The Purple Roses

Two young girls faced each other in the booth at the run down diner, their oversized backpacks squished next to them on the plastic benches. It’s faded fifty style décor gave it a dingy sort of appearance yet the girls seemed not to notice. They were too busy looking intently at one another, ignoring the tall glasses of water and the basket of chips on the table before them.
Lizzy tried not to laugh as Kallista pulled a face at her. They were having a stare down and it was obvious Kallista was loosing. Every time Kal thought she was loosing at something, she ended up trying to cheat. Today was no exception.
The middle aged waitress came over to take their order, innocent of their game.
“How are you ladies doing? Can I get you anything?” She asked, chewing hard on a piece of gum.
Unable to resist the question, Kallista broke off her gaze from Lizzy and turned to the waitress in an aristocratic flourish.
“Oh no.” Lizzy moaned and turned away as Kal began to speak poshly.
“Ah, yes. I would like the Braised pork loin with Boulangère potatoes and my good friend here would like a Chicken Wellington with mushroom veloute sauce.”
The gray haired woman raised an eyebrow but Kallista did not appear to notice as she waved her hand airily about while she talked.
“A nice red wine to accompany our meal would do nicely. Perhaps a bottle of your finest Cabernet Sauvignon followed by Hot chocolate soufflés with chocolate cream sauce for desert.”
Kallista smiled brilliantly at the dumbfounded waitress. The poor woman stared with her heavy jaw opened in disbelief.
“Oh my gosh.” Lizzy muttered as she sank lower into the seat, raising a hand to her face as if to hide. She figured it was to late to pretend she didn’t know Kallista.
“Wha-?” The waitress began, then grew annoyed and angry as the confusion left her face. “What do you think you two are playing at? You think you can waltz in here and be all high and mighty?”
“Oh! Don’t mind her! She just had to much sugar!” Lizzy tried to calm the irate woman down. “She’s a bit delusional!”
For her part Kallista just cocked her head and looked at the woman suspiciously. “You don’t have Braised pork loin? How about a Brie & spinach croissant!”
“That’s it! You two are out of here!” The Woman snapped and grabbed each of the girl’s by the back of the neck.
Marching towards the door she pushed the girls before her, Kallista protesting all the way, clearly having fun.
“But my croissant! I must have my croissant!”
Lizzy thought her French accent was a bit much.
Then they were thrown out of the door. Their backpacks followed shortly after.
“THANK YOU!” Kallista waved cheerfully as the door to the diner shut firmly in their faces.
Lizzy blinked in Spring sun as her eyes adjusted once again to the light.
“This is the seventh restaurant we have been kicked out of Kallista.” She said lowly as she turned to face her carefree friend. “In the last one we had to wash dishes because YOU forgot to bring your money for the meal YOU said you would treat me too.”
“You didn’t have fun?” Kallista asked clearly puzzled. “But there were cute guys working in the back! We had FUN with the water fight. Remember?”
“That WATER fight, “ Lizzy spoke through clenched teeth, “Caused us to be BANNED from that restaurant FOREVER!”
Kallista did her best to look contrite. It was NOT a good look for her.
“Oh stop that. “ Lizzy said crossly. “You look constipated.”
“Well, I kinda am.” Kallista admitted sheepishly. “Too much cheese I think.”
“Oh! To much info!” Lizzy slapped her hand in her face then whispered. “Never mind. They are here.”
Kallista immediately lost her goofy expression replacing it with a look of steel. Gazing at a long sleek car she followed it’s progress as it turned down in an alley way.
“You ready?” Kallista asked quietly as she grabbed her bag and darted into another alley way across the street.
Lizzy followed and the two girl’s quickly donned on face masks then pulled on dark jackets over their sweatshirts.
“It’s starting.” Lizzy whispered into her mic in her wristwatch.
“Finally.” Skyril’s voice answered in her ear. “I’ll alert the others. Do you need back up?”
