Chapter 48

I pulled into Fluttershy’s driveway with my truck and quickly hopped out to go look inside her small SUV which was strangely parked in the middle of the yard. It was unusual to see it like this, she had always parked close to the front door religiously every time she got home.

When I didn’t see anything inside the vehicle, I decided to go inside to see if she was in the house. I opened the door and called out her name, listening for a response…

Silence.

I walked in and looked around, walking down the hall to check the bedroom and bathroom.

Nothing.

I came back to the front room, stopping at the end of the table, wondering where she could have been. “Her car is here…but where the fuck is she?”

I looked at the couch to see Link laying on the chaise lounge, something he never did when Fluttershy was home. He knew it was her spot…

I went back outside, looking at her vehicle for a moment. “She wouldn’t have gone out to Riverfield…it’s not a training night…” I thought, staring at the SUV. “How long has this been here?” I wondered as I walked up and placed my hand on the hood of the vehicle. It was still warm, but not hot. It hadn’t been that long then…but where was the shy girl?

My nerves started bother me as I thought about the video of her on the internet…what were the odds of me seeing that video at the exact moment that Cody would show up here? It was highly unlikely, but stranger things have happened…

I started looking around the yard for wheel tracks. Her driveway had a fairly course gravel in it which made it difficult to see tire marks…then I remembered the pothole near the bend that almost always had damp mud in it. I walked over to the bend, past my idling truck, taking in the strong smell of diesel exhaust as I passed the rear corner to close the gap between myself and the pothole.

I paused when I reached the spot. My eyebrows cocked when I saw the unfamiliar tread pattern imprinted into the stiff mud. “Michelin LTX…” I thought to myself, recognising the light truck tire tread that I had seen thousands of times during my career as a mechanic. I knew it wasn’t one of ours, I ran different tires on my truck and my girlfriend had a more car-like tire on her little vehicle…it could have been a news van, or a grateful visitor though…

“Maybe I should take a drive down the road…” I thought. “Whoever this was, they couldn’t have gone right…I just came from that way…maybe they went towards town. Although, I don’t even know how old this track is…”

I took a deep breath, looking back at the peaceful looking house, thinking about what I should do. “Ah, fuck it.” I shrugged. “Not much here to see anyway…it can’t hurt to take a look down the road.”

I hopped in my truck and headed towards Canterlot, wondering if I might see something of interest. I knew something wasn’t right…they way her vehicle was parked, her purse missing, and obviously no sign of her anywhere.

I headed down the road for about five minutes, then pulled over and stopped to think. What did I really expect to find out here?

I took a deep breath, wondering what I should do next. It had been years since I tracked anyone, and my skills had dulled over time…but the fear of losing my perfect shy girlfriend made me put my truck in gear and continue on. I had to figure out where she was, even if she turned out to be fine and I was just letting my imagination run wild. The chances of Cody taking her were slim, but I couldn’t take the chance…and it wasn’t just losing my pink-haired princess that worried me, it was also the devastation that my indigo-haired lover would go through if she learned that her lover and best friend had been taken away. I couldn’t stand the thought of either of them suffering like that.

I was half daydreaming as I thought of having to console the fashionista after telling her that the shy girl had been taken when I rounded the bend, then hit the brakes at the sight of a deer standing in the middle of the road, staring directly at me as though it had been waiting for my arrival.

I stopped the truck, staring back at the animal, wondering why it was standing in the middle of the road like that…then I remembered something I’ve learned in the past five months. If an animal is doing something unusual, it’s probably got something to do with Fluttershy and her magic. This had to be it. I was onto something…

I shut the engine off and got out to approach the deer. It stood there, keeping it black eyes locked on me as it twitched its ears at the sounds of the forest around it.

I stood about ten feet from it, placing my hands on my hips. “What?” I said to the deer, feeling somewhat ridiculous about talking to an animal. When Fluttershy did it, it made sense…but for me, it was absurd. This creature and I couldn’t understand each other.

