|
Post by Ray on Jun 22, 2017 19:38:17 GMT -7
Valkyrie waits for Evie to untangle herself from around her and climb off the bike before she kicks down the stand and lifts herself from the seat. It's quiet up here, away from the traffic and tourism. On the other side of the crest, the valley spreads before them, glowing with a million lights. Val doesn't spend a second looking at it longer than she has to.
"Not yet." She replies to Evie, stepping towards the back of the jet. With a slam of her fist against a concealed switch and a rush of air, the cargo bay door lowers to the grass -- exposing the interior of the jet. It's compact compared to the more spacious models SHIELD has unleashed on the skies thanks to the help of Tony Stark, but it suffices for a two-man team. One wall has two bunks built into the very plane, a feature SHIELD did away with when they started enlisting super soldiers who very rarely need sleep. The other wall is occupied by a small number of storage containers which, in this case, are filled with guns and ammunition. Valkyrie swings her sword off her back, and throws it haphazardly onto the bottom bunk.
"Here." She calls back, lifting the metal lid off of a container. She pulls free a small toiletry kit and a parcel wrapped in brown paper stamped with a sticker -- turkey sand. w/ ch. "Get cleaned up. Eat." She instructs, tossing both to Evie. "We're probably going to be stuck here for a few days." She admits, letting the lid snap shut once more.
|
|
|
Post by Snowglobe18 on Jun 23, 2017 4:54:02 GMT -7
Evie nods when her rescuer said that they would't be getting out of here yet. That was a complete shame because of the fact that she really did want to get Stateside. She watched as they raised a fist and then hit the side of the jet before the cargo bay lowers. She raised her eyebrow at the inside and walked up carefully, it wasn't big but it had beds in it and she was tempted to lay down on one of them for just a second so that she could get some sleep. Not being allowed to get any in the basement because there had always been someone coming in and waking her up for whatever reason they had.
Evie looked over when the voice speaks to her and she turns just in time to catch the two items and she looked down at both of them grateful because of the fact that she could get cleaned up and eat afterwards. She started to clean herself up, even if it was just getting the dirt off her face, arms and legs. She now hated wearing shorts especially knowing that she had been in them for a while. When she was as clean as she could get she opened the parcel and looked down at the sandwich. It was definitely different from what the others had been trying to serve her but she never ate anything that they brought down.
She took a bit out of the sandwich and while it wasn't anything special, it was in fact food and she was hungry that at one point she thought she would groan in sanctification at the fact that she was finally eating. Evie then caught on with what the person had said. So they were going to be stuck here for a few more days, she didn't know whether to sign or just forget that they had even said it because at least then she could get through this trip mentally unharmed. Even if she was sure that the kidnap had already done a number on her.
Evie had never been afraid of anything but this was making her feel a tad bit scared. She just wanted this nightmare to be over.
|
|
|
Post by Ray on Jun 23, 2017 12:55:35 GMT -7
Evie doesn't argue, doesn't even speak -- she simply takes the items handed to her and quietly begins cleaning the grime off of herself like this is all to be expected. Valkyrie is a little surprised, to tell the truth. Surprised that this girl hasn't protested once since untying her from the chair that kept her prisoner. Val might not be in the business of heroics, might not know the usual reactions that come with situations like this, but she does know that she hasn't been the most kind. The most forthcoming. She descended into that basement with a skull covering her face and carried Evie off with only the barest of explanations, giving her the non-option of accepting her help or no help. She imagines anyone would be frightened of that. Even a little pissed off.
Maybe she is.
Valkyrie watches the girl for a moment from the corners of her eyes as she reloads the clip of her pistol, a frown tugging at the corners of her lips beneath her mask. She exhales a slow breath through her nostrils, and turns her attention back to her gun. Upon slapping the clip back into place, she slides the pistol into her holster, and tugs a phone free from her pocket instead.
"Here." She says, taking a step in Evie's direction and holding the phone out towards her. The number for the burner cell already flashes on the screen. "Talk to your father. Tell him you're fine."
|
|
|
Post by Snowglobe18 on Jun 23, 2017 13:53:53 GMT -7
The person in the skull mask speaks and she looks over at them and sees the phone being held out to her. She takes it and looks at the number before she puts it to her ear. The tone on the other end rings for about three rings and then there is someone one the other end of the phone. "Dad?" she said and then put the sandwich down that she was eating so that she wouldn't choke on it in case she actually cried. It felt so good to hear his voice, soft and dependent.
