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The Widowmaker
Katalina Covaraine stormed on to the rooftop. She glanced back over her shoulder. The one who chased her closed in fast. His face had been a blur but she had noted he wore the camouflage greens of an American military operative. Katalina fixed an explosive device to the door before she raced to the rooftop’s edge.
Katalina adjusted the mouthpiece on her headset. “Ready for pick up and you better make it quick. Have commando on my tail.”
“Roger that Widowmaker. Approaching from the east. ETA two minutes,” a voice spoke back.
“You better make that one minute or we’ll have to go to plan B.” Katalina peered over the edge at the street ten storeys below.
“What? The great Widowmaker can’t be creative and make a conversion to stall time?”
“I’ll be creative with kicking your ass. Widowmaker out.”
Katalina looked back to the fire escape. She heard combat boots grind against the metal rung of the steel steps. She had one or two little surprises in store for this unsuspecting fool. Moments later the bang of the door broke the silence. Katalina watched the soldier rush onto the rooftop. He stopped upon seeing her darkened form balanced on the rooftop ledge. She casually tossed a grenade up and down in her left hand. Now that she had his full attention the pin dropped to the ground.
“Shall we play soldier boy?” The grenade slipped from her grasp. In the blink of an eye, her foot rose and kicked the device towards the commando.
Katalina run for cover as the grenade torpedoed towards the commando. The device exploded midair. But the commando was quick on his feet. He ducked and run. Fragments of wood and steel rained all round him. In all the commotion he still managed to open fire on Katalina. Bullets danced around her feet. She baseball slid the last few meters to collide with an air-conditioning duct. Her shirt snagged and ripped. Out of sight but still able to hear bullets vibrate of the tin Katalina retrieved her berretta. She cursed well aware that the tattoo on her navel was now exposed. If the commando got closer enough her identity would be known. And it would only be a matter of time before the ones who hunted her would be on her tail again.
"Widowmaker, where are you? Need a sign." A voice spoke again through her headset.
Katalina slipped the safety of on her berretta. The onslaught from the commando had stopped. She crawled on her stomach just enough to get a clear shot at the door. She saw the commando, a smile flashed across her lips, he reloaded his weapons. His position couldn’t be better, he was just a meter from the door. She aimed and fired. The bullet hit the explosive device on the door. Katalina ducked quickly, the explosion rocked the rooftop. Door fragments flew in all directions. Chips and splinters of wood spewed outwards like daggers.
"See that explosion. I'm ten meters to the right of that. This guy is good, I need a lift now!"
Katalina heard the unmistakable sound of a gun cock close to her ear.
“Get up, try anything and I'll blow you away, no questions asked."
Her heart skipped a beat. She recognized the voice instantly. Her back still towards the commando she got to her feet.
"I'll have this." The commando snatched the berretta. "Turn round slowly."
Katalina turned round. Her eyes locked on his. "Well lookie here, bet you never expected to see me again Wills?"
While she waited for him to find his voice Katalina took note of two things. She estimated the space between their bodies to be a two meters at the most. Her hand moved a faction downwards. She needed to be able to snatch the dagger hidden on her belt within seconds.
"Thought you were dead? That's what SAS told me." William’s words brought Katalina back to the task at hand. She noticed him glance to her navel. No doubt to see if it was really her. The black widow spider tattooed on her skin would be all the proof he would need.
Katalina shrugged. "I think that would be, the SAS guys thought they killed me." She winked, a smile lingered on her lips. "So are you ready to tango Lieutenant. As I recall last time we were in a similar predicament I kicked your ass. Care to try again?"
The Lieutenant glanced to her headset. He unloaded Katalina's berretta. The clip of ammo fell to the ground. William tossed the gun. It slid across the concrete. "I gather lover boy is here somewhere. Tell him to come out and play too, so I can kick both your asses."
“Wondered how long it would take you to bring him up. Still jealous I see?” Out the corner of her eye Katalina watched the berretta stop. She would need that later.
William merely grinned. "Jealous, no. Pissed off, you bet your cute little ass I am.”
He never even seen her leg strike his body till it was too late. Her heel connected with his berretta and sent it flying out of his hand. If that wasn’t enough of an insult Katalina shoved the heel of her combat boot into his stomach. The Lieutenant propelled backwards even more. She followed and gave him one more kick to the midsection. The Lieutenant felt the ground brush against his back as he fell. His head smacked against the concrete. Katalina never paused. She slammed her heel into his ribs. In her right hand she now held a dagger. She twirled it in her fingertips.
