Tara's Conundrum By Dreadnaught Tara has a difficult decision to make The week after Roxanne's boxing match past too slowly for my tastes. My mind was fixed on our post-match lovemaking, if I could call it that. The more I thought about it, the more I felt like Roxanne had taken me, just to satisfy her sexual whims.. but dammit, I liked it. I wanted more.. I wanted that moment to last, to tell her what I felt. There was one big obstacle to this plan.. the fact that I was terrified of her. I'd watched her smash men who could floor me with one punch to pulp almost effortlessly, in a fit of pique. Perhaps that was why she was so distant, knowing the effects her temper can have, I don't know. All I know is that I spent a rather lonely week, as she worked the videotape of her boxing match into shape for public viewing. Finally, she gave notice she would like my presence at a meeting Thursday afternoon, in my office. When I got there, Roxanne, Nina and Tara were already waiting for me. Roxanne beamed a warm smile at me from behind my desk. I smiled back, entranced by her beauty as always. "Ah, Mr. Black. Please take a seat," she instructed gently. The other two amazons were occupying my couch, so I closed the office door behind me and took the spare seat. "What's this about?" I inquired. "I'm glad you asked. It's an interesting story," Roxanne began. "It would seem I had a rather important fan at the match last weekend." "You mean only one?" Nina grinned. "He was a rather persistent one, as well," Roxanne added. "Apparently he's the police chief for our fair city. It would seem he'd like some assistance with a problem. He was very insistent, since he's getting pressure from federal investigators to put a stop to the drug cartel running out of downtown." Tara snorted contemptuously. "So what do they need us for? We're not cops." "True. They're having difficulty because apparently this one group of dealers and smugglers seems to know every move the police make. They haven't been able to get anywhere using undercover police officers, and every time they try to raid the gang's headquarters, the gang has long since packed up and left." "That still doesn't explain why they need your help," I ventured. "The chief was quite impressed by Elaine and I on the weekend," Roxanne smiled. "According to him, we would have no problem infiltrating their organization. They don't know us, and I'm sure you'd agree, Mr. Black, most men would have a difficult time resisting our.. considerable charms." Looking around at the trio of beautiful, seductive women, I couldn't argue with that. "He also added that all we would have to do would be to infiltrate their hangout and keep them there long enough for the police to close in," she continued, then laughed. "Of course, I did tell him we'd be more than happy to shut down their operation and hand them a group of beaten, unconscious men for the proper price." Nina and Tara grinned. "I agreed on our behalf to render our services for money up front, which has already been paid. He gave us this." Roxanne put a small device on my desk. It resembled a garage door opener. "This is a signalling device. When you press the button, the police will be alerted that they are needed, and converge on the location." "I don't think we need that," Nina said. "No, I assured him we could handle any group of men, but the chief was insistent. He doesn't want to take chances, and I can appreciate that." Roxanne's eyes gleamed momentarily. "Of course, we don't have to signal them until we're done with the gang ourselves.." "I'd like to volunteer for this, Roxanne," Nina said enthusiastically. "Me too," Tara added. "Very well, I think you two can handle it," Roxanne smiled. "Might I suggest you two go and prepare yourselves? The chief was also insistent we get started as soon as possible." "Did he have any leads at all?" Tara asked. "Practically none. But he assured me most of the city's drug business is coming from this small gang of men. Any purchases can eventually be tracked back to them." Nina stood and moved towards the door. "Okay.. I think we'd better dress up, Tara. We'll have to get into their hideout somewhere.. no better way than to make them drool down the front of their shirts." She and Tara snickered and left, telling Roxanne they'd be back in a half an hour. Roxanne studied me for a few moments as I sat. "You surprise me, Mr. Black." "Why?" "You haven't yet expressed your reservations about this situation." "Oh, I have them, but telling them to you wouldn't matter much. You'd just tell me I was being overcautious, that Tara and Nina can handle any men who give them trouble." I kept the thought of how glad I was Roxanne herself wouldn't be going on this "mission" to myself. Roxanne smiled broadly, then sat back and placed her long legs up on my desk. "Very good, Mr. Black. You're learning," she added with a wink. Half an hour later I walked back into my office and grew faint with the sight that greeted me. Nina and Tara had indeed returned, and it was a hard time to keep from drooling down my shirt. Nina wore a tight black tank top, an even tighter black leather micro- miniskirt that was barely sufficient to cover her crotch and splendid rear, and a pair of sweet, sheer black pantyhose that led down to a pair of shiny black three-inch high heels. She was covering her top half with a leather jacket as I walked in, unfortunately. Tara was just as magnificent. She was dressed in a clingy white t-shirt which she'd tied just underneath her sizable boobs, revealing her firm, washboardy abs. A pair of skimpy black spandex shorts seemed more like a pair of panties than actual outerwear. Her sexy bare legs were tipped by a pair of black ankle boots with heels. She held a short denim jacket in her hand. Despite myself, I couldn't help but feel an erection growing in my jeans at the sight of the two beauties. I think all of them noticed. "Well, Mr. Black, what do you think?" Roxanne asked with a sly smile. "Do you think the gang will be interested in them?" If they have working hormones they will, I thought. Words like that didn't dare emerge from my mouth, however. "S.. sure," I stammered. The three amazons giggled briefly. Tara put the jacket on as she turned back to Roxanne. The denim jacket was perfect. It emphasized her curvaceous body, clinging to her slim waist and drawing attention to her perfect glutes. I had to sit down as Roxanne handed the signaller to Tara. "Remember, use it when you infiltrate the gang," Roxanne said. Tara put the slim device in the pocket of her jean jacket. "Is that what the chief told you to say?" Tara grinned. "Yes," Roxanne laughed. "That was the official version. 