How to Cut a Ruby: Chapter 5 B

Reinhold alternated his view between the building and his watch at a steady pace. He had told Cecily to keep an eye on the front, and Andie on the back, but something told him this was the door. Call it gut instinct, intuition, or just a lucky guess: something told him this would be the way she came out. Perched on this rooftop, covered in the shadows, he was safe from any wayward glance a soldier might make. Positioned just so, if she went any way, he could move. His bases were covered.

The hands on his watch seemed to struggle to move, fighting against time itself. He knew what was happening, and every fiber of his being, every scrap of emotion, was crying out to him to storm the building and save her... but no. He couldn't. Moving now would only mean that everything was for nothing. The night air screamed as crimes were committed by whichever nefarious force lurked the streets, each feminine shriek tricking him into thinking it was her. She wouldn't give them the satisfaction. Deep down, he knew that. Each question they asked, each strike they landed, would be met with a snide remark and a blood-infused spit.

Almost beyond the point of bearing this torture, Reinhold peered down at the doorway. His patience was rewarded when the door burst open. The small hallway spat out what must have been twenty to thirty Council soldiers, many of them looking like they needed desperate medical attention. The sight of each beaten and battered face could only make Reinhold grin for the briefest of moments -- until he laid eyes on Ruby's limp, unconscious body. They dragged her, not so gently, to a military-esque vehicle that undoubtedly belonged to the Council. They tossed her body into the rearmost section of the vehicle and quickly drove into the night.

This city was good to Reinhold. If he needed something, he knew that the city would provide it so long as he knew where to look. Leaping from rooftop to rooftop, springing off of a TV antenna, sliding down power lines, utilizing fire escapes: the tools were all there. So, he pursued. The vehicle pulled away from him, but never out of his sight as he pushed himself to keep up.

Eventually, the vehicle came to a stop in front of what looked like a warehouse, but Reinhold knew better. When you see enough Council bases, you eventually can tell what’s inside from a quick glance at the outside. The lab inside would be large, extending deep underground. Stainless steel walls stretch off into the distance as they yanked her from the vehicle and dragged her inside. A few select soldiers stood guard by the door as it quickly slammed shut behind them.

Perched atop his roof, he looked for an opening. He needed a way in, and he didn’t have time to wait around. Of course, this is the moment a small gathering of Freakshow tried to jump him. At first, he looked up at the Freaks, his face saying Not now, before his lips could ever move. But, of course, they didn’t listen. They never listened. In a split second, they lunged at him, and in that same second, he waved his hand and locked them to the ground. Another wave, and they didn’t know which way was up.

A light bulb flicked on in his head as he looked between the Freaks and the Council base. A faint grin spread across his face, “Two birds, one stone. I’m coming Red. Hang in there.”