The Shooters

By Ed Carlson

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This story is purely fictitious. The names and places are used only to illustrate

the story and should not be construed as fact, or persons, alive or dead.

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Chapter 1

Robert Hammer, better known to his friends as just plain “Bob,” was walking along the beach in the compound on a particularly beautiful spring afternoon and decided to sit down and just watch the waves roll in. The sound of the waves and warmth of the sun soon had him completely relaxed; his jet lag started to kick in, and he found his eyes getting heavy. He was just about to drift off when he heard footsteps rustling the pebbles on the beach. He looked up and saw a figure coming toward him. He quickly recognized her and was beside himself as to what to do.

The woman approaching him was Brenda Scott. She had been his partner, and he had liked her for a long time, but because she was his partner, he was reluctant to pursue a romantic relationship with her. Little did he know, but Brenda felt the same way as Bob. His problem, other than their working relationship, was now Brenda was different, and he had no idea even what to say to her.

“Hi Bob,” Brenda said cheerfully as she approached.

“Well hello Brenda,” Bob replied looking up at her and squinting into the sun.

She was as beautiful as ever—poised and confident as she stood there in a very revealing sweater and blue jeans. It was impossible for him not to notice the two shiny steel hooks that provided the termination of the sweater sleeves that she held with the elbows bent so that they were almost parallel to the ground.

“Do you mind if I join you?” she asked in a melodious voice.

“Please do,” Bob stammered. “I . . . I’d like the company.”

She sank to her knees and then eased herself down next to him without touching the ground with her hooks. She settled back next to him and rested her hooks on her lap.

“So what have you been up to?” Brenda asked casually as though nothing had changed.

“I’ve been in Europe for the last year and a half. You know, just the usual,” Bob replied, knowing that they both knew that they couldn’t discuss The Company business. “They told me about the accident. I’m sorry about your arms.”

“Thanks,” she said softly as her eyes started to moisten. “At least it was quick. A lot of what happened is still foggy.”

“How did it happen, if you can talk about it?” Bob asked.

“I can tell you because I know that you have higher Company clearances than I do,” she started. “I was working in the explosion box in lab C. You know how it’s set up where you put your arms in the big rubber gloves?”

“I remember seeing you make up tips for shells in it. I thought that the box was set up to minimize the damage from explosions.”

“It is, or should I say, it was. Most of the blast went out the back through the breakaway wall, but my arms were right in the middle of the explosion,” she said. “You know we always put part A of the mixture into part B first.”

“I know they really drilled it into us.”

“Well, I accidentally spilled some of the part B into an open beaker of part A. The next thing I remember is lying on the floor on the other side of the lab. Everyone was running around, and two of the medics were working on me. I passed out again and woke up in the hospital. That’s when I realized that my arms were gone.”

“My gosh! That must have been terrible,” Bob observed.

“They had me pretty well doped up, but when I woke up and saw the big bandages on my elbows and nothing else beyond, I went ballistic. They had to hold me down and give me another sedative. It took me a couple of days to come to grips with what had happened and that I was going to remain armless for the rest of my life. I spent a lot of time with the shrink. They let me get my head together for two weeks before I was ready for the second surgery.”

“Second surgery? I don’t understand.”

“They did the first surgery right after I was brought into the hospital. All they did then was to clean up the ends of my stumps and stop the bleeding. At first they thought they were going to have to amputate both arms at the shoulder because of the infection caused by the chemicals. Doing it that way also allowed me to be involved in the decisions about my arms.”

“OK,” he replied.

“Once they decided that the infection wasn’t spreading as fast as they first had thought, the second surgery was to remove the infection and reshape the stumps so that I could wear these hooks. Without it, my prosthetics wouldn’t have fit right, but more importantly, they had to be sure that the chemicals wouldn’t eat away any more of the bones. They also did plastic surgery so that I wouldn’t have ugly scars like some amputees carry, and at the same time, they took care of some internal complications.”

“How much of your arms did you lose?” Bob asked.

“Both about to here,” Brenda said, pointing about midway between her shoulder and her prosthetic elbow with one of her hooks. “Both of my arms were gone just above the elbows so during the second surgery they shortened my stumps so that my prosthetic elbows would be sure to be in the right place. If they hadn’t cut off a little more, my arms would have been too long and my elbows out of place. That was the original plan, but they found that the chemicals were still reacting with the bone ends so they had to shorten my stumps even more.”

“It looks like you’ve adapted pretty well. How are you really getting along?”

“Oh, I’ll be fine. It’s the way I am now. It’s not the way I want of be, but it’s better than the alternative of pushing up daisies. I still spend time talking to the shrink and walking along the beach. I think what would help the most is going back to work.”

“What kind of work do you want to do?”

“I want to keep working for The Company if possible. I’d really like to go back out in the field again, but right now I’d settle for some courier stuff,” she replied. “That’s up to Wayne now. He’s talked to the committee, and they agreed to keep me on but in a different role, at least for now. They were seriously talking about giving me the golden handshake and sending me on my way, but they couldn’t do it.”

“Why couldn’t they?”

“Because I don’t have any hands to shake,” she joked.

“Boy, did I step into that one,” Bob replied with a big smile. “OK smartie, what do you think it’ll take to get you back out in the field?”

“I need to find someone who’ll work with me,” she lamented. “You know how it is trying to find a partner if you can’t pull your full weight.”

“I’d work with you again,” Bob offered. “That’s the least I can do after you saved my bacon in that firefight in Lebanon.”

“Those rebels really did have you pinned down,” she remembered. “Do you really want to work with me? Or are you just feeling sorry for me? It will probably be really dull after what you’ve been doing.”

“No. I really do want to work with you again,” he said.

“You know that there are a lot of things I can’t do now,” Brenda said. “I’m really helpless when I have my hooks off.”

“Can you defend yourself?”

“Sure, I can do that. I still have as good a kick as ever, and my elbow moves still work a little. What I meant was I can’t pick up things the way I used to. Without my hooks on, I have a hell of a time eating or even going to the bathroom. When they’re off, I can’t even unzip my jeans and that can be a real problem.”

“I see your problem,” Bob replied.

“What I’m trying to say is sometimes I’m going to need help with things that I could do almost automatically before,” she said, reaching over and making several back and shoulder movements to pick up a small stick lying on the beach. “I used to be able to do that without even thinking about it.”

“Can you fire a weapon with those hooks?” he quizzed, remembering what a natural she was and how deadly accurate her shooting had been.

“I’ve tried, and I was able to get a round off. But that’s about all. I didn’t even hit the target,” Brenda admitted. “Wayne put Alan to work on something that I could use effectively. Alan told me he was thinking about a design that would incorporate a gun barrel into one of my forearms. He was thinking maybe a laser pointer for aiming.”

“Sounds interesting,” Bob said, looking at his watch. “It’s getting late. I have a meeting with Wayne.”

Bob got to his feet and turned to see Brenda struggling to get up. He reached down and helped her up.

“Thanks. That’s what I like about you,” she complimented. “It’s like you have the knack for knowing when I might be needing help.”

“Do you think we can make it work as a team?” he asked as they started walking back down the beach to the large heavily guarded building built along the water’s edge.

“I think we still make one hell of a team. I really hope that Wayne will let us team up again. I know that I can trust you,” Brenda replied. “I’m willing to do as much as I can; you know that. Of course, I do have a lot of limitations now and you’d have to take up the slack.”

“I realize that, and I don’t have any problem with that. My next partner was exactly what I’m going to talk to Wayne about right now,” Bob said. “Where can I catch up with you?”

“I’m in room 455 in the upper building. I’ll be there by the time you finish your meeting.”

