MAIZE

"The woman has an elevator inside her walls—is no one going to talk about how absolutely insane that is?" Kishan seemed baffled as the elevator in question began to descend downwards into a pit of dark at Cassandra's press of a button.

The basement. That's where they were heading, Maize was sure of it. And sure enough, once the elevator touched down to solid ground again, the doors parted into a completely different view from the one they had before. It seemed Cassandra didn't just own a casino. She owned an underground arsenal warehouse as well.

The floor was easily the area of the entire casino upstairs, if not more so because being underground had its advantages for extra moulding and construction. Cassandra clearly did not skip over that fact.

"You're an arms trafficker?" Alec observed with obvious accusation as he glared pointedly at the casino owner.

She turned and sent him an artful smile. "No, I wouldn't go so far as to say that...I only have dealings with a single party." She glanced at Maize. "A mutual friend, if you will."

Maize furrowed her eyes inquiringly. Briefly, an old contact flashed through her mind back from a few years ago. But surely Cassandra wasn't talking about who she thought. The probability of that seemed too low in her mind...or did it? Whatever the case she didn't dwell on it, or rather, she was distracted out of it as it only took a moment more for her to realize that she was being sent an accusing look from the none too happy detective.

"Hey, I had no idea about this either," Maize stated in her defence, if that was what he was implying with that damn piercing gaze of his.

She stood crossing her arms as she eyed the crates and boxes of armaments and munitions. She knew Cassandra's late father had been into trafficking artillery, that was how he had made his money.

The casino owner seemed to know what she was thinking from the look on her face. "Father was always into his arms dealings...but I never really got into that sort of thing, not my style. In my opinion, the fewer guns on the street, the better. However, when he died, all of this stuff was left to me...and I wasn't going to simply give it away..." she emphasized clearly. "Now, most of it sits here, for in ever the case of an emergency..." she finished with a blatant glance at the ceiling above them.

"You're father was a—?" Alec started, but suddenly seemed to think better of it. "Actually, you know what, don't tell me...I don't even want to know anymore." The detective shook his head in exasperation as he threaded his fingers through his hair.

"That is probably the best decision, Detective," Cassandra nodded sagely and gave a wiry smile.

Cassandra lead them to her security room—a desk with a large set of computers that showed the live footage of the cameras set up all around the casino.

"I have two rooms like this, so if ever they find the other and seek to wipe to footage, I always have a backup," she explained as she rattled a few clicks over the keyboard. The footage of the main hall came into larger focus. From there they could see the cartel gang were now forcing civilians out of the building.

There were a few exchanges of shots between other malefactors and their numbers—which was not surprising due to the number of criminal personnel in the casino—but the cartel took care of them while also managing to overpower everyone else, and were now taking charge of the building.

They didn't seem to care about calls being made to local authorities—which to Maize, meant either they were overconfident in their numbers and artillery, or they already had a plan in place to ensure the authorities couldn't get to them. Neither of those reasonings were all that comforting. If one thing was clear, it was the fact that they were searching specifically for a certain set of people. They didn't let anyone leave without checking their faces. The people they were looking for didn't seem to be found, which was, of course, because they were currently in the basement watching the entire scene on a recording screen.

"We need to leave," Maize breathed, eyes still locked on the cottage of what was going on above.

"Agreed," Cassandra responded curtly, before straightening and turning to them. "Take the passageway out, it will lead you away from the casino. From there, find D'amilo's street and look for the address 440, it's one of my other hidden properties. I'll meet you there when I can."

"You're not coming?" Kishan exclaimed, staring at the casino owner in concern.

"I can not, not yet," Cassandra answered with a small shake of her head. "It would be wrong to leave while my employees are defenceless."

"Then let us stay too," Maize argued, knowing it wasn't really right that they escape either, since they were the reason the place was under attack in the first place. But again, Cassandra shook her head.

"No. It's not me they are after," she stated with a pointed look at Maize, seeming to exactly what was going on in the bounty hunter's head. "I'll be fine, Blades. You know I am more than equipped to handle myself in tough situations such as these," she said, offering her a tight smile as she gave the other woman an insistent look.

Maize wanted to curse out loud. She didn't like the idea of leaving the casino owner behind—but the look the woman was giving her was adamant. Not even Maize would be able to change her mind. Arguing further would simply be a waste of time.

Time they didn't have.

"Alright," Maize relented reluctantly and sighed. She would have to put her faith in the casino owner and that she would make it to them later. "But I swear, C, I will kill you if you're lying," she said promisingly.

Cassandra laughed lightly, "Of course, Blades, I wouldn't expect anything less," she replied with humour. Maize was able to force a smile in return.

"If you don't mind, the boys are going to take some of your weapons."

Cassandra laughed again, "Go ahead. Just don't get killed before I meet you at D'amilo's street."