'Use it once you're finished knocking them all out,' would be my version." Smiling, the two dazzling beauties turned to go. Passing me, they grinned and blew kisses at me as they passed. Their flirtations didn't help my erect penis shrink any, much to their delight. Then Nina and Tara were gone, off to bring the gang to its knees. "Still worried?" Roxanne asked me. "Yeah," I answered honestly. "But if you're sure they can handle whatever happens, that's good enough for me." There was only one thing I wasn't sure Roxanne was right about, and I struggled to work up the courage to discuss the two of us. But I just didn't know how to bring that up, so I reluctantly got up to go home. The two scantily-clad amazons walked down a shadowy, narrow street, ignoring the dark shapes that moved in the doorways and blackness surrounding the dismal, delapidated buildings. They also ignored the occasional wolf-whistles that emerged from the shadows around them as they kept moving. No one emerged from the darkness to challenge them. "All we have to do is arrange to buy some dope, if the cops are right that'll lead us right to the gang," Tara noted. "Right.. ack, I think I must be getting spoiled," Nina grumbled as she looked behind her. "Why?" "I keep expecting Derek to come bumbling along behind me," the dark-haired beauty giggled. "I got no one to carry along some spare nylons." Tara laughed, her blonde hair coming down in wisps across her lovely face. "You should really ditch him, y'know," she said as she pushed her hair back. "Having a guy around slaving over you like that'll just make you soft." "Hey, he's good for a laugh," countered Nina. "He's just so pathetic. He almost trips over his own feet every time I tell him to get me something. I have no idea how Olson figured he could ever be a fighter." Nina's chuckles faded as she spotted the figure slumped in the doorway. "Tara, I think we may have found what we're looking for." Tara followed Nina's gaze, over to the shabby man lying semi- conscious in the entry to a run-down apartment. Nodding, she and Nina strode purposefully over to him. His dim gaze barely acknowledged their presence. "Hi, you must have some prime stuff," Tara ventured. The man nodded, moving his head as if it weighed a ton. "Yeah," he slurred. "I.. I'm out, though.. shot it all.." He dabbed absent-mindedly at the line of drool that had emerged from his mouth as he tried to speak. "Know where we can get any more?" Nina asked, trying not to be affected by the man's pathetic display. The guy looked up slowly at the two women, noticing their existence but having no reaction to their scanty clothing or arousing figures. He just pointed down the street. "Two blocks that way. Short guy." His arm drooped and he passed out, mumbling as he dozed. Tara shrugged at Nina. "I guess that's our lead," she said. They set off in the direction indicated. Sure enough, two blocks of walking brought them to a man standing on the corner under a faint streetlamp. He wore a denim jacket, ripped t-shirt and jeans. He barely came up to either woman's height in their heels. As they approached him, he flashed his best wolf smile for them. "This has gotta be the guy," Tara whispered. Nina and Tara came up in their best looking-for-action swagger. His eyes followed their every step until the two women stood over him. "Hey babes, how's the night treating you?" he beamed, his eyes ablaze with lust. Nina smiled back in return, licking her lips sensuously before speaking. "Oh, could be better, hon.. been a quiet night." "Really?" he remarked. "Looking for something to liven things up?" He opened his jacket slightly, revealing a lineup of small hypodermic needles attached to the inside. "Funny," Nina's sultry voice told him, "We were going to ask you the same question." She wrapped her arms slowly around the shorter man, her warm breath caressing his neck. Tara had to suppress a grin as she watched the man's jeans bulge slightly. "Uh, yeah.. mmmm," he murmured as Nina's attentions turned him into putty. "I got a place just down the block, babe.." He looked at her and moved closer, trying to kiss her full, rich lips. Nina pulled back slightly, just enough to give him the message to wait for now. "My friend here was looking for a good time, too, sweetie," she purred. "Maybe we can arrange an exchange if you have some prime stuff.." The short guy grinned devilishly. "Yeah, I got a friend who'd like her," he said as his eyes roamed up and down Tara's tall, shapely form. "And as for dope, you girls came to the right man. I got enough stuff to keep you two going as long as you want." Nina grinned. "Great, let's go then." She let him lead the two amazons towards his hideout, both girls using a great deal of restraint to pretend not to mind his hands tightly clasping both of their behinds. "Wow, you two are nice and firm.. I'm gonna love taking both of you," he enthused. Nina gave Tara an I-want-to-kill- him-myself glance, but both women walked silently with the man. He led them to a small, seemingly abandoned warehouse, with a solid-looking door. Rapping hard on the door, he called out, "John! It's Vince, I got us some entertainment for the night!" A few seconds went by without an answer, then a panel slid open in the door and a pair of eyes stared out. "Vince, what the hell are you.. whoa!!" came the voice from behind the door as it caught a clear view of the gorgeous women accompanying Vince. A hasty series of clunks and clatters issued from the other side of the door. Nina and Tara put on their biggest smiles as the door swung wide open. "Get in, quick," John, a tall, black man dressed mostly in leather, ordered. The women entered, with John backtracking in front of them, keeping them in full view, his jaw agape with appreciation for their sexiness. They entered into a relatively small storage area. Small piles of boxes were everywhere, water dripped and echoed about the room. Several doors lined the inside wall across the room from them, and halfway in between them and the doors, at a rather shaky- looking card table, sat another man in denim, his head shaved clean and a devil's beard decorating his face. His eyes bugged at the two women and he quickly stood, inadvertantly revealing the gun holstered under his jacket in the process. "Holy shit Vince, where did you get these two?" he asked. "They found me," Vince grinned as he closed the door behind him, locking it and barring it securely. He turned back to the girls. John had gravitated towards Tara, standing before her with a wide grin. "Don't worry babes, we'll show you a good time," Vince commented, rubbing his hands together eagerly. Tara gave Nina a quick wink, and the two amazons grinned evilly at each other for a moment. "Oh, we know you will, boys," Nina smiled. Pivoting slightly, Nina kicked her sexy, black-stockinged leg out behind her, the bottom of her shoe landing right in the middle of Vince's chest with a thud. "Uunnngh!" he cried in pain and shock as her kick sent him crashing back into the door. The short man flopped to the ground as Tara quickly drove the base of her open hand sharply into John's solar plexus. He grunted loudly with the enormous force she put into her strike, then again, even louder, as Tara's other hand came up in a powerful punch to his chin, sending him toppling into a pile of crates with a crash. The bald man stood and gaped at the sight of the amazons beating his friends up for only a second, then quickly determined his plan of action. Forgetting his gun, he instead chose to charge Nina. Bad choice. She reacted by bringing her leg up, snapping a high kick up into the side of his face. Her high-heeled shoe smashed into his face like a rocket, sending him spinning down to the ground near Tara with