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The meeting lasted longer than Bob had thought that it would, and it was well after seven when he finally emerged from Wayne’s office. He smiled to himself as he walked across the sprawling complex and toward the upper building. He put his ID in the reader, and the door opened. The guard at the front desk nodded when Bob put his head in position at the scanner so that it could do a retina scan.

“Go ahead sir” is all the guard said when he pushed open the heavy door that led to the elevators.

Bob pushed the “four” button, and the elevator swiftly whisked him to the fourth floor. When the door opened, he saw that 455 was down the long hall. He took a deep breath as he pushed the doorbell button.

“Just a minute,” Brenda called.

Soon Bob heard fumbling at the door. It took a little while, but it finally opened. Bob almost gasped out loud when he saw Brenda standing there without her prosthetic arms. He had pictured in his mind what she looked like, but to actually see her took him by surprise.

“Sorry I took so long,” he finally said after a long pause.

“Come on in,” she invited.

He cautiously walked by her, and she closed the door by pushing it with a bare foot. They continued into the living room.

“Have a seat,” she said, motioning at the couch with one of her arm stumps. “If you want anything to drink, you’ll have to help me get it for you.”

“No thanks,” Bob replied as he sat down. “Wayne filled me with coffee and goodies.”

“Well, how did the meeting go?” Brenda asked, sitting down on the other end of the couch.

Her arm stumps were fully exposed to view, and Bob could see just how short they were. She was now wearing cutoff jeans and a blue-checkered bikini top that restrained her ample breasts. Her hair was pulled back in kind of a ponytail. Her serious smile was as genuine as it had always been.

“It went well,” he replied. “Wayne changed my assignment.”

“Well?” she asked anxiously.

“He approved my leave request,” Bob said. “I’ll be gone a month . . .”

“And?” Brenda interjected when he paused.

“When I get back, I get to help with the retraining of my new partner . . .”

“Is it me?”

Bob didn’t say anything; he just nodded his head with an ear-to-ear grin. Brenda almost bounded into his arms and, putting an arm stump on each side of his neck, gave him a quick kiss.

“How did you pull it off?” she asked, still with her arm stumps on each of his shoulders.

“I threatened to quit,” he replied. “It’s the little game I play with Wayne to get my way.”

“You’d quit over me?”

“No. I just wanted another assignment for a while. It’s the game that Wayne and I play, and he knows it.”

“So what are we going to do to celebrate?” Brenda quizzed as she retreated to her place on the couch.

“I don’t have much time,” Bob said, looking at his watch. “My plane leaves in two hours. We can celebrate when I get back.”

“You really don’t have that much time, do you?” she said with a great deal of disappointment in her voice. “Say, before you leave, could you give me a hand putting my prosthetics on? I can do it, but it’s a lot easier if I have help.”

“Sure, no problem,” he said as they both stood up.

Bob followed Brenda to the bedroom. He was distracted by her lack of arms, but he still noticed her long legs and nice butt.

Both of her prosthetic arms were lying on the bed connected by the harness. Each arm had hooks attached to a shiny plate at the end of the forearms right about where her now nonexistent wrist would have been. Both of the arms appeared to be locked straight.

“What do I do?” he asked as they both stood there looking at the flesh colored prosthetic arms on the bed.

“Start by getting some stump socks out of the top drawer over there,” she instructed, pointing at the dresser with what remained of her right arm.

Bob opened the drawer and took out a long white stocking affair. It was two large tubes that were attached by a long flat piece of material. He held it up, and Brenda nodded approval.

As he walked back over to her, she was going through contortions trying to remove the abbreviated bikini top. He helped her finish and put the top on the bed leaving her standing there in only the cutoff blue jeans.

Her more than ample breasts stared him in the face as he turned.

“Help me with the bra first,” Brenda said as she pointed to the bra also lying on the bed.

Bob slipped the straps over the stumps of her arms and brought the strap around her back. He brought the cups together in the front and fastened the clasps. Brenda bent forward at the waist and shook her breasts from side to side, then straightened up.

“Good job, those puppies are in their places. Now slip one of the ends of the sock over this arm,” she said, holding up what was left of her left arm and allowing Bob to slide the first half of the stump sock in place.

“Now run the material flat across my back and slip the other end over my right arm,” she told him, raising both of her arms straight over her head.

Bob had to stretch the material a little to get it started over her upraised arm remnant. He slid the sock down as far as he could on her right arm before she lowered both arms. She thrust both arm stumps forward and hunched over while Bob straightened out the material that now stretched across her back.

“The material across my back is to keep the control cables from chaffing,” she explained. “Now pick up the arms off of the bed. It would probably be best if you picked them up by the elbows.”

He did as she instructed and was soon standing there facing her with one of her prosthetic arms in each hand. She turned so that her right arm was closest to him and held her left arm up at about a forty-five-degree angle.

“Now slip the arm over my stump,” she instructed.

“Which is which?” he asked as he studied the identical but reversed arms.

“The one in your right hand is the one,” she replied nonchalantly like she had been putting prosthetic arms on all of her life. “The actuating lever goes on the inside. I can kind of use it like a thumb.”

He lifted the prosthetic arm in the air and threaded it over her up-stretched left arm stump and sock. With the prosthesis in place, she raised her arm straight up over her head.

“Pull it down snug,” Brenda instructed.

Bob pushed down and was able to move the prosthetic arm down about another half inch or so.

“That feels right. Now slip the other one on next,” she said as she raised her right arm vertically also.

He did as he was instructed and stood on his tiptoes while he threaded the remaining prosthetic arm over her upraised arm stump and sock. Without being told, he also pushed the arm down further. She lowered her arms by bringing them forward simultaneously.

“Be sure the straps aren’t twisted,” she said, turning her back to him. “They should form an X across my back between my arms.”

He straightened out one strap and said, “How does that feel?”

“It feels about right,” she said as she set about putting her prosthetic arms through their paces.

“You handle those things pretty well,” Bob remarked.

“I’ve got to. They’re my hands now,” Brenda lamented. “A lot of double amputees just go without prosthetics. They use the stumps of their arms and their toes to do things. I tried that too, but my toes don’t work as well as they did before they were frostbitten while we were trying to get that Russian general.”

“I remember that one,” he remarked. “It was colder than hell. I thought we were both going to lose our toes or feet.”

“Well, I didn’t lose them, but the lack of circulation screwed up the nerves in my feet. I can’t wiggle my toes, and I don’t have any feeling on the bottoms of my feet now. I could walk on hot coals, and it wouldn’t hurt.”

“Let’s not try it,” he said. “What about a top?”

“There’s some T-shirts in the second drawer. I’ll get one,” she said, heading toward the dresser.

Using one of her hooks on each of the drawer knobs, she pulled the drawer open. She retrieved a white T-shirt with fish on it, then using her hip, she slid the drawer closed. With the T-shirt draped over her arm, she started back to Bob.

“This one will work,” she said as she kind of thrust it his way.

Bob took the T-shirt and began threading the sleeves over Brenda’s outstretched prosthetic arms, then put the remainder of the T-shirt over her head, then pulled it down. It was a little longer than the last one, but still plenty of her midriff peeked under it. The sleeves came about halfway between her shoulder and her prosthetic elbow.

“Where are you going on vacation?” she asked as they started for the living room again.

“I’m going to see several places in Central America. I’m going snorkeling in Baize to start and then going to see some of the ruins—but most of all, kick back and relax for a month.”

“I wish I were going,” she said. “I bet Wayne would let me out of here.”

“That wouldn’t be such a good idea,” Bob replied. “I’m meeting someone.”

“Oh,” Brenda replied curtly as her voice suddenly sounded like it had icicles hanging from it. “I bet she still has both of her arms and doesn’t go around wearing damn hooks.”