Her dad was asking her some questions and she could only answer them as best as she could. "I'm fine, dad" she said again for the tenth time and she couldn't help but let the tears burn in her grey-blue eyes but she refused to let them fall because she didn't want her father to hear her crying, she was twenty-eight and could do without that but she had been through a kidnapping.
Evie's dad then spoke about the person that had been hired to find her and she put her eyes up to look at Valkyrie, so that's what their name was. It would explain why that guy from the bar looked like they were frozen at the thought of the name. If they gave their name. She cleared her throat before looking down and in front of her. "Honestly dad I'm okay and I'll be home soon" she then mentally added on hopefully. The last thing her dad needed was to hear that she might not be home if they were going to be catching the people who decided that they wanted to take her.
The call lasted a little bit before she said her goodbye and handed the phone back to Valkyrie. "Thank you" she muttered.
|
|
|
Post by Ray on Jun 23, 2017 14:07:42 GMT -7
Valkyrie turns her back to Evie as she talks to her father on the phone, giving them the space they needed to exchange their pleasantries and shared happiness. It has nothing to do with her. She might have been the one hired to retrieve Evie from the bowels of a Brazilian dive bar, but that's where she draws the line of this "relationship." She doesn't need thanks. She doesn't need to see her teary, hopeful eyes. She doesn't need to hear Simon's relief.
She just needs to get the job done.
The phone call lasts for a few minutes, all the while Valkyrie busies herself with readying up for the next few days to come. She grabs herself a wrapped sandwich, but frowns after a moment when she remembers the guest still sitting in her jet. She'd have to wait to eat. Wouldn't be the first time. So she tosses it back into the crate. Evie finally holds out the phone, muttering a small thank you that Valkyrie could have missed if she hadn't been paying attention. But she just nods and takes the phone back, sliding it into the pocket of her tactical pants. "I'm sure you have questions." She says, changing the subject as she switches on the light in the cargo hold, chasing the shadows away. "Ask them now while we have a moment."
|
|
|
Post by Snowglobe18 on Jun 23, 2017 14:22:56 GMT -7
Evie raises an eyebrow at Valkyrie when they say about the fact that she has questions and she should ask them now. There was a few questions she wanted to ask but it seemed like everytime they tried to form in her mouth the words would come out in strangled sentences so she shut her mouth for a moment and then licked her dry lips. She knew that her father had been the one to each out to Valkyrie and hired them to get her back.
Then finally when she was sure she knew her words, she put her eyes on Valkyrie and the skull mask and asked. "Why me?"
It seemed simple enough but she had a feeling that Valkyrie wouldn't be able to answer it because if they knew then she wouldn't be bait for the people who wanted her, if they knew who was behind this then she would be on a plane back to the States. She wouldn't be in this jet that she has never seen before and have never heard of people being in one of these.
Evie wanted before she took a bite of her sandwich once more, her stomach growling but at the same time she knew she would have to take it slow because she hasn't eaten in a while and the last thing she wanted was to throw this back up.
Her father had been relieved and she couldn't help but feel bad that she had made him worry, that was the last thing she ever wanted to do. She never wanted her father to worry about her in the way he clearly has had over the last few days.
|
|
|
Post by Ray on Jun 23, 2017 14:53:58 GMT -7
Valkyrie takes a seat upon the edge of one of the storage containers, her elbows resting upon her spread knees. "I'm trying to figure that out." She replies, forgoing the effort of lying and pretending like she has any solid idea other than the simple because they could. "Your father mentioned some outside misgivings about his current trade agreements. So, most likely, you're just a pawn to get him to settle in a way someone else wants." She shrugs her shoulders slightly, her head inclining a degree to the right as she keeps her eyes right upon Evie. "The nature of business," she adds on sarcastically, "But we can't be sure until whoever wants you comes looking for you."