Just as I was about to say something else, the deer turned and gracefully walked away from me, headed towards the curve in the road just ahead. I watched it as it walked about seventy feet before it suddenly made a left turn and walked across the road to the left shoulder, stopping next to the guard rail and looking back at me again.

I frowned, wondering what this meant. Was this animal trying to tell me something? I decided to walk closer, keeping my eyes on the deer, expecting it to suddenly run away like they usually do in the wild. I got about twenty feet from the animal when I noticed the end of the guard rail it was standing next to…it was bent, as if something hit it hard.

I made this drive everyday to work, and I know this road like the back of my hand…I knew that bend wasn’t there yesterday on the way to dinner at Rarity’s. I walked up to the rail, noticing that the deer let me get within less than five feet of it and it still didn’t run. I ran my hand over the metal, seeing the cracks in the galvanized coating…the absence of rust confirmed that this damage was fresh.

I then noticed a broken tree branch a few feet past the edge of the road, which drew my eyes over the edge of the hill where I saw a large trail of flattened brush, skid marks and broken tree limbs for more than fifty feet down into the gully. But there was nothing there that would have caused such damage.

“Something serious happened here…” I thought to myself as I looked around at the clear evidence of a crash in front of me. I rubbed my chin, letting the scenario play out in my head. “A vehicle hit this rail and went over the hill…but why? Out of control? Driver asleep at the wheel?...Or something else?”

As I was thinking this, I heard the clopping of the deer’s hooves behind me as it started walking along the left shoulder of the road, moving away from the guard rail, back towards my truck. I watched as it slowly walked about forty feet from me, then stopped and turned to look at me again.

What was it showing me now?

I followed the animal to its new position, then looked around, but wasn’t able to see anything of interest. It was just standing there at the edge of the pavement, looking at me as if I was supposed to know what it wanted.

I stared at the deer as it returned its gaze to me, occasionally twitching its ear impatiently. I sighed, looking around the road, then my eyes caught site of something on the other side of the pavement about twenty feet from me…a dark spot, about a foot across, with a reddish hue to it. I walked over and bent down to look at it.

I could tell right away it was blood. Something definitely happened here.

My attention was brought back to the deer when I heard it scuffing its hoof in the dirt at the side of the road. I looked back at it, noticing the urgency in its body language as it pawed at the dirt incessantly. I shook my head and went back to the animal, looking down at the dirt…then I saw it.

My heart stopped when I noticed the print, right next to the streaks in the dirt that the deer had just made…a clear footprint, with a tread pattern that I would recognise anywhere…one with butterflies scattered throughout the design.

“No…no no no…” I started shakily mumbling worriedly as I walked along the shoulder of the road, looking for more of my girlfriend’s boot prints, which I found, along with some scuff marks in the dirt…clear signs of a struggle. “Fuck…” I whispered to myself, covering my mouth as I looked around the area. This had to be Cody…who else would it have been?

Just then, I heard a rustling in the tall weeds a few feet from the deer’s position. I looked in the direction of the noise, watching to see what it was…and finally a little fox came scampering out of the vegetation with something in its mouth.

I could tell what it was immediately as the fox trotted over to me and dropped the pair of blue and gold aviators on the ground next to my foot. I knew who’s sunglasses they were. Sunset had told me all about them after the last visit from the CIA agent.

As I bent to pick them up, the fox suddenly darted away, flicking up dirt and small stones behind it as it made its departure. The deer also took its cue at that point, suddenly rearing up as though it just noticed me there, then it silently and gracefully ran off into the woods on the right side of the road after crossing the pavement once more. I took this as meaning that the animals’ jobs were complete…I had gotten the message.

Cody took my girlfriend…and now I was standing in the middle of the road in the woods, just a few miles from her deserted house, holding the evidence of her captor in my hand, with only one thought going through my mind:

“Game on…”

I jogged back to my truck and got in, started the engine and drove off swiftly towards Canterlot. I needed help, and I knew exactly who I wanted it from.

*****

It was Sunday evening. The sky was full of warm colours while the sun was setting, just as another Sunset entered her apartment with two armfuls of groceries, awkwardly closing the door with her hip, then making her way to the kitchen, being careful not to knock anything over as she went. She set the bags on the kitchen floor, then leaned back against the counter beside her fridge to take a break from her work.

