DISCLAIMER: Karen Sisco and its all characters are property of Jersey Television. No infringement intended.
ARCHIVING: Only with the permission of the author.
Joint Venture
By ralst
Karen pulled on the handcuffs. Her wrists were sore and the ache between her shoulder blades had been growing steadily worse with every hour she was forced to endure captivity. The lack of natural light made it impossible to tell night from day, just as the thick walls prevented her from being able to discern the movements of their captors. But there was one thing she knew for certain...
"This is all your fault."
Silently Marley began to tug on her arm of the handcuffs in a futile attempt to dislodge something not connected by blood or tissue to either herself or Karen. She could have pointed out that it was Karen, and not her, who had suggested a joint operation. Or that it was Karen, pumped up on adrenaline, who had insisted they confront the counterfeiters instead of waiting for backup. But instead she settled for...
"Is not."
"Is too."
"Not."
With a kick Marley sent an avalanche of brick dust and cobwebs raining down on their heads but the pipe, anchoring their cuffs, remained firmly in place.
"That was helpful," Karen sighed, brushing the dust from her face before grinning at the sight of a cobweb festooned Marley. "I hope you're not afraid of spiders."
Marley's eyes widened. "Spiders?"
Using her free hand Karen mimed the approach of an eight legged fiend, her smile fading as she saw the panic on Marley's face. Together they had faced the Russian Mafia, transsexual thieves and counterfeiters armed with AK-47s without the slightest hint of trepidation but, at that moment, it looked as if the redhead was three hyperventilated breaths away from passing out.
"I was joking," Karen assured.
Marley's skin was an unhealthy shade of pale, her chest heaving with alarming regularity.
"There aren't any spiders."
Karen's eyes drifted to the corner of the basement and a scurrying little figure she prayed would stay out of Marley's line of sight.
"Are you sure?"
Karen nodded, the smile on her face the same as the one she used to deflect Phil's attempts at flirting or persuade countless receptionists to let her into their boss' office without an appointment.
"You're lying."
"I am not." Karen refused to look in the corner. "And this is still all your fault."
"Is not."
"Is too."
"Not... Karen?"
"Yeah?"
With a shudder Marley removed the cobwebs from her hair and, after a slight tug, adjusted the position of the handcuffs against her skin. "If you wanted to play with my handcuffs you only had to ask," she smirked.
Despite herself Karen couldn't help the smile that came over her face or the theatrical sigh that overtook her words, "Now she tells me."
The End