© August 2012

Part Three of Eleven

Chapter Three: Come with me if you want to live

    Nicole had found the motel and taken a room on the ground floor where she had easy access to her car and weapons. The place the police had picked couldn’t be worse for defending against attack. She could think of twenty different ways to take out Samantha and Nicolas.

    It was a couple of days before things kicked off with a Pizza delivery guy that looked nothing like a pizza delivery guy. Nicole noticed the fact his uniform of a shirt and baseball cap didn’t fit. The shirt looked to small, like he’d taken it from a much smaller person. She also saw the handle of a gun stuffed down the back of his trousers.

    Nicole picked up her own gun and screwed on the suppresser and was quickly sneaking up to the second floor where Samantha and Nicolas were. She got to the room to late to save the two officers’, but the man was just aiming at Nicolas. Nicole raised her gun and put two bullets in the man’s head without a second thought. She then smiled as she saw a much older looking Samantha, but she still looked good thought, Samantha was kneeling on the floor with her arms wrapped around a boy, but Nicole could have so easily mistook him for a girl given his small size and long dark hair held back in a ponytail.

    Samantha heard a ‘thunk thunk’ sound and then a thud as someone fell to the ground. She slowly opened her eyes and saw the pizza delivery guy on the floor with a bloody mess where his head once was.

     “Are either of you hurt?” A woman in a leather trouser suit asked as she stood in the doorway with a long barrelled gun in her hand.

    Samantha just looked at her with fear in her eyes, but she couldn’t see the woman’s eyes because of the dark lenses in the sunglasses covering them.

     “I asked if either of you were hurt?” The woman snapped as she stepped back and looked around like she was expecting more trouble.

     “No, we’re not hurt, but please don’t kill us.” Samantha begged as she kept Nicolas hugged tight to her.

     “If I wanted you dead lady, you’d be dead.” The woman snapped. “I need the two of you to get up and come with me now!” She added as she waved for Samantha and Nicolas to get up using the same hand as she had the gun in, so she ended up waving the gun around, which didn’t make Samantha feel any more relaxed.

     “Why should we trust you?” Samantha asked trying to look brave as she got to her feet and helped Nicolas to get to his feet.

     “Because you’re both still breathing, and he’s dead on the floor.” The woman said as she pointed at the body on the floor with blood pooling around the large hole in his head.

     “Who the hell are you?” Samantha asked with a frown, not happy with the woman’s attitude.

     “You can call me Ice.” Nicole said. “Now come with me if you want to live.” Nicole added as she groaned in her head for using the classic line from the Terminator movie.

     Not wanting to upset this woman who just saved their lives, Samantha and Nicolas grabbed their things and were soon in Nicole’s car and driving away into the night.

     “Thank you for saving us back there Miss Ice.” Samantha said as she looked over at the blonde woman dressed in leather trousers and jacket. “Where are we going?” Samantha asked.

     “The names just Ice, so drop the Miss.” Nicole said in a cold tone as she tried to keep her long dead feeling for the woman sat next to her under control.

    Nicole wanted to laugh as she thought what Max would say if he was sat next to her right now. “What you think you doing kid? Never let your feeling get in the way of doing your job.” Would be his words to her. Nicole was breaking all the rules taking on this job, just to turn around and kill anyone who came at Samantha and her son.

     “The only way to stop them coming after you would be to let them think you’re dead, or remove the person paying the bounty on both your heads.” Nicole explained.

     “It’s me they’re after, not Nicolas.” Samantha pointed out.

     “The price is for both of you dead.” Nicole said in a harsh tone as she tried to make the two of them understand just how much trouble they were in.

     “But he’s just a child. How can they do something like this?” Samantha asked with fear in her voice.

     “People like that don’t care who they hurt, just as long as it doesn’t affect the bottom line.” Nicole said.

     “How do you know so much about this sort of thing, and why are you helping us?” Samantha asked.

     “You ask a lot of questions.” Nicole answered, not having an answer for Samantha’s questions, she couldn’t tell her the truth, or even part of it without Samantha finding out who she once was, and what she was now.

     “Will you at least tell me where we’re heading then?” Samantha asked when she saw that this mysteries woman wasn’t going to answer her other questions.

     “Again with the questions.” Nicole said as she shot Samantha smile. She soon stopped though when she saw Samantha give her a strange look.

