CHAPTER 8

PRESENT TIME

--TOMMY--

"The fuck is the key?"

"I'll explain everything in more detail once you get me out of here," Roger said frantically.

"That's not the deal Rog'. You tell us now, and then we guarantee your safety," Tommy rebutted.

"Rayshe is paranoid like you wouldn't believe. He's probably listening right now! He could be here any second."

"If he was listening then he would've been here by now," Tommy assured. "Tell us more about the key, then we can leave." Roger glanced around at the three men in the office. He locked eyes with Boone and Leo, in hopes that somehow, they would show sympathy for him against Tommy's commands.

"The longer you sit there with your thumb up your ass, the longer it'll be before you can get out of here," Tommy regained his attention.

"Right..." Roger said while he composed himself. "The Key. Rayshe found one in the mountains of Nepal six months ago, and he's been obsessed with it ever since."

"How does he know there is more?" Boone interjected.

"Like I said, he's been obsessed. He built a research facility over top of it and has been studying it extensively. By its shape, there's got to be two more pieces that it fits into, making the full key."

"What does it open?" Leo asked.

"I don't know. All I know is that one piece by itself is already more powerful unlike anything we've ever seen." Roger answered. He then sat in silence, subtly glancing at his interrogators.

"And..." Tommy's synthetic voice rumbled.

"That's all I know, I promise. Rayshe keeps his cards close," Roger said.

"I don't believe you-"

"You have to believe me!" Roger said as he stood up from his chair. "Please, I'm telling the truth, now just get me out of here!" he pleaded. "If Rayshe finds out what I've told you..." Roger's voice trailed off. He stood frozen, slowly turning his head towards the window on his left. The faint moonlight shined across his eyes as he stared outside. All expression on his face dropped as he looked, like he had seen a ghost. They all stared at him, confused in the sudden change in behavior. Tommy cocked his head to the side to get a better look outside the window, then looked back at Roger.

"Uhh, Rog-"

A loud crack pierced the office as the window shattered. Roger's head blasted open, splitting violently, and plastering the walls and desk with blood. Half of his skull was obliterated as his face became unrecognizable, and his lifeless body went crashing onto the wood floors.

"SHIT! WHAT THE F-" Tommy yelled out before the outside wall blew open; a wave of fire rushing across the ceiling. Tommy was launched sideways out of his chair into Boone, tackling him down on the ground. Leo quickly jumped off the countertop he sat on and joined them on the ground as the ear-deafening cracks of hundreds and hundreds of bullets rained over them.

"Tommy get the fuck off of me!" Boone yelled out over the gunfire. The wood ceiling caught fire, rapidly spreading over their heads and traveling to the walls. Tommy shifted himself off Boone and tossed the chairs across the room, out of his way. He turned over on his back and looked out at the newly opened puncture in the wall.

"Tommy!" Leo yelled out. The robot quickly reoriented himself, turning over onto his forearms.

"Get to Roger's car! Out front!" Tommy yelled at the two of them. He looked over just beyond the edge of the desk to see the limp hand of Roger laid out on the ground, blood caked onto his skin.

"Sorry buddy," he said and then turned his attention back to escaping. Before they could even begin to move, another blast struck the office wall, catapulting them through the back wall and into the living room. They lay among debris and chunks of wood and glass; the living room caved in from another explosive. The burning roof had fallen into the space, igniting the drapes and the carpet, turning the home a violent bright orange. All the windows had been blown out by the force of the explosions.

This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

Tommy regained his composure, turning over and setting himself on one knee. He looked up to see Boone already ahead of him, sprinting away while hails of bullets chased behind them. He just managed to leap through the empty window frame into the driveway before more of the ceiling collapsed in front, blocking that route of escape. With most of the side of the house caved in, the only clear path was down the middle towards the front door without much cover.

"Tommy!" Leo yelled. Over the deafening chorus of gunfire and the roaring of the flames, he barely heard Leo. Tommy looked to his left to see Leo crouched in the kitchen, the automatic fire tearing apart the cabinets above him. It was clear he was signaling him to cross over onto that side.

Tommy balanced himself and he bolted across, holding his arms out to his side to shield from any shots. Before he could make it, a round impacted his shoulder, launching him sideways onto the floor, skidding down the hallway. He quickly pushed himself back onto his feet as he sprinted towards the flaming archway.

