Finding Flagstaff

"Put that on," he said as he got in.

"My God, Merlin," I could hardly speak. "Do you think they have Ellen? Is she your girlfriend that guy was talking about? Merlin, what are we going to do? I'll just die if anything happens to our baby! Please, we've got to do something!" I was practically yelling and I could feel myself starting to panic.

He took my face between his hands. He held me there for a minute. "Get a grip on it," he told me. "I don't know anything and neither do you. We are doing something. She may have just stopped off at the bookstore or for a cup of coffee. We're going to that warehouse and if Ellen's there, we're going to get her back. Can I count on you?"

I took a couple of deep breaths. "Yes, but it anything happens to that girl..." The more I thought about the possibility that Ellen was in danger, the more I was ready for some mayhem.

"Nothing is going to happen to her." he insisted. "Now let's get moving."

We flew through the streets, squeezing every erg of horsepower we could get out of the Super Bee. He opened the box in the back seat and took out four pistols. They looked big. He screwed silencers on the ends and loaded a dozen clips.

"You shot these with me at the range," he said. "I know you're a good shot. If it gets nasty, don't miss."

"I've never shot anyone!" I yelled at him. "I've only shot targets. I don't even know if I can!"

"What if they're going to hurt Ellen?" he asked. That settled it. I decided I could easily shoot someone who was hurting Ellen.

As we approached the warehouse, he told me to slow down. We parked about four blocks away and made our way into the alley. We moved in the shadows as much as possible, taking advantage of dumpsters, differences in the buildings and any cover we could find. We must have been about a block away when two guys passed the mouth of the alley. We could hear them talking, but couldn't make out any words.

Merlin hissed at me to get my attention from across the alley where he was behind the wall of a building that stuck out a bit farther than its neighbor. I was crouching behind a foul-smelling trashcan and he made hand motions for me to stay put.

Shit! It had to be here. It smelled as if someone had cleaned fish and put them in that garbage a week ago. I knelt there, trying not to retch. I kept motioning to him to move but he just kept telling me to stay put. I knelt there for what seemed like twenty minutes, becoming one with the miasma and the two guys walked back by the alley.

As soon as they were out of sight, he motioned for me to come over. He pulled me into the cover with him. "They're walking a patrol," he said. "We'll move down by those barrels and take them out next time they come by." He sniffed. "Jesus, Sahara, you smell like shit!"

If I hadn't needed him, I'd have killed him myself. We hurried down to the barrels and crouched behind them. At least they didn't smell like rotten fish. "What do you mean, 'Take them out'?" I asked. "Did you mean kill? We can't kill them, Merlin! Jesus Christ!"

"No, I didn't mean kill them," he said. "That's not what we're trying to do, anyway. If they die, I don't give a shit, do you? What if they've got Ellen in there? We'll injure them and make them talk. You take the one in the brown coat, okay?"

I stared at him. "Are you nuts? He's as big as a house! Dude will eat me for lunch. I'll take the other guy."

"That one looks dangerous," he said. "Big guys don't usually know how to fight. People are afraid of them and they never get in fights. Beat him with your gun. You can do it."

I was glad he thought so. The guy looked about nine feet tall. When they came back, we let them get a little ways past us and slipped out behind them. I hit my guy in the back of the head with the butt of my gun and the other guy must have sensed something because he bounced away as if he had springs in his shoes. My guy dropped to his knees, and I kicked him in the nuts from behind, as hard as I could. He let out a wheezing scream and pitched over on his face, his lunch spewing from his mouth.

I looked back at Merlin and the other guy and saw that they were still fighting. The guy was hurt; evidently, Merlin's first blow had got him on top of the shoulder and hadn't done him any good. His arm was hanging loose, but it hadn't affected his feet. He jumped up in the air and kicked Merlin in the chest. He went reeling back into the wall of the building and when he bounced off, the guy kicked him in the thigh so hard Merlin's leg buckled and he went down. I shot karate man in the ass.

He went down as if he'd been hit by a truck and he stayed down. The sound of the shot was muffled, but still pretty loud.

"Damn, Sahara, why did you do that?" Merlin got up. "I was going to take him."

I snorted. "Yeah, you were going to beat on his feet with your body until he surrendered, right?"

