Easy As Falling Asleep
by Bonzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzi
part:255

I went up to my room, if that dopey copper arrested me, fine, I'd plead guilty, but tell the court what happened. Court, yeah, should I get some practice in for when they charge me with killing someone.

I lay on my bed and drifted off to sleep, I awoke with a head like a bucket to Tom calling me. I jumped off the bed in the darkness and nearly fell over. A moment later, my blood pressure had stabilised and I ran downstairs.

I couldn't believe my eyes, there with Simon was Stella, behind them was Henry. I squealed with delight, and hugged everyone. I couldn't believe it, she was safe. It was so wonderful, I felt so happy.

I needed to wee and opened my eyes, it was dark and I was lying on my bed. A car drove past the house. It had been a lovely dream. It was after midnight, I'd slept for several hours and felt a bit better for it.

I used the toilet and went downstairs, the copper was still there. He was dozing in the chair, Tom must have been in bed because he wasn't in his study.

I went to the kitchen and made some tea and popped some bread in the toaster. I thought about the sleeping policemen and sniggered, that was one I wouldn't mind driving my car over. I told myself off for such nasty thoughts, then sniggered some more.

I buttered the first lot of toast while the second was browning, I poured two cups of tea and took our slumbering sentinel some tea and toast.

"Here," I said quite loudly, putting the tray on the table.

"Uh, what!" He rubbed his eyes, "Oh thanks," he looked at the toast and then at me. "I didn't think we were on speaking terms."

"You didn't arrest me when I went upstairs."

"I can't tell you why I was instructed to keep you here."

I heard the toaster ping. I went off and after buttering my toast brought it back to the dining room.

"To stop me interfering in the rescue attempt."

"I'm not allowed to comment."

"So have they got her yet, and is she safe?"

"I don't know."

"You are armed though, aren't you?"

"How did you know?"

"There's a bulge in your jacket and you haven't taken it off, even though it's warm in here."

"Miss clever clogs."

"So are you my protection?"

"Partly, there's two more outside."

"Armed?"

"Use your loaf for more than making toast."

"Want me to make them a cuppa?"

"No, you're not supposed to know about them."

"Okay. So you three are between the mob and me?"

"Essentially, yes."

"If you'd told me, it would have made life easier."

"It could also have spooked you."

"I think I killed one of them, do I sound like someone who spooks easily?"

"Probably not, you stayed pretty calm when the dormouse...erm."

"Well then, so tell me what you know."

"I can't Miss Watts, I really don't know much more than you do."

"So how will you know if the mob gets your two buddies?"

"We have a way of warning each other."

"So we don't know if Stella is safe or not?"

"Afraid not."

"But all those cars, that was a rescue attempt?"

"Probably."

"Do you think the mob will come to get me because I killed one of their's?"

"You haven't killed anyone."

"How do you know, you weren't there."

"He was killed being taken to hospital. They killed him themselves."

"What, they killed their own man?"

"Yes."

"So you lot followed them back to their lair to rescue my sister."

"No, because they didn't go back. The assassin was shot by a police marksman."

"So that's two you wasted. I could have made the first one talk."

"What, by torture?"

"If necessary."

"Doesn't that make you as bad as them?"

"If it works, don't knock it."

"Do you know why I joined the police?"

"No, but I'm sure you're going to tell me."

"If you're going to be so facile, I don't think I'll bother."

"No I won't, do tell me."

He looked through me, then nodded. "I was an idealistic student like you, got a two one in geography. Thought about teaching but felt I should try to do something more to reward the community which had paid for me to follow my heart's desire. I loved geography, maybe I should have taught?"

"It's not too late."

"It is girl, I have a sergeant's pay and pension coming to me when I get through my twenty years. Just five more to go."

"Are you going to stay in the police?"

"Don't know, I'll talk it over with the wife and kids and see how we all feel."

"What was that?" I froze.

"I didn't hear anything."

"I'm sure I heard something outside, I'll go and look."

"No you won't, go up stairs and wake the professor, just in case."

I picked up the phone, it was dead. I grabbed my mobile, it didn't work either.

"It's them. Go upstairs and wake the prof now, go and lock your doors."