Maize gave a curt nod. "Likewise."

Maize soon discovered that Cassandra's secret escape route linking to the underground of sewer pipes that ran beneath the city. A river of dark murky water flowed down in the same direction they were heading, but no one stopped to complain about the smell as they ran alongside the elevated path beside it towards the round in the corridor where the path curved. Maize could only hope that it was the right way out. She didn't stop, just continued to run forward, trying not to think about the trouble behind them.

There were so many questions running through her mind, especially regarding their attackers. What Cassandra had said was probably accurate—the members of Zmeya hired a cartel gang to storm the casino and flush them out. Question was, how did they know they were there in the first place?

Was it possible they had been recognized by someone on the lookout in the casino?

What if a spy was tailing them all along?

No, Maize shook her head. That wasn't possible, it had to be her first suspicion; they had been recognized and someone called it in.

Maize told herself not to think about that right now. She had one priority right now. The familiar feeling of adrenaline rushed through her veins, pushing away any bone priority concerns and reverting herself into a vessel of complete calamity. She would worry about everything—Cassandra, their covers, and the question of who discovered them—later. For now, her mind would be set on one thing; escaping.

Let go...feel nothing...focus only on the target...

Just as she was taught all those years ago.

With her mind focused, Maize got the trained sense that they were still being pursued. It hadn't stopped yet just because they had left the casino behind.

Not good, she thought.

The faint light at the end of the tunnel finally appeared around the bend. The river of water became noticeably a little less murky and the encased space began larger until the overhead of the tunnel opened up a few more feet over their heads. The sides of the wall began to fade away.

All of a sudden they were standing within the mouth of a cut tunnel leading down a slope into a water-filled ravine that crossed them. The curve of a stone wall bridge stood directly over their heads.

"Great, we managed to get out of there...But does anyone actually know where we are right now?" Kishan blurted as he looked back and forth from the bridge to the way they had come.

"It felt like the tunnel ran for about a kilometre or so," Alec responded. "But I have no idea where it took us."

"It's so dark, how are we supposed to find D'amilo's street?" Kishan inquired as he shook out his left shoe that had stepped a little too close to the river and gotten splashed, muttering out a slight complaint as he did.

It was true. Well past midnight, the sky was black, with only faint yellow street lamps every few hundred feet to illuminate the foreign street signs. And with the streets being fairly quiet, Maize doubted that they would be able to ask for directions. Trying to locate in a foreign country at night would be difficult. But then again, it's not like it was something she hadn't done before.

"Hold on," Alec halted, expression tense and eyes narrowed.

Kishan froze from his current action, one foot still suspended in the air and looked up slowly. Maize stiffened. She could hear it too; the distant shouts in the local tongue calling out what sounded like orders all at once, coming down from above the bridge in the direction that lead back to the casino. And they weren't that far off.

"Crap," Alec muttered, listening in on the words being said. "They're onto us."

Maize had been right, this wasn't over.

"That's not good," Kishan lamented.

"It's not. Hurry, we've got to get out of the open," Alec said urgently, glancing once at Maize before he looked up to the bridge. The ledge was within reach, and Alec grabbed onto it and jumped over the side using a bit of momentum and pure upper body strength alone. He sent them a look back to tell them to hurry up and follow.

I bet he loved doing that, Maize thought with a smirking roll of her eyes before she too followed suit, jumping for a grip on the ledge before swinging up and planting her feet firmly on the solid bridge with near acrobatic ease—or in her case, experienced practice.

Once she was up, she and Alec stared over the edge back to where Kishan was looking up with folded arms. He rolled his eyes and shook his head, muttering under his breath something along the lines of 'bunch of show-offs' before he followed suit and climbed onto the bridge.

Maize used that brief time to look ahead of them, to where the end of the bridge split into three directions. Left, right, and centre. She quickly analyzed and made a decision.

"We should go left," she said. While at the same moment, Alec said, "Let's head right."

She immediately flashed him a look and he did the same.

"We should go left," she repeated.

Alec crossed his arms and sent her a skeptical look, "What's wrong with right?"

"We're going left."

"Right."

"Left."

"No!"

"Uh, guys—" Kishan cut in, but was silenced as soon as he spoke by the sound of a close shout and a trio of running boots descending upon the opposite end of the bridge.

"That's them!"

"Stop right there!"

Kishan stiffened and the arguing pair stopped and turned to see the group of five or so heading for them at a fast pace. Alec and Maize shared an unsure glance, before Alec nodded to the direction opposite to them.

"Compromise with centre?"

Maize gave a quick nod, "Yep."

None of them wasted another second before whirling around and taking off down the middle street. On cue, a flurry of gunshots erupted around them, one just barely grazing past Maize's eye as it sparked off the stone ground a few yards ahead of her feet.