“No, she doesn’t,” he replied as he headed for the door. “See you in a month.”

“If I’m still here,” she snapped back.

“OK. If you’re still here then,” he said as he opened the door.

He looked back to see tears welling up in Brenda’s eyes. As he closed the door behind him, Brenda made a beeline toward the bedroom where she flopped spread eagle to have her cry.

Chapter 2

Bob swallowed hard as he dialed the phone. After the less than the cordial departing, he had regretted that he had even mentioned the possibility that he was meeting someone. In fact while in Baize, he had met the person that he was referencing. It wasn’t what Brenda assumed—that he was there on some kind of tryst. Instead, he had met with a banker from Grand Cayman Island. Even though the banker was a very attractive thirty-something, romance wasn’t the purpose of his meeting. In fact, she had a private jet waiting and left shortly after the meeting.

“Hello,” Brenda’s voice melodiously answered the phone.

“Hello, this is Bob,” he said.

“Oh,” she said disgustedly. “What do you want?”

“Well, we had talked about a celebration when I got back. How about tonight?”

“I suppose you’re going to drag Miss Caribbean along too.”

“No,” Bob replied. “That’s one of the things I need to you about. How about it?”

“Right now I don’t think that’s such a good idea.”

“All right, have it your way,” he replied. “I’ll talk to Wayne about getting you a new partner. I’ll just tell him that it won’t work between the two of us.”

After a long pause Brenda said: “All right, you win. When will you pick me up?”

“That’s better. How about seven?” he said. “I’ll make reservations for The Cliffs.”

“Wow, that’s a pretty fancy place. I don’t have anything to wear,” she said.

“How about that tight black dress you wore to The Company banquet?” he offered.

“I suppose, but it just has those small straps, and my harness and stump socks will show,” she objected.

“How about the matching jacket with the three quarter sleeves?”

“That’ll work,” she said with the first bit of enthusiasm that Bob had heard.

“Good. I’ll pick you up at seven,” he said. “To save the security hassle, could you meet me on the corner in front of the building?”

“Sure. See you outside at seven.”

“Good. See you at seven,” he said, hanging up his cell phone.

His next cell phone call was to The Cliffs Restaurant. He made reservations for seven. Bob’s next stop was a gas station. When he had filled up his red sports car, he went inside to pay. While inside, he used a pay phone to call the car rental company. When he hung up, he had made arrangements for the rental company to drop a car off at The Cliffs Restaurant. His next call was to the Emerald Isle Restaurant, just down the beach from The Cliffs. Dinner reservations were for seven-thirty. With plans firmly in place, he drove over to the motel where he had rented a room for the night. He would check in for work tomorrow; tonight he had other plans.

Promptly at seven, Bob pulled up to the curb at the appointed meeting place. Brenda was just walking out of the building. He couldn’t help but notice how drop-dead gorgeous she was as she walked his way. The black dress showed off her very curvaceous body. The fact that her prosthetic arms protruded from the arms of the three-quarter length sleeves of her black sweater did not detract from her beauty. However, the way she had her prosthetic forearms crossed indicated that she was still upset with him. He got out and opened the door for her.

“Good evening,” she said coldly.

“Good evening,” Bob replied. “All set?”

“I suppose,” she replied with icicles dripping from her voice again.

He helped her into the car, in the process noticing her shapely legs accentuated by the three-inch heels she was wearing. When she was seated, he gently closed the door, then walked around to get in on his side. They were soon under way.

“How’s training going?” he asked, hoping to break the ice.

“OK,” she replied coldly. “It would probably go better if my partner had been there.”

“Well I’m back now. Where are you?”

“They had me on a short refresher survival course up in Alaska; I damn near froze. I also tried some different hook terminal devices. Right now, I’m learning to fire my new arms,” she said flatly.

“How’s that going?”

“At least I can hit the bulls-eye regularly now. At first, I was missing it completely.”

“Do you think the thing will be practical for us?”

“I think it will work, considering the alternatives. Hell, I can’t hit the target with a conventional gun.”

Bob looked at his watch as they pulled into the parking lot of The Cliffs Restaurant. He spotted the car he had rented and pulled in next to it. He put the car in park and turned the volume up on the radio. It was almost painful to their ears.

“Brenda, one thing partners need to do is to trust one another implicitly,” he said, taking a small device, about the size of a pager and waving it in Brenda’s direction.

“I trust you,” she replied. “I’m just upset with you right now.”

“Maybe I can help you get over it,” he said, looking at the red blinking light on the device. “Just do as I say. Don’t ask questions. OK?”

She nodded her head affirmatively, and he turned off the car and got out. He walked around the front of the car and opened her door. He held his index finger up to his lips as a sign of silence before he helped her out of the car. He gently removed her jacket and laid it on the hood of the car. He slipped the straps from her dress down over shoulders and worked them past her elbows, finally clearing her hooks. Next, he silently signaled for her to lock her elbows in a straight position. She complied, and he grasped each of her prosthetic elbows, then brought both of her arms directly over her head. With a quick twisting tug, both of her prosthetic arms slipped off. He lifted them higher, and she ducked her head to clear the harness. He turned and laid both arms on the passenger’s seat. He quickly scanned Brenda with the bug detector and, finding none, scanned her prosthetic arms lying on the front seat. The detector indicated that her right forearm had the bug.

When he turned back, Brenda was removing her stump socks with her teeth. He helped her with the stump socks and put them on top of her pair of matching prosthetic arms on the seat. He pulled her dress string straps back up and draped the jacket back over her shoulders. With the jacket that way, Brenda’s lack of arms wasn’t all that noticeable.

Brenda looked perplexed when Bob opened the door to the car next to them and found the key under the floor mat as he had instructed. He pressed the button on the remote door lock for his car and checked to see if the alarm light was flashing. Next, he escorted Brenda around to the passenger’s side of the rental car and unlocked the door. She still had a puzzled look on her face while she slid into the passenger’s seat. He closed the door, walked around, and slid into the driver’s seat. He started the car and backed out of the parking space.

“You may ask now,” he said.

“Damn it, what the hell is going on? Why did you take my hooks off? Shit, I’m helpless like this! How in hell am I going to eat now?”

“Your arms are bugged, and so is my car,” he said calmly. “I thought we might like a little time alone without The Company knowing what was being said.”

“I had no idea,” she said.

“In this business, eyes and ears are everywhere. When the satellites make the next pass, it will see my car parked in the lot and they’re going to wonder why they couldn’t hear anything,” he replied. “Don’t be surprised if Alan’s people want to help you with an adjustment with those arms tomorrow.”

“Now that you mention it, they did do something to them a few weeks ago,” she recalled. “They had me sit in one of the offices while they worked on them. I just thought they had made some minor adjustments. The arms seemed to work better after they were finished.”

“All right, now that we’re out of earshot and I haven’t seen a tail on us, we can talk.”

“What about?” she pouted.

“While I was on vacation, I had a lot of time to do some heavy thinking.”

“Ya, with Miss Caribbean wrapped around you.”

“There wasn’t a Miss Caribbean,” he countered. “The only woman I met up with was my banker. She’s out of Grand Cayman Island. She flew down to help me set up an account, then got back on her private jet and went home. I was with her one hour max.”

“Was she the someone you were meeting?”

“Yes.”

“Oh shit,” Brenda blurted. “I’m so sorry. I assumed that when you said that you were meeting someone that it was some woman. Why didn’t you say something?”

“I wanted to, but you were in no mood for listening, and besides, the walls in that place have ears.”

“You mean my apartment’s bugged too?”

“They all are.”

“Why didn’t you tell with sign language or slip me a note?” she said.

“TV cameras too,” Bob replied. “The whole complex is wired.”