    Samantha was glad to see that this cold hearted woman could smile and act more human when she wanted to, but at the same time she saw something she recognised in the woman’s smile, but couldn’t remember where from.

     “I don’t have a set place to head to, that will make it harder for the others to locate you.” Nicole explained as she tried to cover the reason for Samantha’s strange look just now.

     “Wouldn’t going to the police be the best thing to do?” Samantha asked.

     “They have people in the police, how do you think we all tracked you down?” Nicole said before she realised what she was saying.

     “What do you mean, we?” Samantha asked. “Are you telling me you’re just like them?” She asked with anger in her voice.

     “I’m nothing like that man back there.” Nicole screamed as she pulled to the side of the road and turned on Samantha. “I never kill children to start with.” Nicole added.

     “So you’re a killer?” Samantha asked. “You kill people for money?”

     “I didn’t see you complaining back there when I shot the pizza delivery guy.” Nicole snarled. “Yes I kill people for a living, but right now my only goal is keeping the two of you alive, and if I’m going to do that, then we need to change the way the two of you look.” Nicole added.

    Samantha and Nicolas looked at each other and spoke with their eyes, as they worked out whether or not to let this mysterious woman know about Sara. If the bad guys were looking for a mother and a son, then a woman and her daughter would go unnoticed. Nicolas looked convincing enough as a girl, that no one would know anything unless they saw Sara without her clothes.

     “What am I missing?” Nicole asked when she saw the look they gave each other. “If you have some idea’s please share with the rest of the class.

     “Tell her mum.” Nicolas said with a look to let her know it was the best plan.

     “Nicolas and I were about to move to a new apartment in another part of town, so he could start living as a girl called Sara.” Samantha explained.

     “If I become my mother’s daughter, will that help stop them finding us?” Nicolas asked from the back seat of the car.

    Nicole was having trouble getting past the fact her son was more like his father than she ever thought. “Yes it would keep them off our trail.” She said as she tried to recover from the shocking news. “We need to find a mall, so you can get her some clothes and other things she’ll need.” Nicole added as she started to form a plan.

     “Will it be safe for me to enter a shop?” Samantha asked.

     “Yes, but I’ll give you some cash to buy the things you need, don’t use any of your credit cards, and I’ll need your cell phone as well.” Nicole asked as she held out her hand.

    Samantha handed over her cell phone, and then watched as Nicole took off the back and pulled out the battery and the sim card before throwing it all out the window of the car.

     “What did you do that for?”Samantha asked, shocked at what she’d just seen Ice do with her phone.

     “They can track us using it.” Nicolas said from the back seat.

     “Clever kid.” Nicole smiled as she looked in the rear view mirror at Nicolas.

     “I saw it in a movie, but thought it was just make believe.” Nicolas replied.

     “Some is, some isn’t, but its better safe than sorry, and using cards or cell phones registered to you is a sure way to inform the bad guys where you are.” Nicole pointed out.

    Nicole was soon pulling into a strip mall where Samantha could grab items for Nicolas to become Sara, using a couple of different shops to stop anyone putting two and two together and seeing that she was buying a complete outfit.

     “Buy the items you need from as many of the shops as you can, and use only this and don’t call anyone, not if you want to live beyond tomorrow.” Nicole warned. “That wasn’t a threat; I was just stating a fact.” Nicole added when she saw the worried look Samantha was giving her.

    Samantha still wasn’t sure if she could trust this woman, she still hadn’t seen her eyes, just her own reflection in the sunglasses the woman still wore.

     “Buy me something pretty mummy.” Nicolas said in a more feminine sounding voice.

    Nicole turned and looked at Nicolas, surprised at just how like a girl he sounded. “Make the outfit practical and plain. We need the two of you to blend in, not stand out and get noticed.” Nicole warned. “Pick a new hair colour as well, and buy a pair of hair scissors while you’re at it.” Nicole added.

     “You style hair between assassinations?” Samantha asked, heavy with sarcasm. Samantha soon regretted what she said when she saw the twitch of Ice’s lip. “I’d better be going now then.” She added as she opened the car door.

     “Yes, that would be a good idea.” Nicole replied as she went back to looking out the front window of the car.

     “I’ll be as quick as I can, so behave for Miss Ice while I’m gone sweetie.” Samantha said as she looked over at Nicolas sat in the back seat.

