A Personal Grudge

Richard turned his car and headed down the road after dropping her off at the hospital. She waved at him as he drove away and he looked at her figure at the rear view mirror till the car drove out of range.

He retracted his gaze from the rear view mirror and focused on the road as his grip on the steering wheel grew tighter. His mind was in turmoil

The only thing he could think about were the pair of soft lips that covered his own in a warm, passionate kiss. Those soft arms that wrapped around his body sending shockwaves through his entire being.

His brain had failed him at that time and he couldn't process what had happened. It felt like it happened in the blink of an eye but he knew that he had lingered. Why did he linger? He didn't know but all he felt at that moment was to continue.

He exhaled. His grip became even tighter. He felt his body reacting again to the mere thought of her. soon the only word echoing through his mind was her name. Her name had somehow turned to a song—a kind of lyric—in his head as he drove through the lonely street of Misthill.

"Priscilla…" he muttered with a sigh.

It took the ringing of his phone to pull him out of his thoughts. He took the call. "What is it?"

"We've found something." The voice said.

"Got it. I'll be there in twenty." Richard ended the call and sped up. He turned to another street and then another until he arrived at the end of the second street. The road there was broken and rugged. The visible result of the last war that left many homeless in Crevania.

The government had offered relief funds but like most cases these funds either ended up with the same people who were tasked to distribute them or in the hands of a few privileged goons who just happened to have some connections in the right places.

Every time he thought about this, Richard felt that the government wasn't doing enough to upgrade the military and to help the refugees that survived the scorch of war a few years ago. He swerved past a pot hole on the road. It was obviously caused by a grenade explosion.

These were dangerous times.

He drove through with mixed thoughts. Children were running around the street making him slow down a bit. They seemed happy—at least until the rains started. The day he had seen countless women and children huddled under a small tree during a storm due to lack of accommodation was the day his heart broke for his country.

Unlike him who had been at the war front and had gotten used to not sleeping on soft beds on missions yet these people were innocent.

The worst part was that Misthill hadn't even suffered any hits from the previous war. It was Baywich that bore the brunt of the war. Several bombs had landed there.

It was during this time that he and his team had been sent to aid the soldiers there. They stumbled into the war front without knowing what awaited them. Near Crotan Forest, the unknown enemies had turned the forest into a mine field.

He shook his head to clear the thoughts. He had arrived at his destination. He parked the car and looked out the window for a while without the intention of going in. After making up his mind; he cocked his small gun and pushed it into his military boot.

One had to be careful here. This place was the very definition of desperation. They could rob him silly even if he wore a uniform. He had to take precautions. Could he actually blame them for wanting to rob every visitor? Of course not. This place had turned to a jungle in the last year.

He entered the building with a wary look. The moment he entered everyone stopped what they were doing and turned to the door. They stared at him for a few seconds before turning away and resuming their chatter.

Richard looked around too. He was making a mental map of his environment in case things went out of hand. He looked over and saw that the small window at the back had been sealed shut while the large table—where the person he was here to meet—was sitting at was at the far centre.

He nodded. If shit hit the fan he'd have to pull his gun and make his way to the door.

He approached the table and sat on a stool. He nodded his head at the tall muscular man behind the table who was cleaning glasses meticulously. "Hey. What do you have for me?"

The man dropped the glasses and pressed his hands down on the table. "My men managed to find a piece of clue that might interest you."

Richard raised his eyebrows. "And…?"

"We've found traces of 'their' activities in Boulderview. It's said that they're planning something big." He whispered.

"That's barely enough to satisfy me." Richard looked pissed. This was only a pointer. He needed an actual clue.

"Well that's the best we could do. As you know, those guys love operating in the dark. Stealthy." The man added.

"I pay you good money for that," Richard insisted. "Where in Boulderview?"

The man opened his palm and slipped the piece of paper towards Richard who took it secretly as well. They didn't know who among them was a spy and it was even worse with Richard wearing his military uniform here.

He nodded and stood up to leave but the muscular guy asked, "Why are you looking for these people?"

Richard hesitated and then sighed. "A personal grudge. They took something very valuable from me."

As he stood there, he didn't need to turn around to know that someone had crept up behind him. He had a bottle in hand and aimed at the soldier's head. Richard grabbed the wooden stool and swung it backwards catching the thief in the face.

He fell over a table and tumbled. The whole place became quiet as every gaze landed on the single man dressed in military uniform. Some of the men grabbed stools others grabbed bottles and they hurled themselves at Richard who stood unmoving.

All he did was side step and grab the nearest man by the scruff of his neck. He swung him around and used him as a weapon against the others. He slammed his already dizzy body into a table and ducked down just in time to avoid an incoming stool.

The flying stool slammed hard against one of his attackers. Richard jumped with a powerful kick and sent two down then he grabbed one and did a back swing throwing him to the floor while hammering his fist into the other's jaw.

The door was now free. He quickly bolted out and got into his car. Thankfully his tires were still good and nothing had happened to the car otherwise he'd have to go back in there and teach them some manners.