Shadow

Chapter 21 - Coalition

As Dumaka packed the items into the box in the living room, Jimmy sat beside Abbie on the bed as they both observed the man who had done more than enough to help them in their quest.

'There's something I have to tell you,' Jimmy said turning to her. When Abbie turned to face him, he could feel his heart crashing down into the pit of his stomach; when she mentioned the word sacrifice, he had this strong feeling that she accepted her fate and was ready to die for the good of mankind.

She was still so young. No wrinkles or lines on her fresh face. She was far from innocent but still had that genuine quality about her. Those blue eyes, what once may have been filled with innocence, sparkled with wonder and fear. There was something mature about her eyes now as if it weren't the eyes of a child anymore. To Jimmy, she was two different people; cocky and brash on the outside, but warm and naive on the inside.

Other than Charlie, Abbie had been the first person he had genuinely cared about. In less than twenty-four hours, when his first and only mission was to wipe out the disease that contaminated his only offspring, he had aborted what he had set out to do. Now, he wanted to save the life of a vulnerable, young girl. In a way, he could see Charlie in her. Where he failed the first time around, he had to succeed the second time. He needed to.

'What is it?' Abbie said and tucked her hair behind both ears.

Jimmy took a deep breath. 'When you were at the hospital, I got a call. From Richie.'

Her eyes widened. 'Richie? W-well... what did he want?'

Jimmy's fingers interlocked, and he stared down at his feet.

'He wanted... he wanted to meet up. Work together. Bring the Shadow down.'

'Oh.' Her face soured as if the taste in her mouth wasn't something she was used to. 'So... what did you say?'

Jimmy clicked his tongue and looked around the room. 'I told him we would handle our business as soon as we put an end to the Shadow. I'm gonna message him later.'

'Do you trust him now?'

'Trust him?' He shook his head. 'I loathe him. He's brought me nothing but pain. He sounded desperate, though. He sounded... scared. The Shadow is after him. In a way, it works in my favor.'

'How?'

'Maybe it wouldn't hurt to have an extra pair of hands. Think of it as bait. Something happens to go wrong; he could be the main course for the jackals. Might give you more time to do what you're meant to do. Personally, I would rather the jackals finished him off.'

'He'll be a distraction?'

'Something like that.'

Abbie drew a breath and let it out. 'Are you sure this will work?'

Again, he had reached an impasse; he was in the middle of a crossroad where there were four different directions, and each had a specific kind of answer, but all with little to no confidence. No matter which direction he took, the answer would still be unanswered.

'Abigail,' Dumaka said, entering the bedroom.

Jimmy felt a sense of relief. He knew she would probably ask this question again, and he didn't want to make her nervous more than she already was.

Dumaka kneeled down in front of her as if she were a princess, and he the servant, and presented her a thin-long, black case. He did the honor of opening the case and pulled out something they both had not expected to see.