     “Your child will be as safe with me as he is with you. I give you my word.” Nicole said without bothering to turn in Samantha’s direction. “Go and get what you need.” Nicole growled.

    Samantha not being sure it was wise to keep upsetting an assassin, smiled once more towards Nicolas, and then she got out, closed the door and made her way into the first of the shops.

    Nicole knew they were safe for the time being, so she leaned her head back on the headrest and closed her eyes to think over their next move. She looked over when she heard Nicolas moving in the back. Nicole found Nicolas leaning between the seats looking right at her.

     “You don’t look much like an assassin.” Nicolas said as he tried to learn more about this woman that seemed intent on protecting them.

     “Have you met many assassins?” Nicole asked, not wanting to spend too much time speaking to this child.

     “No, but I’ve seen them in movies and on TV.” Nicolas replied. “They always dress like super models and drive cool looking sports cars.” Nicolas added with some excitement in his voice.

     “You can’t believe everything you see on TV kid.” Nicole laughed. “And I’m sorry I’m not pretty enough for you.” Nicole added as she looked over at him.

     “I didn’t mean you weren’t pretty Ice, I just mean you don’t look much like a killer.” Nicolas said sounding flustered over his possible upset of the woman trying to keep him and his mother alive.

     “Don’t sweat it kid, I know what you mean, and looking flash and standing out is a sure way to get arrested or shot.” Nicole pointed out. “The trick is to get close to the target and carry out the job and then slip away again without people remembering anything about you.”

     “How did you end up doing this for a living?” Nicolas asked.

     “I’m not sure your mother would like me talking to you about my career path.” Nicole said trying to kill the conversation before she said the wrong thing. “What about you and this wanting to be a girl thing? How did that come about?” Nicole asked.

     “I just don’t feel like I fit in as a boy. I don’t act like a boy, and I feel happier in a dress than I do trousers.” Nicolas shrugged, not sure how to explain the way he felt.

    Nicole thought back to when she was still a boy of Nicolas’s age, and how she felt pretty much the same way as Nicolas had just described, but with the death of her mother, and trying to keep out of her father’s way, it was never realised until she met up with Max and had to disguise herself as a girl and she then realised just how right it felt to be dressed in female clothing. Nicole was snapped out of her thoughts when she heard Nicolas speaking to her again.

     “Does any of this bother you, me wanting to be a girl?” Nicolas asked with worry in his voice.

     “Not at all Sara.” Nicole smiled, as she tried to make Nicolas feel more relaxed over what they had just been speaking about. “I’ve spent the last ten years pretending to be lots of different people, while I worked.” Nicole added.

     “Do you mean killing people?” Nicolas asked nervously.

     “Yes, when I killed people.” Nicole replied with a shrug. She’d had very little contact with people, other than when she killed them. Making friends and letting people get to know her would just give others a way to get back at her if a job ever went wrong. “So is it just you and your mum then, no father in the picture?” Nicole asked, wanting to change the subject, and also find out what Samantha might have said to Nicolas about his father.

     “Yes it’s just me and mother.”Nicolas said with a sad edge to his voice. “Mum said she was in love with my father, and hoped they might have got back together one day, but he died.” Nicolas added as he slumped back in the back seat.

     “Doesn’t sound like much of a man if he just left your mum after she got pregnant.” Nicole said with a tone that said she didn’t think much of his father. Nicole did this to see how Nicolas would react.

     “Don’t talk about him like that!” Nicolas snapped as he sat forward again with anger in his eyes. “He had to run, or the police were going to kill him. He never knew mother was pregnant, and he died before she had time to tell him.” Nicolas said in defence of the man his mother had fallen in love with.

    Nicole wasn’t sure the boy she use to be, ever lived up to the man Samantha had described to Nicolas, but she thought that it must make Nicolas feel better to think of his father being some great guy. Nicole use to think of her father being someone else when she was a boy of Nicolas’s age, instead of the drunk that killed his mother.

     “So what happened to this wonderful man then?” Nicole asked as she took no notice of Nicolas’s anger towards her.

     “I’m not sure of the details. Mother just said he died while on the run.” Nicolas said crest fallen again, but his head shot up as he had a thought. “Did you kill him? Is that why you came to rescue us today?” Nicolas asked with anger in his voice again.