Sunset Shimmer hated getting groceries. She groaned at the sight of all the bags on the floor that she was now going to have to unpack, then chuckled to herself at the absurdity of an immortal human being who was going to live forever having to engage in the minutia of these aspects of life. Especially since she didn’t actually need to eat, but she liked to eat…her favourite flavours still enticed her and she still enjoyed the textures and the satisfaction of a tasty meal.

There might come a time soon, however, where she may have to forego the act of getting groceries…her job search was still ongoing and her financial status was getting worse by the day. She was starting to regret spending so much over the last few months, now wishing she had conserved money to cover her rent for a couple more months. She had decided that she was going to start looking for more of an entry level job the next morning, even if it was at a coffee shop or something like that. As much as she didn’t like the idea of it, she knew she needed some cash flow to be able to keep living in her apartment, which she had grown to love since she had moved in a few months ago. It was in a decent part of town, and she enjoyed having all the stores and restaurants close by, as well as Rainbow Dash living barely two blocks away to hang out with at a moment’s notice.

She would go find a job tomorrow, and keep gunning for the career she wanted in the meantime.

Perhaps…a roommate would be helpful? But she only had one bedroom. Maybe finding a boyfriend was in order…someone to share the rent with, as long as she could find someone she could trust her secrets with.

Just as Sunset thought of this, she felt a tingle ring out between her legs. She closed her eyes and let her head tilt back at the feeling, realizing that the very thought of a boyfriend had sent her hormones into a frenzy. When was the last time she had any action? After thinking about it briefly, she remembered that her last sexual encounter was the threesome with Fluttershy and Golden Arrow...

“Man, what a night that was…” she thought to herself. “Flutters is so lucky, having that amazing cock to jump on whenever she wants, and Rare too...lucky cunts…”

The heat continued to build in the crotch of her jeans as she thought about the orgasms she had that night, but it wasn’t just the pleasure she got from me that night that had stuck with her…she kissed Fluttershy, the cutest, prettiest and most innocent of the group. Sunset thought she was innocent anyway…until she watched the shy girl tear her own clothes off and ride her boyfriend cowgirl style on the bed right next to her like there was no tomorrow, almost finishing the session right there inside of her. It was, without question, the hottest thing Sunset had ever witnessed.

Sunset ran her hand down her stomach, over her jeans and rubbed herself firmly between her legs. She shivered at the feeling that ran up through her body as she pursed her lips, furrowing her brows at the electric sensation she was giving herself right there in the kitchen.

“Mmmmmm…” she moaned softly to herself, taking a deep breath as she slipped her fingers inside her jeans, running her fingertips inside her panties, over her smooth mound, then letting her middle finger plunge itself between the warm lips into the deep crease, which was already flooded with her slick juices. She gently ran her fingertip over her sensitive clit, sending lightning bolts through her loins, causing her ab muscles to spasm, making her body tremble against the counter.

“Holy fuck, I’m wet…” she thought as she kept her eyes closed, running her fingers through her fiery hair, continuing to pleasure herself in the kitchen, surrounded by the bags of groceries. “Oh fuck, that’s good…I’m almost as hot as when-“

Sunset stopped suddenly, her eyes popping open when she realized that something wasn’t right. “Why am I so fucking turned on all of the sudden?” she wondered as she pulled her hand from her pants and sucked the juice off of her middle finger. “I usually only get this wet when…” she paused, then turned her head, looking out of the kitchen. “Wait a minute…” she thought to herself as she slowly stepped out of the little room and peered around the corner to the couch.

Her suspicion was confirmed…I was there, sitting on the couch with a blank stare on my face.

Sunset put her hand on the corner of the kitchen wall, resting her cheek against the corner as she rolled her eyes. “I had a feeling you were here…” she joked.

I didn’t move, except to shift my eyes up to her.

My lack of reaction got Sunset’s attention. “Is something wrong?” she asked with sudden concern.