It seemed like the last group they had encountered before, this one had no problem being them in dead or alive—meaning whoever hired that gave them the go-ahead, or, with this being a street gang, they simply didn't care, as long as they were paid. Either way, the conclusion was; they were trying to kill them.

Perfect, Maize thought sarcastically as she glared behind her.

"I hope you two know those guns you took aren't just for show!" Maize shouted to the others as they rushed to lose their pursuers. She narrowed her eyes insistently. "Use them!"

Out of the corner of her eye, she managed to catch sight of the mildly annoyed glare Alec sent her, but he didn't argue as he took the Glock from his belt and began to retaliate fire, shooting behind him as he ran.

"Where's yours?!" he demanded when he saw he and Kishan were the only ones doing so.

Maize didn't answer. She figured now was not the time to tell him that she had never actually grabbed a gun for herself—nor would she have been able to fire if it came down to it.

She would use her knives and nothing else...though her main pack had been left in the room.

Shit.

Bullets continued to spray around them and chip off the sides of the paint-coated stone walls of the buildings around them, and the cartel members behind them weren't getting any further away.

The three of them made a sharp turn around the next corner to avoid the next onslaught of bullets, falling back into a tight alley crowded by a few stacks of crates and boxes filled with—what Maize guessed—were supplies for the restaurant that had yet to be brought inside yet. Fortunate for them. It wasn't much, but it was better than nothing to duck down behind as the armed men caught up.

Kishan quickly took cover behind a stacked pile of flour bags, his agent training kicking in before he whipped forth his gun and began firing retaliation shots into the canopy of unsuspecting gang members, while Alec and Maize sought for the next closest cover. They rounded the corner to the end of the alley and Maize ducked to stay out of the way as Alec leaned out to fire.

It soon became a full-on shoot out, both sides ducking for cover as the sound of endless gunfire woke the streets. One group was unable to press forward for fear of getting shot down, and the other was unable to turn and escape without an opening, lest they get shot in the back. And it was all the three could do to keep the gang members back as Maize thought for a plan.

It was no longer a matter of principals for either law enforcement officer, knowing that in this situation, they had to kill or be killed. They tried to injure and take out as many as they could, but it didn't seem to be doing much. Maize did her best to take assessment of the situation. Figure out the facts, form a plan.

That was what West would do in a situation like this wasn't it?

What he would be doing if he wasn't so currently preoccupied.

Maize wasn't exactly sure when or why she had started telling herself to think more like the detective—but in this situation, her urge to simply charge at the bad guys and see what happened probably wasn't their best bet if they wanted to survive. They were notably outnumbered—that much was clear. By now it seemed all thirty-two men that had been at the casino were here now, drawn to the spot by the gunfire.

But it wasn't just number. To make matters worse, the three of them were heavily outgunned as well. And they wouldn't be able to hold on like this forever. Eventually, Kishan and Alec would run out of bullets, though Maize could tell they were trying to be careful and conserve. Their best option was to wait for an opening, she concluded—and then run like hell.

That was the best Maize could come up with, with the way this town's streets were designed like a maze, their only hope was to try and lose the cartel and then met up at the location Cassandra had disclosed.

She was about to say something to Alec, when suddenly she felt a presence coming up slowly behind them.

Kishan was too far ahead and Alec was preoccupied with trying to aim that neither of the men noticed the creeping shadow that descended up behind the busy detective and the crouched hunter.

Then Maize heard the flick of a trigger switch, and her instincts to react kicked in.

She didn't hesitate, she leaped to her feet and swung her leg around to meet the side of a riffle. The man stumbled back in surprised and tries to righten his weapon, but Maize was quicker. She charged for the shadowed assailant, slipping her small triangular dagger—a token for emergencies that she kept in the sleeve of her jacket—and lashed out with it.

The sharp edge caught the leg of the man, leaving his leg to momentarily give out, before Maize delivered a quick spinning heel to his temple. He fell unmoving, unconscious.

Alec had caught on to the commotion but could tell Maize was handling it. Still, he didn't cease to throw a worried glance back at her. "You alright?" he asked quickly.

"Fine," she answered.

"Thought you said you left your knives back in the room."

"I said I left most of them," she corrected.

Alec shot her an amused look, but it didn't last more than a quick second. "There are still too many..." he said tightly as he shot again at a target, only to have to fall back behind the wall the next second as a spark of bullets whizzed past him.

Maize narrowed her eyes forward, "Yeah, I noticed."

Bullets continued to fray around them. Then there was a cut-off yelp of pain that sent a pang of alarm through her as she shot her eyes over to Kishan's direction. He was still upright, which was a good sign, but he was hunched over on one knee, his right eye shut tight in a wince and clutching his left arm as he glanced down at the dark patch already beginning to seep through the fabric of his tux.

