Brooklyn, Eight pm 
  
Ko didn’t pick Rica up after school today since she had to catch up on her homework. But by seven pm they met then dressed head to toe in tactical black for the drive to Brooklyn, for reconnaissance. Once off the elevated highway, they found themselves on a dark neighborhood filled with industrial architecture. 
  
“Dark and desolate out here,” Ko said as he drove past a set of truck loading bays under an overpass. 
  
“Yup, Brooklyn’s a lot more than hipsters and overpriced condos,” Rica cracked from the passenger seat as she eyed a downloaded map of the neighborhood. “Straight ahead, drive there.” 
  
“Hmm,” Ko muttered as the structures he remembered from the maps came into view, to include the flat warehouse where Ahmed allegedly frequented. And to the right, the tall building Rica chose for rifle position. “We’ll drive behind the back.” 
  
“Yeah we will, since you don’t see anywhere else we could set up a shot like that, like I told you the first time!” Rica barked. 
  
Ko said nothing, because at the moment she was right. The building she scoped earlier appeared the ideal avenue of approach for a sniper in this area. And so far the windage between the streets proved negligible. However, he needed to see the whole neighborhood for himself before deciding to fire a shot at that distance. 
  
“I can make the shot!” she growled. 
  
“I know you can,” he whispered. 
  
But as their vehicle slowly crept behind the flat warehouse they cased, Ko noticed something wrong.   
  
“Rica?” 
  
“Yes?” 
  
“The sun set awhile ago, so why are all the street lamps off on this block?” He asked, scanning the darkness. 
  
“What?” Rica focused in the dark, “The camera lights along the building, they’re all out.” She turned in her seat, peering out the back window. “Oh crap, Ko, we’re being followed!” 
  
“I know,” Ko said glancing at the rear view mirror as a dark car sped up behind them with its headlights off. “They’re also in front of us.” 
  
“What?” Rica spun forward spotting a dark SUV, also with its headlights off, barrelling head on toward their truck. “They’re trying to ram us!” she yelled, pulling a nine millimeter out of nowhere. 
  
“No! Get down!” Ko grabbed Rica’s shoulder, forcing her to duck in her seat. At that same second he yanked the steering wheel hard right, causing the SUV in front to miss a head on collision and smash into the teen’s left fender. 
  
“Aaah!” Rica screamed as the trucks collided, whipping them in their seats. 
  
“Hold on!” Ko shouted as he jammed the gear into reverse. At the same time, the passenger in the attacking SUV, now on Ko’s left side, fired a shotgun directly at him. But Ko ducked. “Fuck!” he yelped as metallic buck shot shattered his driver’s side window, tearing into his left shoulder, bicep and back.  
  
“Ko!” Rica shouted. 
  
“Stay down!” Ko barked while racing his truck backwards toward the second enemy vehicle behind them. “Raaah!” he shouted as he slammed into the rear vehicle, forcing that car’s airbags to deploy and halt their advance. 
  
Still in pursuit, the shotgun SUV in front chased the teens as they reversed. But Ko timed them before they crashed into him. Again he floored the gas pedal, pushing past the rear car behind him, and letting the shotgun vehicle crash headlong into its partner. With glass, metal, and plastic all over the street, the crushed enemy vehicles stopped dead. 
  
But Ko wasn’t finished. Peeling his tires, he raced his truck forward toward the shotgun vehicle, as if to T-bone it. Before he collided he whipped hard left, smacking his passenger door side by side next to the dazed shotgun assailant in the SUV, locking eyes with him. 
  
“Hmph!” Bleeding and in pain, Ko then raised his stolen black Taurus forty-five hand cannon above the ducked down Rica, aiming it at the head of the shotgun wielder in the smashed SUV. The assailant in the truck snarled at Ko, as if to curse at him. But Ko, without a moment's hesitation, fired four shots.
  
Fuck you! 
  
The forty-five caliber rounds exploded out of the pistol, ripping into the assailant’s face, neck and shoulder. Damn near tearing the man’s head off.
  
After the last shot, Rica raised her head to assess the damage. “Ko, we have to go now!” she yelped. Ko followed her order and raced their crashed truck away from the crime scene. 
  
Twenty Seconds Later 
  
Chaffing in pain from his injuries, Ko sped at top speed down the narrow back blocks. His body running on instinct with one singular objective:  Protect Rica. 
  
But Rica had other plans. “Ko! Slow down!” she screamed at him, snapping him out of his trance. 
  
“Ah!” He raised his foot off the pedal, dropping speed. 
  
“Pull over, now!” she growled. 
  
He didn’t argue as he brought the truck to a stop near a fire hydrant. Rica hopped out and ran around to the driver’s side of the vehicle. She opened the door and gaped at the wound on his left shoulder. 
  
“Jesus!” she yelped. 
  
“I’m ok. It just looks bad,” he lied, attempting to raise his arm, “Grraah!” 
  
“No, you’re not ok. Slide over to the passenger seat!” she commanded. 
  
“Eh?” He looked at her, “You know how to drive?” 
  
Rica didn’t answer, she just glared at him with squinted eyes as if he were the dumbest guy on earth. “Yes, I can drive, you fool!”  
  