“I need your help.” I said flatly.

She cocked an eyebrow as she stood up again and folded her arms on her chest. “With what?” she asked, before suddenly shaking her head. “Wait, how did you get in here??”

I tuned my head to face the balcony door. “Your sliding door doesn’t latch, remember?”

“Yeah, but…we’re twelve floors up…” she replied.

I looked back at her. “Yeah…and I jumped up here, one balcony at a time…”

Her eyes got wide. “Wow…” then she frowned and shook her head. “Next time, just buzz up, K?”

“I did,” I replied. “You didn’t answer.”

“Well, I was just getting groceries and-“ Sunset stopped and closed her eyes, bringing her hands to the sides of her head. “Look, it doesn’t matter. What do you need help with?”

I took a deep breath “Flutters…”

Sunset paused, furrowing her brows, not understanding what I meant. “Please say they wanna have another threesome…” she thought to herself as she continued to become more aroused by my presence. “Mm-hmmmm…” she hummed, pursing her lips as she nodded. “What about her?”

“She’s gone.” I said bluntly.

Sunset was stunned by the response. She shook her head in disbelief. “Gone? What do you mean gone?”

I shrugged. “Like, she’s not here anymore…”

“Is everything OK with you guys? You all seemed fine yesterday,” she asked.

I shook my head. “No, it’s not about that.” I said as I leaned to the side to pull something from my pocket and toss it to her.

She caught the object with both hands, then looked down at it and froze at the sight of the gold and blue aviators. After a moment of shock, she looked at me with her aqua-green eyes full of worry. “Oh no…” she said softly. “There’s only one piece of shit who would wear these dick-ish things...”

I nodded. “Cody. He took her.”

Sunset squeezed her eyes shut. “Mother fucker,” she cursed. She looked at me again. “But why? Why now?”

I took a deep breath. “There was a cell phone video circulating the internet of her taking down the school shooters.”

She exhaled loudly, letting her head droop. “I take it one of the students took the video.”

I nodded.

“Fuck…thanks kid.” she cursed. “Nice payback for saving your life.”

“It’s not their fault.” I said, rubbing the back of my neck.

Sunset sighed. “I know. You’re right.” she said as she walked over and sat next to me on the couch, feeling the moisture that had soaked into her underwear rub against her crotch as she let her rear-end come to rest on the cushion. “So…do do you think they know that she’s…you know…immortal?”

I turned my head to face her. “Most likely. There were signs of a struggle down the road from her house. I think she put up a fight…and I’m sure if they took her on, they probably figured it out pretty quick.”

Sunset let her head flop back against the couch. “Damn.”

We sat for a moment, feeling the hopelessness of the situation.

“So…what did you need my help for?” Sunset asked me.

I took a breath, then paused as I thought for a moment. “They’ll be long gone pretty soon, if not already. They probably took a private jet out of the area…so catching them early on is out of the question.”

“Right…” Sunset said as she listened.

“I know you’re not from here, but do you have your Canadian citizenship?” I asked.

She frowned. “Yeah...I got it a few years ago. Why?”

“So you have a passport too?” I asked again.

Sunset cocked an eyebrow. “Yeah…” she replied, sounding like she didn’t want to know what I was thinking. “Why?”

I took a deep breath. “You and I are going to Virginia.”

Sunset frowned in confusion. “What’s in Vir-“ she stopped suddenly, then put her hands up at me. “Oh no…no-no-no…”

“Yes…” I said. “We’re gonna get you inside CIA headquarters…and you’re gonna read some minds and find out where that asshole took her.”

Sunset looked at me with wide eyes. “You…you can’t be serious.” she said in disbelief. “What makes you think I can do that?”

I shrugged. “Because of how you handled Cody at Flutters’ house. With that level of cunning, combined with your mind-reading, I know damn well we’ll track that piece of shit down in no time.”

“Ugh!” She pressed the heels of her hands to her forehead. “OK...you know I’m not a spy, right?” she replied, moving her hands to look at me. “I don’t know anything about interrogating people; they don’t teach you that in forensic science—they teach you SCIENCE! Those are two totally different skills!”

