Authors: Mia Hoddell
“One word, Cora. One word and it all stops.”
“No.”
“Not the word I was looking for, Cora.” Mayana tutted but the sound was cut off by another scream as one of her men applied more pressure to her small body.
“One last chance, Cora. Do you agree to my orders?”
Cora could hear Mayana’s patience was wearing thin.
“I will never work for you Mayana and I will never sign anything over to you,” Cora hissed through her teeth as she numbed the pain with her anger.
“Then you’ll do it under force.”
Cora heard the door open and suddenly the pressure on her leg disappeared, releasing a flow of blood to her foot and causing her to wince.
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
Mayana had already left the room.
As the foot at her neck was removed, Cora went to sit up and inspect the damage. However, she only got half way before a kick landed to her gut. Winding her with a grunt, Cora doubled over, clutching at her stomach as she groaned, her eyes shut tightly.
The door clicked shut and locked behind them, leaving Cora to recover in private. Slowly she regained her breathing. It levelled out and returned to a steady rhythm. When that had settled, Cora pulled herself out of the foetal position and stretched out to massage her shin. She rubbed her throat a few times but it was her leg that had taken the brunt of the attack.
Gently she rubbed her hand over it, trying to ease the ache but only inflamed the pain. There would be a bruise but that wasn’t what worried Cora. What concerned her was that she didn’t know whether it affected her ability to walk.
Only one way to find out I guess
, she thought as she braced her hand firmly on the floor. Making sure she put all the pressure on her good leg, she pulled herself to her feet and tentatively lowered her other foot to the floor.
As the sole made contact, Cora winced slightly, a sharp flash of pain shooting along the bone and up her leg. Not one to give up, Cora was determined to beat what she considered an inconvenience. Removing the pressure, Cora placed her foot on the floor again, allowing the pain to shoot up again and again as she tried to get used to it.
Slowly she progressed to walking around the small space. Her jaw was locked tightly together—the only outward sign of pain as she refused to wince with every step.
Cora was at the back of the room when the door slammed open in front of her. She jumped slightly at the noise, startled by the sudden entrance and stumbled, accidentally applying more pressure than she anticipated. It hurt but she was distracted by the figure in the doorway.
“Come on, we’re leaving,” Jed ordered, reaching for her arm.
“Why would I trust you?” she spat, standing so that all her weight was distributed on to her uninjured leg.
“Because I’m your only hope of getting out of here. Mayana is taking things too far. I saw what she did to you and I know what she has planned for you next.” He tried to pull her gently towards the door.
Cora refused to move, testing the words for a lie. Although she wanted to leave, she was slightly disappointed when they came back as truthful. She wanted a reason to hate Jed even more. She didn’t want a reason to be grateful or owe him in any way.
“Cora, we have to leave now. That is unless you want to be used as a hostage, human shield and a weapon against Carvelli.”
“All right, all right I’m moving.” Slowly Cora allowed Jed to guide her out of the door. Lying on the floor unconscious were the two men Mayana had entered the room with and Cora didn’t know whether to be impressed that Jed had managed to take them out without her noticing. She had been trapped inside her mind though, so she doubted much would have penetrated it.
“Can you move any quicker? If I’m caught doing this, I’m dead.” Jed said.
“I didn’t ask you to do this.” Looking across at Jed he looked at her incredulously. “What? You want me to thank you?”
“Have you ever let anyone in Cora, trusted anyone?” Jed asked, diverting her to silence the sarcasm.
“So why are you helping me?” Cora used his own tactic against him, changing the subject back.
“I don’t know right now, because sometimes you are an ungrateful bitch.” His words were clear, she knew he meant it and she couldn’t help but smile at his annoyance.
“So this is about me acknowledging what you are doing? I need to praise and thank you like a schoolboy?” She grinned again.
Jed was unable to see. “Is this just your defence? Do you ever let anyone in?”
“Never. That’s how I survived this long.” Her blunt statement hung in the air, neither knowing how to follow it as Jed led her along to the platform. Seeing her limp becoming more pronounced in the silence, Jed took her arm over his as support. At the platform edge, carefully he lowered her down on to the tracks; his concern something Cora noticed.
“Look, I can’t go any further, I need to get back and make sure no one is following. Keep your hand on the left wall, a platform should appear soon enough. Take that exit and don’t come back unless I call, all right? Do you think you can manage that on your leg?” Jed said apologetically.
Cora said nothing, she didn’t want to be in his debt and thanking him would acknowledge that fact. Instead, she nodded and kept walking, following his instructions as she hissed through the shooting pains.
“Somebody bring up Cora’s location immediately!” Rogan roared as he hung up on the continuous, unanswered ring while he tried to get hold of her. He wanted to throw the phone across the room but just managed to refrain. Instead his hand tightened around the device so much it looked as if he was going to snap it or reshape it to mould his fingers.