a shout of pain. The three men quickly recovered and regained their feet, nursing their pain, but prepared to forget it and concentrate on throwing these two girls out of the hideout. Vince came at Nina, throwing a punch at the face of the taller amazon. Nina dodged back out of its path, then kicked the man hard in the stomach. He groaned and curled up around the kick, winded. Nina quickly doubled her fists together and closed in as he stood back up straight. The impact of both her fists on his cheek spun him around and sent him face-first into the door again, and he slumped down to the floor, moaning in pain. John stood and cursed at the two women, expressing his shock and dismay with a simple, "What the fuck?!" He then gaped, for Tara had taken the opportunity to strip off her denim jacket, revealing not only her sizable breasts underneath her clingy t-shirt, but also her strong, muscular arms. She approached John, breaking his trance. He swung desperately at her face, only to find to his shock that Tara's impressive arms could easily absorb the force behind his roundhouse punch as she blocked it easily. She replied with a sharp punch to his ribcage, sending pain shooting through his middle. Tara grinned as she watched him cry in pain, savoring the damage she was inflicting. Then her other fist slammed into his face again, sending him back down to the pile of boxes. Some of them were crushed under his fall while others loudly scattered away from him. Tara quickly reacted to the sudden grasp of the bald man from behind her as he tried to put her into a hold, but as quickly as he'd been able to get his hands on her, he suddenly found himself being yanked away, as Nina took a hold of his jacket and pulled him forcefully off her friend. Tara wasted no time in driving a solid punch to his gut. "Ooo-oooof!" he grunted, bending in two. Nina quickly spun him to face her as he bent over, and raised a nylon- clad knee into his face. Screaming in agony, the bald man flopped to the floor, holding his face. Nina laughed as the three men took considerably more time to recover this time. "Having a good time yet, guys? We are." The two amazons waited patiently, smiling, as the men shook some sense back into their heads, getting back to their feet. Vince snarled at Nina, angry at his own foolishness in letting the two well-built women dazzle him into letting them into the hideout. He raised his fists menacingly and hissed, "Damn you, I'm gonna.. unngh!" He was interrupted in mid-sentence by Nina's fist. She punched him hard in the face, sending the short man stumbling back to the wall. He slumped to the ground, his face contorted with pain. John found himself face-to-face with Tara as he stood. The black man threw another wild punch at the blonde's head, a punch that her well-muscled arm blocked easily. He then tried a shot at Tara's stomach. She tensed her ab muscles as she saw his punch fly, and it landed in her middle with a dull thud. John winced with the pain that coursed through his clenched fist. Tara just smiled, her firm, taut abs having absorbed the impact harmlessly. "THAT was your best shot?" Tara laughed. "Let me show you how to throw a punch, wimp." The back of her fist slammed across his chin with a harsh thwack, sending him staggering back, grunting loudly. "Impressed? And I'm just playing," she smiled. Stepping forward, she launched a long leg up high, her boot plowing into the side of his chin. John screamed his agony as Tara's kick spun him around and knocked him down into the boxes he'd fallen in before. The next thing Tara knew, the bald man grabbed her solid shoulder with one hand, and he managed to pull with enough strength to get her to spin around and face him. His other fist shot back, preparing to drive a blow into her face. His eyes burned with rage at the two women. Then the rage was gone, replaced with shock and pain as Nina kicked him in the side of his ribs from behind him, stopping his punch in mid-windup. "Too slow, honey," Nina smirked as he wrapped his arms around the sharp pain shooting through his middle. Tara grinned at her friend, then threw two punches, a combination to the man's face. Her right rocked his head viciously, and her left caught him even harder, sending him toppling backwards to the floor, shaking his head vigorously to try to clear the double vision Tara's devastating twin punches had given him. All three men were having a hard time getting back up, the power of the two amazons having had a noticeable effect. Nina happily teased them as they struggled. "C'mon guys, have none of you ever been in a fight before? Or can't you take a few hits from a couple of babes?" The men groaned, stirring, trying their best to get back up. "That's good, make us work up a little bit of a sweat, at least. Show us how real men fight," Nina laughed. The humiliating words spurred the three men on, swearing and growling as they stood. Vince brought his fists up as he closed on Nina, a determined grimace on his battered face. "I don't know who you two are, but no one does this to us," he announced. Nina smirked at his bravado. "There's a first time for everything, sweetie," she said, meeting his attempted charge by bringing a long leg straight up, right into his stomach. "Ooooomph!" he cried, bending in two around the toe of her shoe. "Stay put for a sec, hon.. your friend seems to want to go someplace," Nina instructed, leaving the short man bent double, clutching his agonized middle, gagging and wheezing for the breath her powerful kick had knocked out of him. Nina quickly ran to the bald man, who had had enough of this one-sided fight and was trying to beat a hasty retreat towards the office area of the warehouse. He'd barely been able to take a couple of running steps when Nina tackled him bodily from behind, grabbing him around the waist. The two fell to the ground, the bald man frantically rolling over, swinging desperately at the girl, trying to convince her to back off, if nothing else. He hit nothing but air, Nina having already gotten back to her feet. She quickly put an end to his feeble struggles, aiming a light but effective kick into his face. With a grunt, he fell back flat on the floor again. "Don't you know it's rude to leave before a girl's done with you, dear?" the miniskirted amazon teased. He looked dazedly at Nina's long, shapely legs, the legs clad in sheer, tantalizing black nylon, the legs that he had no way of fighting against. Their amazing power was pummeling him worse than anything he'd ever come across before. Nina smiled down on him. "You're going for a ride, hon," she said, hauling him to his feet by his jacket. She then brought one foot up into his middle, and he felt himself being pulled over on top of her as she fell back. "Men CAN fly.. watch." He felt himself being lifted off his feet by the incredible girl, then he felt the power she sent through her strong, sexy leg, and sure enough, he was airborne as she flipped him over her. The man watched the room do a loop and wind up upside down, then the floor came up and hit him hard. He felt himself bounce slightly and skid to a halt, his body wracked with pain as Nina stood and strode confidently back to the rest of the fight. John