Forever

Mystery Man

I don't own Forever or the characters. I'm just writing this story for my own and others' amusment, and I'm not making any money off it.

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Henry pounded through the abandoned streets, keeping a tight grip on his partner's arm. How could a simple pickup go wrong like that? Now he and Jo were running for their lives-At least, Jo was. The man had said he would allow them to pick him up from his home in downtown New York. And ended up calling the whole gang-The New York Navy, or NYN. They were the worst gang out there, composed of murder hardened criminals, people who had killed and killed and raped and raped and then been arrested and then become escapees. The whole story was too complicated to explain, really. Jo had been captured and disarmed, then tied to a lampost while Henry tried to reason with the leader, a certain Fred Barnes. A common name in New York, all the more difficult to track in CODIS. Jo escaped, and he was glad she had managed too-they were about to shoot him in the head. Now they where being chased through the streets of an abandoned, forgotten sector of the city, no cell phone, no gun, and no car to get away with. The gang had picked off those methods of escape one by one, before their very eyes.

"Stop...... I have to..... Catch my breath......." The Detective whispered between pants. Henry slowed, breathing hard like her. The cool night air was dead silent, with the occasional shout of a homeless person as the NYN tried out force directions out of them.

"They're coming, Detective. We can't stay long." He said, looking around at the dilapidated, misbegotten buildings. Vines and mold were their only inhabitants, save the lone roach or stray cat.

"I..... Know that..... Shoulda gotten a phone..... While you and the..... Chance....." She replied, recovering. Henry jerked to the side in time for a bullet to race past his head, and pulled Jo to a crouch. A car-their car, stolen by the gang, which included a few women, unfortunatley-swerved into the sidewalk, and a single man came out, motioning with his head for several more people to get out. A few more cars crashed onto the street, loaded with a lot more NYN members.

"Look wah we gah here." He said, in a pronounced African accent. He must have been the temperary leader in place of Fred, even though he kept his head bowed and his eyes lowered. His jacket sleeves were rolled up so all could see the tattoos imprinted on them. Eye of The Tiger, one said. Jamie, another blared.

"Some ducklings trapped in the water." Another man snarled. Hmm, a pity he was lost to crime. This one was a teenager of only 19.

"Get ready to run again." Henry whispered into Jo's ear. She nudged his shoulder with her own.

"I was getting ready to anyway. You're sure you don't have a gun?"

"Positive. I don't carry firearms."

"Damn, was hoping maybe you'd have figured it out that New York doesn't have time for scientists only." Jo said.

"Get the tape we brought. Fred'll wanna see this." Apparently he was Fred's right hand man.

"Now!" Henry barked. Jo sprang up, swiveled and sprinted for the nearest building, while he was slower. Business shoes weren't made for turning on rough asphalt, as he'd realized long before.

"Hey! Ge'back here, you freaks! We got work to do; The bounty on ya head is 150 grand!" The man yelled, racing forward. Henry recovered and followed Jo's lead, slamming the door shut in time for him to collide with the wood. A sickening groan resounded through the door, but Henry ignored it and crouched by Jo, who was sitting in a rusty office chair near what used to be reception.

"They won't listen to reason, and they won't relax. The only way to get out with our heads is to get to the inhabited part of the city." She said through gritted teeth and heavy breaths. Henry was having the same issue and was about to open his mouth to utter a reply when the door flew off its hinges with a loud CRACK. A few unfamiliar men barged in, guns blazing. The only thing protecting Jo was Henry's body, and he shoved her down to the desk in time for a bullet to tear through his shoulder, burying itself in the bone with a metallic ring.

"Ahh! What was that?" Jo asked as blood dripped onto her face, covered partially by his scarf. Henry grunted an apology and rolled off, gripping his shoulder to stop the bleeding. The gang members parted to reveal their temperary leader, who was grinning.

"Gotcha now, uh? Jackasses like you don' have no place in this city. And we're here to show ya'll how i's done." He raised a loaded AK-47 he'd lacked before the door, and pulled the trigger.....

The bullets missed Jo's head by inches, hammering the wooded paneling behind her. A purposeful misfire meant to scare them. And it had, Henry observed as the room faded from grey to black and dull red, then back again.

"Tie 'em up. Make sure it's tight."

That was all Henry heard before blackness descended on his vision......