Weeping Widow

Chapter 4: The Meeting

Rissa walked down the sidewalks with her hood up. It was still dark and the cops were still after her, so she was using the night and shadows to her advantage, her dark clothing and dark hood hiding her physique and face from everyone around her. She was still looking for someone, the person she had been in contact with a few days before. Just before she had started all of this, Peter's older brother had agreed to help her, but never said how he would. So Rissa simply walked hoping that now would be the time for him to come and help at least a little. Suddenly, a big pick up truck pulled up next to her. The window rolled down and a familiar face looked out at her from underneath a hat. .

"Hey Rissa, get in," he told her.

Rissa happily obliged and walked around the truck and sat in the passenger seat. Her contact removed his hat to reveal his face. It was Mark, Peter's older brother. He had never really died, he just made it look like he did. People had been after him, but to make sure he was never found, everybody had to really believe that he was dead. But Rissa had seen through it and they had been in off and on contact ever since. Once Mark had heard of Peter's death, he came back just to help Rissa on her crusade to avenge him. He put the truck into gear and kept driving. Once they started moving, Mark started the conversation.

"So you need my help, I take it," he said as he drank from the Monster energy drink he had in his cup holder.

Rissa nodded as she pulled her hood down. "Yeah, I do. I just killed another robber whose DNA was a 50% match to one of the men who helped rob our house that night, but it still wasn't the one who killed him," she said as she crossed her arms as she was starting to become cold. Mark turned up the heat some for her.

Mark smiled at her and chuckled. "You're letting your hair grow out again. I never thought you'd ever have long hair again," he said.

Rissa brushed her hair out of her eyes and scoffed.

"I've been meaning to cut it again, its annoying and it gets in my face constantly," she said as she tied her hair back.

"I kinda like it like that. It looks nice Rissa, and I know Peter would like it as well," he said.

Rissa blushed and looked away. She knew Peter would like her hair long if it was, but she wished to high heaven that he was here to tell her that himself.

"So what do you need help with Rissa. You rarely ever call me, especially for this. What's up?" he asked as he turned a corner, heading back to Rissa and Jasmine's hideout.

"I just..." she trailed off as she choked up. Mark brought back memories of Peter. It was hard for her because she was also not good at asking for help, at all.

"I just need help finding the guy, the one who killed Peter. Apparently this is some sort of thief organization, and there are so many robbers and thieves in it that I can't even tell which one it was. One of them dropped their hate the night of the robbery and I had it analyzed, but it didn't give us anything," she said as she stared out the window. She looked at a light, then realized the light was moving towards them, very quickly.

Rissa screamed at Mark. "LOOK OUT!!!" Mark whipped the wheel to the side, and the other big truck hit the back of their truck hard. It spun around and slammed into the side of a building. Rissa blacked out, and the next thing she knew she was being dragged to safety by Mark. She grabbed his hand letting him know that she was awake and alright. She stood up.

"Are you alright Rissa, that was a pretty hard hit you took," he said as he stabilized her as she wobbled a little.

"Yes I'm fine, just a minor concussion. I think I'll be fine," she said as she leaned against the wall.

Mark put a hand on her shoulder. "I think it's more than just a little concussion," Mark retorted.

They looked up to see four men walking down the alley towards them, each one with a pistol in their hands. They walked up to them and pointed their weapons at Rissa and Mark.

"You're coming with us," they said.

"The hell we are, you owe me for that truck you smug bastards," Mark said, drawing a knife from his pocket.

One of the men on the side looked at the one in the middle. "Hey, the boss said dead or alive. And we don't have a hit on him, just her," he said.

Mark took his fighting stance. "You're not taking either of us," he said as Rissa slid down the wall, her world spinning as she felt her stomach churn.

The main man pulled the hammer back on his revolver and aimed at Mark's head. "They both die. She killed our guys, and we can't have witnesses now can we," he said as he put his finger on the trigger. Mark didn't move, contemplating what to do. Rissa was out of the fight, she couldn't even stand, let alone fight. All he had was his three-inch switchblade. This was a losing fight.

Out of the night resonated a very loud, very prominent gunshot.

One of the men fell to their knees holding his chest and then fell face-first on the ground, a perfect heart shot. Then three more ear-shattering gunshots rang out through the night, and the other three men fell, the rest of their heads draining out on the pavement of the alley.

Mark looked up to the tops of the buildings, where the shots came from. Rissa slowly looked as well. There, on a rooftop across the street, was a man wearing all black. Black boots, black pants and shirt, and a long black trench coat holding a huge sixteen-inch long pistol, all black with the words "Jesus Christ is in Heaven Now" engraved in gold on the side. A giant bowie knife was strapped to his side as well. He wore a black hood and a shiny black skull mask as well, and they could not see his eyes. The mystery man looked at Rissa and Mark slowly, and in a deep voice told them.

"Remember, there are two Reapers who stalk the night."

Then, he turned and walked across the roof. Mark waited for a second to see if he would come back, help them, maybe even kill them, but he did not. He was gone. Mark put his knife away and went to Rissa. He picked her up, and as he exited the alley a van pulled up in front of them. Jazz leaned out the window, and when she saw Rissa she jumped out of the van at full speed.

"Oh my God Rissa are you okay, what happened?!" she asked frantically.

Mark answered for her as Rissa had passed out. "Don't worry. She's got a concussion and a broken rib. She'll be fine, we just need to get her back to wherever you guys are holed up. Don't worry I'm a good friend. We need to go, now, and fast," Mark said to Jazz.

Jazz nodded and hopped back into the van as Mark layed Rissa down in the back of the van gently. Jazz floored it to their secondary hideout as fast as she could.

Mark sat against the side of the van thinking. How, and why, were there now two Reapers?