“Cameras everywhere?”

“Everywhere,” he said. “Even in the bathroom.”

“Why those dirty . . .”

“Don’t let it get to you. It’s part of the game. Remember, we’re in the information gathering business,” he said. “If we’re going to turn, they want to know about it.”

“I guess they would. I suppose I’ve been bugged for years,” she said.

“We all have,” he said, pulling into the parking lot of the Emerald Isle Restaurant. “But tonight, we’re free to talk about anything we want. By the way, we have reservations here too.”

“Without my hooks, I make a hell of a mess trying to eat,” she said. “You might have to feed me.”

“No problem, the pleasure will be all mine partner,” he said with a smile as he parked the car.

He got out and opened Brenda’s door, then watched closely as she unfolded her shapely long legs. She stood up and gave him a peck on the cheek.

“Thanks,” she whispered. “I’m sorry.”

Bob didn’t say anything; he didn’t need to. He closed the car door, and with his arm lightly in the small of her back, he guided her to the front door. He opened the door and allowed her to enter. Brenda waited while Bob talked to the maitre d.’ She smiled to herself when she saw Bob slip him what she thought was a twenty-dollar bill. Without acknowledging the bill’s presence, the maitre d’ led the way to a very secluded semicircular booth.

Bob helped Brenda get seated and then slid around beside her. A waiter took their drink order, then left them alone. Bob took out the bug detection device and quickly scanned the area.

“Have you thought about retirement?” Bob asked as the waiter brought their drinks.

Both drinks were in tall glasses with straws. The waiter slid away silently again.

“Not very much,” she replied, sipping her drink as it sat on the table. “Why do you ask?”

“If you had the opportunity to come into a great deal of money, would you want to retire on some remote beach somewhere?”

“That sounds dreamy. I suppose I would with the right person,” she said, giving him a big smile and a wink.

“Good,” Bob replied. “That’s what I wanted to hear.”

“What do you have in mind?” she asked as the waiter reappeared.

“What say we have the large steak for two?” he asked.

“You’re cutting,” she said. “That sounds fine if it’s rare.”

The waiter left, and they were alone again.

“You were saying?” she quizzed.

“Nothing for sure. But you know, sometimes those drug lords that I’ve popped in the past have left a lot of cash around. Maybe someday if the conditions are just right, I was thinking of borrowing some and retiring.”

“Count me in,” she smiled. “Especially if it’s just you and I.”

“Then we could get you arms without bugs,” he joked.

“Maybe I wouldn’t wear them and make you wait on me,” she joked back.

“I could handle that,” he said as he nodded his head.

The waiter brought their huge steak and all of the trimmings. The stumps of Brenda’s arms hung at her side as Bob began to feed her, first the salad and then portions of steak. Not much more was said during dinner. Bob paid the check and escorted her out of the restaurant.

“How much time until the next satellite pass?” she asked.

“It just went over so we have another three hours before another,” he replied looking at his watch. “What did you have in mind?”

“Take me to your motel and make love to me,” she said matter-of-factly.

“Just like that?” he said, unlocking the car door.

She came close to him just as he straightened up. With both of her arm stumps on his shoulders, she kissed him. The kiss became more passionate when Bob held her close and seriously kissed her back.

When the kiss broke off, Brenda said: “Not just like that. I’ve been wanting to get into bed with you for a long time. Had you not been so late and got me so pissed off before you left, I was planning on spending some serious bed time with you.”

“Are you sure?” Bob asked.

“More sure than I’ve ever been about anything, including the fact that I no longer have any arms,” she replied.

Bob helped her into the rented car, then got in himself. He started the car and backed out of the parking place, then headed for the highway.

“I feel like I’m taking advantage of you,” he said cautiously once he had pulled out onto the main road. “You’ve told me how helpless you are without your prosthetics.”

“Please don’t feel that way. Remember this was my idea,” she said. “I can’t touch myself the way I used to, and I surely don’t want to try it with my hooks. I’d get thrashing around and really hurt myself. Besides, now that I know that I’m the star attraction on the security TV, I don’t even know if I can get myself in the mood in my apartment.”

“I guess I’m willing if you are,” he said hesitantly as he pulled off of the highway onto the side street that led to the motel. “Just remember, this was your idea and something I’m not forcing on you.”

“But I bet you’re going to enjoy it as much as I am,” she said as he pulled into the parking place in front of the motel unit.

Bob got out of the car, helped her out, then they walked to the door. He took out his key and unlocked it. He flipped on the light, and they both walked in. It smelled musty like most motel rooms do. Bob closed and bolted the door. By the time he turned around, Brenda had already stepped out of her shoes.

“I need to use the bathroom,” she said. “Pull my panties down. I’m glad that I didn’t wear pantyhose tonight.”

Bob pulled up her dress around her hips and pulled her black panties down around her ankles. She walked quickly to the bathroom and looked inside.

“Bob, could you please help me a little more?” she asked. “Take off that sanitary wrapper and lift the lid please.”

He complied with her wishes and stepped out of the bathroom. He took out the bug detector and gave the room a quick recheck. A moment later, she called him again.

“Now I need you to wipe me,” she said sheepishly.

This was a first for Bob as he set about his newly assigned task.

“I can easily handle this with my hooks on,” she said. “This won’t be an everyday occurrence, only when you take my arms away.”

“I’ll keep that in mind,” he said as they started out of the bathroom.

“I do need help with showers and baths though,” she informed him. “You can help with that if you’d like.”

“We’ll see,” Bob replied. “Who helps you normally?”

“Mandy, from special services, usually. All I need to do is call her. Her number’s on speed dial, and she lives in my building,” she offered. “You know, the one that’s bugged.”

They had reached the end of the king size bed when Brenda stopped, turned to Bob, and asked, “Are you comfortable with this?”

“I don’t know,” he replied. “Don’t think that I haven’t fantasized taking you to bed, because I have, more times than I’d like to mention. This isn’t really what I had in mind though. Having sex because the satellite is not over us at the present time is not a real turn on for me. Don’t get me wrong; I really do want to have sex with you; boy, do I want to have sex with you, but you’re my partner. You know what I mean.”

“I’ve always struggled with that too,” she responded. “Now that we’re working together again, we probably shouldn’t let a thing like casual sex get in our way. The only problem is that I’m still horny as hell. I can’t touch myself the way I used to, to relive my built up urge for sex.”

“You mean masturbate?” he said.

“Yes, if that’s what you want to call it,” she said, sitting down on the end of the bed. “I can’t masturbate the way I used to.”

Bob thought for a minute, then sat down beside her and said: “I suppose I could do it for you. You’d have to tell me how though.”

“Well for me, it’s a matter of mood and mental projection coupled with the right touch,” she started. “It would help if we were both undressed. That’s usually the start of my fantasy, with you and me naked.”

“You and me, naked?” he asked. “Why me?”

“Because you’ve always turned me on damn it,” she replied. “You’ve turned me on ever since I’ve known you. Up until now, I’ve had one devil of a time keeping my hands off of you, but now I don’t have any hands to keep off of you. Now I’ve got to get you to put your hands on me.”

“So where do we start?”

“With you taking my clothes off of me.”

“OK,” he replied. “Let’s get your clothes off.”

They stood up again, and Bob began to seductively remove Brenda’s dress. When he had it off, the only thing that she still was wearing was a black bra and nylons. Brenda sat back down on the bed, and Bob started to remove her stockings by rolling them down from the top. Now the only article of clothing on the almost armless Brenda was her bra. She looked down to motion to Bob that the clasp was in front. He deftly unfastened the catch of the strapless black bra, and dropping the clasp from his left hand, the bra swung uselessly out of the way leaving Brenda completely nude.