had stood, but was none too keen on renewing the fight with Tara. He backed away from her as she closed in, much to her amusement. "C'mon, tough guy.. you're not afraid of a little girl, are you?" The impressive muscles on the little girl's arms flexed threateningly as she closed in on him. He wanted no more of her punishing punches, but he had no choice. Stumbling on an empty box as he backed away, he quickly found the blonde on top of him. Tara led off by sending a kick into his ribs, effectively stopping his flight. "Ooomp!" the black man groaned, then, "Ooooh!" as Tara drove a sharp jab from her left into his face. "Don't worry, wimp.. there's a lot of men who are very afraid of me out there," she commented as his knees wobbled from her punch. Stepping to his side, she brought a solid arm inside him, underneath his shoulders. With amazing strength, Tara flexed her arm, lifting John off his feet and flipping him neatly over her hip. The big man flew through the air for a good few feet before he hit the ground, flat on his back. He moved agonizingly, as if every part of his body ached. Tara grinned down on him. "See why?" she asked. Vince had been able to regain his breath, but not much else, by the time Nina got back to him. Desperate for any way to hold the amazon off, he reached into his jacket and pulled out a tiny- looking hypodermic needle, brandishing it in his fist like a dagger. He stabbed down at Nina as she came at him, yelling in frustration as she grabbed his arm and kept the tip of the needle from getting anywhere near her. Her other hand looped up and caught his face with a strong backhanded slap. The shorter man grunted, dropping the needle as Nina sneered derisively at him. "You must be getting desperate, honey. What were you gonna do, embed that in my jacket? Ooooo, I'm so scared." The amazon punched Vince hard in his kidney area, sending him stepping back, howling in pain. An effortless-seeming kick to his face followed, the impact of Nina's shiny high heel smashing the man back into the wall, and he flopped to the floor at her feet. "Men who fight like cream puffs are just soooo terrifying," she giggled as Vince writhed weakly on the floor, fighting the power of her awesome kick. With all three men down and rapidly nearing unconsciousness, Nina took a moment to ridicule their lack of fighting ability. "Well, boys, it's been fun, but we have more of your friends to deal with here. I'm sure the cops will be waking you up in a few hours," she smiled. The men just groaned in response, stirring feebly as they fought the beatings the girls were giving them. The bald man found his futile efforts to overcome his pain interrupted by a pair of powerful female arms, reaching down and helping him abruptly to his feet. Finding himself face to face with Tara, he weakly tried to take a swing at the sexy blonde. He was quickly stopped by a strong punch to his gut. Crying in pain, he barely heard her smirk, "I think you're done for the evening, tough guy." As he came back upright, Tara punched him hard in the face, her fist slamming into his chin with a loud whack. He grunted loudly, somehow managing to keep his footing. Instead of falling back, he rocked with the punch and fell forwards, slumping pathetically against Tara's powerful body. She held him up easily as his head bobbed against her shoulder. Laughing, she pushed him back to his feet. "Yeah, you're done.. imagine a couple of babes beating you so bad you can't stand up. Here, you won't need to worry about getting back up after this.." Tara's devastating fists came up quickly, her left shooting forward to jab the man's face twice. His head rocked back with the force behind her punches, his body beginning to topple back as his eyes glassed over and started rolling up into the top of his head. The blonde amazon finished the job with a powerful punch from her right. Tara's punch snapped the man's head and body around and sent him falling back into some empty crates. They tumbled around loudly as the bald man fell down through them, lying quite still as he came to a rest. He wouldn't be waking up for hours. Nina faced Vince as he woozily clambered back to his feet, focussing with difficulty on the leggy amazon in front of him. "Still with me, honey?" she grinned. "Good, I got some fancy footwork to show you." As the short man tried to work some strength back, Nina caught him with a brutal kick to his kidneys, then raised her long leg higher and snapped a kick into his face. The first kick shook Vince badly and brought a grimace to his face, and the second brought a loud wail of agony from him and sent him staggering back to the wall. "See what a few years of dance can do for a girl, sweetie?" Nina giggled. Vince groaned and shook his head, forcing himself to raise his head, try and put up a struggle against the woman. His eyes came up in time to watch her do a graceful pirouette before him, a long, shapely, black stockinged leg coming up as she spun back around to face him, a shiny high heel coming closer and closer to his face.. Nina's foot slammed into the side of Vince's face as she completed the spinning kick. He crashed hard back into the wall, collapsing down to the floor and over onto his side, knocked cold. Nina smiled down on him briefly as he sagged down, then swiftly moved over to where John was forcing his way back to his feet. Clamping a strong grasp on his jacket, she pulled him up to face her. "Your turn now, darling. Sweet dreams," she smiled, pulling her fist back for a final punch.. Then the two women were practically deafened by the shot ringing out. Nina found an irresistible force jerk her fist up and away, out of the path she planned to throw her punch through. "What the..!" she cried as she dropped John, the beaten man collapsing to his knees in front of her. The amazons spun to face the office area of the warehouse, only to find two men standing near the doors, guns drawn and pointed directly at them. Smoke emerged from one of the guns, and the pungent odour of spent powder filled their noses. The man with the smoking gun had a long leather coat on over a white shirt and black pants, with long blond hair pulled back harshly into a ponytail. His companion was a thick, stubby black man, in a t-shirt and jeans. "Kindly stop what you're doing," the blond man called. "Or the next shot will be through your head instead of your jacket." Nina's mind boggled as she looked down at the sleeve of her leather jacket, only to find a neat hole through the cuff of the sleeve, right where a stud used to be in the leather. The shot had blown the stud out completely. The marksmanship it had taken to make that shot amazed her, and she knew it wouldn't be worth trying to run away at the moment, not against a shot like that. Looking down, she saw John collapse over onto his side, still conscious for the moment. By her foot she saw the spent bullet from the man's pistol. She looked over to Tara, only to find her boggling herself, at the man who had shot at them.. Nina understood Tara's awe, but not the reaction she had. "There's only one person I know who could make a shot like that!" she exclaimed. "Rob?" "Hi Tara," the blond man smiled. "Been a long time." Nina's