Fuck! Not good, Maize thought quickly.

"I'll cover you! Check on him," Alec relayed to her before he set his eyes dead set on the enemy before them.

Maize nodded and waited for the firing on the other end to cease just enough for her to jump out and dive roll over to the opposite side of the alley. She hunched behind the stack of flour bags as she kneeled beside him. "How bad is it?" she asked seriously, eyeing his already blood-soaked fingers.

"Fine...just a...graze," he gritted out through clenched teeth. The bullet had struck him in the shoulder, luckily missing his chest and any vital organs inside. But Maize could tell, just from one look, that he wouldn't be able to shoot with the state his arm was in. Which wasn't at all looking good for them.

She turned her head and surveyed the ongoing battle. With their already feeble number and now a shooter down on their side, Maize could tell that the enemy was beginning to take hold of their advantage and were laying on heavier fire than before. Alec on his own wouldn't be able to keep covering for them much longer.

The gun that Kishan had been using but dropped when his shooting arm was hit lay on the ground at her feet, within an arm's reach from her left knee.

For a moment, time seemed to momentarily slow as her eyes locked onto it. It was right there, right within her grasp. Maize was suddenly hyper-aware of her increasing breaths, as well as her racing pulse. Kishan couldn't use it, he was in too much pain. And he single knife would do nothing against the bullets coming at them.

She had no choice.

In a flash, Maize grabbed it off the ground and raised her arms to aim from behind their cover.

But she didn't shoot it.

Her eyes were deadset and her body was like steel as she locked directly on her targets. The view was clear, she had an open shot for at least three of the gang members in her range. But her finger never pulled the trigger, she froze. She couldn't.

No...come on! I won't let myself be held back by this! her mind screamed in anger, trying to force herself to snap out of it.

But despite her words, Maize knew that she wouldn't be able to do it. And that resolve sunk heavily into her as she realized she would be no help in the situation.

She couldn't do it. She couldn't pull the trigger.

Not then, and not now.

Dammit. Dammit. Dammit!

Suddenly, time seemed to resume its normal pace when she heard a voice shout something at her. Alec was trying to signal something, but she couldn't understand what, her focus was off.

"Maize did you get all that?" Kishan asked quickly, seeing the frozen look on her face. "He said on three, he'll provide cover, and we've got to make a break for it," he relayed, his words slowly snapping Maize out of her daze.

She gave a curt nod of acknowledgement across the alley to Alec, before she steeled herself and braced. She didn't have time to wallow.

Three split counts. And then Alec gave the signal.

As soon as that happened, Maize and Kishan darted out from behind their cover and dashed behind the alley wall with Alec. The detective was firing heavily in the direction of the gang members and forcing them to relent their attacks and take cover so that they couldn't keep shouting at them, but Maize knew he must have been low on rounds.

"You two good?" Alec asked as he glanced quickly at each of them, eyes resting a second longer on the blood that soaked Kishan's jacket.

"Yeah, fine," Kishan muttered urgently.

"Alright, go!"

Immediately Kishan and Maize got the signal to take off running.

A few seconds later, Alec's firing stopped and footsteps could be heard behind them telling Maize that he was catching up. They made a mad dash as quick as they could and maneuvered between streets, hoping to lose the cartel members that had begun to chase after them once more. But things weren't looking too bright for them in terms of losing them any time soon.

They made a right turn down the next street, but when Maize glanced over her shoulder, she saw Alec made a hast decision and went left instead. She halted and turned, meeting his eye across the street. Kishan glanced back too, staring confusedly, but his eyes looked a little more unfocused and his breathing was heavier than it should have been as he held his wounded shoulder. He had lost more blood from the wound than he let on.

"West! What the hell do you think you're doing?!" Maize exclaimed angrily as she fumed at him from the distance that separated them. She was about to go to him when the steely look in his eyes to stay put made her hesitate for just a moment.

"Listen, Kishan's losing blood, he won't be able to outrun those guys for much longer...You two need to get to that safe house."

As he spoke, she noticed how he emptied the chamber of his gun and reloaded it with the last round he had.

"What the hell do you think you're going to do?!" Maize demanded with a hint of fear, already knowing the answer.

"Isn't it obvious? I'm going to buy you some time."

Maize yelled at him, "What as a decoy? You'll get yourself killed that way!"

"I won't. I'll take them out one by one or I'll lose the rest. Whichever happens, I'll meet up with you later."

"That is a suicide plan! You are going to get your valiant-ass killed, West!" Maize tried to reason, ignoring the pressing nag in the back of her mind telling her this might be the only way to get away. But at what cost?

"Oh yeah?" Alec questioned as he sent her a slight smirk. "Guess we'll have to see."