The War on Drugs: Business Before Pleasure: Chapter Ten

Chapter Ten

October 27th, 8:25 PM

They had been careless.  Both of them.  Erin should have realized that Margot might run into Hammerson on her way to her car, should have escorted her, should have at least looked to see that there were no guards still lingering around in the parking lot.  But Margot could have realized those things on her own.  Could have, if she hadn't been so deeply freaked out.

And now, here they were again, tied up.  This time they were back-to-back and sitting on the floor.  Margot could feel the cold concrete against her butt, lightly (foolishly, she thought) clad in tight leggings.  The girls' wrists had been tied individually and then together.  More rope had been wound around their upper bodies, pressing their arms and backs against each other, and even more rope had been wrapped around their ankles for good measure.  The dim light cast their shadow on the floor, which Margot could see from the corner of her eye.  The shadow looked like a bizarre black monster on the verge of devouring its prey.

Sunny bent down and inspected the bonds one more time.  "I don't think they'll be getting out of these," she said.

Brent Hammerson smiled, staring at his bound nemeses.  "They do look nice and tight.  Well done, Sunny."

Margot felt Erin's arms rustle against her own, already on the hunt for loose rope.  Margot had a feeling it would be harder to find this time around.

"Never send a man to do a woman's work," Sunny laughed.

"I said that you were a bondage bitch," Erin said.  She never did lose her nerve, Margot thought.

Sunny lightly kicked Erin's boot.  "It's true.  I know my way around rope," she said.

Hammerson cleared his throat.

"Alright ladies."

He dropped into a squat so he could stare into Blue Lynx's eyes.

"It's the end of the road, Blue Lynx."

Margot couldn't see Erin's face, but she knew she had to be sneering.  She again felt her ropes tighten as Erin's body pressed against the bonds.

"For you maybe," Erin said.  "I've already sent the pictures to the paper.  There's no covering your tracks, Hammerson.  This operation is through."

"Oh, I'm aware of that," Hammerson said, stroking the outside of Erin's bare thigh.

"The cops should be on their way as we speak," Erin said.  "You better get out of here."

Hammerson laughed.  "Not until I hear the sirens, babe.  Until that point, I have some business I need to finish."

More tension in the ropes.  Erin seemed to be trying to scoot back.  All this squirming was putting a lot of pressure on Margot's arms and upper body.  It hurt.

"You gonna unmask her?" Sunny asked.

"Yes," Hammerson said.  "But not yet.  I want to make Blue Lynx an offer first."

"If it's the same offer as last time," Blue Lynx said, "You can forget about it."

"Just hear me out," Hammerson said, still stroking Erin's legs.  "Think about it.  Join me.  Help me.  No one knows who you are.  I don't even know.  I don't have to know, if you help me.  And I can make it worth your while.  Just ask Sunny here."

Sunny nodded her head enthusiastically.  "Good benefits, too," she laughed.

"I will never join you," Erin said, authoritatively.  "Not in a million years."

Hammerson removed his hand from Erin's leg.  "Suit yourself," he said.  And then Margot heard a small beep.

"What was that?" Erin asked.

"That is your impending doom," Hammerson said.  "I've rigged this place to blow in ten minutes.  The whole thing.  Kablooey.  Bye bye factory.  Bye bye Blue Lynx."

"What?" Erin said.  "You're blowing the factory up?"

"It's always been an option.  In case someone like you discovered what was going on here," Hammerson said.  "Here, I'll set a timer for you.  In between you, so you can see it too, you sexy sweatered thing."

With a touch of flair, Hammerson set a small digital clock on the ground near Margot and Erin.  Margot watched as 9:45 became 9:44.  And 9:44 became 9:43.

"No," Erin said, pulling even harder on the ropes, so that Margot could barely breathe.  "Don't do it, Hammerson.  This building... The cops will arrive.  You'll kill them all."

Hammerson laughed.  "Yep," he said.

Margot heard Erin growl, heard the growl become an anguished cry.  "How could you?" Erin yelled.

"We gotta get out of here before the fireworks," Hammerson said.  "So let's go ahead and see who you really are."

"Oh no," Margot thought.  "He's going to do it!"  She felt Erin's back lean heavily against her.  She tried to lean over too so that Erin would have more room to struggle.  But she was suddenly brought up again as Hammerson placed his hands on Erin's shoulders and pulled her forward.

"Could you hold these two in place, please?" he said to Sunny.  And Sunny soon had her grip around Margot, locking her in place, keeping her from even the smallest movement.

"Hammerson!  Don't!" Erin screamed.  Hammerson was close enough to the two of them that Margot could hear his breath, smell his cologne.  She could hear Erin's whimpering protests, could almost feel Hammerson's touch on her own cheek, could almost imagine herself in Erin's place, watching the eye holes of her mask become eclipsed by black fabric, and then watching the black fabric become eclipsed by Hammerson's grinning face, when a blare of sound suddenly canceled out all other sensations.

"Dammit!"  Hammerson cried.  "That's the cops!"

