The Broker

40. Demons Were Angels

December 29th, 2019

Roanoke, Virginia

East Side

Amaraya's body hit the floor before Randy could reach out and break her fall. The Broker was yelling, the FBI trying to arrest him. He was trying to run in her direction, for one reason or another. Maday was laying on the floor, her eyes open, two dead orbs staring up at the ceiling. There was a pool of blood already forming beneath her. Who had shot her? The FBI probably.

Amaraya coughed, Randy by her side. The bullets hadn't gone through the vest she was wearing, and Amaraya was glad that Zach had been so insistent on her putting it on. Her head hurt, tremendously, and she was sure that she would have a bruise where the bullet had hit. But apart from that, she felt fine.

There was static over the comms, which had probably been damaged in the fall. Kaden was no doubt yelling over them, because Randy took his off, wincing. Amaraya got up, with the help from Randy. When she stopped seeing stars, her head turned to the Broker, who looked like he had just witnessed a miracle. His mouth was hanging open, in a very non-proper type of way.

"Are you okay?" Randy asked, his eyes worried. Amaraya nodded her head, not trusting herself to speak. So much adrenaline was running through her, she felt like she should jump up and down. But Amaraya couldn't because her legs were unsteady underneath her. She looked down at where Maday had shot her, right over the heart. Her aunt had shot her. No, she wasn't her aunt, anymore. Maday never was.

"Damn. My favorite shirt is ruined." Amaraya joked, digging the bullet out. Her fingers trembled from the adrenaline running through her veins. Randy broke out in a grin, wrapping an arm over her shoulders. They both looked as three officers escorted the Broker out of the building. James followed them, then Zen and Eric. "We did it." She said, smiling, but it felt forced. Randy looked at her, his eyes sparkling.

She looked at those eyes, really looked, and she could feel how the storm had passed for him. Amaraya could feel how the tension in his shoulders, how the weight he carried, vanished. And it made her heart clench. Randy had gotten his happy ending. Amaraya still needed answers for hers.

"No. You did it." Randy said. "I would have cracked under that pressure." Amaraya scoffed.

"Yeah, right." She replied, her eyes on the floor. There was a dull ache in her chest, and she wasn't sure if it was from the adrenaline or from the feeling of betrayal that Maday had caused. What now? There really was nothing else to do. There was a bang behind them, and Kaden burst into the room, his eyes wild. When his eyes landed on her, he practically collapsed. "Jesus, Kaden. What's up with you? And on second thought, why are you here?"

Kaden didn't answer, and instead ogled the bullet hole that was very much visible in her shirt. "You...just got shot!" He exclaimed, and Randy started laughing. A deep, amused laugh that she had never heard before, but would rather like to hear more often. Amaraya laughed with him. Kaden laughed, but in a slow, nervous kind of way, that made her laugh even harder.

"Come on." Randy's arm tightened around her, his face bright. "Let's get something to drink. After the day we've had, I think we deserve them." Amaraya started to say something, but Randy interrupted her. "But no alcohol for either of you. It's too late, and you're too young."

Amaraya hit his shoulder, and he laughed. "You burn the joy right out of the situation." She muttered, and Randy laughed harder. "Let's call Zach."

They didn't get far out of the building though, before an agent stopped them in their tracks. Kaden practically bolted, and Randy watched him go in unnerving silence. The agent cleared her throat, and showed her badge. "SSA Danila. Can you tell your friend to get back here? Because I will actually arrest him if he doesn't talk to me, this second."