"That's two," he interrupted calmly, "insolence, arguing with me- ah, really, that's three for the gratuitous American slang. I've told you to stop using it."
It was entirely possible that the girl's next move was to fling herself over the gear shift and attempt to strangle the horrible man who'd ruined her life- as evidenced by her raised arms and fingers curled into claws. It was, however, also the exact moment that the rear window of the Jaguar shattered and they heard the screech of crumpled metal as another car slammed into the BMW driven by Chuck, tailing them as always. Thomas instantly yanked Lauren down by one arm to keep her out of the line of fire and jammed one foot on the brakes while hauling the steering wheel to the right, spinning them into a neat circle that ended up with the car facing the damaged one of his employee, whose face was bloody, but based on his coldly furious expression, not badly injured. His car door was ripped open and Williams instantly seized the head of the invader and slammed it viciously against his dashboard, knocking the man out. Unfortunately, Lauren's door was opened simultaneously and she was yanked out by another man, a gun placed and pressing hard into her abdomen. Stepping out of the Jaguar with his hands up, Thomas eyed his wife. Lauren was pale, but she was calm and her mouth in a tight furious line, looking between him and her bodyguard to make sure they were both alive.
"Heeey, Tommy! How's it hanging, motherfucker?" The idiot currently training his Glock on her husband apparently knew him, and this theory was solidified by his expression of well-bred contempt.
"I believe you've been sniffing too much of your own product, you imbecile." Thomas leaned against the car in a deliberately casual fashion. To Lauren's relief, the thug jamming the gun into her ribcage must have decided she wasn't a threat, because he pulled the weapon back, at least enough for her to draw a breath.
The man taunting Williams turned to look at her with a grin. "Well, well, honey. Aren't you just pretty as a peach? Did Tommy here pick you up in one of The Corporation whorehouses, like Kingston did?"His accent was American, Lauren thought absently,maybe Texan?
Admittedly, she didn't exactly think before she spoke, but the new Mrs. Williams snarled, "Unlikeyou,cowboy, my husband doesn't have topaysomeone to sleep with him." Out of the corner of her eye, she could see an actual expression of surprise cross her stoic husband's face before a corner of his mouth turned up in a smile and he focused on the suddenly infuriated American again.
"Coleson, how desperate can you be to try something this stupid?" Thomas's voice was ice. "What can you possibly think will happen after pulling a gun on me? On mywife?"There was a sudden fury in his voice that made even Lauren take a step back. "I will burn your pitiful group of fuckwits into ash."
Growling, Coleson raised his pistol, ready to slam it against Williams's face and incongruously, all Lauren could think was,Don't hurt his face!Eyes darting back to Chuck, she saw him nod slightly to the right, where the second man who always accompanied him was edging behind the chase car driver holding a gun to his head.
Letting out a shrill shriek, Lauren sobbed, "Don't hurt Thomas! Don't! We- we just got married!" She was struggling to give a convincing wail, but it was at least enough to get both Coleson and her husband to stare at her as Chuck's partner bashed in the head of the man holding him hostage, giving Chuck room to grab the gun and let off a shot that nailed the American in the shoulder. Which, then gave Lauren the (rather impressive, she thought) strength to yank out her cello case and smash it against the head and upper torso of the man holding her hostage, who had, admittedly, lost his focus during all the shooting. But it was enough to drop him like a rock, and while her husband drove his fist into the face of Coleson, both Lauren and the cello were put abruptly back in the car as Chuck not-quite yelled at Thomas to do the same.
The Jaguar took off like a meteor, streaking down the roadway with the only sound being Thomas's curt order to "Fasten your seatbelt, darling."
"What thehell?What the hell was- seriously, what the hell wasthat, Thomas? Who were those assholes?" Lauren's shaking hands struggled to do as she was told, even while trying to demand some answers.
"Language," he chided automatically while keeping an eye on the rearview mirror. At her outraged hiss, Thomas unbent to explain, "Coleson is a coke-addled simpleton who's furious that I stopped The Corporation from dealing with his idiot drug ring in America. Apparently, he's taken it rather badly."