“No.” Lizzy responded shortly as they crept closer to their targets. “These are the low men on the totem pole. They should be easy to take down.”
“Sending a clear message to the higher ups,” Kallista grinned wickedly. “That there is a new kid in town!”
“Oh my gosh! That is so CHEESY!” Skyril moaned through the ear piece. “Tell me she did NOT say that!”
“She did.” Lizzy confirmed grimly. “You all owe me next time for pairing me with her. I could have gone with Nicolette. Or Lenka!”
“Well, you lost the last bet we had.” Skyril said smugly, ignoring Kal’s cry of indignation. “Be safe and good luck out there!”
Skyril clicked out as Kal started humming softly, her own dramatic theme music while pressed against the brick wall. Incredulous, Lizzy watched as Kal inched along the wall. They were not even close yet to their targets. Kal turned and glanced back at Lizzy.
“Relax.” She whispered back as Lizzy hesitated. “I won’t let you down my friend! I’ve got your back!”
“I know.” Lizzy replied, softening. “But after all this time of scoping out the area we finely have an opening. I don’t want to mess up.”
It was true, Lizzy thought to herself as she watched Kallista scale the wall in a series of parkour techniques. Lizzy did not want anything to go wrong.
After months of diligent research and scoping area neighborhoods, Lizzy and her team of comrades had pinpointed the hot zones; the troubled areas where the local crime lords liked to haunt and stir up trouble. She thought briefly of her other comrades, friends really, all stationed at various points around the inner city. As part of a girl’s only secret society known only as the Purple Roses, they had dedicated themselves to training in the martial arts and other skills, to fight crime and help the police protect the innocent.
Previously she had been partners with Aquila and Skyril. But all that changed when Kallista had joined them. She had gone through partners quickly. After the first few days she was quickly shifted off to someone else. Lizzy could see why. Quickly she followed Kallista to the rooftop to get a better view of the situation below. They had come to the location rather quickly despite Kal’s theatrics.
Down below the car they had spied was parked beside a second car. The trunk was opened of the second car and everyone was standing around inspecting various weapons of all shapes and sizes. It looked as if more men had joined the little exchange, perhaps as body guards. They had wandered over from the dark shadows of the buildings, surrounding the alley way.
“I see thirty men down there.“ Kal frowned. “None of them cute, except maybe the one in the blue suit. I like his moustache.”
Lizzy opened her mouth to speak as Kal whipped out her camera and began taking photos of the illegal meeting. But Kal interrupted.
“I’ll take on the guys in the posh suits and you can take the ones who look dirty. Don’t want to touch them!” She shuddered. “That leaves twenty five for you and five for me. Ready?”
“Kal! Wait!” Lizzy hissed quietly as she saw something behind her that alarmed her greatly.
But Kal jumped over the side and landed in the middle of the men. Cockily she checked her mask to be sure it was in place as she stood there in the midst of brutes.
“What have we here?” She called to them as they all stared in shock at her, weapons pointed directly at her head. “Oh, guns! Very pretty guns.”
She made a big show of looking down at the guns in the trunk as Lizzy dropped down quietly and unnoticed behind them.
“Who are you?” A mild voice of curiosity said.
Kal turned to see it was Mr. Blue Suit. He had the air of being one of those in charge here. His narrow eyes were on her, appraising her.
“Aha!” Kal cried out. “Excellent question. Who am I? I have asked myself that many a time. But the more important question is, who are all of YOU?”
Kal gestured dramatically keeping all eyes on her as Lizzy silently took out the men in the back. They went down easily. She looked up to see Lizzy mouthing something to her. She looked frantic. Several men turned to see what the masked figure was looking at and saw Lizzy.
“Kill them both.” Mr. Blue Suit ordered quietly as he turned away to leave. “This meeting has been compromised. I’m leaving for now. Will be in touch Sergio.”
Sergio. Kal tucked the name into her memory.
“Oh no you don’t!” Kallista called out as she flipped away from firing bullets and in between Mr. Blue Suit and the car door.