He gave me that rueful grin. "He knew kung fu or something," he said. "We need to get them in the alley and get down there before someone misses them."

His guy was unconscious and Merlin dragged him off by the heels. Mine was curled into a fetal position, holding his nuts and moaning. I grabbed his foot and tried to drag him. Damn, the man weighed a ton! By the time I got him in the alley, his weight had doubled to two tons.

Merlin pulled a roll of duct tape out of his jacket pocket and trussed them up like Christmas turkeys. The kung fu guy wasn't going to be talking any time soon. That left the mountain. He wasn't listening.

"Listen, asshole, we don't have time to fuck with you," I told him. "You want me to stomp your nuts again?"

He listened, but he didn't know anything. He claimed that he was just a security guy and he'd never been inside the building. He said he hadn't seen a girl and I started feeling better.

I still don't know what happened. Maybe they were supposed to check in on a schedule or something, but by the time we got to the warehouse there were three of them outside. Merlin got one of them with his first shot but the other one was hunkered down behind some concrete steps and the other was scurrying toward a white van. I thought we could ignore him and we ducked into the doorway of the warehouse, keeping the other guy pinned down. It was a mistake.

One of us, I'm not sure who, got the guy behind the steps in the foot. He screamed and rolled out. Merlin shot him. I was still focused on him and I heard Merlin shout. "Run for the back, Sahara!"

I didn't argue, I just ran. He was right behind me and he threw himself on top of me when we got to the back wall. Then, everything went black for a while. When I woke up, Merlin was climbing to his feet. I looked at the front door where we'd come in and there was a gaping hole. There was a guy with a green tube outside, lying on the ground. The building was on fire and I could hardly see.

"What the hell?" I said. At least I think I said that. I couldn't hear a thing. Merlin didn't even look at me until I grabbed his arm. He looked at me and I mouthed, "What happened?"

"RPG," he mouthed back at me.

So that was it. Our missing playmate had gotten himself a rocket launcher from the van, and had managed to blow himself up while setting the building on fire. I'd done the same thing many times myself, but only in video games.

My hearing started to come back and it was hot! It was getting hotter all the time. I could hear the flames crackling now.

The front of the building was a raging inferno and there was no way we were going back out that way. There was a stairwell off to our right and we made for it. I was still woozy as hell and Merlin wasn't much better.

We climbed up to the second floor and the fire had spread up the front of the building. We'd be fried before we could get out the windows up there, and there weren't any in the back. When we got to the third floor, there were two windows in the back. It was five miles to the ground. Merlin was looking around as if he'd lost something.

"Merlin, we've got to get out of here," the crackle of the flames was all around as I was getting ready to kick out the window. The three-story drop was better than being roasted alive.

"I thought I heard a voice," he said. I listened, but the roar of the fire and the sound of glass breaking as I kicked out the window, quickly drowned whatever it was. "Ellen's in here," he told me. "Wait under this window."

"Asshole, you're going to die in here," I said. "We don't even know if she was ever here. There's no one alive in here. We need to get out. I'm not going to explain to Roz why you're a cinder in this shithole."

"Stay down there," he told me. "I may find something I need you to catch." He kicked open the door into the hallway. The heat nearly killed me. I picked the glass out of the window frame, crawled through, hung down as far as I could and dropped. I started rolling as soon as I touched the ground but it was a hundred-mile drop and the bottoms of my feet hurt.

After it was over, he told me what happened. "I heard it again; it was a woman's voice from down the hallway," he said.

"'Someone help me, I'm trapped!' It was faint and she was clearly in trouble. I pulled my jacket over my face and ran down the hall. The flames licked at my clothes and I could feel my eyebrows crisping. I put my shoulder hard into the door and it opened about a foot. I could see a figure cowering inside. She had a bedspread pulled over her and she was huddled in a corner. 'Ellen,' I called. She peeked out from under the bedspread, and it was her. I was incredibly relieved and scared to death at the same time. There was a beam cracked somewhere overhead and the whole doorjamb was sagging. I wiggled around until I got my chest between the door and the frame and my arms against the frame. I pushed with everything I had. I'm a strong guy. I won't brag about my bench, but I lift with the big boys and I don't wear a shirt.