"Forget the mask!" Sunny said.  "We gotta split!"

She released Margot's body, and Margot felt Hammerson lift himself from Erin.  She could see the two villains brush themselves off, watched them watch the lights of cop cars streak through the factory windows.

"It's been a trip, Blue Lynx," Hammerson said, dashing away.  "I wish I could have gotten to know you better!  But you know what they say!"

What did they say, Margot thought, listening to Hammerson and Sunny's footsteps recede, and then hearing another door, a different creak from before, as the pair left her and Erin in the dim light of the factory, alone and tied.

"Margot!  Quick!"  Erin said.  "You have to put everything you have into the ropes!  Okay?  On the count of three!"

Margot glanced at the digital clock.  7:02, 7:01...

"One!  Two!  Three!"

Margot strained against the ropes, felt the ropes sear into her sweater, ripping it in places and cutting into her skin; felt Erin pull in the other direction, felt Erin's wrists drag her own the other way.  The bonds budged, but they hadn't broken.

"Shit," Erin said.  "We have to try again!"

"Wait," Margot said, breathlessly.  "Give me a second."

"MARGOT!" Erin yelled.  "We don't have time!"

"But," Margot said.  Erin pulled again, but Margot wasn't ready, and her back flew back against Erin's, her head knocking against the back of Blue Lynx's head.

"Oww!" she cried.

"Margot, dammit," Erin said.  "You have to pull, too!  I can't be the only one pulling!"

"I know!"  Margot cried.  "I know!"  Her whole body ached.  Her wrists, already raw from the previous rope, felt like they were bleeding.  Her legs and ankles were cold, sore.  Her head hurt from its collision with Erin's.  This strategy, the pulling strategy... it wasn't working.  It could never work with Margot in such agony.

"We need a new plan," she said.

"There is no other plan!" Erin yelled.

Margot slumped against Erin's back.  "I just, can't move," she sobbed.

"Margot, stop," Erin said.  "Don't give up."

Margot looked at the clock.  5:30.  5:29.  They weren't getting out.  There was just no way.  They were going to die here, tied up, together.  Blown to bits in an abandoned factory.

"Erin, don't you see?  There's no time," she said, her body relaxing further, her hands now resting near Erin's butt.  "There's nothing to do except..."

And then she felt something.  Fabric.  A flap.  Erin's utility belt!

"Wait!" Margot cried.  "Where are the Lynx darts?"

"Back left!" Erin shouted.  "Can you open the flap?"

Margot dug her fingers toward Erin.  "I can try," she said.  Her fingernails reached out, could feel the buttons on Erin's belt.  She twisted at one, took hold of it, and with a quick motion, unsnapped it.

"Quick!  Get it!  Give it to me!" Erin yelled.

Margot eased a few Lynx Darts out of the open pocket.  A few fell to the floor, their sharp edges dangerously close to the bare flesh of Erin's rear end.  But then, one fell into Margot's hand.  Margot almost starting weeping from joy.

"I have one!" she said.  She carefully passed it from her hand into Erin's rubber glove.  "Come on Blue Lynx!  Do your stuff!"

And she listened in as Erin cut at the ropes with the Lynx Dart.  She could hear it, slightly.  A sawing sound.  Erin huffing and puffing.  Margot took a peek at the clock.  4:20.  4:19.  Oh God.  They were running out of time.  Margot tried to steady her breathing, tried to keep herself from having a full-on panic attack...

And then, the ropes fell.  Her wrists were still tied to each other.  But no longer was she tied to Erin.

"Oh my God!  Erin!  You're doing it!" she cried.

Erin remained silent, clearly focused on the task at hand.  Margot didn't want to distract her, so she trained her attention on the digital clock.  3:45.  3:44.  3:43.  It was a terrible way to occupy her time.  So she looked away.  But there wasn't much else to see in the factory.  Just more darkness, illuminated here and there by the light of a police vehicle.

And then it hit Margot.  Why weren't they coming in?  Had they caught Hammerson on his way out?  Maybe, but probably not.  Hammerson had taken a different exit.  But the press had surely shown the cops Erin's pictures.  What was taking them so long?

"Margot!" Erin yelled.  She was now in front of her, crouched down at her ankles, cutting away at the bonds with the tiny Lynx Dart.  "Help me!  Pull apart the ropes!  Go!"

"Erin!" Margot said automatically, putting all of her effort into separating her legs.  She almost cheered as she watched the ropes fray, then break, and saw her legs kick free.

"But my wrists!" Margot yelled.  "They're still--"

"No time!" Erin said, which drew Margot's attention back to the clock.  1:27.  "We gotta go!"

Erin lifted Margot onto her feet and the two girls ran, Margot's bound wrists bouncing on her butt.  They ran through the dark of the factory and toward the door, bursting through the exit and into the starry night outside.  They saw lights.  They heard sirens.  And they heard a gruff male voice call out a single word into the night.

"FREEZE!"

On to Chapter Eleven