side of the building. “Hold on,” she cried. “I’ve got you.”
“Don’t let go,” he cried.
“Kyle, don’t let go,” she cried.
“Sam, help me, please.”
“I won’t let you fall…” she tried with all her might but his hand
slowly slipped away. “Kyle!” she screamed as his body fell the ten stories to the ground. Tears streamed down her face, as the door behind her was kicked open.
“Don’t move!” he shouted. “FBI!”Samantha slowly put her hands up and turned around. “I didn’t do anything. I’m NYPD.”
“I know who you are, Detective. Put your hands behind your back. You’re under arrest!” the man grabbed her arms and handcuffed her wrists.
“What am I under arrest for?” she asked, as he put the gun that was on the ledge in his pocket.
“Murder of an FBI informant,” he said, as he dragged her towards the stairs.
“I didn’t kill Kyle. I swear, I didn’t kill my brother,” she cried, as he and the other agent walked her down the ten flights of stairs.
She stared over at the tarp that covered Kyle’s broken and battered body. “I’m sorry, Ky,” she cried, as the man shoved her into the back seat of the car.
She stared out the window of the dark sedan as the coroner and his assistants slowly lifted Kyle’s body on the gurney and placed him in a dark van. She closed her eyes and relived that moment in her head.
Sam woke up when she heard a banging on her door. “Kyle, what’s wrong?” “Sam, you have to help me. They’re after me.”
“Who?”
He hurried into her apartment. “The FBI. They want me.” “Ky, what did you get yourself into,” she cried.
He hurried over to the window. “The roof. It’s not safe here.” “Kyle, what is going on? Do mom and dad know that you’re in trouble?” “They can’t help. I’ve been working for the FBI, informing on a few men,
but I … I started using again. I can’t go back to jail. I can’t let the FBI or Jack catch me.”
“Jack? You’ve gotten messed up with Jack again?”
“I have to go,” Kyle rushed out of the door.
Sam walked out to the hallway and noticed a man following her brother to the elevator. Sam grabbed her gun off her table, and headed towards the roof. As she opened the door to the roof, she looked around carefully. “Kyle?”
“Help me,” he cried.
Sam ran over to the edge and saw her brother hanging by his hands over the side of the roof. “Jack did this?”
“His men. We struggled and he pushed me. Sam, I’m sorry. Please, help me,” he cried.
The man pulled into a warehouse as the garage door opened. “Wherearewe?”
“Silence,you,” he said, as he turned off the car.
Sam looked behind her and noticed the garage door closing. “Whatisgoing on?”
He opened the car door and pulled her out. He led her over to a table that sat in the middle of the empty room. “Sit,” he said.
“Easy. You don’t have to be so handsy.”
“What?Handsy?”
“Yeah, keep your damn hands off of me. No one touches me unless I say so.”
“I apologize. Please, sit,” he said.
Sam slowly sat down. “What is going on? WhyamI here?”
He pulled a chair next to her. “Tell me what happened on the roof?”
“I don’t know. No one was there when I got there, but my brother was hanging over the edge. He slipped. I couldn’t hold on. I didn’tkill him,” she cried.
“I know,” he unlocked the cuffs.
“Tell me. Whoareyou?”
“Agent Parker Carlisle. I know who you are, Detective.”
“So, now what? My brother is dead and you arrestme? I don’t get it.”
“Your parents. They were found murdered this morning. We went to get your brother and tracked him to your apartment.”
“My parents are dead? Oh, god,” she cried, as she buried her face in her hands. “What the hell is going on here?”
“Ma’am, I know your life has just been turned upside down, but you arenowgoing to work for me!”
“Excuseme? Who thehelldo you think you are?”
He put his hand on her shoulder. “Sam, you need to dowhateverI say.”
She pushed his hand off her. “What the hell does that mean?”
“I want you to work for me. I want you to go undercover with me to help bring Jack Morrison and the rest of his entourage down.”
“He’suntouchable.”
“Does he know you personally?”
“Yes, he does. He knows I’m a cop. There’s no way he’ll let me join his crew.”
“You have just turnedrogue. I’m sorry but this is the way it’s going to be.”
“What if I don’twantto do this?” Sam ran her hands nervously through her black hair.
“You will be sent to prison and yourotherbrother will be without his entire family. You don’t want that,doyou?”
“You leave Dylan alone.”
“He’s, um, slow, isn’t he?”
“He’s being taken care of. Please, don’t doanythingto Dylan.”
“I wouldn’t do that. Listen, Sam. I know this is a lot, but you will learn to trust me.”
Sam leaned back. “May I smoke?”
“Go ahead,” he said.
She pulled out her pack of cigarettes and tapped it on the table. She pulled out a cigarette and put it in her mouth. Parker pulled out his lighter and lit it for her. “So,” she inhaled and then blew out the smoke. “How do I become this rogue cop?”
“You startkillingpeople,” he said.
“What?”
“I’m sorry, but this is the way it’s going to be.”
“Ican’tkill people. I’m a cop. I’m supposed toupholdthe law, not break it.”
“Rules have changed,” he grabbed her arm. “You’restucknow. You are no longer a detective. You are ahit womanand youwillperform your duties.”
Sam stood up and looked at Parker as he stood up. “So, if I don’t, you’ll put me in prison?”
“Yes.”
“What do I have to do?”
“You’ll still be Samantha Lange, however, you’re a killer… an eliminator. First, you’ll do a few kills and then, you’ll be hired as a hit woman for Morrison.”
“What areyougoing to do?”
“I will be posing as yourlover.”
“Oh, I don’tthinkso,” she shook her head.
“Yes, and that’s the way it’s going to be. We won’t be real lovers, just posing as them. I have a penthouse in theWilliamsonbuilding. That will be our home. You will also train under me. I will show you how to be a killer.”
“Iknowhow to shoot a gun,” she spat.
“Yes, I know how good you are, but you also need sharp shooter training. How long has it been since you’ve donerangeshooting?”
“Years, I guess, since the Marines. What else?”
“I know you have a third degree black belt in martial arts. You are familiar with a multitude of weapons, correct?”
“Yes, will Ieverget my life back?”
Parker walked over to her and shook his head. “No. Even when this is over, itwon’tbe over. Your kills will be erased, but you can’t ever step back into your old life.”
“Why is this happening to me?”
“You are the best one for the job. I know what kind of officer you were, what kind of Marine you were, and what kind of detective you are. You can do this. Sam, your family and your job was all that you had. You now have a new job and your only remaining family will always be protected.”
“Heisprotected, right?” she asked as she threw her cigarette on the floor and crushed it into the cement.
“Yes, he’ll always be safe.”
“I want to see Dylan before we begin.”
“I don’t know about that,” Parker shook his head.
“Iwantto see my brother. Take me to theFelthousen Institution.”
“All right. We’ll go this afternoon. Right now, we have to get prepared.”
“What do we need to do?”
“You’ll need all new clothes and things. I have the weapons needed at our penthouse. Let’s go shopping, Sam.”
She shook her head and followed him to the car. She leaned back in the front seat and sighed, as she put on her dark sunglasses.