A Necessary Kill by James P. Sumner Page A

and foot on the ladder. “Come on, I’ll go first. Watch your step, okay? It’s a good twenty feet top to bottom.”
    I set off, climbing the ladder carefully. The steps are slippery from a combination of grime and moisture. I hear Ruby follow a few moments later.
    It takes less than a minute to reach the top. I stop in a hunch, leaning my head forward so my shoulders and neck rest against the cover above me. I adjust my grip and set my footing, making myself as sturdy as possible. With some considerable effort, I use my legs, back, and shoulders to push up against the cover.
    It moves, but barely.
    I try again. Same routine… same result.
    “What’s the hold up?” Ruby shouts.
    I grimace as I try a third time to no avail. “It won’t budge.”
    “Do you want me to try?” she asks, with no attempt to hide her sarcasm.
    I look down and glare at her. I clench my jaw muscles and grip the sides of the ladder tightly until my knuckles turn white. I take a breath and through gritted teeth I growl a muffled roar of anger and frustration as I push up one more time, with every ounce of strength I can muster.
    It gives way and goes flying off like a Frisbee. I almost lose my footing, unprepared for how easily it moved. My head breaches the hole and the fresh air hits my nostrils. I take a deep lungful, as if welcoming an old friend I haven’t seen in years.
    The rain hasn’t relented its onslaught. It’s still gray and cold because of the low cloud cover. I move my head to look around, trying to get a feel for where we are, and—
    “Oh, shit!”
    I duck back inside the hole, narrowly avoiding the front tire of a car. I close my eyes, breathing heavily and resting my head against the ladder.
    “What is it?” asks Ruby.
    “We’re in the middle of the goddamn street! I’m guessing there was a car stopped on the cover, which is why it wouldn’t move before…”
    She starts laughing. “Well, try not to lose your head about it…”
    I look down and narrow my eyes at her. I don’t like not being the funny one…
    I ignore her. “Come on, we’ll need to be quick.”
    I move up again, more cautiously this time. I peek my head out and scan up and down the street. A car’s approaching. I quickly duck and wait for it to pass, then look out again. Beyond it, the lights are on red. Cars are slowing all around.
    It’s now or never…
    “Let’s go.” I climb out and hold up a grateful hand to the car that brakes early to avoid hitting me. I kneel down and reach for Ruby, who grabs my forearm. “Got you.”
    I help her out, and we quickly run over to the sidewalk. There’s some grass and trees to the side of a parking lot at the rear of a school. We take cover from the steady rain under one of the trees, catching our breath and letting the adrenaline subside.
    I look around and see nothing worth worrying about, although I can hear sirens in the distance. “It won’t be long before they set up roadblocks around the city. We need to move.”
    Ruby laughs. “Roadblocks? I’m not that dangerous y’know…”
    I smile. “They’d be for me, sweetheart.”
    “And what makes you so special?”
    “I just broke you out of an insane asylum to help me kill the president… Have you not stopped to wonder why?”
    She shrugs. “Been a little busy. So… go on—why are we killing him?”
    “I’ll tell you on the way.”
    “On the way where?”
    “We need to head back to the institute. I’m not bothered about the car I stole, but I need my bag out of it—if it’s not been taken already.”
    “Are you kidding me? Why?”
    “For my guns.”
    “There are plenty of places for us to get weapons.”
    “I know, but these ones are special.”
    “Oh, wait… Don’t you have those—what are they—matching… Berettas?”
    I nod and smile weakly, feeling a little embarrassed that my reputation continues to precede me.
    “Adrian, I get the whole ‘boys and their toys’ thing, okay? I do. But if we go back there, after