mind took another diving loop. "You know this guy?" she asked Tara. "Yes, she does," Rob said, lowering his gun, stepping forward towards Tara. Nina briefly debated making a move, only to notice Rob's friend still keeping his gun solidly locked onto her. She couldn't risk running the chance he was as good a shot as Rob obviously was. Tara met Rob and they both brought their hands up, locking them firmly in an old gesture of greeting. The gang equivalent of a long, hard hug, Nina thought. Tara seemed almost in shock as she looked into the man's eyes, her words coming with difficulty. "Rob! I.. why are you.. don't tell me you're mixed up in this?" Tara's gaze held considerable confusion. Rob's smile didn't waver. "We have a lot to talk about, Tara," he said. "I guess I have a lot of explaining to do. Come, we can sit down and talk in the office." He began to lead Tara back towards the rear area. "Wait!" Nina cried. "Tara, what the hell's going on here??" Tara tried mouthing words at her, but nothing came forth. Rob turned confidently back and spoke to Nina quietly. "Please, just come with us and I'll try to explain. And please don't try anything. Bruno may not be as good a shot as I am, but he's coming along nicely." Nina looked over at the unwavering black man, and nodded. She followed Rob and Tara quietly. Behind her, John lay on his side, moaning, trying to regain his strength. The other two men lay where the girls had left them, sleeping peacefully now. Bruno fell in behind them, his gun never leaving Nina's back. Rob led them into a large room with a table and chairs. "Please, have a seat," he beckoned to the two women. Nina slowly sat, and Bruno took up a position nearby, his gun still targetting the attractive but deadly girl's head. Tara declined the offer to sit, instead leaning back against the table. Rob walked over to the other end of the room, which was stacked with boxes similar to the ones out in the main warehouse. Taking a quick look around, Nina noticed the crates were all around the room. These guys literally were rolling in the stuff. "So," Nina began slowly, "You two have known each other a long time?" "Yes, a hell of a long time," Rob grinned. "From the.." "From the street gang we used to be in," Tara finished for him. "We met when we were kids. He was always a crack shot, but I never thought you were that good." "I got a bit of practice in since then," he said with a laugh. "But he never shot anyone unless he had no choice.. and he definitely never killed anyone. I always respected him for that. Most of the rest of the gang were cold-blooded killers," Tara continued. Rob nodded his head. "The rest of them didn't care who or what got in their way." Turning to Nina, he said, "Tara was always different. She was as tough as any of the guys, but she never wanted to really hurt any of them. She wanted them to know how badly a woman could beat them up, and she always did. I couldn't think of any guy in our gang or any other who wasn't afraid of her." Tara smiled, and Nina found herself smiling as well. "I know, that's a great feeling, knowing those big, tough men are scared of what you can do to them," she said. "Yes, I saw how good you are in a fight, Nina. Very impressive," Rob complimented her. Nina found herself almost blushing. "But if you don't mind me saying so, I've never seen anyone fight as well as Tara," he continued. "I watched her k.o. every man she ever fought, even when they thought a group of them could handle her. They all went down." He paused and flashed a toothy grin before continuing, "She's a great fighter, but completely blind when it comes to shooting." Tara smirked back at him. "And you couldn't use your fists to save your life, tough guy!" The two shared a mutual laugh for a moment before Rob continued, "Hey, you remember that time those two guys from the Angels had you trapped in that alley? They thought they had an easy target till you started punching the crap out of them. Then the one guy drew the knife.." Tara laughed harder than Nina had ever seen her. "And you shot it out of his hand before he could get it anywhere near me. He didn't even see where you were. I'll always remember the look of shock on the guy's face when I turned around and knocked him out." The buxom blonde and her old friend shared their laughter. When it finally began dying, Rob smiled warmly at Tara. "I'm glad to see you've done well for yourself, Tara. You know, I really missed you when you left for that waitress job, then I heard you became a bouncer.." She returned his smile, then cleared her throat a bit awkwardly. "Yeah, well.. I did kind of get fired from that job." "Then I heard you got a job with Dave Black. You must be happy now, getting paid to fight men. It was always what you did best." "I do pretty well," Tara admitted. She suddenly seemed to snap back to the present day from her memories. "But Rob, what the hell happened with you? Why are you involved in this shit? It's so unlike you!" Rob's face seemed to darken as he listened to her. "Oh, give me a break. You and I both wanted to get off the streets, get ourselves real lives. It was a hell of a lot easier for you, y'know. People are always gonna pay big bucks to watch a drop-dead gorgeous woman pummel and humiliate some chumps with her bare fists, your boss knows that very well. What the hell could I do? The only place marksmen like me can get work is in a fucking circus." "So you turned to selling drugs?" Nina asked. "No, I had the thing dumped in my lap," Rob replied, bitterness filling his voice now. "This operation was a shambles when I came along. But it was the only hope I had to try to buy my way out of the stupid gang. So I built it up, made it work, made it profitable. I'm making a lot of money this way, ladies. Only a little bit more and I'm resigning. I'll have finally, after all these goddamn horrible years, bought my way off the streets." Tara looked like she was about to burst. "But you're killing people, Rob! You never used to even think about stuff like this.. you had principles.." "Dammit, it's easy for you to preach, Tara! Did you think about anyone else when you left the gang? I'm just doing what you did, looking out for myself!" Rob calmed himself as Tara's head dipped in shame and disappointment. "There's something I don't understand," Nina piped up. Rob turned his attention to the dark-haired beauty. "We were told every time the cops tried a raid on you, you knew it was coming. How'd you manage that?" "Oh, that was the easy part," Rob answered. He then yelled towards the open door, "Mr. Philips, may we speak to you a moment?" Into the room walked a bearded man in an impeccable Italian suit. "May I present Nathan Philips, federal government liaison to the local police in this case," Rob announced with a hint of pride. Philips moved to stand near Nina. "You see, ladies, money talks." "Now it makes sense," Nina mused. "You buy off the guy who's piping info to the feds, and he tells you every move the cops make." Tara finally managed to overcome the rush of emotions she was facing. "Damn clever, Rob," she said. "You haven't lost your brains, that's for sure. But you still have two problems.." Rob's smile vanished and he