The Contract

14: Countermeasures

Fourteen: Countermeasures

The door of the motel room burst open and Astrid marched in, her face furious. Toothless looked up and was about to open his mouth-but saw the woman lock her fierce azure gaze on the stocky shape of Snotlout, who was lounging on the bed again.

"You!" she snapped. He smiled lazily as Fishlegs swivelled round with a look of fascinated horror as the oblivious man made a 'kissy' face at her.

"Hey, babe," he said smugly. "Missed me?"

She punched him full in the face. He yelped as he collapsed backwards, clutching at his nose.

"Nope-I think that was directly on target!" she snapped as Hiccup walked in, looking very much the worse for wear. In a second, Toothless was on his feet, hugging him fiercely, leaning forward to breath quiet words into his ear.

"Thank Thor you're alive," he murmured. "Are you okay?" Hiccup hugged him back.

"No," he murmured. "Thanks." Then he pulled back and turned his attentions to Snotlout, was was whining and trying to staunch the bleeding from his broken nose.

"Look what the cat dragged in," Snotlout sneered thickly, his clear blue eyes sweeping over Hiccup's battered shape-and then he stiffened as the pistol was whipped from the back of Hiccup's waistband, the click of the trigger cocking loud in the sudden silence. Astrid could see the muzzle was aiming directly between Snotlout's suddenly shocked eyes and no one dared move-not even the twins who arrived, chewing burgers laden with ketchup and onions.

"Wow-NF looks really really really REALLY pissed," Tuff mumbled loudly, spraying crumbs over his sister. She pulled a face and almost choked mid-chew.

"You betrayed me," Hiccup said in a cold, deadly voice. "Give me one reason why I shouldn't dispose of you like the trash you are?" Sweating, Snotlout looked appealingly at the others-and found a sea of blank or unfriendly faces.

"Astrid? Babe? You know I love you...and I would never..." he protested. She looked fit to kill him with her bare hands.

"AAGH! You muttonhead! Didn't you realise my phone call to Fish was a set-up...to confirm that you were the traitor?" she yelled, lunging forward. Toothless and Fishlegs grabbed her and held her back with difficulty. Snotlout cringed back.

"What? I mean, babe-how could you possibly believe...?" he protested in a desperate voice.

"You idiot! Fish and Toothess watched you make the call! They checked your phone and saw you phone your Dad every day-often more than once-so he knew exactly what we're doing. This whole mission has been open to him-and through him, to Dagur!" she yelled. "Shortly after you called your Dad, Dagur's men turned up at the hotel room and emptied four machine guns into the room indiscriminately. If he and I had been in there, we would have been killed! And that's your fault!"

"Now come on..." he protested and made to grab at her but Hiccup cleared his throat and Snotlout recalled he was about to be executed by a professional hitman who-despite his own protestations-was the single most deadly shot Snotlout had ever encountered.

"Dagur was one step ahead of us all the way," the hitman confirmed coldly.

"Hey-I am an agent of Berk Homeland Security!" Snotlout replied indignantly, eyeing the gun angrily. "I didn't give away anything. I just reported to my superior officer like you all should have been doing..."

"No, only the mission leader is meant to report-at specified times and giving only required information," Toothless growled. "This isn't a free-for-all where every soldier on a mission runs to tell tales to the superior officer every day! "