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When Jeannete awoke, her vision was blurry & swimming. She recognized the assassin, the one with the knives, but no one else. 2 burly men with pistols stood in front of her, both grinning wickedly. "You thought you were so clever, girl," Juan Mendoza snarled, "You thought you could kill my boy without consequences?! Stupid puta!!" A stinging pain filled the left side of her face as the man cocked his fist & slammed it into her cheek. Winding up for another punch, Juan placed his other hand on top of his knuckles & said, "You are a fine warrior, to best one of my blood...So you will die a warrior's death."

As the assassin stepped up & drew his machete, she whispered, "You don't have to do this." Raising the weapon high, he sighed sadly & said, "I'm sorry, young one, but the decision is out of my hands...And it appears God has made his choice." Shutting her eyes tightly, Jeannete waited for what seemed like hours for the deadly blade to slice through her skin...But the moment never came.

Daniel prepared for the killing blow, grinning at the satisfaction of ending his chase, but something still nagged at him. Why had Juan said Jeannete had killed his son when Alejandro had said it was her father? Holstering his machete, he turned to face the elder Mendoza as the Generalissimo shouted, "What are you doing, El Fantasmo? Terminas esta perra!" "El Fantasmo?" Daniel repeated, surprised at being addressed with his brother's title. "Has something happened to my brother?" Sighing deeply, Juan said, "Alejandro took his own life last night after an altercation with the police. You must carry on his title & continue serving divine justice...But you can only do that by killing this woman!" "I don't think so, Generalissimo," he replied, whipping out a pair of throwing knives, "For God's verdict has already been made."

As Juan & his bodyguard aimed their guns at Daniel, he dove forward & hurled his weapon, rolling through the space left between the 2 men as they fell. Helping Jeannete to her feet, he slashed off her bindings as she asked, "Why are you doing this? Why help me now?" "I told you, God has made his decision," he said, taking the dead thug's gun & handing it to her, "And today, it seems he favors you." "You will pay for this, Perez!" Juan shouted, clutching the bleeding knife wound in his arm. "Maybe," he snarled, "But not today."

Cocking the pistol, Jeannete followed the man out of the room, sprinting after him down a long, winding hallway. "Where to?" she asked. "My car's parked out front, but they'll be expecting us to use that." he replied. "Juan has a garage behind the mansion, however. We can head there & jerry-rig one of the cars." "Sounds good." she said, rolling forward as a shotgun blast obliterated the drywall next to her head. "Looks like this is going to be more difficult than you thought." she said, ripping the weapon out of an enormous thug's hand & kicking him backwards.

Sprinting to catch up with the man, Jeannete froze with horror as she realized they had come to a dead end. "Drop your weapons! Now!" Juan shouted as he & several gunmen burst through a door on the opposite end. "What now?" she whispered. "Now...We improvise!" the assassin shouted, hurling himself at the window & shattering the glass. Leaping after him, Jeannete felt a horrible pain shoot through her chest as she landed on the hard concrete below with a nasty crack. Pulling herself to her feet, she jumped behind a wall & drew her gun as several Mendoza thugs stepped up to the windowsill & opened fire.

"Ugh, where's that assassin when you need him?" she muttered, blindfiring around the corner as a bright red convertible pulled up beside her. "Get in!" the man shouted as he threw open the passenger side door. Hopping in, Jeannete sighed with relief as they peeled away from the Mendoza mansion & the still-shooting gunmen.

"You still haven't told me why you helped me." she said as the car pulled into the parking lot of a small motel several hours later. "You still haven't told me why Juan said you killed his son, not your father." the assassin said as he climbed out of the vehicle. "My father was the most nonviolent person I ever knew," she snapped, "He would never kill anyone." Cocking an eyebrow curiously, he replied, "Your father, the police detective, a nonviolent man? I find that incredibly hard to believe. "Police detective?" Jeannete echoed. "My father was a lawyer. Who told you he was a policeman?" "A source...That I now know is faulty." he replied.

"So that makes you the detective." the man continued. "You killed Carlos Mendoza." Nodding solemnly, she closed her eyes & said, "It was my first big case. Carlos was a footsoldier who had murdered another officer in a raid on a cartel safehouse. Me & my partner tracked him to an apartment, where we were attacked. Carlos got a knife & cornered me...I didn't know what else to do. So I shot him."

Opening her eyes & turning to Daniel, she said, "Well, I've spilled my guts. Time for your story. Why did you decide to help me when, not even a week ago, you were trying to kill me?" "I'm still not quite sure myself," he said softly, "At first I thought it was the heat of the moment. Then, I thought I needed answers for why the Mendozas wanted you dead. But now, I know it was because I couldn't let such a noble person die just because it was decreed by Juan Mendoza." Sliding his credit card to the receptionist, he continued, "I cannot combat an officer of the law...So it appears God has other plans, and I have a new mission." Smiling, Jeannete took the key from the receptionist as the woman said, "Room 208. Enjoy your stay."

An hour later, Daniel sat in a rolling chair beside the bathroom, eyes locked on the door of the hotel room he shared with the Frenchwoman. The dull patter of water hitting the plaster tray of the shower filled his ears, lulling him into a listless half-sleep. As his eyelids began to droop shut, a hand lighted down on his shoulder, jolting him awake. "I'm going to go to bed soon," Jeannete said, "You should probably do the same." "I'm fine." he muttered, rubbing his eyes. "Your safety is more important." Chuckling softly, she smiled & said, "How do you plan on protecting me if you're gonna collapse from exhaustion when we're breaking down Juan's door?" Groaning, Daniel sighed with resignation & flopped onto the second of 2 beds.

Slipping under the blankets, Jeannete reached for the lightswitch when a thought crossed her mind. "I don't think I ever learned your name." "It's Daniel. Daniel Perez." he murmured. "Any connection to Alejandro Perez?" she ventured. Sighing sadly, he closed his eyes & whispered, "Esta...Era...Mi hermano." Flicking off the lights, Jeannete buried her head beneath a pillow & waited for sleep that wouldn't come.