became almost downcast. "I.. I know. I knew the cops were going to send someone else after me, but dammit, why did it have you be you, Tara?" he demanded. "Hey, I didn't know you were gonna be in charge of this fucking thing!" she protested. "This thing doesn't seem to be too big, either," Nina interrupted, just as Rob was preparing a comeback. "Are there only the three guys we beat up and you?" "Oh, the central operation is best kept small, to keep from attracting too much attention. We got enough dealers out on the street to keep demand satisfied, but this is where they get what they sell," Rob answered. Nina nodded. Rob hesitated, then continued. "Ladies, I want to make you an offer. You two are obviously the best fighters around here.." Bruno growled to Nina's side, annoyed about that statement, but Rob ignored him. "..And that can come in handy. What would you two say to a joint deal? You'd find the money more than comfortable, I'm sure." Nina snorted contemptuously. "Not a chance." Tara looked depressedly at him. "No," she said simply. "C'mon Tara, it'll be just like old times.. plus you'll both be rich," Rob added. "No, it won't, Rob. We never did crap like this in the old days." "But I can't let either of you go," Rob said frustratedly. "You both know too much. Come on, ladies, be reasonable. I'm offering you a chance for a fortune. You can have whatever you want!" "Sorry, honey," Nina replied. "We were sent to stop you, and that's what we'll do." Tara nodded. "She's right. Rob, I'll make you a counter-offer. Give up now." "Dammit, this is so useless!" Rob cried. "Tara, I'm not going to give up now, now that I'm so close! You two are throwing your lives away!" "So be it," Tara said. "No one said getting off the street would be easy for you, Rob." Rob winced, and turned his head away. "Bruno, you and Philips take Nina outside, please. Make sure she doesn't suffer. Tara, I want to speak to you privately." Tara stood and walked towards Rob. Bruno acknowledged his orders. "Right, boss," he said, then gestured at Nina with his pistol. "Let's go, lady, this won't hurt much." The miniskirted amazon stood. "How considerate of you, sweetie," she grumbled. With Philips in front of her and Bruno falling in close behind her, his gun in her back, she moved towards the door. Glancing quickly around, she saw Tara move in close to Rob, then a quick glance over her shoulder showed Bruno and his gun. Nina knew that if she waited, she and Tara were sure to be goners. Now was the only chance she had.. She moved quicker, falling in close behind Philips, then brought a sexy leg up, bringing the bottom of her high heeled pump into the base of his back. She then pushed her leg straight with all her strength. The shove-kick sent Philips sprawling forward, exactly as Nina had expected, right into the doorframe. He bounced off loudly, falling to the floor. The power in Nina's leg also sent her stumbling back, and she let herself go, stopping only when she collided hard with Bruno. She thanked her luck as the force of her bodily impact sent his gun off to the side, away from her. Spinning to face him, she brought her open hand chopping down on his gun hand, knocking it from his grasp. She then balled her hand into a fist and punched the black man in the face, whack. What Nina didn't expect to see was Bruno absorb the punch. Her fist knocked his head to the side, but no grunt of pain emerged. Instead, he simply brought his head back around and grinned down on the amazon, as if to say, "Nice try, little lady." On the other end of the room, Rob cursed as he saw Nina begin her struggle. He responded quickly by drawing his gun, aiming precisely at the center of her head. Tara reacted just as quickly, kicking up, her boot sending Rob's gun flying from his grasp. "Rob, don't make me hurt you," Tara intoned quietly. "Tara, I'm not going to let you stop me," he said with equal determination. The two stood, examining each other, neither moving. Nina acknowledged Bruno's grin with one of her own. "Oooo, a man who can take a punch," she cooed. Then her long, shapely left leg blurred into motion, soaring up in a graceful arc. Bruno's grin vanished abruptly as Nina kicked him in the face. "Ooooomp!" he grunted, as her foot spun him around and knocked him down into a stack of boxes. They scattered and flattened under his considerable bulk. "But I'll always have a leg up on you, darling," the sexy amazon dancer quipped at him. Rob backed away from Tara, moving slowly towards where his gun had landed. She followed him, ready for whatever he may try. "C'mon, Rob, you know you don't stand a chance fighting me," she said. Rob feinted towards his gun, and Tara leapt, anticipating him to make a grab for it. Instead, he turned and began to run towards the large window in the far wall. "Who said anything about fighting?" he yelled as he ran. The blonde amazon recovered with admirable speed, and ran after him, finally catching him as he reached the window and flung it open. Grabbing him, her strong arms pulled him away from the escape and flung him back into the room. Rob sprawled on the ground and skidded along for a foot where Tara had thrown him. "Don't make me do this," she repeated, pleading with him. "You don't have a choice, Tara," Rob answered, regaining his feet. Tara stalked him unhappily. Philips clambered back to his feet, gaping in awe at the raw power Nina displayed in flooring the big black bodyguard with her kick. To his credit, thoughts of fleeing didn't yet cross his mind. Instead, he grabbed the fire axe off its mount on the wall, shouted loudly, and charged at the amazon. He hefted it over his head with rather some difficulty, bringing it down hard as he ran towards Nina, who had backed off until she was back against the table. Philips's bloodcurdling scream echoed around the room as he swung his weapon down, only to find Nina lithely dancing out of its way. The axe buried itself deep into the wood of the table, and the bearded man yanked desperately on it, only to find he was now unable to budge it. "You're only going to hurt yourself with that thing, hon," Nina smiled, interrupting his efforts to free the axe with a solid punch to his stomach. "Oooof!" Philips grunted as he felt Nina's power for the first time and bent in two around her punch. "Don't worry, I'll hurt you enough that you won't need anything else," the amazon reassured him. She lifted her knee straight up into his face, sending him sprawling flat onto his back with a loud cry of agony. Rob looked intently at Tara as she continued to stalk him. He, too, was pleading with her to stop, in his own way. "Please, Tara," he told her. "Don't try to stop me. If I get my gun back, I'll use it. Please, I don't want to kill you.." The blonde stepped closer to him, and he backed off. "I have to stop you, Rob.." She stopped in mid-sentence as he broke for the gun, lying near a corner. Tara leapt after him, tackling him as he reached for the gun. The two crashed to the ground, and Tara wasted no time in pulling Rob up off the floor, away from his deadly weapon. He struggled against her, throwing a punch at her face. She easily brought a well-muscled arm up, effortlessly blocking the blow. "You never