I furrowed my brows at her. “Sunny, you’re conflating interrogation with espionage; those are also two different things. I understand you’re not a spy, but you can read minds, and that gives us a HUGE advantage.”

After a short stare, Sunset sighed and rubbed her face. “You have got to be kidding me with this.”

I glared at her. “Do I look like I’m kidding?”

She stared back at me as I stood up from the couch. “Are you going in with me?” she asked with a nervous tone.

I frowned and shook my head. “I can’t go in there; are you nuts?”

“But…” Sunset argued. “I thought they weren’t interested in you anymore?”

“If I walked in there and served myself up on a silver platter for them, then yeah…they’ll be interested.” I explained.

Sunset covered her face with her hands. “Oh, sweet Celestia. You seriously want me, Sunset Shimmer, to break into THE FUCKING C-I-A???”

I nodded. “Yep.”

She stood up, pausing for a moment before frowning as if she thought of something.

I tilted my head as I watched her. “What is it?”

She bit her lip as she looked back at me. “What if she’s not at the CIA?”

“What do you mean?” I asked.

“Like…” Sunset said, pressing her palms together as she paced in front of me, “You remember what I said about there being another organization that was more interested in you?”

I nodded. “Yeah…”

“What if Cody took her there?” The red-head proposed.

I took a deep breath. She had a point. “OK,” I started, “do you know where this other organisation is?”

Sunset paused for a moment as she stared at the floor, then she shook her head. “I have no idea. No one does.”

I shrugged. “Then we have no choice but to go to the CIA either way. Maybe we can figure it out and go from there.”

She frowned at me in disbelief. “Go from there??”

“Yeah Sunny, don’t worry…it’s gonna be lots of fun. We’ve gotta hurry though.” I said. “We have to pack what we need, rent a car…I need to make a stop in Richmond, then we head straight to Langley from there. But first, we’ve gotta go tell Rare. She doesn’t know yet.”

Sunset stood there, dumbfounded...and helplessly aroused. She then shook her head when she thought of something else. “Wait, whoa whoa. You want me to be in a car with you…for how many days?”

“Three or four…depending on traffic.” I answered.

“Oh…” Sunset replied blankly. “You remember my little…um…problem though, right?” she said, pointing at her crotch.

I nodded. “Yeah, I know.” I said. “I’m sorry, but this is Flutters we’re talking about.”

Sunset sighed and looked at the floor. “I know, but…”

“Do you realize what kind of tests and experiments they’re gonna do to her?” I asked. “She’s gonna be hating life…we can’t leave her there.”

Sunset closed her eyes for a moment. She took a deep breath, shaking her head…then she opened her eyes to look at me again. “OK, fine. I’ll do it. For Fluttershy.”

I brought my fist up to my chest, shaking it victoriously, knowing that my fiery-haired friend was on board. “Awesome! This is gonna be-“

I stopped speaking when I felt my phone buzzing in my pocket. I looked at Sunset for a moment, watching her face change expression as she also heard the quiet humming, muffled by the material of my jeans.

I pulled it out and looked at the screen, my eyes wide with disbelief when I saw the caller ID:

‘FLUTTERSHY’

I let my thumb hover over the answer button, but I hesitated.

“Aren’t you gonna answer it?” Sunset asked.

I turned the phone to her so she could see who was calling. “I don’t know…” I said. “It could be a trick…to track my location or something.”

Sunset agreed. “I wouldn’t do it…”

I watched the phone, feeling it vibrate in my hand until it finally ceased and the screen went dark. I broke my heart not to answer it, never before have I had that name come up on my phone and not answered. She was my princess, and I would do anything to hear her soft, sweet voice…but I knew it probably wasn’t her, and answering my phone could have led them to me, possibly allowing them to track my phone even after hanging up, and it would put Sunset and the others in danger as well.

“I need a new phone.” I said, as I squeezed my hand around the device, crushing it like a cracker, sending little bits of glass and plastic to the floor.