Which shouldn't take long. As soon as the jackass behind this mess shows up at that bloodied bar, a search party is likely to start. They'll search the city first, unless they were smart enough to put eyes on the bar at all times and followed them straight here. A part of her hopes for the latter. It would make things much quicker.
Evie might not share the same sentiments.
"And yes," Valkyrie continues before Evie can ask, "You are bait. If we don't solve this problem now, they'll keep coming for you until all that's left is a little pinky finger in a box sent to your father's office."
|
|
|
Post by Snowglobe18 on Jun 23, 2017 15:26:13 GMT -7
Evie listens and then looks over towards where the cargo door and out to where they had just been. If any of this was to do with her dad's business then why did what the guy from the bar keep coming to her. "I don't think it has anything to do with my dad's business" she admitted and looked over at Valkyrie once more. It might only be a feeling but something wasn't right. But she wasn't sure if Valkyrie would even take notice of what an idiot said while he was giving her a drink. But there was also indications that they were waiting for someone that was turning up to get her and that definitely wasn't Valkyrie.
Of course she would be bait, it was the only way they would come after her. Evie might not like it but when Valkyrie said about the fact that they would said her pinky finger would be sent to her father's office she couldn't help but answer "I'm very attached to my pinky" a slight smirk pulled at the corner of her lips before she looked away once more. But then again who wasn't attached to their pinky?
Evie bit down on her lip and then ran her hands down to her knees before pulling them up and resting her arms on them. If she was honest she probably would be feeling sorry for herself but the only thing she wanted was for them to pay and if she had to be bait then so be it, as long as Valkyrie did their job and got rid of the people who wanted to use her for their own benefit and she wasn't sure if she wanted to know what the hell that actually was because if she knew then it would probably scare her more than anything has ever scared her before.
No, she would have time to work through all of this when she got home but for now she was going to keep her spirits high and pray that she would actually get home.
|
|
|
Post by Ray on Jun 23, 2017 15:45:54 GMT -7
Valkyrie is quiet for a moment, neither arguing with nor confirming Evie's suspicions. Especially since she has the same ones but with very little proof. This whole operation feels...strange to her. Putting aside the uncomfortable notion that for once she's saving someone, the lack of information, the anonymity, the amateurish kidnapping, it all seems a little too...purposefully messy. Like someone is trying to conceal the truth beneath layers of misdirections. Val might not care one bit what sort of familial drama is happening for Evie and her father, but she does want to know what the hell she's facing before she faces it.
She sets her attention back on Evie when she speaks once more, the girl even smiling a little at something most in her situation probably wouldn't find funny. Rising back to her feet, Val picks up the sword from the bunk across from her, "It's the rest of you you should be worried about." She replies, moving to lean her sword against the small facade marking the separation between the cargo hold and the controls. "There are plenty of ways to make a father accept your terms." She mutters, knowing this all too well.
|
|
|
Post by Snowglobe18 on Jun 23, 2017 17:37:31 GMT -7
Evie watched Valkyrie when they spoke and for a moment she was quiet, her eyes watching but not really seeing after what they had said. She probably shouldn't have found it funny but for some reason she felt like she needed to smile about something because if not then she was going to cry and that was the last thing Valkyrie needed if they were going to be using her as bait.
She probably should be worried about the rest of her and on a normal day she probably would be worried about things but not right now because sometimes she worried too much and it would cripple her until she couldn't move and they, both of them, didn't need her worrying. Evie wanted to know who the hell was behind this and why the hell they wanted to hurt her father so much. It couldn't be just about work terms there had to be something else underneath it.
Evie looked down at her sandwich and then reached over and picked it up before taking a bite. She couldn't help but wonder if this really would end up causing her a lot of trouble in her mind down the line. She couldn't help but think that maybe she would have to deal with this sooner or later and maybe if it was later then she would be able to get through this trip unscathed for now. She couldn't guarantee that she would make it back home but she was going to try.
Her throat was still a bit sore and she found swallowing food a little bit harder than usual but that might be down to the fact that she hadn't had that much to drink, they gave her water sure but there was hours between drinks and in the end it felt like her throat was going to close over. Probably a simple worry compared with the fact that she probably was going to be taken out of Brazil to a different country. But what was nagging at her was the fact that it had been on short notice so how did they know she would be coming here?
|
|
|
Post by Ray on Jun 23, 2017 21:27:38 GMT -7
Evie goes quiet again, the small moment of amusement fading back into somber fear. Valkyrie feels a little twinge of sympathy then.