“Now I help you undress,” she said, standing up. “We start with your shirt.”

She put the tips of her arm stumps on top of Bob’s hands as he began to unbutton his shirt and pull its tail out of his pants. He threw it on the bed next to her dress and quickly pulled his T-shirt over his head.

“Now we kiss a little,” she whispered breathlessly.

Their lips met, and Bob drew her close. Brenda’s arm stumps were on Bob’s shoulders as she attempted to pull him close with what was left of her upper arms. The kiss was extremely passionate and lasted at least five minutes.

When the kiss was finished, he sat on the bed and removed his shoes and socks unaided. Brenda sat on the bed beside him. With his shoes and socks removed, he stood up again and stood close to her, allowing her to put her arm stumps on his hands as he unfastened his belt. His hands and her arm stumps concentrated next on his zipper and pants button. With them no longer fastened, his pants hung loosely around Bob’s hips. Brenda used her arm stumps to slide his pants off his hips and down below his knees.

Bob sat on the bed while Brenda slid onto the floor. She sat resting on her haunches while he put one of his legs near her mouth. She grasped his cuff in her teeth and pulled the pant leg off completely before she tackled the other one. While Brenda struggled to her feet, Bob stood up quickly and removed his shorts. Stepping out of them and now also completely nude, Bob took her in his arms and kissed her passionately again.

“Now what happens?” he asked.

“We walk down the beach, and you take me into the tall grass,” she said. “Lie down on the bed with me, and we’ll pretend it’s the beach.”

He guided her to the bed, and he lay down beside her.

“Now you run your hands all over me paying attention to my erogenous zones,” she hoarsely whispered.

He began to run his hands lightly over her body. He paid particular attention to the areas that made her squirm with expectations. In the process, he ran his fingers lightly over one of the faint scars on the end of one of her arm stumps.

“My God! What have you done?” she asked breathlessly.

“I’m just lightly touching the scar on your right arm stump,” he replied softly.

“Don’t stop!” she breathed. “That’s the most erotic feeling I’ve ever had.”

He continued to lightly touch her scar on one arm and then the other. Each time he would touch one, she would convulse. He tried positioning himself so that he could touch both arms simultaneously. When he did, she could hardly breathe. He knew that she was about to have an orgasm, so he used one of his hands to gently touch her clitoris. Almost as soon as he touched it, she erupted into a violent orgasm, complete with screaming and convulsing on the bed.

Bob smiled to himself as he cuddled next to her as she began to relax.

“I’m not sure what you did to me, but that was the most pleasurable orgasm I’ve ever experienced,” she whispered. “Thank you.”

“The pleasure was all mine,” he said.

“I feel bad that you didn’t experience the same thing,” she said. “I’d really like to have sex with you if you’ll have me. I know I don’t have arms and probably turn you off, but I’d still like to feel you in me.”

“I didn’t bring a condom, and I sure don’t want to get my partner pregnant before we have a chance to work together,” he sighed.

“Don’t worry about me getting pregnant,” she said. “Part of my other internal injuries from the blast required them to do a double hysterectomy.”

“I’m sorry. I didn’t know.”

“Don’t be sorry,” she said. “I never wanted kids, and I always hated having my period. Now that’s gone. Like I said, I’d like to feel you in me. That is, only if you want to.”

He pulled her tightly to him and whispered, “I’d like to wait until our relationship solidifies.”

“You satisfied me tonight. I can wait too,” she said as she snuggled close to him and put one leg over his.

Chapter 3:

“How long until we get there?” Bob asked the pilot.

“We’ll be over the jump zone in five minutes,” the pilot replied over the drone of the engines.

Bob moved to the rear of the plane. Brenda was getting into her harness and was struggling with the chest straps. She couldn’t position her hooks properly to fasten the catch. Bob fastened it for her. Bob fastened their knapsack to the front of Brenda’s harness. He then took a short piece of black rubber tubing out of his pocket, and she positioned her redesigned left hook so that he could slip it over the inoperable hook. The hook had been sharpened into a very effective close range weapon.

“Thanks,” Brenda yelled as Bob started to get into his parachute harness.

“Are you ready?” Bob asked as he buckled his last strap. “About four minutes now.”

“As ready as I’m going to be,” she replied as she grasped the static line with the hook that replaced her right hand.

She tried to reach up and put the static line hook over the wire. The action caused her hook to open and the static line fell to the floor. She bent down and scooped the line up again with her sheathed hook on her left arm. She was putting the static line in her right hook again when Bob took it from her and snapped it over the wire effortlessly, then snapped his own static line. She backed into him, and he fastened the two harnesses together.

The jump light turned green, the engines cut, and Brenda moved over to the door with Bob behind her in unison. Brenda paused a moment, then stepped out into the pitch blackness pulling Bob with her.

The static line almost instantly popped their oversized black parachute. As they drifted in the darkness, a signal light flashed at them briefly but long enough to establish the landing area. As they drifted closer, the light flashed again letting them know they were right on target. When they landed in the tall grass, Bob quickly unfastened them and then gathered the chute.

A man was suddenly with them as if he had materialized out of thin air and introduced himself as Ramón. It was instantly obviously that Spanish was his native tongue, even though the English that he spoke was easily understood.

Ramón helped them gather the chute and put it into a stuff bag. When the bag was well hidden, Bob carried the knapsack and Ramón led them down a path toward a small village. The three of them paused, still in the trees at the edge of the village, then Ramón went on ahead while Brenda and Bob waited under cover.

“How are you doing?” Bob whispered.

“I’m OK,” Brenda replied in a whisper.

“The setup for those new arms is quite a bit heavier, isn’t it?”

“Yes, and this harness that they made is hot too.”

“But it gives you a bulletproof vest too.”

“That’s what Alan said. I haven’t let anyone shoot me to find out. The harness does let me put my arms over my head and hang by my hooks without them coming off though.”

“Let’s hope we don’t need to use that feature,” Bob said. “Is your forearm gun loaded?”

“No,” Brenda replied. “Will you help me load it now?”

Bob opened the ammo packet on her pistol belt and took out one of the specially modified cylinders while Brenda slid up her sleeve with her right hook. The cylinder reminded him of a typical 22-caliber long-rifle revolver pistol cylinder. He opened the door on the top of her left forearm and dropped the cylinder in place, then closed the door.

“I think you’re set,” he said. “Check it.”

Brenda used the hook on her right arm to pull back the modified actuating lever on her left hook. She heard the gun click, and the pointing laser came on.

“I’m good,” she said. “Help me uncock it. Ease the actuating arm down when I press the trigger.”

He stood beside her and grasped the actuating lever while she pressed the indented trigger button near her left wrist with her right hook. Bob eased the actuating lever forward, and the aiming laser went out.

Brenda grasped the sheath on her sharpened left hook with her right hook and slid it off, then passed it to Bob.

“This thing doesn’t give me much firepower, but it’s pretty accurate up to fifty yards,” she said.

“I’ve seen you do some pretty fancy shooting with that thing,” he observed as he pulled her sleeve down. “Accuracy counts for a lot. You can shoot all day long, but you haven’t done a thing unless you can hit what you’re aiming at.”

They sat down to wait under cover but with a great view of the square near the fountain.

They didn’t have to wait too long. Shortly after sunup, they heard a pickup truck coming. Bob looked through his binoculars and verified that their target, José Fernadez, was riding in the passenger seat of the new extended-cab four-wheel drive pickup that was slowly approaching. Brenda cocked the gun built into her left arm with the hook of her right arm. The pickup stopped right where Ramón had told them it would beside the fountain.

