behind.

I continue talking to her as a means to distract her while Zach picks up the first box and steps over to the table. He does the same with the next box. And then with the two boxes after that, he sets them on the ground just underneath the table.

He opens the first box and begins placing bottles of beer on the table. He's playing the part well, all the while making sure to hide his face from the attendees in the background.

I glance down at the watch on my wrist and take notice that nobody important should be showing up for at least another two hours. But then why are men already starting to come out onto the rooftop, each and every one of them dressed to the nine as if they are going to a black tie event or something.

I pass a worried look to Zach who begins to unload the beer faster and then I turn back to Emma with a warm and welcoming smile to distract her once more. "So, you have kids?"

"Yeah…" When she says those words, when she confirms that she does have kids, it's like her entire world lights up. Her face certainly lights up. “They are my pride and joy. As a single mom—”

"I'm sorry to hear that." I exhale softly, feeling slightly awkward for interrupting her with an apology. "I wish I had kids of my own," I say, trying to steer the conversation elsewhere. “I’m afraid that I'm almost getting past the age where that might be a viable possibility."

"You don't need to be sorry for me," she says with a light chuckle. "It was my choice to be a single mother. I don't want to get into all the details, because it’s somewhat personal, but I made a choice and I wouldn't want to have any other way."

I wasn't expecting the topic of conversation to hit me the way it does. I wasn't expecting to get lost in my own thoughts as I contemplate the idea of myself having children. It was an off-the-cuff remark, just a way for me to try and engage with her. But as those words came out of my lips, my admittance that I wanted to have children, I realized that it was the truth. I realized that I wasn’t simply engaging with this woman as a means to distract her from Zach’s nefarious deeds in the background.

It’s not something I've ever thought about. It's not something I’ve ever wanted to think about. Bringing a child up in the world that I knew was never even something that was a remote possibility. There was no way in hell, for as long as my father was alive, that I would ever subject a child to that kind of life.

I don't deny that my father give me everything I could ever need materialistically speaking. He gave me everything and then some more. All of those things though, all those earthly possessions could never quite fill the void in my heart. For better or worse though, he made me into the woman I am today. He made me into the woman that is standing here today preparing to put an end to all this. And for every time he ever said I was weak, today is going to be my reckoning. Today, I step into my own and become my own woman.

And maybe tomorrow, just maybe, that will be the day when I can seriously consider the idea of having my own children finally, because once and for all, I will have escaped my father's legacy of crime and corruption. Once and for all, I will no longer be defined by the malicious actions of my father.

Zach finishes setting up the second box of beers. He keeps one box of beer underneath the table and then lowers the last box back onto the dolly. He glances at me with a knowing wink and I know that the bomb has been set. It’s lying and waiting in the box at the corner of the roof top. He grabs the dolly to begin pushing it away from the catered tent and that's when I offer my goodbyes to the kind woman in front of me.

“It was nice meeting you," I say to her and shake her hand once more. "Maybe I'll see you around the city."

"It's a huge city." She nods. “But I'm sure I'll see you in passing at some point." She looks around at the table and then sighs. "I actually think I'm about to head out too, but it was really nice meeting you."

"Same." I offer her a wave of my hand before twisting on my feet to follow Zach.

He pushes the dolly across the rooftop. Instead of cutting towards the elevator, he makes a straight path to the opposite corner as the caterer makes her exit into the elevator.

I shield Zach’s body from view of the other guests meandering about on the rooftop. I cover him, pretending to look at the scenery of the city around us. It's not much of a scene though because it's mostly just rundown complexes, but the sun setting in the near distance is breathtaking.

When my father chose this building of all places to set up his office, he did so with knowing that he would be less visible in a place like this. And he would be less visible because there aren't as many people out here as there are downtown or in the valley.

Zach pushes the last box off the dolly and behind a large black speaker that sits in the corner. And then he twists on his feet and pushes the dolly towards me.

I collect the dolly with my hand and then begin making my way towards the elevator as inconspicuously as possible. Zack's shadow hangs over me as he follows me on my tail. I swallow nervously as I push my finger against the down button. And my body reaches a boiling degree from the nerves in my body. It's like I'm on fire as sweat trickles down my forehead.

We're almost out of the lion’s den, so to speak, but I'm not naïve. Something could still go wrong. The elevator doors part open and the two of us step calmly and coolly inside. We only turn back around when the elevator doors have come to a close.

"Everything is going according to plan." Zach passes me a wink.

"Please don't say that,” I say to him, low and under my breath. "I'm superstitious."

"Don't be ridiculous…"

"I can't help it." I exhale sharply and cross my arms over each other. My eyes shift to the panel beside the elevator door as we slowly ascend to the ground level, one floor at a time. "It's just the way I was brought up in this world."

"Yeah, but you haven’t exactly taken after your parents." He glances down to me from above. "Remember what I said last night. Remember when I said that you can be anyone you want to be.” He shrugs with a sly grin. "So choose to not be superstitious and you won't be superstitious."

I roll my eyes just as the elevator doors open. Zach braces his hands against the handles of the dolly and begins to push it out of the elevator.

And that's when everything goes to shit…

Again.

“Well, look what we have here." Richard smiles. And I think about doing something stupid, I think about fighting back. But it's no use. In the time it would take to grab the gun that's hidden behind my back, the two armed men behind him could pull the triggers of the handguns they have aimed squarely at our heads. "You know what I see? I see two dead men walking.”

I swallow harshly, curse under my breath, and then pass Zach a severe look of discontent.

Yeah, I’m definitely superstitious…

For a good damn reason.