"I thought my eyes were going to pop out of my head before I felt that door give. Damn the people that built that place! Why couldn't it have hollow doors? Failing that, why didn't it have a stronger structure? Well, I guess an RPG into the place hadn't helped. The door gave, groaning nearly as much as I was and I shouted at Ellen. 'Follow me and I'll get you out of here.'

"She wrapped herself up in the bedspread and we made a dash down the hall. It was as hot as the seven gates of hell, and I thought I was going to pass out. She wasn't going to make it and I had to drag her into the room. I slammed the door behind us and dragged her over to the window. I looked out and thanked God that you were still there.

"'Climb out the window,' I told her.

"She shook her head fearfully. There wasn't time to argue so I just took her and leaned out the window. You know what happened after that," he said.

I did. "Sahara," he shouted. "If you drop her I'll kill you myself!"

It seemed like two hours had gone by when Merlin finally appeared at the window. His clothes were singed and ripped, but he was holding Ellen. "Are you ready?" he asked. Talk about a dumb question.

"Hell no, but what choice do we have?" I could see his grin three stories away.

"Here she comes!" He pushed her out the window holding her wrists, then let her fall. He told me later that letting her drop was the hardest thing he'd ever done in his life.

I didn't drop her. She hit me like a piano being dropped on me and I heard her cry out. I dragged her out of the way so Merlin could follow. The door behind him exploded and it was time to go. He dropped and rolled off to the side. He got up limping, but he didn't think anything was broken.

"We've got to get the hell out of here," I said, trying to pull him to his feet. Ellen was rocking back and forth in pain and I could see that her leg was probably broken. He wasn't walking too well either, but we dragged the three bodies to the door and threw them inside. He picked Ellen up and we beat feet toward the Super Bee.

Ellen and I were both crying and I felt bad for her. She couldn't understand what had happened. I hardly knew myself. We began to hear sirens and two police cars, an ambulance and a fire truck roared past. I sat back with a sigh. I had a minute to check Ellen and other than her leg, she seemed to be okay.

"Did you kill those men?" she asked.

"Yes, I'm afraid we did, baby," I told her. "They were trying to kill us. You may have noticed that they tried to blow us up and destroyed the building."

"What are you?" she asked Merlin.

"I'm a security contractor, Ellen. Do you know what that is?" he asked.

She nodded. "You're a mercenary."

"Hey, that hurts my feelings," he said. "Such a dirty word."

"We didn't intend to kill anyone," I told her. "Roz called us and told us you were missing. We got a phone call, telling us you'd been kidnapped. We came to get you and they tried to kill us. One of them got outside and got that RPG. He got off a round and blew himself to hell. I'm very sorry. She needs a doctor, Merlin."

"I know a doctor that will fix you up," he said to Ellen. "He won't tell anyone and it won't cost us anything. Sahara can drop us off at the office and I'll take you there, okay?"

She looked uncertain, but she nodded.

"What the hell happened back there?" I asked him.

"I don't know," he said. "This was supposed to be a simple job. Just get the computer he had stolen back. The guy's name was Rick Carpenter, and he was a thief. He stole valuable things and sold them. There was no way he could crack the encryption on that computer, but he didn't know that. The computer belonged to my client, but I have no idea what was on it. It was just a laptop. My client wanted it back badly and they paid me a lot of money to get it. Carpenter thought he was tougher than he was. He and two of his buddies are now turning into cinders back there in that burning building. Where in the hell did he get an RPG? I have no idea what he hoped to accomplish by taking Ellen. Maybe he was using her to get me to back off."

I took them to Merlin's office and helped him get her into one of his Suburbans, and then I called Roz. I told her Ellen was with us and that everything was okay, then Merlin took off with Ellen and I headed home.

Merlin knew a doctor who owed him big time. Merlin got his daughter out of a bad situation a couple of years back and it was time to call in that favor. He was with a patient when they arrived, but when he was done with her, he took them back. Merlin explained the situation and he got his PA to come in and do some x-rays. It wasn't a bad break, and there wasn't a lot of swelling. He put a small cast on her and got her some crutches, then Merlin brought her home.

It was easy to tell that Ellen had never tried to use crutches before. Her mobility was very limited and they made their way slowly to the Suburban. The crutches were collapsible and they fit in the back so they weren't flopping around back there.

