Countdown

'And what if I don't?'

Three small green lights just above the camera's lens swelled slightly in intensity. I flinched as I felt a zap of pain to my implant. Not too much. Just a warning.

I forced myself up off the bed and crouched down to look underneath. There was a gun. I wrapped my fingers around the handle of the gun and pulled it out.

I stood there next to the half a motel room, right next to the gray of the pavement, holding the gun, and I waited, every muscle in my body tense and on edge.

Rogan had his gun in hand as well. He held it loosely at his side.

'There is only one way out of Level Six. There can only he one winner of The Countdown. Kira and Rogan have fought side by side in victory thus far, but now they must fight against each other. For only by defeating the other can they win the game.

'Rogan fights now to clear his name of his crimes. Should he win, he will be able to start life with a clean slate, with his half of the Ellis fortune returned to him to do with as he wishes. He will have the freedom to remain here or to continue on Offworld.

'Kira fights for a fresh start as well. Her desire is to leave the city by shuttle to go to Offworld. There she will find that her new life awaits her, including a house and a small fortune that will see her to the end of her days in luxury.

'The only obstacle they face is each other. Whoever is standing at the end of Level Six… whoever is still breathing … shall be crowned the winner.

'Should neither of them succeed in killing the other in the time allotted, the level will be forfeited and both competitors shall be eliminated.

'There is a five-minute time limit for this level, which starts right now. Enjoy!'

When the announcer stopped talking I stood there, completely stunned. I looked at the gun in my hand.

They wanted me to kill Rogan.

And Rogan was supposed to kill me first. That was what they said, right?

Kill or be killed.

And if we didn't kill each other, both of us were dead anyhow in five minutes.

A line of fury ripped through me and I almost screamed, but I held it in. The rage burned just beneath the surface. I was sure that as I raised my gaze to look in the lens of the camera, any subscriber would be able to see what I was thinking. How much I hated them, those faceless, bloodthirsty bastards somewhere out there, watching every move I made.

I was lost in my thoughts for a moment, so distracted that I didn't hear Rogan approach. At the last second I heard his boots slam against the pavement as he neared me.

I automatically raised the gun and pointed it directly at him, and he stopped running. He held up his hands.

'Easy, Kira, easy.'

'Easy?' I managed. 'There's nothing easy about this. You heard what he said.'

'Yeah, I did.' He still held his own gun loosely at his right side.

'Just stay back.'

'There are four minutes remaining in this level of The Countdown.'

He frowned. 'Kira, listen to me. I'm not going to shoot you.'

My hands shook. 'But that's what they want. They want us to try to kill each other.'

'I don't give a shit what they want. I'm not doing it.'

A million different scenarios sped through my brain. There had to be a way out of this. I looked at the cameras that were greedily taking everything in.

The cameras watched everything. All they cared about was getting a good shot. Providing good entertainment so the subscribers kept watching.

Everything seemed to revolve around those cameras.

Dammit. I had an idea but I needed like hell for him to play along. 'Do you trust me Rogan?'

He eyed the gun. 'Yeah, I trust you.'

'Then you need to trust me right now. Point your gun at me. There's no other choice.'

He frowned deeply, staring into my eyes. It seemed to take him forever, but then slowly he raised his gun toward me. 'Like this? Is this what you want?'

'Three minutes remain in this level of The Countdown.'

'Yeah, that's exactly what I want. They picked us to be partners, Rogan. They knew that we were both damaged inside. How else could somebody make it through this game to the end? If it were a normal person they probably would have shut down. They couldn't handle the hell we've been through without giving up.'

He swallowed. 'That's right. We're special.'

I glanced at the cameras, now circling us, recording our last conversation, to be replayed over and over again for the entertainment of the subscribers.

'Do you think that you can kill me, Rogan?' I asked simply.

He didn't answer for a moment. 'Why are you even asking that?'

'If it meant your life or my life-and guess what, it does-then can you pull that trigger?'

His hand shook and he began to lower it. 'You're going to have to kill me, Kira.'

'And I will. You murdered my family. I'll kill you and not even blink.'

His eyes widened. 'But I-'

I pulled the trigger and shot the ground next to him. The cameras had spun behind me and didn't catch me rolling my eyes at him.

I mouthed the words, Please play along.

He stared at me for a long moment before he finally raised his gun again. 'Okay, have it your way.'

I tried to stifle my sigh of relief. 'Yeah, thanks for joining us so late in the show.'

He snorted. 'I guess I'm a bit of a slow learner.'

'Obviously.'

'Maybe this won't be as difficult as I thought it was. You pull your trigger. I pull my trigger. Whoever's the best shot wins, right?'

Damn. My arm was beginning to burn from holding the gun up.

'But it is difficult,' I said steadily. 'If it wasn't, then there wouldn't be any point, would there? I want to know something first. Was I ever more to you than just a … what did you laugh at earlier… a postprison piece of ass?'

He gave me a very convincing sneer. 'I've been in jail a long time, sweetheart. A hot little piece of flesh willingly spreads her legs for me? What am I supposed to do, refuse?'

'I knew it.'

'You're so perceptive. So now that the truth's out you're going to shoot me?'

'Maybe I am,' I said. 'Are you going to do something to stop me?'

'Maybe I'll shoot you first. Got enough ammo in this gun to make sure I don't miss. They haven't taken any chances this time.'

'No.' I glanced around at the cameras. 'Can't take any chances.'

'Two minutes remain in this level of The Countdown.'

'Are you a good shot?' I asked him.

'I used to do target practice in my teens. And you?'

'I'm okay.'

His lip curled. 'Wait, I remember that you missed Kurds and shot him in the shoulder. Either that was a precise hit or you're a lousy shot. I'm going to go out on a limb and say that you're a lousy shot.'

'Okay, now you're just being mean. I can hit something if I have enough ammo. Don't worry about that.'

'Are you going to shoot me or just talk about it?'