Sunset watched in shock, covering her mouth with her hands as I severed my ties to my girlfriend’s phone, as well as everyone else’s.

“I couldn’t take the chance of them tracking that phone.” I said. Then I raised an eyebrow at Sunset. “You wanna go find a pay phone so we can all those fuckers back?”

She smiled devilishly. “Sure. Let’s go.” She turned to head to the door, but I grabbed her arm, causing her to look back at me, wondering why I was stopping her.

“I know a faster way down.” I said, turning to head for the balcony, dragging Sunset with me.

She was leaning back, hopelessly trying to fight against my pull. “Whoa…you’re not gonna…”

I slid the balcony door open, pulled Sunset out with me by the arm, then I wrapped my left arm around her waist and pulled her close to the side of me. “Hang on.” I said as I grabbed the railing and leapt over the edge of the balcony, taking her with me.

“NO NO! Wait Golds!” she wailed, feeling the weight in her stomach rise up as we accelerated downward, the other balconies below hers were whipping past us faster and faster as the ground rushed up towards us. “FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCK!” Sunset shrieked the entire way down.

We landed in the lawn that surrounded her building, right next to the guest parking lot where my truck was waiting for us. My heels sank into the ground about six inches when I landed, squatting down under the force of the impact while Sunset landed beside me and went down, rolling onto her side, then getting back up to glare at me with fire in her eyes.

“What the…” she said in a fluster as she stood there trembling, then she angrily pointed her finger at me. “Don’t you EVER do that again!!”

“Shh!...Let’s go.” I took off running towards my truck as she followed, unable to keep up with my pace since she didn’t have the leg power yet to propel herself to the speeds I could reach.

“Wait!” Sunset shouted from behind me. “There’s a pay phone across the street in the strip mall…”

“No…” I said, stopping at the door of my truck to unlock it. “They can still trace it, which won’t really matter for me, but I don’t want to lead them so close to where you live. We’ll find one somewhere else.”

She got in the passenger door as I started the engine. “OK, good idea.”

We drove a few blocks until we got into the downtown shopping district. None of the girls lived near here, so I figured it was a safe spot to use. I grabbed some quarters out of the ash tray of my truck and Sunset and I walked briskly into the mall foyer towards the row of old payphones that looked like they hadn’t been touched in years.

*****

Agent Cody was seated on the small jet with a few of his comrades, sipping on a glass of scotch to help dull the pain from his battle with the innocent looking, but deadly shy girl earlier that day. They had just taken off from a small private airport a few hours outside of town to take their new prisoner back to headquarters.

It was an exciting time for the agent. He hadn’t captured his target, but instead found a new one, which was just as interesting because her existence was not previously known…in fact, nobody had even considered the fact that more than one on these beings could be living in plain sight among normal people. None of Cody’s peers believed in me to begin with, even though I was taught about in theory classes during CIA new recruitment training…but now, after all these years of ridicule, he not only discovered, but actually captured and brought in a new one. Or old one? Her age would be impossible to determine, unless they could get her to tell them…

“Sir?”

Cody opened his eyes to see who was speaking to him. “What is it?” he chided, not wanting to be bothered after the day he had, seeing six of his peers being violently ended by the slender woman.

The younger agent was holding the girl’s cell phone. “There’s been a call on the subject’s phone…” he explained. “From him…”

Cody perked up. “Him who? Him as in…the target??”

The other man nodded.

“Did you trace it?” Cody asked.

“We did…he called from a pay phone in downtown Canterlot.” he replied. “Should we send someone to intercept?”

Cody shook his head. “No…he’ll be long gone before anyone can get there.” he said as he looked down at his glass of booze, thinking about the situation.”I knew that bitch knew him. I fucking knew it.” he said as he took another sip.

As Cody let a sly grin slip across his face, the younger agent kept holding the phone and stared nervously as his superior. “Are you gonna take it?”

Cody frowned. “Huh?”

“He’s still on the line, sir.” The young agent said. “He asked to talk to you.”