His wife's next question was cut off by the scream of metal grinding against metal and the rather painful snap of her head back from the impact of another car hitting theirs from behind.
"Take the wheel."
"WHAT?" gasped Lauren, "Are you nu-" she swallowed back a scream as Thomas's hand yanked hers to the Jaguar's steering wheel.
"Keep us steady if you want to live." With this deeply unhelpful advice, her husband pulled an alarmingly large firearm from the car's center console and turned to fire rapidly out his window, one polished shoe firmly holding the gas pedal down as Lauren clutched the steering wheel in a death grip, ignoring her chattering teeth and forcing herself to keep her eyes on the road in front of her.
The first blisteringly loud "pop!" of the handgun shattered the windshield of the remaining car in pursuit, and after the third shot, the girl could barely hear the wild screech of the tires over the loud ringing in her ears as the grey SUV behind them veered violently and then flipped off the road. Thomas's dark head pulled back into the car and he handed the gun to a horrified Lauren, handle first.
"Take this," Williams was pleased to see his wife didn't say a word, eyes alarmingly huge as she took the firearm and relinquished hold of the wheel. His foot pressed harder on the accelerator and they shot down the road.
It took Lauren a moment to recover the ability to speak. "Don't you ha..." she paused, then tried again. "Don't you have to check and see if they're..." Thomas forced himself not to smile as his poor wife licked her lips, attempting to string together a coherent sentence.
"The Corporation's backup was right behind us, they've already signaled they've reached the crash. It would be unwise of us to linger." Williams side-eyed Lauren's set, pale face. She hadn't screamed, nor cried. It was possible she was in shock, but he didn't think so. He gently put on hand on hers, limp on her lap. "Are you all right?" He expected crying, hysterics maybe. Possibly unhinged laughter. Instead, Lauren started singing.
"Ninety-nine red balloons
fly… uh… float and da da dah…”
"Darling, what the hell are-" Thomas stopped, then gentled his tone. "What are you singing?”
Now, Lauren started to laugh, "Oh!Grosse Pointe Blank,when he takes out the East German assassin with a ballpoint pen to the ear at his high school reunion? Remember? And then his friend the real estate guy helps him stuff the corpse in a locker? Or was that the boiler in the basement?" Williams was silent as he drove, hands gripping the steering wheel, listening to his wife absently hum the rest of the song as she tried to remember the murder sequence. Finally pulling herself together a bit, she sucked in a shaky breath and smoothed her hair. "You know, John Cusack? The movie? This isn't like, required viewing for gangsters and hitmen?"
Williams found himself letting out a deep sigh as he patted her hands again. "You did well, darling. Magnificently, in fact." Looking over, he gazed at her slack jaw doubtfully. "I don't believe you'll be able to play tonight, however. It's a bit much after-"
Absently flapping her hand in a dismissive way, Lauren answered blankly, "Don't be silly. I'll just need to change- this dress has blood all over the skirt." It took her another minute to gather her thoughts, and then she tried to sound firm as she added, "You're gonna... you know, the whole thing with The Corporation whorehouse and the Texas drug ring... thing... you're gonna have to explain that stuff. Later, though. Okay?"
Simply nodding, her dark husband turned towards Hampstead Heath, listening to her sing.
“Wegen 99 Luftballons..."
Thomas deftly stripped Lauren back at the house and helped her shower quickly. It was the first non-sexual touch they'd had in some time, and he was irritably forcing his cock back down at the sight of her lovely, pale body. It didn't help that he'd been sporting a constant erection since running those imbeciles off the road. And remembering his sweet, virginal bride crack that bastard American over the head with her cello case? Magnificent.
She seemed to start coming back to herself as Thomas briskly dried her off, laying out (with an inward smirk) his choice of a lacy pile of ebony undies and bra to wear under her other orchestra gown. Fully dressed, Lauren hastily re-applied her stage makeup as her curiously kind spouse zipped her up, pulling her hair free of the collar and straightening the skirt. Hands over the bare skin of her shoulders, Williams stroked her collarbones with long fingers as he watched her.