Without a second thought Ko slid his butt over to the passenger side, real quick. But as he moved he noticed two bullet holes in the passenger seat. What? When? When he faced forward he saw two holes in the windshield. At that moment Rica drove the truck away from the curb and into traffic. 
  
“I’m gonna get you to a doctor but we gotta ditch this truck first,” said Rica, whipping her phone out. 
  
But Ko still gaped at the bullet holes, “Rica, when did they fire-” 
  
“When you crashed the rear car. The driver in the first car shot the windshield." She looked at him, “When you covered me.” 
  
“Oh.” 
  
Ko said nothing more as Rica dialed someone on her phone. He just stared at the holes in the windshield. Drilled by bullets meant to kill Rica. 
  
Midtown, Two Hours Later 
  
The teens made it to Dr. Ola’s home office in an upper west side brownstone. The old Nigerian physician was known in the criminal underworld for decent stitch work, amazing painkillers, and he asked no questions. 
  
Ko sat up on the operating table as the doctor wrapped his left shoulder in bandages, providing him with a sling. Meanwhile, Rica talked in the living room outside with ten of her goons. These big mean dudes raced to Rica’s aid when she called for help in Brooklyn. After meeting at a friendly garage they scrapped Ko’s crashed truck and provided him with a slightly used, dark grey Jeep Cherokee. How efficient this crew is, Ko thought. Shortly afterwards Dr. Ola finalized Ko’s dressing. 
  
“You’re a lucky young man,” said the old doctor in a heavy Nigerian accent. 
  
Ko grinned, “You mean I’m lucky I ducked.” 
  
“Eh?” Dr. Ola smirked, “Ho ho ho! You laugh now but remember, you can’t cheat death forever, hm!” He winked. 
  
“Heh, you’re right,” Ko agreed and lay back on the table with his eyes closed, the painkillers now kicking in. But he didn’t rest for long. 
  
“Hey,” Rica poked him. “How do you feel?” 
  
“Better.” 
  
“Good.” 
  
Rica turned and spoke to the doctor with a poised demeanor. Deliberate, with the air of a leader in crisis control. 
Dr. Ola took the cue, “Ok, I’m going to go write him a prescription,” he said exiting the room. Ko wasted no time when he left. 
  
“They saw us coming,” he said, staring at Rica with her crossed arms. 
  
“I know,” said Rica. “And that means either they saw me the last time I cased the place, which I doubt, or they’re playing serious defense.” 
  
“No, they knew I was coming,” said Ko. “Because Jun-Seo and the Kim gang are working with the Turks, and now the Kim’s know me.” 
  
“What?” Rica asked with a stunned face. “Who knows you? The Kims? Why? Because of the Kayla rescue?” 
  
“That, and because I saw Jun-Seo when I killed Rafa and Kadir in that Brooklyn warehouse. He was there. But I couldn’t get a clean shot at him.” 
  
Rica paused as if absorbing all of this new information. “So what? Did this Jun-Seo guy see you?” 
  
“I think so, but I wore a mask,” said Ko. “Either way he knows my M.O. and must have tipped the Turks that a sniper would be hunting Ahmed.” 
  
“Why didn’t you tell me this before, Ko?” 
  
“Because I only now drew that conclusion,” Ko lowered his eyes. “And I didn’t need you to worry about Jun-Seo. I’ll find him. I can handle him.” 
  
“Excuse me?” Her eyes squinted, “Who are you to tell me what I should or should not be worried about, Ko Lee? Because now this Jun-Seo guy is my problem since he damn near got me killed by some Turks looking for you, you bad dog!” 
  
“Mmm.” Ko had no defense. His reasons for keeping Jun-Seo a close item were his alone. However, Rica didn’t seem to dwell on it long. 
  
“Alright, nothing we can do about that now. At the moment we have to focus on-” 
  
“Rica?” 
  
“What?” A curt reply. 
  
He handed her a piece of paper with two sets of license plate numbers written in pencil.  
  
“What are these?” she asked. 
  
“The two cars that crashed us tonight. I memorized their plate numbers. If you can track the drivers you may be able to track who gave the orders to hit us,” said Ko. 
  
Rica gaped at him like he was crazy, “Ko, you memorized the license plates of the two cars that hit us in the middle of a shootout?” 
  
“Yes. Please check them out, see what you find.” 
  
“Ah, you..” She cracked a smile. “I will.” But as soon as her tension appeared to relax her phone rang. She answered. 
  
“Hello? Big sis Kitty...yeah, we’re ok...What?” her face frowned, “Not a problem, I’ll be right there.” She hung up and turned to Ko. “Ko, please go to the apartment and rest. I’ll get back to you as soon as I know more, I gotta go and-" 
  
She paused, locking eyes with him as if wanting to say something more before she left. Ko understood, because he wanted her to stay with him. But Rica was the boss, and he had to let her go. 
  
“No worries, boss. We’ll talk soon,” he said, nodding at her. Acknowledging her. 
  
“Right, of course we will, later,” she replied. 
  
After that Rica turned and rallied her ten goons, “Let’s go boys!” She marched them out of Dr. Ola’s apartment to go do gangster stuff. And Ko, now floating on painkillers, wanted her so bad…. 
  
...but he’d go home alone.