did know how to throw a punch, Rob," she almost sighed, her other arm launching a punch in response. "Unnh!" Rob cried as her fist cracked loudly into his chin, sending him stumbling back into the corner. His knees gave out and he sagged down to the ground. The strong, beautiful blonde towered over him, for once not revelling in the power she held over the man she was beating. "You could never take a punch, either," she said. "Give it up, Rob. You know you can't fight me." The man sat in the corner, shaking his head violently, struggling against the stunning power Tara put into her punch. Bruno stood, gingerly rubbing his face where Nina's kick had landed. Nina grinned at him. "Come get me, big boy," she teased. Bruno snarled and did as she commanded, his arms outstretched, ready to seize her. She stopped him dead in his tracks, snapping a curvaceous leg up and kicking him in the side. He winced as her foot hit his kidney area with a thud, forcing him to take a step back and grunt loudly in pain. "You move like a sloth, sweetie. You'll have to be a bit faster if you want to have a chance fighting me," Nina snickered. She stepped up and kicked at his ribcage again. This time, the big man displayed some admirable speed of his own, stopping the kick and grabbing Nina's leg in one large hand and held tight. "Now I will smash you, woman," he vowed loudly, preparing a punch with his other hand. Nina simply stood before him, hopping on the toes of her free foot to maintain her balance. "I don't think so, hon," she said, her confident smile never leaving her face. Suddenly she leapt up, twisting violently in his grasp, her free leg flying up like a rocket. Nina's foot smashed right into Bruno's face. "Uuuunnff!" he cried, her kick sending him down into a pile of crates like a ton of bricks. Nina quickly stood and taunted him as he lay writhing in pain. "I hope you like how my shoe tastes, darling.. you'll be tasting it a few more times before I'm done." Meanwhile, another man appeared in the doorway, attracted by the loud sounds of the fight. He looked around in disbelief, at the two girls beating his bosses up, then quickly charged in, rushing towards Tara. Tara saw him coming, turned and met the young, dark- haired man with an immense high kick. Her black boot caught him hard under his chin, spinning him around and driving him face-first into the wall with a crash. He bounced off and flopped to the ground, undoubtedly wondering exactly what he had gotten himself into. Tara spun back to face Rob, as he struggled back up to face her. "C'mon, Rob, Nina and I will have your guys out cold in no time. Is this the way you really want it?" She was forced to stop and dodge his wild blow as he doubled his fists together and swung madly at her face. "No!" he yelled. He swung at her again, forcing her back. "It's my life, Tara! I won't let you ruin it!" She ducked underneath a third swing, coming back up and punching him in the gut. He grunted and bent in two. "You've lost it, Rob," she told him. "Is this the way you really are? Have you been lying to me all along?" He never got the chance to answer, as the blonde brought a strong forearm down brutally into the base of his neck. The powerful blow knocked him to the floor, his hands holding him up, then they gave out and his face met the ground. Groaning, he shook off the effects of her blows desperately. Philips fought his way back to his feet, only to find the intimidating form of Nina in front of him. He dabbed in disbelief at the blood seeping down into his nose from his beard as she smiled at him. "Ready for more, sweetie?" she asked. "You better be. Beating up a man from the government has been a dream of mine for a while now." She approached menacingly, and Philips controlled his fear admirably, directing a swing at her beautiful face. She dodged back away from the punch, and he threw another as he pursued her. This time she blocked his punch with ease, swiftly bringing her other hand down into a blindingly fast chop to his neck. Philips grunted, his knees buckling under the blow. "Guess the government didn't teach you to fight, did they?" Nina teased him, then punched him in the jaw. The suited man's face twisted in pain as her punch sent him stumbling back to thud against the wall, collapsing down with his back to it. Tara watched as Rob slowly lifted himself off the floor. "Rob, watch," she said as her new opponent climbed to his knees shakily. "Your little boys can't hope to lay a hand on Nina and I." The young man suddenly found the blonde amazon facing him. He had short dark hair, wore dingy work clothes, and almost came up to Tara's height. His face was decorated with a lurid bruise from her kick, but he put aside the pain and threw a punch at her. She ducked under it, and he followed as she came back up with a punch to her stomach. His eyes widened in awe and fear as his punch thudded into her rock-hard abs with no visible effect. She replied with a vicious punch of her own into his stomach. This time the effect was obvious as he cried in pain and doubled around her fist. He backed a step away from her, and Tara turned back to Rob for a second. "Rob, you've seen me knock out bigger guys than this kid.. why not stop it now? If you give up I won't hurt any of you anymore," she said, but before Rob could reply, the kid Tara was facing recovered his breath and came at her again. Yelling loudly, he doubled his fists and swung madly at her head. She dodged back out of reach just in time, then stepped in quickly and slammed a punch to his kidneys. He screamed in agony, only to be silenced by the gorgeous blonde's other fist punching him in the face. Her punch would have blasted him off his feet easily if it weren't for the wall stopping him. "In case you forgot, watch what my fists can do to a man, Rob," Tara said, approaching her target slowly. The boy saw those strong female arms that were punishing him, arms most men would have been proud to own. The muscles rippled firmly as the amazon approached. It was hard to believe they belonged to a girl, and how much pain she could inflict with them. Tara's punches had left him too disorientated to defend himself, and she swiftly drove another punch to his gut. "Oooooh!" he groaned, bending in two once more, only to find a strong hand pulling him upright, straight into another punch to his chin. That devastating female fist brought the strong taste of blood into his mouth as his head bounced off the wall. His knees began to buckle as he watched her bring her fist back once more, helpless to stop its path into his face. Tara's punch landed with a dull crack, knocking the man back into the wall again, and his legs gave out like they were made of jelly. He flopped down to the floor, weakly clinging to consciousness, and Tara turned to meet Rob's stare. He was struggling his way to his hands and knees. "I.. I hadn't forgotten, Tara," his pained voice said. "I just never expected to be on the receiving end." Tara too looked pained. "Dammit, you don't have to make me do this, Rob!" He looked at her briefly, then said, "It's either you or me, Tara," and lunged desperately for his gun, which still lay on the floor nearby. This time he reached it, brushed