"Hurry the fuck up and get in!" Boone yelled out the driver side window of Rogers car as Tommy finally exited the house, Leo followed soon after. The backseat door was already opened as Tommy dove in and scurried himself to the right side of the car and Leo jumped him behind him and slammed the door. As soon as they all were in Roger's armored SUV, Boone slammed on the gas; tires screeching on the asphalt as they hurried away from the flaming wreck. Tommy turned around to see the remains of the home lit ablaze as it crumbled down on top of itself.

"Where are we going?" Boone yelled from the driver's seat.

"Southeast. Back of the neighborhood." Tommy answered. His voice became clearer the further they drove away. The unrelenting symphony of bullets and fire faded away. They raced through the streets of the suburban neighborhood; the streetlights barely guiding them through the night. Tommy looked at his left shoulder, newly adorned with a large scratch from the bullet that struck him.

"You good Tommy?" Leo asked him.

"They were shooting with some serious heat," Tommy said as he tried to brush of the shrapnel. "This wasn't your ordinary hit."

"You think they were trying to kill us?" Leo said sarcastically.

"Doesn't seem too farfetched," Tommy replied.

"Well, what the fuck do we do now?" Leo asked anxiously. "We barely have a grip on the situation and now Rayshe is onto us."

"We don't know that."

"I'd say it's about the only thing we know at this point," Leo rebutted.

"Just give me a minute, I need to think-"

"We're fresh out of minutes Tommy." Leo's anger ramped up. "I mean, what the fuck was that back there. You didn't have to push Roger so hard."

"How else do you think interrogations go? Should I have given him a cup of water and asked him about his day?" Tommy fired back.

"We could've gotten him out of there. What difference does it make if he talks now or later."

"What happens when he takes off after we spring him?"

"Like hell Roger could get away from us."

"All he had to do was uphold his end of the deal and we would've gotten him out of there!" Tommy shouted. "It's not my fault he couldn't find the fucking balls to talk."

"Well now he's never going to talk. Roger's smoked and we've been made. What's the fucking plan now?!"

"I'm the captain all the sudden? You're yelling at me to make the plan?"

"You always act like you're the captain until it's time to be one!"

"What's your grand fucking ace up your sleeve then? You have no fucking idea what to do either!"

"Guys!" Boone tried to deescalate.

"We wouldn't need a plan if we just grabbed Roger first!" Leo continued shouting.

"I didn't see you putting in your two cents when it actually fucking mattered-"

Tommy was suddenly cut off as Boone slammed on the brakes. The car's tires screeched as they skidded along the pavement, lurching forward in the car, threatening to send them to the front. He held on to the back of the front passenger seat looking out through the windshield where he saw a large, bearded man, dark skinned and dressed in a white dress shirt and slacks standing in the middle of the road. There was no mistaking that man's profile. Tommy slid back the sunroof and peeked his head through it.

"Frank?" he yelled out.

"This is quite a convenient coincidence," Frank said.

"Well, frick man. Get in," he told him. "Shotgun. It's empty."

Frank hurried to the car and climbed into the front. As soon as his door shut, Boone sped up once again.

"Remember to look both ways before you cross the street next time," Boone quipped.

"It is good to see you, my friends," Frank's said out of breath.

"What the h are you doing here?" Tommy asked.

"I could say the same for you," Frank replied.

"Botched research expedition," Leo commented. "You?"

"Federal espionage," he said as he took out folded papers that were stuffed into his sleeves. His skin began to morph as its color lightened. His shirt fit him better as his frame shrunk down and a head of blonde hair sprouted. "Courtesy of our commander n' chief," he said with a now feminine voice. "I've been on the inside for a few days. Rayshe has been busy, to say the least."

"You got something in the stack about the key?"

"Precisely," Frank said as his shape reverted to his normal self.

"You just saved our behind, big time Frank," Tommy said with newfound relief.

"I told you I had a plan," Frank said. "Where shall we congregate to discuss further?"

Leo and Tommy exchanged glances. "We can’t go back to Laurel’s house now," Tommy said. "It’s better not to risk bringing heat to her doorstep.”

"Do we really have another option?" Leo questioned.

“Yes,” Tommy rebutted. “Boone you know somewhere, right.”

"You would know better than I," he replied.

“What could possibly be more hidden than her house?”

Tommy glanced at the window for a moment before turning to Leo. "You're right..." Tommy said as he relaxed back in his seat. "If we get on Laurel's bad side, you're taking the fall."

Leo rolled his eyes as he patted Boone's shoulder. "Plot a course for Michigan, would you?"