I ran with trembling legs up the stairs and practically dragged Tom out of his bed. He grabbed his clothes and followed me into my room.
While he dressed I put together my bow. He went to speak and I hushed him. I pulled on the night vision goggles. "Hide as best you can," I told him and switched off all the lights on the stairs.

I got to the bottom of the stairs in time to see someone holding a gun to the copper's head. Without thinking I released an arrow which from less than twenty feet hit him like a hammer between the shoulder blades. He turned around screaming and my second arrow hit him in the stomach.

The copper turned and snatched his gun, "Get down," I hissed. He dropped like a stone.

"Cathy?" he hissed back.

"Shut up!" I hissed back.

I crept to the kitchen, the door was ajar, with the key still in it. I shut it quietly and locked it, taking the key with me. Any who were in the house now had to get past us.

I tried not to think about what I had just done, except I knew he would have killed the policeman who had a wife and family, and who was doing his legitimate job.

I checked out the rest of the ground floor, no one else was there, but the mobile phones were still being blocked.

"What about your mates?"

"It doesn't look good if one of them got in the house. What have you got on?"

"Night sights."

"Can I borrow them to go out and see?"

"No way, you don't know the area, I do."

"You're not going out there, you can't fight gangsters with a bow and bloody arrows."

"I had more success than you did with a gun."

"Touche!"

"Go and get Tom, he's up in my room, he's got a shot gun and he can use it." The copper did as I suggested and two minutes later he was back with Tom. While Tom checked out his shotgun and loaded it, the copper tied up the injured mobster, who was bleeding heavily. I suspect I caught his spleen or liver. I packed it as hard as I could but we needed an ambulance.

Tom ran upstairs and opening a window, fired twice. Maybe someone will call the police, I thought, maybe they'll just think it's poachers and do nothing. It also told the bad guys we had a shotgun.

Just then, there was a rat-a-tat-tat against the back door. An automatic blasted away the lock and half the door. Tom lay inside the dining room covering the door from the kitchen, the copper stood just behind him to cover him as he reloaded his shotgun.

I went back upstairs and while they were busy downstairs I sneaked out on to the veranda in the shadow of the house. There was no one at the back door, a feint or were they keeping their options open.

I saw movement someone in the bushes was watching the door, he had some sort of automatic weapon, so he certainly wasn't the police. I decided he was my next target. I would only get one go at this and if I failed I was dead. I may be dead anyway if they got their way.

I fired, the arrow took milliseconds but he looked up as it hit his face, he screamed and fired wildly then dropped backwards. I was lucky he hadn't fired at me.

I saw more movement and dropped behind the wall of the veranda. I loaded the bow again. Someone said something softly in Russian and I heard quiet footsteps, presumably as one of them checked out his colleague.

Peeking over the balcony, I saw a shadow moving towards the other man. I loaded my bow and waited. Just then there was firing at the front of the house the man stepped into the clear and I hit him in the neck or shoulder.

I heard Tom's shotgun boom twice and glass shatter. I went back into the house to cover the stairs.

Police sirens sounded in the distance, I began to hope we would be okay. A helicopter soon sounded overhead. The loud hailer was calling for someone to give themselves up. A shot was fired at the helicopter and it backed off. More sirens, more shooting.

An hour later, the police were in the house and amazingly Tom and the sergeant were still alive, so was my first target although he looked critical from blood loss. They didn't find the one I hit in the neck or shoulder, so presumably it was his shoulder. The one I hit in the head was also still alive, but was again critical. Two ambulances carried off the injured.

Tom collected Kiki, who was hiding under the table in the conservatory, he packed himself a suitcase and I did one for myself, one for Stella and one for Simon. Then collecting my laptop and some bits and pieces, we drove off in convoy with police cars flanking us to the main police head quarters.

My bow and the eight arrows were at the bottom of my luggage. I was taking no chances. At the police HQ, we were led for a debriefing. I told them what happened as I experienced it and declared my part in it.

"Where's the bow?"

"Safe."

"Please surrender it."

"I will when you can guarantee to protect me and arrest all these scumbags."

"You may be charged with attempted murder with a deadly weapon."

"I may counter claim incompetence. I saved one of your officers, I don't know what happened to the other two who were supposed to be guarding us."

"Wait here," said the snotty young man.

I sat kicking my heels when a familiar voice said, "Hi Cathy."