“You are not leaving.” She said, smiling at him.
He merely raised an eyebrow at her then answered her with his fist. Blocking the blow with her shoulder she hit back with a punch of her own. Out of the corner of her eye she say Lizzy fighting with several men twice her size.
Several men came to assist Mr. Blue Suit and do his dirty work for him. Straitening his suit he smiled as he looked at her fighting his men. A gun went off and she dodged in time. Instead of going into her heart, the bullet ripped through her upper arm.
A cry of pain escaped her lips as she held onto her injury.
“Nice try. But you lose.” He sneered. “Whoever you are.”
She was about to answer back when several things happened at once.
Lizzy was caught by one of the thugs, her mask ripped off.
“This one’s a girl!” The thug said in anger and surprise, still holding the mask in his hands. “Hey! She’s really pretty! Can we keep her Boss?”
Lizzy stared at Kal wildly, her eyes angry and alarmed. She was still mouthing something to her friend, unconcerned at that moment from the threat of the thug. Something else was up.
“We need to go.”
Kal began to feel alarmed as she caught Lizzy’s eyes.
“You a girl too?” Mr. Blue Suite turned to face her somewhat interested. Then his face registered shock and panic as he looked beyond her. “We have got to go! NOW!”
His shout echoed of the brick walls of the alley way. He left Kallista and jumped into his car and fled.
Curious, Kal turned to see the police and SWAT enter the alley way.
DAMN! They had been spotted. It was to late to flee. Dashing over to Lizzy, she swiped up the fallen mask and stuffed it into one of her coat’s pockets then picked up a discarded gun. The police where shouting now as they came closer.
“I tried to warn you.“ Lizzy hissed in anger at having her well laid out plans ruined. “Someone called the cops!”
“And SWAT.” Kal nodded mildly as she blocked Lizzy from view and tore off her coat.
“You are bleeding!“ Lizzy gasped then, angrily slapped at her hands. “What are you doing?”
“You have been seen without your mask. You are going to be my hostage. Now play along.” It was all Kal said before she flung Lizzy around and held her in front of the police as a shield.
“BACK OFF OR ELSE THE GIRL GETS IT!” Kal shouted wildly to the SWAT team and the police as she held a gun to Lizzy‘s head.
For the second time that day Kal had a number of guns all pointed at her. It was a weird feeling.
“Kal!” Lizzy gasped. “You have a GUN to my HEAD!”
“Don’t worry Lizzy, dear.” Kal spoke in hushed tones, a touch of madness showing up in her voice. “I took out the bullets. Now be a good hostage and scream!”
Lizzy screamed.
The SWAT team backed off a bit as a negotiator came through to try to talk to her.
In her ear came static then Skyril’s angry voice.
“You are on the news!” She hissed at Kal.
“Oh, really? Cool!” Kal gave a little wave with the hand that was around Lizzy to the camera she spotted from the helicopter overhead.
“Not cool.” Skyril snapped back. “I have Nicolette and Aquila on their way. You have to get out of there now!”
“How long are you going to keep me as a helpless hostage.“ Lizzy growled at her through gritted teeth. “I hate this!”
Kal laughed in her ear. “You? Helpless? What’s the matter Lizzy? You don’t like my arms around you?”
Lizzy sighed and blamed the blood loss. The Negotiator was speaking but Kal was not listening.
“Listen Kal. You have to go now. Go to one of our hideouts and we will find you.” Lizzy spoke quickly. “I’ll create a diversion. Go now!”
Lizzy flung herself forward as if pushed away roughly and cried out hysterically waving her arms wildly.
“Oh, hell.” Kal stood for a moment then flung herself backwards as several police and SWAT team members took aim and fired at her.
Once again, using a combination of her Parkour and ninja training she made it to the top of the building further down the alley way and disappeared over the top. Lizzy silently wished her good luck as the police surrounded her to lead her to safety.