The men that were in the comms room, moved frantically, their steps brisk and purposeful as they dodged his frantic pacing. Liam—who held the position of Rogan’s personal assistant—tapped furiously at his keyboard, flicking through the numerous CCTV images to find the correct screen. His eyes were locked on to it as he complied with Rogan’s orders, sensing his boss wasn’t in the mood to be messed around.
Studying the maps carefully, Liam checked them a few times but when he did not get the desired response, he gulped. Trying to will them into giving him a location, Liam finally admitted he would have to relay the bad news. “Sir, it’s dead. There’s no signal transmitting,” Liam called out nervously, his hands shaking and rattling against his keyboard. He knew Rogan hated any sign of weakness in his men but Liam had been on the receiving end of his wrath more than once, and that affects a person in a certain way. Liam accepted that it came with the job but that didn’t mean he liked it.
“What? It can’t be.” Rogan charged to see the screen for himself. As he reached him, Liam flew up from the seat, allowing Rogan to sit down.
Sure enough, as Rogan studied the screens himself—his face contorting into an angry mask—there wasn’t the slightest blip of red on the screen. He couldn’t believe Cora had found the device. Well, he could but he didn’t expect it to be so soon.
“Get the word out, I want her found and I want to know where she has been,” Rogan ordered, watching his men react instantly, leaving the room in pursuit of Cora.
* * *
Kirby felt like he was six was years old again as he sat in the corridor outside Rogan’s office. He used to want to be included so much that he would sit outside the door for hours, just listening to Rogan’s meeting so he could pretend he was part of the organisation. The only difference between now and then was that at six, Kirby could pretend. At twenty-one he couldn’t.
As well as that, Kirby had more of a purpose this time. As he listened to his father rant, shout and lose his temper with anyone in sight he hoped Rogan would let the information he needed slip.
Everyone thought he was weak, incapable of doing anything. Rogan had added to his insecurity by making sure everyone believed it. Leaving everything to Cora—a girl he hardly knew—over his son was like sending out a memo to everyone in his organisation about his lack of faith. It was for that reason that people ignored him.
Most wouldn’t be allowed to sit where he was, but being Rogan’s son had some advantages, even if he was useless. The first was when he did ask for something, people obeyed. The second was that people underestimated him and therefore left him to his own devices a lot of the time. They assumed that because of the rumours, he wouldn’t be any trouble. It was a useful result from Rogan’s disownment.
Smiling to himself, he watched as Nick—another person above him in the line to Rogan’s inheritance—strode down the corridor half an hour later, his boots making dull thuds as he walked. Nick barely even gave him a second glance. Instead frustrated, he stepped over Kirby’s legs and continued past him into Rogan’s office. As the door shut behind Nick, Kirby leaned forward slightly, shuffling closer to make sure he could catch every word.
He knew Nick was about to deliver the information he needed.
“You find her?” Rogan’s deep voice came through the wood easily so Kirby could hear.
“Yes. She wasn’t that hard to find and she didn’t put up a fuss for once. A few of the guys found her in her flat. She claims to have sprained her ankle so has been there all day.”
“Claims? You don’t believe her story then?”
“I’m not saying that, I just don’t think we should assume anything she says is going to be the truth.” Nick had learnt from past experiences to always cover himself with Rogan. He had more sway than the rest of Rogan’s employees but very rarely did Nick give his true opinion on matters regarding Cora. It was just better that way.
“So you think she’s just been ignoring my phone calls?”
“My guess is she found the tracking device and is now punishing you. You know how stubborn she gets. Do you want me to send someone to bring her in?”
“No, leave her for a bit. She’s only making the situation worse for herself,” Rogan replied and as Kirby heard footsteps drawing closer to the door he shuffled back a few metres quickly, settling down just as the door swung open and Nick left.
Satisfied with the information he had collected, Kirby stood when the corridor was empty once more. He could now implement his plan. By the evening, he would be one step closer to his goal. People would stop underestimating him and he would prove Rogan wrong.
Within his mind he was certain his problem with Cora would soon be solved.
Cora had followed Jed’s instructions and emerged from the tube station half an hour after he had left her. She had headed straight for her flat, not wanting to make her leg even worse by walking around for a long time just so she could clear her head. She also had nowhere else to go so whether or not the flat was safe it was all she had besides Rogan’s. Unsurprisingly that place didn’t rank very highly on her list so she had to trust that her guards would stop any repercussion from Mayana.