     “I never killed your father kid.” Nicole said. She didn’t think she was lying because the man Nicolas just described never existed in the first place. “I have my reasons for keeping you and your mother alive.”

     “Did you know my father?” Nicolas asked.

    Nicole just rested her head on the headrest again, this told Nicolas that she’d done talking for the time being, so Nicolas sat back and looked out the window. He was eager to get the clothes, so he could become Sara and then become a girl on the run with her mother, while being protected by some mysterious female assassin.

     Nicole was woken from the rest when her cell phone started ringing, she knew it was going to be Ferret, because he was the only person with the number, as it was a burn phone that would be thrown away after a couple of days use.

     “I need to step out the car and take this call.” Nicole said as she looked at Nicolas sat in the back.

     “Fine, whatever.” Nicolas said, but he looked more like an angry teenage girl as he said it.

    Nicole got out the car and walked over to an empty part of the parking lot and then answered the call. “Hey Ferret. Got any news for me?” Nicole asked in a tired voice.

     “News? You’re all over the news, and I do mean all over it.” Ferret said as he looked at the pictures of a woman and a twelve year old boy on the TV across from his computer setup.

     “Do they have any images of me?” Nicole asked in a cool calm voice. She thought that Fetter was panicking enough for the two of them.

     “Not that I’ve been able to find out, but the police computer system isn’t the easiest to hack my way into.” Ferret complained. “They have a partial plate number, make and model, as well as colour.” He pointed out.

     “I know that tone Ferret. What aren’t you telling me?” She asked.

     “They think that you were working with the other guy, and he was shot by the officers before you shot them and then took the woman and boy with you as your hostages.” Ferret explained.

     “Let them think what they want, we know the truth.” Nicole said with a less than bothered tone to her voice.

     “Ice! They think you shot two police officers. You have the whole police force looking for you.” Ferret said with panic in his voice.

     “They’ll soon find out the truth when they get forensics back, all I need to do is keep out their way until they do.”Nicole pointed out.

     “They could have you on death row before they work all that out.” Ferret said still sounding worried.

     “Do you think for one minute they would be taking me in alive if they caught me?” Nicole answered. She knew the police would shoot first and then make up the questions that suited the end result, later, if they bothered at all.

     “Why don’t you just dump the two of them at the nearest police station and let them explain what happened? Walk away while you still can Ice.” Ferret pleaded. “What is it that has you going out on a limb for these two?” He asked

     “I don’t want to talk about it Ferret, but this is personal. I just have to keep them both safe.” Nicole said with some pleading in her voice as she wished Ferret would just let the subject drop, but Ferret was a long way from being done just yet.

     “Was this Nicolas Johnson some sort of a relative? You’ve never said anything about your past. I don’t even know what your real name was before you became Nicole Princess.” Ferret pushed for more info.

     “Yes they are family; now let it drop before I do have to kill you.” Nicole growled into the phone. “Bring up the list of safe houses, and give me the location of the closest, so I can switch out cars and rest up for the night before moving on.” Nicole said as she made sure Ferret got the message that all other talks were done with.

    Ferret soon had a list of places Nicole used as a form of safe house. Most of them were trailers located in trailer parks across the states. Nicole had cars and money there, she kept all her weapons in storage units which she kept up payments on through a shell company her and Ferret set up together.

     “I’ll ditch this car and then buy something cheap to get us to the trailer where I can switch to the new car and then get as far away from here as we can.” Nicole laid out her plan.

     “Where are you heading?” Ferret asked.

     “The cabin. I think that’s far enough off the grid that not even the fed’s will track us down there.” Nicole said.

     “I hope you know what you’re doing Ice.” Ferret said with a sigh.

     “So do I Ferret, so do I.” Nicole replied. “I need to go now, but I’ll call you once I get to the safe house.” She added just before ending the call when she saw Samantha making her way back loaded down with bags.

    Nicole walked back to the car and opened the trunk for Samantha to put the bags in there until they found a place for Samantha and Nicolas to bring Sara to the surface, and for Samantha to change the way she looks.

     “Did you get everything you needed?” Nicole asked.

     “Yes I did, but I also saw that mine and Nicolas’s pictures are all over the news.” Samantha pointed out what Nicole had already been told by Ferret.

     “Yes, I just found that out.” Nicole said holding up the cell phone still in her hand. “They think that I’m working with the pizza guy, and that I’ve kidnapped the two of you.”