It's more than just seeing the way her eyes cast down to the floor as her smile fades. It's more than just knowing that she's been held captive for a few days in a dark, dirty basement. Valkyrie knows what it's like to be in her shoes. Maybe not completely, maybe not with a billionaire father who can afford to get her back, maybe not the rescuing. But she knows. It's a damn hard thing to forget the moment someone tears you from the life you know just for some petty cash. At first, the rage is almost as crippling as the fear, but before long you just get tired. Exhausted -- from the crying, the screaming, the begging, the beating your fists against the side of your cell until they bleed all over the concrete. You tear your throat to shreds the first few days, to the point that you can't even speak anymore. Your eyes turn raw and red and drier than the desert from all the crying. So then you just lie there. Still. Staring at nothing.
Valkyrie tosses a bottle of water onto the bed beside Evie. "Get some sleep. If you need me, I'll be outside." She says, before turning away to pick up a sniper rifle she'd set aside earlier, and the sandwich she'd forgone. Without another word, she leaves the cargo bay, leaving the lights on.
With a little bit of agility, Valkyrie pulls herself onto the wing of the jet, and climbs up to the top. She shoves her hood off of her head as soon as she's back on her feet, and tugs the mask from her face. Strands of her black hair cling damply to her cheeks and forehead, forcing her to shove her fingers back through the short length, pushing it out of the way. The air feels cool against her skin, and for just a moment she lets her head fall back and her eyes slip closed and just breathes. The night is quiet. Crickets chirp faintly in the grass around them. The wind tastes like the sea.
|
|
|
Post by Snowglobe18 on Jun 24, 2017 3:32:51 GMT -7
Evie's thoughts are interrupted by Valkyrie and she looks over at them when she feels a bottle of water falling onto the bed beside her. She nods her thanks before giving a slight smile and watching as they move down the cargo bay and then out of jet. She then feels the fear settling in once more. It feels like it's the fear of being alone than anything.
Her grey-blue eyes look around the jet before she reaches over and grabs the water bottle and opening the top, the crack of the lid opening making her jump a little but she calms her fears when she tells herself that it's just the lid and nothing else. There wasn't anything outside this jet, just Valkyrie, waiting to take her back to the darkest pits of the basement. There wasn't anyone wanting to take her from this country to another one. She didn't believe it for a second, everything in her screaming but she calmed them down by drinking down some water, her hands shaking a little bit.
Evie never wanted anyone to see her fall apart and now that Valkyrie had left the jet she was able too. She put the top on the bottle after taking a long drink and then a sob escaped to which she put her hand over her mouth to quieten them, she didn't want anyone hearing her. So instead she laid down on the bed, her hand over her mouth and her fingers didn't into the cloth on the bed underneath her.
It was all she could do to stop herself from screaming out. It was a good thing that Valkyrie had left the jet because while they had come and get her, it still felt like she was in that basement, that she was still there underneath the floor. She pulled her legs up to her chest, everything in her was exhausted and she wanted nothing more to sleep but it felt like if she did then she would never escape the dreams.
Evie hated it.
|
|
|
Post by Ray on Jun 24, 2017 21:15:48 GMT -7
The night passes quietly and sleeplessly. With the sniper rifle mounted atop the jet, Val spends each slow hour peering through the scope at the surrounding flora, waiting for the moment when someone would finally come creeping into view. But no one does. She eats the sandwich gradually, taking bites when her grumbling stomach began to protest, setting it aside when a distant noise would recapture her attention. The sun rises on the waterline at Val's back, bringing with it the sound of birds and faraway chimes. She checks the time, debates the pros and cons, before relenting and letting herself catch an hour of sleep.
She awakes to the sound of rustling.
Her head lifts from where it rested upon her arm, her green eyes immediately snapping towards the source of the noise. The sun is a little higher now, giving just enough light to see through the once-darkened shadows of the miniature rain forest surrounding them. She waits, keeping as still as she possibly can, until she sees a flicker of movement. A snap of a twig follows.