Brenda brought the pointing laser up the side of the pickup door, moved it to the side of his head, then gently pressed the trigger button with her right hook. The shot hit José Fernadez right where she had aimed. A small hole right behind the ear pumped blood onto his white linen shirt as he slumped forward.

Suddenly the quiet street erupted in pandemonium. Bob and Brenda used the confusion to slip quietly back into the trees for cover. Bob picked up their knapsack, and they began running down the trail with Brenda in the lead. When they heard someone behind them, they put the diversion plan into action. Bob kept on running while Brenda stepped behind a tree. Luckily only one gunman was running down the trail after them. Bob stopped running and put up his hands when the gunman was a little way past Brenda. While he was distracted with Bob, Brenda slipped up silently behind the gunman, and with a quick slash to his neck from behind with her sharpened left hook, the gunman fell limply to the ground.

Now Bob and Brenda continued on down the trail at a slower but brisk pace. When they had gone about ten miles, they came to a large clearing. They waited at the edge of the clearing, being sure they were not followed. Brenda stayed concealed while Bob walked into the clearing with the GPS. He quickly established their position and went back to where she was waiting. He took the map out of the knapsack and established their location.

“We’re in good shape,” Bob said. “We can call for a chopper here or pick up a boat on the coast. It’s only five miles to the east.”

“How long will it take to get us out by chopper?” Brenda asked.

“A couple of hours,” he replied. “The only thing I’m worried about is exposing the crew to possible ground fire.”

“Let’s wait for a boat then,” she said.

“How are you doing?”

“I hate this darn harness. It’s hotter than hell. I want to get it off as soon as I can.”

“We should probably wait until we get to the ocean,” Bob said. “We’ll have to wait for darkness before they’ll send us a boat anyway.”

“Let’s get going,” Brenda said, getting up. “Put the sheath on my left hook please.”

Bob slipped the rubber sheath over her hook, and they started heading east toward the ocean. They skirted the edge of the clearing and found a trail that led in an easterly direction.

The trail was relatively unused and quite brushy, so the going was slow. They reached the ocean beach about midday and found cover in a location where they had good surveillance of the entire beach.

“There’s not a soul in sight,” Brenda said.

“I know, but be careful; these gunmen like to hide in the bushes and spring on you when you let your guard down,” Bob replied.

“You’re right,” she lamented. “Take another reading, and I’ll make the call. Help me with this sweater.”

Bob pulled the lightweight camouflage turtleneck sweater up over her head and slid each sleeve down over her prosthetic arms. He took out the GPS and quickly got a reading while she opened the cover on her right forearm.

“That was clever of Alan to build in that satellite phone in your right arm,” Bob observed. “At least they didn’t bug this set of arms.”

“He put the phone in mostly for weight balance for this whole contraption. Without it, I’d be lopsided,” she said. “At least he gave me something useful. You can never tell when you might need to order a pizza.”

“How about a boat instead? We have food.”

She used her sheathed left hook to press the buttons that dialed the phone. Contact was quickly established, and she told them their location in latitude and longitude. The voice on the other end said that a pickup boat would meet them at midnight.

“OK,” she said. “That’s done. What do we do for the next twelve hours?”

“Let’s just sit and relax,” he replied.

“I’d love to get rid of this harness for a while. It’s hotter than hell.”

“The place looks pretty deserted. I think it will be all right. Why don’t you let me look around first? Sit tight for a few minutes.”

Brenda nodded approval, and Bob slipped silently into the bushes, then he was gone. Alone now, Brenda scanned the deserted beach in both directions. The emptiness was eerie, with only the sound of light surf on the beach and sea birds.

After what seemed to Brenda to be an eternity, she heard the whistle that they had agreed upon as a signal. She returned the call.

“Well, what did you find?” she quizzed as Bob sat down beside her.

“It’s deserted now, but they were here. There are tire tracks and footprints about two hundred meters north of here. I’d guess them to be about three days old.”

“What do you think?”

“We’ll be fine as long as we keep our heads down,” Bob replied. “You never can be too careful.”

Brenda used her hooks to release her ammo belt. She unzipped the zippers on the side of her combat boots and slipped them off.

“Undo my harness please,” she asked.

Alan had devised a combination bulletproof vest and harnesses to support her prosthetic arms in such a way that she was able to hang by her hooks if necessary. Bob unfastened the straps that held the front of her harness together. She lay down on her back with her arms over her head, and he spread the harness apart. She arched her back, then slid down and out of the harness. When she was free of the harness, she sat up. This time, rather than stump socks, she was wearing what appeared to be a tightfitting, long-sleeved T-shirt with sleeves carefully tailored to fit the contours of her stumps and sewn shut. It was wringing wet with perspiration and, because of its transparency, left little to the imagination.

“The T-shirt too,” she said. “I want it to dry.”

Bob pulled the specially fitted T-shirt up over her head and stumps exposing her bare upper torso. Bob admired her firm breasts with his eyes before he spread the T-shirt out over some bushes in the sun. He sat down beside her, now sitting there wearing only her old jeans.

“I think it’s time we had a little talk,” Brenda said.

“OK,” Bob replied tentatively. “What’s the subject?”

“Our feelings about one another and our relationship.”

“OK, where do we start?”

“How do you really picture me, some helpless cripple with her arms chopped off?”

“No, not at all,” he quickly replied. “I picture you as a very beautiful, capable woman, as brave as anyone I’ve ever known, who met up with an unfortunate accident.”

“How do you feel about my stumps?”

“I don’t know. I don’t find them repulsive, if that’s what you mean.”

“Does the fact that I’ve lost my hands turn you on at all?”

“Well,” he stammered.

“Come on, tell me the truth,” Brenda prodded. “Do my stumps turn you on?”

“To be perfectly honest, yes,” he blurted. “When you sit there like that with those beautiful boobs exposed and those arm stumps showing, it’s all I can do to keep from jumping you. Yes, you do turn me on. You did before, and now it’s even more.”

“So what are you going to do about it?”

“Nothing,” he replied. “Remember the rules about that sort of thing. Good grief Brenda, we work closely together. What if we get into a big fight when we’re out on a critical mission. We both always need to be focused.”

“All right then, what if I quit?”

“That would be OK for the short term,” Bob replied. “It wouldn’t work in the long run.”

“Why not?” Brenda asked.

“You know as well as I do that the paid assassin business is not the safest business in the world. That’s the reason that they pay as well as they do. We don’t have long-term prospects. There’s a bullet out there somewhere with my name on it. It’s just a matter of time until we meet. I could never ask you to wait for me under those circumstances.”

“Do you love me?”

“Oh hell yes,” he replied. “I’ve loved you from the first day we met.”

“And you never said anything?”

“No. How could I? We worked together. I surely didn’t want to jeopardize your career,” he said as they both began to have moist eyes. “You’ve driven me crazy for years.”

“Just to let you know Bob,” she said, “I’ve been in love with you too. Almost as soon as we met, I knew you were the one that I wanted. You never showed any interest in me at all. It was like you went out of your way to avoid me, especially since that night after you came back from vacation.”

“I had to keep my sanity,” Bob replied. “Every night before I drop off to sleep, I wish you were with me.”

“You have no idea how badly I’ve always wanted you too.”

“So what’s the answer? We both quit?” he asked.

Brenda didn’t answer.

“I wonder if that guy we hit this morning left any cash around?”

“You mean like you suggested when you got back from vacation,” she said.

“That’s what I meant. We could maybe find where he was hiding his cash and borrow it. He isn’t going to need it now.”

“Live on his money?”

“Why not. When we hit one, his henchmen just split up the cash and go into business for themselves. Think of it as helping to eliminate a couple of suppliers before they start. But we do need to consider how we handle Wayne,” Bob said.