Boots raced up the stairwell. Katalina's head jerked up. She spoke into her head piece once more. "Scorpion, have more company, where the hell are you?"
"I'm here, never fear. Just wiping my eyes after listening to your little walk down memory lane." The hum of helicopter propellers filled the air. The Blackhawk simmered into view a few feet from the rooftop edge. "I have the stair well in my sites. Hit the ground now!!!!”
Katalina fell. Her knees dug into the commando's sides. She slid the dagger ever so slightly against his throat. Machine gun fire hit the concrete all around her, but her eyes never left the one under her. Whooshhhhhhhhh...the groan of a grenade launcher flew over her head.
"Widowmaker, rope is down ready for extraction. You have three seconds, say goodbye to lover boy." The pilot readied the aircraft for a quick getaway.
Katalina slid the blade of the dagger across William’s chin. "I need a message boy, and tag you're it. Tell the General, I’ll be in touch."
"Widowmaker, now goddamnit!!" The pilot's voice yelled in her ear.
Katalina got to her feet and raced towards the helicopter. She snatched her berretta and the clip of ammo up off the ground on her way. Within seconds she had the berretta reloaded. With the rooftop ledge in sight her pace quickened. She run off the edge, her hand grabbed hold of the rope midair. She twirled her body so she now faced back the way she had just came. More soldiers appeared on the roof. Both the pilot and Katalina opened fire on the new arrivals.
"Lets get out of here. We have to move LiveWire." Katalina fired at the concrete around William keeping him pinned down.
"But Carlos won't talk no more?" The pilot needed to know the thorn in his side had been taken care.
"The only talking Carlos will be doing is saying howdy to the devil."
The pilot snickered. "That’s what I wanted to hear. Never expected anything less from my Kitty Kat."
The rope suddenly jerked into motion pulling Katalina up towards the belly of the helicopter moments before it banked left and disappeared into the night.
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William rolled to his left. Bullets sprayed all round him. He looked over to see the others run for cover. Their guns were nothing compared to the machine gun fire from the Blackhawk. He and the others could do nothing more than watch the helicopter disappear.
Two soldiers helped him to his feet. A little bruised but nothing serious, his pride wounded more than anything. "Tell me how in the goddamn hell the Widowmaker got past you guys?"
The two soldiers looked out at the night. They had no excuse. The woman had simply outsmarted them. Gunnery Sergeant Karl Masters cleared his throat. "Widowmaker did you say? Didn't SAS operatives take out Katalina Covaraine late last year?"
"Obviously not. No doubt she came searching for Carlos. We better move him quick before she strikes again."
The Sergeant looked at the Corporal opposite him. "Carlos is dead, Sir. His throat slit from ear to ear."
The Lieutenant cussed under his breath. "Jesus H. Christ!! You guys are supposed to be the best of the best. I believe it was you Gunnery, who said he would be safe here."
"Who is the Widowmaker anyway?" The Corporal asked.
"The Widowmaker is Katalina Covaraine. She used to work for us. The best Russian intelligence officer there was. These days she’s an assassin for hire. Seems she’s now in co-hoots with Scorpion." William noted the blank look on the Corporal's face. "Scorpion is Dimitri Brokovitch. You do know who Dimitri Brokovitch is?" William shook his head, the Corporal still looked somewhat confused. "He happens to be one of the world's most hunted terrorists."
"Oh, that Dimitri Brokovitch." The Corporal shot back.
The Sergeant continued. "Corporal, that woman's father was the legendary Russian Special Forces Major, Alexandra Covaraine. He defected to the US a few years back to help train our special forces."
"Well we should look up this Covaraine legend. Maybe he can help catch his daughter?"
"Good thinking Sherlock." William run his hand through his hair in aggravation. "Except we can’t do that, Carlos killed him." William looked around at the destruction. "Now if you two could show me to the nearest secured landline. I have to pass on a message to the good General Harrison."
William paused at what was left of the stair well. He glanced one last time over his shoulder into the night. For the first time the cool air brushed against his face. Somewhere inside him he couldn't help but smile, Katalina was alive. He had never wanted to believe his former lover was dead. He still hoped she would see the error of her ways and be the one to bring Dimitri to justice.
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