Sitting with both of her feet up on the sofa a day later, Cora had one of the few remaining books on her lap. It was one Misty had left behind when she packed up and even though Cora was not a big fan of reading—she hated sitting still for so long—it was, on occasion, a nice change of pace. She couldn’t help but laugh though at her situation. There she was in the middle of a fight between two organisations who wanted to use her and she had decided that it was time to start reading a book? After all the ‘she should read more lectures’ from her friend, Cora was sure she would never pick up a book willingly, but here she was in the most extreme circumstances and she was enjoying it. The book was a great distraction from her thoughts and surprisingly intriguing.
However, the progress she had made soon became too good to be true. She had only read fifty pages when her mind began to wander. Cora couldn’t help but wonder what Rogan was doing and whether he had tried to contact her while she had been in the tunnel. If he had, he was probably furious with her and the fact he had sent some of his goons around earlier to check up on her only confirmed her suspicions. It also meant he had found out she had destroyed the tracking device.
The only thing that didn’t make sense was why the men had bought her lie. Well, in all honesty it was only a half lie but they still left incredibly easily. The fact that they hadn’t used force to remove her made her question what Rogan’s motives were.
Smiling at the thought of his anger when he first realised what she had done, she returned to her book. She didn’t know how much time she had given herself by sending his men away, but she planned to spend it relaxing. There was no were else she could go anyway and she wasn’t going to let them ruin the rest of the evening.
* * *
The light was only just beginning to fade as Kirby left the mansion. He had managed to round up four men who were unhappy enough working under Rogan to agree to defy him and help. There were, of course, plenty of men unhappy with their lot. Working for Rogan was not a career path anyone chose willingly yet few would risk their life to get out of it. For that reason, Kirby had to choose the men he had asked wisely. He didn’t want anyone running off to warn Rogan of his plan.
Not to Kirby’s surprise all the men who had agreed to accompany him were guys who had been forced to sign their loyalty and life away because of gambling debts they couldn’t pay off. By offering freedom, when Kirby said he would take over the family business, he had secured their help and loyalty—at least for a night.
Thanks to Nick, Kirby knew exactly where to find Cora. He couldn’t contain his smug grin as he walked on. People had underestimated him; they thought he couldn’t perform and now he was about to prove them wrong. He had been planning ever since Cora returned so it was by no means a rash decision. However, things with Rogan had progressed further than he wanted. He knew people were trying to take him down and Kirby needed everything sorted before the old bastard bit the dust. His plan had been pushed forward, but he was ready.
How hard could one girl be to take down?
He kept asking himself but he already knew the answer:
it wasn’t a girl, it was Cora Shields. She had a reputation, she had a history, and she was skilled.
He just hoped surprise would be enough to stun her and with the uneven numbers the force would overpower her.
Kirby had decided that walking would be the better option as it would alert less suspicion. To get a car, he would have to go through his dad, and that would mean questions he wouldn’t be able to answer. Kirby may have been about to build his own future but that didn’t mean he was good at lying. He would crack under Rogan’s pressure, so choosing the slower option he increased his chances.
Sneaking out of the mansion had been tougher than usual—Rogan had upped security because of the threat posed by the group against them—but Kirby had been leaving the mansion for years. He knew all of the passageways, blind spots, and concealed hiding areas so if anyone could get himself and four others out, then it was him. Kirby had led the men through the mansion and out on to the streets flawlessly and only when they were a good hundred metres from the gates and out of sight did he break the silence that had followed their escape.
“This has to go perfectly. I want us in an out with as little fuss. No talking, no taunting. You just shoot when you have a clear shot. I don’t care who does it but it has to be clean. I don’t want any chances taken. She has to die.” Kirby’s voice grew in strength as he spoke, becoming more confident in his orders. He didn’t want to show himself up and losing face would only undermine his authority, so he had to appear strong like Rogan.
The men nodded as they walked beside him.
“Are all of us going to go up to the flat and just break through the door then?” Trey asked, his voice full of disdain as he took orders from someone half his age. None of the men were happy about the situation, knowing it was a gamble siding with Kirby, but it was the lesser of two evils if his plan worked.
“Of course not. You, Mike and Brett will stay outside, blocking the exits. Me and Syd will go up to the flat,” he said pointing at each of them as he explained the task. All of them looked and dressed identically with short brown hair, black jeans, shirt, and jacket. They all concealed a weapon under the jacket and, as Rogan required, they were all built like a solid wall of muscle.
“Everyone clear on what’s going to happen?” Kirby asked, trying to fill his voice with authority but the men were too experienced to be blinded by his fakery. They didn’t exactly roll their eyes but it was obvious they held little respect for Kirby.
Walking through the streets, only the glow from the full moon illuminated their pathway. In a clear sky, it was bright enough not to warrant the use of torches; something that was more luck than planned as Kirby had forgotten them—well he hadn’t even considered them in the first place.