“He all but insisted that I retire before. I had to argue like a son of a gun to be kept on. I think that he views me as a liability and wouldn’t have any problem letting me go,” she said. “But I’m not sure what we could do to convince him to let you out of your contract.”

“I could shoot myself in the foot and retire because I was shot,” he offered.

“Good grief! Don’t even say that,” Brenda said forcefully. “You have no idea what it’s like, living without body parts. I’d give anything to have my hands back.”

“OK. Just thinking out loud.”

“Bob, will you have sex with me, right now?” she asked.

“No,” Bob said flatly, pointing skyward. “The satellite is probably watching us right now. There is a midday flyover you know.”

“Oh my gosh, I forgot,” she said. “They could see exactly what we were doing.”

“With the heat sensors, we couldn’t even hide under the tree,” he replied. “I wonder who’s looking at those nice boobs.”

Brenda instinctively covered her breasts the best she could with her arm stumps and said, “I should put my T-shirt back on I guess.”

“Naw, they’ve seen all they’re going to see. Besides, with that white T-shirt, you’ll still stand out like a sore thumb.”

“I don’t have any thumbs,” Brenda countered.

“Are we getting a bit sensitive?” Bob teased.

“No. Just horny as hell.”

“Try to relax,” he said. “I’ll help you out later.”

“Promise?”

“Promise. Just like that night in the motel before we started training together.”

“Undo my pants then. I’ll use the time to work on my tan,” she said with a smile.

They both stood up, and he unfastened her pants. When he finished, her pants fell down around her ankles. She stood close and put both stubs around his neck, and he responded by drawing her close. The passionate kiss that followed was good for both of them.

She stepped out of her pants and sat down. Bob removed her socks for her, leaving her clothed only in brief white bikini panties.

She used her arm stumps and teeth to spread out her pants, then lay down on them. It was all Bob could do to contain himself as he sat down beside her and opened the knapsack. He took out part of their rations and spread them out between them. He asked her which one she wanted, and he opened her choice. She sat with her arms at her side while he fed her.

“I’m going to scout around for a while. I don’t like surprises,” Bob said when they had finished lunch. “Are you all right?”

“I’ll be OK for while,” Brenda replied. “Remember I’m helpless as hell like this. I can’t do very much when I don’t have my hooks on, and I can’t get those arms on without help, so just don’t leave me.”

“Wild horses couldn’t drag me away,” he said. “I’ll stay close.”

He slipped quietly into the bushes toward the taller trees to the west, leaving her lying there in the low bushes without her prosthetic arms on. He continued on and came across a road of sorts. He was under cover when a small extended-cab four-wheel drive pickup came slowly lumbering down the road. The new, but muddy pickup had a driver and passenger in the cab as well as four heavily armed guards in the back. A large object, covered with a tarp, took up most of the bed. Bob remained absolutely still as he crouched until the pickup was well out of sight. He turned and started quickly down the trail toward Brenda lying there unable to protect herself.

Bob was near the edge of the trees when his foot hit a thin, dark string. Instantly, a rope tightened around his ankles and he was catapulted skyward. He was whipped around and came to rest hanging upside down. This was not the first time that Bob had been in one of these traps. He very calmly gave the agreed upon whistle.

Brenda leaped to her feet and whistled back. She heard his reply and started down the trail toward him.

“How did you get up there?” she teased when she found him. “Boy, do you look silly.”

“Don’t get smart. Cut me down,” he said.

“And how do you expect me to do that?” she said, holding out her arm stumps.

“The rope is tied to that tree over there,” he said, pointing in the direction of the tree where the rope was tied. “Hurry, there’s a truck load of them nearby.”

Brenda walked over to tree and looked at the knot. She tried to grasp the knot with her stumps unsuccessfully several times. Finally she resorted to using her teeth. It took a while, but she finally had most of the knot untied.

“Are you ready?” she asked. “I’ve just about got it.”

“Go ahead,” he responded.

She gave the rope a final tug with her teeth, and the knot was untied. The rope played out quickly, and Bob dropped to the ground. He broke his fall with his arms, rolled, and sprung to his feet.

“Come on,” he said as they started back toward the beach. “I saw them go down the road. It might be the break we’re looking for.”

“What are we going to do?” she asked as she hurried to keep up with him.

“Let’s get you dressed and back in commission first,” he said.

“You won’t get an argument out of me. I felt terribly useless just trying to get you down.”

“By the way, thanks partner,” he said, giving her a little kiss.

“No problem partner,” she answered with a huge smile. “Start with the T-shirt.”

Bob picked up her T-shirt and slipped it over her head, then threaded her stumps into the tightly tailored sleeves. He had her sit down and put her socks on her feet. He helped her get her pants back on and zipped them up. He picked up the harness that held her prosthetic arms. She lifted her stumps, and he threaded both of the arms over her stumps. She lowered her arms to be sure both stumps were seated in the arms. He started to fasten the front of the harness.

“Ow. My boobs are caught,” she complained. “They’re not in the harness properly.”

“Sorry,” he replied.

“Let me lay down,” she said as she lay down on her back. “Stick your hand under the harness and slip my boobs in.”

He put his hand under the harness and cupped her right breast. He moved it around the right side of the harness until he thought it was in place.

“How’s that?” he asked.

“Fine,” she replied. “Now the other one.”

Holding the right side in place he slid his other hand under the left side of the harness and cupped her breast in his hand. He moved her breast around until it too was in place, then removed his hand. He brought both sides of the harness together, ready to be fastened.

“Is that going to be OK?” he asked.

“That feels right I think. I won’t know until I stand up.”

He fastened the three fasteners that held the molded hard plastic harness together. He helped her to her feet.

“Well?” he asked.

She bent forward at the waist and rotated her torso from side to side several times, then stood back up.

“They’re in place,” she announced.

“Good,” Bob replied.

“So did you like playing with my boobs?” Brenda asked.

“I would like to take a little more time next time. I’ll do your arm stumps too,” he said with a sly grin on his face. “Slip on your boots.”

“I’m glad you enjoyed it. I know I did,” she said, slipping her feet into her combat boots.

Bob bent over and pulled up the zippers, then picked up her ammo belt and fastened it around her waist.

“Have you got a plan?” she asked.

“As heavily guarded as that pickup was and as low as it was sitting, I think that it was carrying a safe. All we have to do is follow the pickup and take it away from them. We’ll be rich enough then that we can get out of this paid assassin business.”

“I like the last part. But just take it away from them?” she said.

“We take out the drugies, open the safe, and pack away their money. Piece of cake.”

“Bob, how many of them were there?”

“Only six counting the driver,” he replied nonchalantly.

“Six!” Brenda exclaimed.

“You take the two in the cab, and I’ll take out the four in the back. How fast does that pea shooter work?”

“Not very,” Brenda replied. “It’s basically a single action revolver mechanism. I have to cock it before each shot. It’s really designed for the one good shot mode.”

“OK. We can work it out when we see the setup,” he said. “Are your arms working?”

She flexed both elbows, moved her shoulders, and opened her right hook. She pulled back the fake actuating lever on her left hook with her right. The action cocked the built-in gun and activated the aiming laser. They could both see the beam of light. Bob held the actuating lever while Brenda pushed the recessed trigger button. He eased the lever forward, effectively putting the safety on.

“I’m operational,” she said. “The camouflage sweater please.”

Bob picked up the sweater and helped her put it on, then picked up his own weapon.

Bob led as they started back down the trail. When they reached the road, they went in the direction Bob had seen the pickup traveling. They had briskly walked up the road about twenty minutes when they came to a clearing. The pickup was parked in the middle of the clearing. One of the gunmen was still sitting in the bed of the pickup, and the driver was in the cab. The leader and three of the gunmen that Bob had seen earlier were digging a hole at the edge of the clearing. The safe was still sitting in the bed of the pickup and was now uncovered. Brenda and Bob remained out of sight, quietly surveyed the situation, then retreated.