When they got home, Rosaline and I were waiting. We helped Ellen inside and she had some difficulty.

They sat down and I got some juice for Ellen and a beer for the rest of us. Roz took her away and helped her bathe. She looked as cute as a month-old kitten when she got back. Her silky blonde hair was starting to fluff up and she looked fresh and clean. We talked for a minute and she never took her eyes off Merlin. I wondered what she was thinking.

Merlin and I got our turn in the shower, and I could finally wash that fish stench off me. I didn't know what could get it out of the Super Bee; I'd have to look that up on the Internet. We didn't even play around like we usually would, we just held each other, glad to be alive. When we rejoined the others, Ellen stood there on her crutches for a minute, and when Merlin sat down, she asked Roz and me to join her in the bedroom.

We wondered what she wanted, and were concerned that something was wrong. I asked, "Is everything all right, Ellen?"

"I...I think so," she said, "There's just something I need to talk to both of you about."

I turned to Merlin. "I hope we won't be long, you'll have to take care of yourself for a while," I said. I reconsidered when I saw his goofy grin, "Just don't take care of yourself too well."

He gave me a fake pout, picked up his smartphone and began playing some game.

The three of us went into the bedroom and sat on the edge of the bed, Ellen between us, and Roz and I each holding a hand.

"Okay, Ellen," Roz said, "What's the problem, Sweetie?"

"It's not really a problem..." Ellen started.

"Then what is it?" I said, a little impatiently.

"Take it easy, Sahara," Roz said, "Give her a chance!"

"I'm sorry, Honey," I said, "Go ahead, take your time."

"Well," she said, "I'm not sure, but I think I'm ready to make love to Merlin!"

Roz and I exchanged meaningful glances, and I took knelt in front of her, taking both of her hands in mine.

"Ellen, that's wonderful," I said, "but this is a big step, so you really have to be sure."

Roz nodded her agreement as she hugged Ellen to her breast, giving her a gentle kiss on her forehead.

"But I've never felt like this before!" she cried. "How am I supposed to know?"

""I guess you're right; there's no real way to know for sure. You just have to go with what feels true to you and hope for the best."

"But how do I... what do I do?" she asked.

Roz and I laughed, and Ellen started to get upset, then Roz said, "We're not laughing at you, Ellen! Men are pretty simple. You've heard the expression 'You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make him drink'?"

She nodded her head yes.

"Well, you lead a man between your legs and the problem will be getting him to stop 'drinking!'"

We all laughed at that, I wondered what Merlin must be thinking.

Ellen pulled herself together, Roz and I helped her up onto her crutches and we returned to the living room.

Ellen hopped over to him. "Move your hands," she said.

He opened his arms and she eased herself down on his lap, dropping her crutches and wrapping her arms around him. He looked at me, asking if it was okay. I nodded and he gathered her in, kissing the top of her head. She squirmed around a little and got comfortable. I looked at Roz and she gave me a wink.

They whispered together for a moment, then Merlin stood up with a little difficulty, holding Ellen in his arms like a baby and carried her into the bedroom.

He gently laid her on the bed and began to undress her, slowly, kissing her lovingly as he went, while Roz and I just stood at the foot of the bed with our arms around each other, getting all misty-eyed.

"Ellen," I said, "Would you like us to leave?"

"N... No," she answered, "I'm still a little afraid and you and Roz give me strength."

We smiled at them. I would not interrupt this beautiful moment again.

After he tenderly disrobed Ellen, Merlin moved back up to her face, giving her sweet little kisses while gently stroking her cheeks and neck. I knew that Merlin was a caring lover, but I was seeing a side of him that was gentler than I had ever known possible.

His patience as he slowly worked down her body was wonderful and excruciating at the same time. I could tell that Ellen was getting anxious as well, she was thrashing slowly side to side in her need, when Merlin suddenly flipped her over, ignoring her needy pussy.

Ellen started to protest until Merlin straddled her body and began to give her a sensual massage; gently stroking her neck, then more forcefully kneading her shoulders before slo-o-owly making his way down her back to her tight ass. He was good at this! The bastard had been holding out on us, and we were definitely going to be making up for lost time!

Ignoring Ellen's protests, he rolled her back over and returned to kissing her face while gently massaging her breasts before, once again, making his way down her body.