Agent Cody’s stomach turned as he looked at the phone with wide eyes. He looked back at the younger man, then slowly took the phone, not wanting to look scared in front of anyone. He held the phone to his ear and tried to speak in a steady voice. He wasn’t just intimidated by me physically, he was also nervous just to be speaking to the ancient warrior that he’d been chasing for over a decade now. “Cody here…”

“What’s goin on, dicklips?” my voice came out of the phone speaker.

Cody paused, surprised by the rude greeting. “Who is this?”

“It’s your old buddy, Golden Arrow.” I replied.

Cody took a deep breath. “Golden Arrow, eh? Is that the name you’re going by these days? Doesn’t really suit you…”

“Gotta stay current, right?” I said.

The agent shook his head in surprise, as well as slight disappointment at the unexpected attitude of this legendary individual. “Why have you broken your silence so suddenly?”

“You’ve taken a friend of mine. That wasn’t very smart.” I replied in a more serious tone.

Cody felt goosebumps when he heard my disapproval. “Where did she come from? Why didn’t anyone know about her?”

“It doesn’t matter.” I said. “We weren’t bothering anybody.”

“Tell that to the guys at the bar in Canterlot…” Cody fired back.

“They got what they deserved. That’s none of your business anyway.” I replied.

“It actually IS my business…you’re an international threat.” The agent said, using the ‘threat’ excuse once again, which we both knew was bullshit.

“You’re such an idiot, Cody. Quit it with that ‘threat’ nonsense…” I scolded. “You leave me alone, I leave you alone...that's how this works. Also, what do you think will happen if you ever find me anyway? Have you ever thought that through?”

Cody didn’t have an answer.

“Besides, “ I continued. “We both know it’s got nothing to do with me being a threat. You guys just want me for your own self-interests…and YOU want to further your own career…maybe get a new job at a super secret agency?”

Cody was speechless. “How does he know about that? Most people in the CIA don’t even know of the existence of the ‘other’ agency…” He cleared his throat. “Your lady-friend is a similar threat, she put down six of my men today and destroyed CIA property…”

I chuckled over the phone. “Good for her.” I said. “You realize you brought that on yourself, right? When you came and took her from her home…” I took a deep breath to let him think for a moment before I continued. “Tell me, jerkoff…have you ever heard the expression ‘just let sleeping dogs lie’?”

Cody rolled his eyes. “She has become of great interest for us now that we know about her…’abilities’. I didn’t know there were others like you out there. Ask me how I figured it out…”

“You better not have laid a finger on her…” I threatened.

The agent snorted. “Now now, Mr. Arrow; we both know she can’t be hurt.”

“That’s not the point…” I said. “It’s the act of hitting her that counts…you do NOT disrespect her, or you will pay dearly for it.”

“That is of little consequence to me. You will never find me.” Cody jabbed.

“You’d better hope I don’t.” my voice said through the phone. “You know what'll happen if I get my hands on you?”

“What?” he asked in a snarky tone.

“I’m gonna pull your bones out. One by one. Starting with your fuckin toes.”

The hair on Cody’s neck stood up upon hearing these words through the girl’s phone. His stomach turned, knowing that if I actually did catch him, I would almost certainly make that threat a reality. He took a deep, shaky breath to speak again. “Well, you gotta catch me first.”

“Count on it, Cody. Don't forget: every time you stop to eat, sleep or shit, I'll still be coming. I don't need to do those things. My body isn't frail and weak like yours; a fact that you seem to need reminding of, but don't worry; when I get my hands on you, I'll show exactly how fragile you are. I think you'll be 'pleasantly' surprised. I’ve been squashing bugs like you since you were a twinkle in your dad’s dad’s dad’s dad’s dad’s eye.” This was the last thing he heard before hearing a click, followed by the steady hum of the dial tone.

*****

As I hung up the phone, I turned to see Sunset standing there, cringing hard as she stared at me.

“What?” I asked.

“If you actually plan on doing that, please don’t do it in front of me…” she requested.

“What, pull his bones out?” I asked. “I’m not doing that…do you have any idea how long that takes?” I turned to head back to the truck. “Plus it’s gross…now, let’s go see Rarity.”