Colour Me Red

Chapter 14: Dune

Chapter 14: Dune

Two days.

That's how long it'd been since I last saw Ellie.

That's how long I'd spent at Felix's bedside in a hospital, staring at the linoleum floor.

That's how long it took for me to go insane.

I was tugging furiously at my hair when a young nurse entered the room to check on Felix. I watched as she fiddled with the heart monitor, glancing at me every now and then.

"Sir?" she said quietly, her voice a little sceptical. "Can I get you anything? Something to drink, maybe?"

I shook my head stiffly and pulled out my phone, waiting until the nurse finished up her work and left the room.

"Hello?" a voice said from the other end of the line.

"Marc, any luck?" I asked immediately. He'd been chasing up leads on where Ellie might be; from the information we already had, I hoped that she was still alive.

When I dove into the flickering flames of my burning apartment, I swept the perimeter in less than 30 seconds and Ellie was nowhere to be seen.

At the time, I'd hoped that she had escaped somehow, but when I retreated from the building and saw no sign of her, I knew that she was gone.

I spent a whole day wondering if she made a run for it, or if someone had taken her. But when I added everything up - Felix getting shot, the bomb going off - I realised it was all a ploy to make capturing Ellie easy. Whoever took her knew that I would stay with Felix if he was injured instead of going after her.

"I have a location; it's a science lab just outside the city. And guess who it belongs to?" I didn't have a chance to respond.

"Finn Clarke, Ellie's dad."

I knew it.

When Marc examined the remains of the bomb the day before, he found a serial number that could be traced back to the manufacturer, which could then lead to the buyer. He must've found a scientific company who were investing in bombs.

"Good work Marc, I really appreciate it," I said sincerely.

"Could I ask you to come down to the hospital? I don't want to leave Felix alone with these people," I asked.

"Sure Dune," Marc replied. "I'll be there as soon as I can."

Hanging up, I stared blankly at my phone for a few seconds as I held it in my hand.

I had to find her. I promised myself that I'd protect her and I was not going to fail.

I sat in silence, scrubbing my hands down my face until I heard a sound from besides me.

Turning to face Felix, I watched as his eyes fluttered open for the first time in two days.

"Hey buddy," I murmured softly, the corners of my lips tugging into a smile.

"Ughhh," he groaned. "Why is it always so bright?"

A single string of laughter was ripped from my parched throat.

Felix rubbed his eyes and tried to sit up, before groaning some more and flopping back onto the bed.

"How long have I been out?" he asked.

"Just over two days," I said, pouring both him and me a glass of water.

"How do you feel?" I asked tentatively.

He shrugged a little, a tiny spasm of a movement, before gently placing a hand on his stomach.

"It's nothing we can't fix."

I smiled at his bravery.

"Wait a minute," he blurted suddenly. "Where's Ellie?"

I sighed, resting my elbows on my knees and cupping my hands together.

"She's alive, don't worry. From what I can tell, she wasn't harmed by the bomb. There was no blood in the apartment to indicate she was. Unfortunately, she's been kidnapped by her father," I explained.

"You mean re-kidnapped," Felix butt in.

"Shut up," I responded. "The point is, I have to go after her, so you have to stay here and get better," I said, looking at him pointedly.

"Whatever Jamie, just don't get yourself killed," Felix said offhandedly, the pain killers obviously having an effect.

I smiled at him.

"Marc is on his way, he's going to keep an eye on you for a while," I explained.

"So what are you going to do?" he asked with one eye half lidded.

"I'm going to find her and take down anyone who gets in my way."

*

I departed from the hospital shortly after Marc arrived and headed to the 'office'. It was where Marc did all his work and it was also where I stored all my weapons.

Stepping inside, I bolted the door behind me, just to be safe, and headed into the weapon room.

The walls weren't covered in knives like you'd expect them to be; instead the arms were stored in draws that had electronic locks on, all with different key codes. As efficient as it was, I hated the fact that it was such a tedious exercise just retrieving them.

Picking up my favourite knife (which was 19 inches long and extraordinarily light) I sheathed it in the leather strap that held it between my shoulder blades like in 'Crocodile Dundee'.

Shrugging on my leather jacket, I set my mouth in a grim line and glanced down at the address Marc had given me when we exchanged greetings in the hospital.

I closed my eyes briefly, and when I opened them, I was ready to kill.

A/N: Hey there, new cover! I hope you like it, I've been playing around with different photos for ages but this is the first one I've actually liked! (Other than the really awesome one @HarrietMAWright made for me). Let me know if you're confused about anything, I'm starting to worry that this story makes no sense at all! Them me know your thoughts and thanks to everyone for voting and commenting :)

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