Along with the tell-tale sound of comm feedback.
Valkyrie pulls her mask over her face, and lifts herself to her elbows to look through the scope. She sets her sight, readies her aim, and...
Bang -- the rifle spits out a bullet, chasing the birds from the trees. It takes less than a second for a sudden sharp cry of pain to ring out just as loudly, but Valkyrie is already on her feet. Leaping from the jet, she tucks herself and rolls upon impact with the ground, drawing the pistol at her thigh in the same instant. No longer attempting for stealth, she runs straight for the figure swearing in the bushes and bleeding from the calf, and smashes her heel down upon the hand reaching for a radio.
The man cries out again, his face twisted in pain.
"How many more of you are there." Val demands, digging her heel in deep into his palm, her gun pointed straight at his face.
"Puta coño-" The man grunts. Val shifts her gun just a little to the right, and fires point blank. His shoulder bursts with blood. The man screams.
"Te hice una pregunta."
"Ninguno, ninguno." The man chants out breathlessly, his voice a high-pitched painful whine. Val cocks her head to the side, looking down at him in unamused disbelief. Her barrel shifts to point back at his face. "Please, please. I was just a lookout a-a-a scout, meant to locate you." He begs, tears already starting to collect at his eyes.
"For who?" Valkyrie asks.
"Please..." The man shakes his head pitifully.
|
|
|
Post by Snowglobe18 on Jun 24, 2017 21:40:37 GMT -7
Evie just about manages to get some sleep and she's pretty sure nothing has set into her head because she gets sleep without the dreams. It felt like she could sleep for days, weeks even from the fact that she had lack of it when she was in the basement. For some odd reason they wanted to keep her awake. She never knew why and then in the end she just about kept herself awake without them coming in and telling her.
She couldn't say how long she actually got but a noise woke her up and she sat up straight. Her eyes, although tired, on the cargo door before she got up from her bed and moved to the door in time to see Valkyrie running. Everything in her told her to stay where she was but where was the fun in that.
Instead she went after them and caught up just as they were having a conversation. She tried to make out what was being said but she couldn't speak the language. When the man started speaking English she raised her eyebrow and then came to his other side and stood on his other hand. "You were asked a question, who wants me" she said and looked down at him.
Evie was tired of people coming after her and if she was going to be used as bait then she might as well join in when some idiot like this decided to come up to where they were. Her grey-blue eyes were cold but they never wavered from the man.
For the first time ever she wanted to make someone hurt the way that she felt hurt right now, she wanted someone else to feel scared like she did and she wanted them to feel the anger from her because she wasn't going to be taken away from the one person who needed her most.
|
|
|
Post by Ray on Jun 24, 2017 21:58:52 GMT -7
Val glances over slightly when Evie appears at her side, looking determined and more than a little pissed off. Valkyrie can't blame her, but she is a little surprised. After suffering that kind of trauma, experiencing that kind of fear, she had expected the girl to continue to sit quietly inside, far away from the sound of gunshots and yelling.
"I don't know, please..." The man replies, continuing to shake his head. "Please, they told me nothing. Just to look for you."
"Who." Valkyrie demands again, her patience wearing very thin. Her eyes are back upon the man's face, seeing every wrinkle of fear and pain and every dot of sweating beading across his brow. Just another hired thug. Another eager hand looking for easy cash. Another loose end no doubt waiting to be tied off.
"I don't know, I don't know. They never told me. Plea-"
Valkyrie doesn't let him finish. With a single pull of the trigger, the man's head snaps hard against the ground, and the words die in his throat. Blood slowly begins to pool in the grass. She holsters her gun at her thigh, and silently lowers herself into a crouch over the man's corpse. With ungentle hands, she pulls the radio from it's place on his hip. It's a cheap little thing. The kind of radios you buy in surplus for mall cops. But it still might provide useful. She pats down the rest of his pockets, looking for ID, for money, for anything. She finds both, stuffed in a worn leather wallet in his jeans pocket. The man is local, probably from the same gang of idiots she dealt with last night, a nobody. But the cash is substantial. A thick wad of clean, new hundred dollar bills. But not the same ones Val gave up last night.
|
|