“What do you think?” Brenda asked in a loud whisper when they were back down the road out of earshot.

“I think that they borrowed José Fernadez’s money, now that he doesn’t need it, and are in the process of burying it,” he replied. “Wasn’t that the truck he was riding in this morning?”

“I’m sure it was. It’s muddier now, but it’s the same color anyway,” she said. “How do we get the money out of the safe, if it is in the safe?”

“Old safes like that are easy,” Bob said confidently. “I wonder if they’re going to try and open it or just bury the whole thing.”

“That would be just like digging up buried treasure,” Brenda beamed. “So what do we do?”

“Let’s let them dig a little more,” he began. “If it appears that they’re going to bury the whole safe, we take them while they’re unloading it. If they’re going to blow the safe, we take them before they ruin it. Those idiots will probably blow it in the bed of the pickup and ruin the pickup too. If they know how to open it, we take them just as the door is opened.”

“That’ll work,” she agreed. “Do we set up a cross fire?”

“That will probably work the best. I’ll work my way about ninety degrees around to the right. You stay by the road. We’ll have the element of surprise on our side.”

“What do you plan on doing after we take them?” Brenda asked.

“You said we should retire,” he replied. “That’s probably too much money to give back to Wayne. He’d turn it back over to the treasury, and we’d get a couple of nice letters from the committee saying what a good job we did. I think we should take the money and head further south.”

“You mean and like vanish? Just you and I?” Brenda said. “Just you and I together with no boss?”

“Exactly. Isn’t that what you wanted?” he quizzed.

“Hell yes it is. Now we’ve got something we can really fight for,” she said. “What about the boat tonight?”

“If we’re not there to signal them, they won’t come in. Remember, we’re both expendable and the government has no knowledge of what we do. We work for a private enterprise government contractor. If we don’t show up, they’ll figure that we were taken out before the pickup boat got here.”

“So we’re going to take José Fernadez’s truck and money and just drive down the road, that simple,” she said.

“That simple,” he replied and hugged her. The ensuing kiss was quite passionate.

They started back down the road. Just before they reached the clearing, Bob slipped off into the underbrush. Brenda worked her way silently to the edge of the clearing and found a spot that provided cover. Bob continued to work his way, unseen, around the clearing until he found his cover. They both waited breathlessly for the gunmen to do something other than dig a hole.

The driver was now out of the pickup and leaning on the side, talking to the gunmen in the back. The leader still watched as the others finished the large hole. By the size of the hole, it was evident that the bandits planned to bury the safe. The boss signaled the driver to move the pickup closer to the hole. The driver got back in the cab and backed up the pickup as the boss signaled. The leader signaled him to stop when the pickup was in position. One of the other gunmen joined the one already in the bed of the pickup, and together they struggled to get the safe out to the tailgate. The other two gunmen positioned themselves to lift.

Brenda cocked the gun built into her arm and the aiming laser came on. She knew her first shot had to take out the driver. Bob at the same time readied himself to take out the leader. Brenda brought her pointing laser to the side of the driver’s head and pushed the trigger button. The driver slumped at the wheel. One of the gunmen heard the shot and looked in Brenda’s direction. He began to draw his weapon. Bob’s shot took out the leader. The next two shots each took out the gunmen on the side where the leader had been.

One of the gunmen shot at Brenda, and her right prosthetic forearm seemed to explode. Bob’s next shot took him out.

Brenda, though her right forearm was virtually destroyed, fired at the remaining gunman. As usual, her aim was deadly.

With all of their opponents eliminated, Bob and Brenda both emerged into the clearing. She ran over to him, and they hugged with a brief kiss.

“Have you been hit?” he said when he saw a portion of her right arm prosthesis.

“Oh ya that,” she replied.

“Look at your right arm. Are you all right?”

Brenda looked closely while Bob slid up her sleeve. She gasped when she saw the mess that was once a very workable prosthetic right forearm. He opened the door to the satellite phone and saw the mess of components that remained. She held her arm out and shook it and the components fell on the ground and the hook hung only by its operating cable.

“Well, we don’t have to worry about ordering that pizza,” he said, looking at what was left of the phone.

“The phone is now officially dead, and my right hook is shot too.”

“Sorry about your hook, but it saves me the work of deactivating the phone,” Bob said.

He removed the hook from the actuating cable and broke off the remaining fiberglass a little over half way up her right forearm. He put all the remains in the bed of the pickup.

“Why?” Brenda asked.

“That phone sends a signal that Wayne can trace anywhere you go in the world. Now he thinks you’re dead and won’t send anyone after you. We need to check the rest of our gear for homing devices too,” Bob said. “Check these guys, and I’ll open the safe.”

She began checking each of the corpses for signs of life. Bob started to work opening the safe by putting his ear to the door. When Brenda got to the driver, she struggled to get the door open. When she managed to get the door open, he tumbled out onto the ground. She managed to get her inoperable left hook around his belt to drag him clear.

“Got it,” Bob announced.

“Well?” Brenda asked.

“We’ve just retired,” Bob said, holding up a bundle of cash. “We’ll count it later. Hand me that duffel bag there in the bed of the pickup.”

“I don’t hand anything to anybody,” Brenda said as she slipped her inoperable left hook around the strap of the duffel bag lying in the bed. She took it to Bob, then said, “I’ll pass it, but not hand it.”

“Got ya,” he replied as he took the bag from her.

Bob looked the duffel bag over. The words stenciled words “U S ARMY” were still faintly visible. He opened the duffel bag and dumped contents into the back of the pickup and set about filling it with the cash from the safe. The money was neatly bundled and secured with paper bands.

“How much do you think?” she asked.

“Fifteen to twenty million,” he replied nonchalantly.

He finished emptying the contents of the safe and put the bag in the cab of the pickup. Then he closed the door of the safe and spun the dial. They both got in the bed of the pickup and pushed the safe off the tailgate. It tumbled into the hole with a dull thud.

“If you move the pickup ahead, I’ll drag the bodies out of the clearing,” he said.

“Are you going to bury them?”

“We don’t have time,” he replied. “I do want to throw some dirt over the safe to keep those guys who are probably on our tail confused.”

“Won’t some animal eat them?” she said.

“Probably,” he replied. “The animals have to eat too.”

“That’s gross,” she said, climbing into the cab.

Bob began dragging the bodies out of the clearing and into the dense underbrush. Brenda looked briefly at the duffel bag of money. She hadn’t tried driving since the accident, and with her right forearm missing midway below her prosthetic elbow, she couldn’t turn the key. She attempted to get in position to turn the key with her inoperable left hook.

When she couldn’t get it, she started to cry and muttered: “Damn these arms. I hate ‘em. Oh, I want my arms and hands back so bad.”

“I can’t do it,” she said, holding up the remnants of her right forearm when she got out of the pickup.

Bob was starting to shovel dirt over the safe. He interrupted what he was doing and moved the pickup ahead about ten feet, then resumed burying the safe. Brenda was able to use the hook on her left arm to pick up the gunmen’s weapons and bandoleers and put them into the bed of the pickup. Bob threw the shovel in the bed of the pickup and opened the passenger’s door for Brenda. She slid in next to the duffel bag of money. Bob closed her door and got in the driver’s seat. They were soon headed south on what people in that part of the world might call a road.

“How’s our gas?” Brenda asked, getting out the map.

“The tank’s almost full,” Bob replied.

E N D

This is the first part of the story. The story continues in THE RETIREES.

What are two quite wealthy retired assassins going to do for fun?