     “How do you hope to get away then, with all the police looking for you and us?” Samantha asked.

     “Let me worry about that, while you worry about making you and the kid look different.” Nicole said as she led Samantha around to the passenger door and helped her to get in before she got behind the wheel and drove away from the strip mall towards the area where the trailer park was located.

    Nicole drove a ways up the road and came across a used car dealership that had some okay looking older cars being sold off cheap, so she pulled into a seven eleven just up the road and started to explain to Samantha what she needed her to do.

     “I need you to make Nicolas look enough like a girl, so you can get him into the restroom and do a proper makeover.” Nicole explained.

     “And what will you be doing while we do that?” Samantha asked.

     “I’m going to take a walk up the road and buy us a new car. They will be looking for this one, and the last thing I need is to get stopped by the police.” Nicole explained.

    Samantha got out and grabbed a couple of bits from the trunk, and then got in the back with Nicolas and set to work turning him into Sara enough to get the two of them to the restroom to finish off the look. While Nicole set off up the road to see what second hand car she could find.

    Nicolas smiled as he watched his mother get in the back of the car with him and start to pull clothes out a bag and hand them over to him. He knew what he needed to do with the clothes and he set to work getting changed. Nicolas was soon in a training bra with a little padding to give him some shape, and then he slipped on a pink t-shirt with a hello kitty head on the front. His jeans looked enough like girls jeans to get away with until they got to the restroom and got him into the denim skirt and panties. Samantha had also bought some nail polish, makeup and jewellery to make him look even more like a girl than he ever has before. Samantha was going for an older look to really throw off anyone looking for a woman and her twelve year old son.

    Samantha played around with Nicolas’s hair for a while and then deemed him girlie enough for the trip into the shop to use the restroom.

     “You ready to do this Sara?” Samantha asked as she saw nothing but her daughter sat next to her grinning.

     “I’ve been ready to do this since you first let me dress as Sara, mummy.” She smiled as she used her practiced female voice. “Nicolas has gone, I hope you know that?” Sara added.

     “I’ve known that for some time sweetie, but I was hoping to do it in a more controlled environment than the back of a car and then a restroom though.” Samantha smiled. “I did some research into what you possibly were, and I was shocked to see the high number of suicides connected to people with your condition, and I just want my baby to be happy, given that as a boy or a girl.” Samantha added as she pulled Sara into a hug to let her new daughter know she still loved her.

     “Let’s go and get me out of these icky boy’s jeans then mummy.” Sara whined like a typical teenage girl would. Samantha couldn’t help giggling as she got out the car and helped Sara get out before they made their way into the shop and through to the restroom at the back.

    Samantha had rolled up the skirt and slipped the sandals and girl’s socks into the backpack she’d bought for Sara to use. Samantha wanted to put some money and other items in the bag, just in case they got split up and had to make a run for it on their own. She had even bought a couple of cheap pay as you go cell phones that weren’t to be used unless they got separated, but Samantha was going to explain all this to Sara later.

    Sara didn’t get any second looks as she walked to the back of the seven eleven with her mother walking at her side. They entered the rest room and then Samantha locked the door so Sara could change out of the jeans, boy’s underwear, socks and trainers, so she could put on the girl’s panties, skirt, socks and sandals. Sara then painted her fingernails and blew on them to help get them dry, while Samantha applied some makeup to make Sara look older. By the time Samantha had done, Sara looked close to being sixteen more than a twelve year old. Sara looked in the mirror on the wall and smiled as she finally looked like a girl again, and she felt like she’d finally come home and let the world see the real her.

     “Thank you mother.” Sara said feeling much older now and trying to act the part.

     “Don’t go getting use to this look sweetie, you still have a lot of growing up to do before you become sixteen.” Samantha pointed out as she got all the things belonging to Nicolas packed up and put in the trash.

     “I wish we could do something a little more symbolic than just throwing him in the trash, but I feel a new chapter starting in our lives.” Sara said as she placed the lid back on the bin and turned and left the rest room looking like a sixteen year old girl.

 

To Be Continued Next Sunday  

 

Story by SaraUK

 

Edited and Posted by SamanthaK

    EDITORS NOTE: Please Comment and/or leave Kudos and let Sara know you like her work please, Any comments on spelling, grammar or the layout of the story please PM me “Samanthak” not Sara. Thank you