The pavements that once used to be filled with flashing neon signs, queues of desperate clubbers and semi-conscious drunks were now empty. The roads that used to hold gridlocked traffic, where drivers loudly revved their engines and cursed out the window, believing it would hurry things along was silent. Now it was replaced with an ominous silence, the threat of being caught out in the dark by Rogan’s men only instilling fear in the city inhabitants. And that is exactly what Rogan wanted, allowing him to exercise control easily.
The few people who were brave enough to venture out into the night were those with an addiction. They visited the casinos and built up more debt they couldn’t repay. But they didn’t care; they kept on gambling and Rogan kept adding to control.
“Okay, Mike, go around to the back and check for any possible exit routes. Brett, stand here and make sure no one comes out or goes in. Trey, keep an eye on the windows too got it?” Kirby pointed at the men, as they reached Cora’s flat “Syd, let’s go,” he gestured, motioning for the man to move in front of him. He watched as he pulled out his gun from the waistband of his jeans, and not wanting to seem incompetent, Kirby did the same before the man turned around to check he was following.
Approaching the door, Rogan’s men who had been tasked with watching Cora stepped aside instantly and Kirby grinned inwardly. He had managed to buy their cooperation but he had still been apprehensive they might have changed their minds at the last minute. As the door was revealed to him though, a real sense of euphoria powered on adrenaline exploded in him as he realised he was leading just like Rogan. He was about to get everything he dreamed of and people, mainly Rogan, would have to start taking him seriously. They would have no choice but to.
Looking up at the dark windows that were surrounded by the old, dirt covered, crumbling brick and rotten wood with black paint flaking off, Kirby had a slight moment of worry that she wasn’t in. He also couldn’t grasp why Cora had chosen to live in her dilapidated flat rather than Rogan’s mansion. However, he had an answer to both questions: she was in because that’s where Nick had said she was—where else could she have gone? And he knew that she chose to stay there because it was hers, she was free there and she wasn’t imprisoned. Kirby felt the same but unlike her, he’d never had the guts to do something about it—he liked the luxury life too much to change it. Rogan had made it clear that if he left, he’d leave the lifestyle he was so fond of behind and with nothing.
As Kirby did one final sweep of the street—not that anyone would stop them—his eyes glinted with hunger. His pulse accelerated, the pounding in his chest pushing the rush he was feeling around his body even quicker as he rocked on the spot with excitement. There was only one thought running through his head as he watched the burly man in front of him get ready to force the lock open.
It was time for Cora Shields to die. It was time for Kirby Carvelli to take his rightful place as heir to Rogan’s empire.
* * *
Oblivious to her impending death, Cora lay sprawled out on the sofa. Face down, her right arm hung over the side, dragging on the floor as her legs stretched over the arm and her face pressed into the cushion. Her breathing was deep and slow through her parted lips in her boredom induced sleep.
That was until her phone started ringing in her back pocket. Chiming its annoying chirp Cora groaned, reaching up to pull it lazily from her pocket. She hoped it wasn’t Rogan.
Checking the screen through a half-open eye, she squinted trying to make out the name through the tears that were forming from its brightness. Seeing that it was not Rogan, she sat up, pushing her face off the sofa and massaging out the creases it had placed into her cheek. With a heavy sigh she pushed answer.
“What do you want?” she groaned down the phone, her head still foggy with sleep causing her to ignore the fact Jed had been the one to help her escape Mayana. “Sorry, you just woke me up,” Cora said by way of explaining.
“Forget it. Listen, are you still at your flat?” Jed’s voice sounded tense and she could picture him running his hands through his hair due to the stress as he spoke.
“Yeah, why?”
“You have to leave. Right this second, you have to get out. People are coming for you.”
“What? Who? Is Mayana sending someone or are you just kidding me?” Cora asked, the news crushing her drowsiness as survival switched her mind on. She knew the answer to her last question. The words rang true in her ears but it was hope that for once she was wrong, forcing the words from her mouth. She wasn’t in the mood for more running, her leg was still sore and her head was groggy. All of that combined, led to a severely frustrated Cora who people shouldn’t want to mess with.
“You know I’m not lying, don’t be stupid. Kirby’s coming for you, Cora, just get out.”
On instinct Cora went to grab her bag that she had packed the last time she decided to leave. It still held all of her essentials but as she grabbed the handle she caught a glimpse out the window.
“Can’t. They’re already here,” Cora muttered down the phone, cursing under her breath. She couldn’t seem to catch a break anymore. It also seemed as if Jed’s warnings were not so well timed any longer.
“Just find a way out, Cora.”
“Can’t. They have everything blocked off and two are coming in the front door. I’ve got to take care of this, Jed.” She didn’t mean it to come out as forceful as it did but she didn’t have time to say anything else. Hanging up she removed both guns from her bag, and knew she was going to have to fight her way out.