his hand against it, almost grabbed it, only to be stopped by Tara's boot. She had stepped quickly up and kicked him in the midsection, as if he were a soccer ball. "UUUNNGH!" he screamed, rolling over with his hands clasped tightly around his damaged ribs. "If that's the way you want it, Rob.. get up and fight me," Tara told him. Nina stood, teasing Bruno as he scrambled his way out of the pile of boxes. "Can't you handle a girl, honey? Or do you just naturally fall down like that?" she smirked. He stood and growled angrily. "No woman does this to me!" he bellowed, charging at the miniskirted amazon. He swung powerfully, throwing a punch that would have knocked out a horse. The punch swiped over Nina's head as she ducked underneath. "This one will," she replied with a giggle, standing and driving a quick punch to his jaw. The big man grunted and fell back a step, but he recovered quickly. He swung at the girl again, missing once more as she danced under it. Whack, Nina again replied with a crisp punch to his face. "Ungh!" Bruno grunted as her punch rocked his head. "Really, darling, you fight like a cream puff. Can't you do better?" The taunts of the sexy woman brought Bruno to a rage. He roared and brought both fists over his head, bringing them down hard, trying to smash Nina to pieces. She leapt out of the way, and his fists came down hard on the wooden table, practically breaking it in two. Nina's foot swiftly came up hard into his stomach before he could stand back up straight. The kick knocked the wind from his body. "Like kicking a side of beef," Nina teased as she lifted her strong, shapely leg and repeated the kick. Bruno gasped for breath frantically as his female opponent pulled him up to face her. She smiled deviously as she punched him hard in the face. The blow rocked him, and she quickly repeated the punch. His head bobbed back and forth helplessly. Nina's third punch hit him before he could react. His tree-like legs finally buckled and the black man toppled to the floor with a dull crash. "I'm enjoying this, hon," his tormentress laughed. "You absorb a lot more damage than most men I've fought." He struggled against his pain as her sultry, taunting voice rang in his ears. Grimacing, Rob tried to ignore the pain seething through his body and heaved himself to his feet, swinging madly at Tara. She easily dodged two clumsy roundhouse swings from the blond man, and took advantage of his off-balance condition without hesitation. A strong left cross from the amazon sent Rob reeling back to the wall and down, groaning in agony as bruises made their presence known. Tara look down on him with a mixture of disappointment and pity. "Last chance, Rob," she said. "I doubt you can take many more punches like that.. you know I'm going to knock you out. Why are you making me do this?" The anguish in her voice was obvious. She curtly turned and stalked over to her other opponent as he stirred from the floor. The dark man was in rough shape, badly battered by the tall, blonde amazon's overwhelming physical power. She angrily reached down, grabbed him and yanked him to his feet, almost lifting him off the ground completely in the process. Before he had a chance to do anything at all, Tara opened her other hand wide and drew it back. She shot her open hand forward, slamming the base of her palm into the middle of his face. It landed with a loud crack, splitting his lip. The man teetered back against the wall, then all his muscles seemed to give way, and he fell to the floor as if all the bones in his body had turned to liquid. He was very unconscious. The powerful woman standing over him turned and returned to Rob. "Don't make me do that to you, Rob.. I never wanted to hurt you," she pleaded sadly. Her eyes grew even sadder as he fumbled his way up, trying to the last to struggle against the inevitable. The two men Nina was fighting were hurt now, neither of them moving very quickly to confront her. She delighted in watching their clumsy struggles as they tried to stand. "That's it, boys.. I'm not done showing you how hazardous fighting a girl can be to your health yet." Philips looked around desperately as he stood, seeking any route of escape rather than face the stunningly beautiful woman who was beating him up. But he quickly found he had no choice as she appeared right in front of him. Nina took the lapel of his formerly neat suit in one hand, spinning him around so his back was to the table, then gave him a sharp backhand punch with her other hand. "Unnnfh!" he yelled as her punch sent him stumbling back to the table. "Don't worry sweetie.. a good dry cleaning ought to get the blood stains out of your suit. Sweet dreams," Nina teased, and the government man was only able to watch helplessly as she gracefully raised a long, shapely leg, snapping a kick to his face. Her foot knocked him sprawling across the table on his stomach, and he struggled briefly, his body spasming in agony until he finally passed out. Nina turned to Bruno, who was having a considerable amount of difficulty getting to his feet. "Your turn now, honey," the brunette beamed. The big man rubbed his bruised face gingerly and considered the situation with as much intelligence as he could muster. His opponent was surprisingly strong, incredibly agile, knew how to fight very well and had scored an impressive amount of damage on him, not to mention knocking out another opponent as he watched. Bruno's ego, on the other hand, told him that this was just a girl, and no woman could hope to stand against him. He foolishly chose to listen to his ego. The black man rose to his full height and growled menacingly, only to find Nina's fist landing to his chin before he could do anything else. The amazon's punch staggered him slightly, but he was beginning to get his second wind now. He said, "No woman's punch can stop.. uunfh." Nina interrupted him with another swift punch to his face. He again staggered as her fist landed with a crack, but he was pumped now. He was determined not to be made a fool of by losing a fight to a woman. He lunged forward and wrapped his large arms around Nina, lifting her off her feet in a powerful bear hug. He was shocked at the firmness and resistance of her body as he began to squeeze with all his strength. Her well-developed muscles struggled fiercely as he tried crushing the life out of her. Nina gasped as the big man seized her, feeling the pressure of his bear hug. "Really, Bruno," she said with deceptive confidence as she squirmed in his grasp. "Is this your version of sweeping a girl off her feet?" Despite her teasing, she knew she had to free herself quickly. He was holding her too close for her to get a decent punch in at his face, and she had no leverage for a kick with her feet off the floor. So she raised both fists over her head and brought them crashing down hard on his broad shoulders, on either side of his head. "Unnnh!" Bruno grunted as Nina's fists slammed down on him with a thud. He felt his grip on her beginning to weaken, even more so as she brought her strong fists down on him again. Smiling broadly, she slammed them down to his shoulders once more, and freed herself as his knees buckled under the blow and the muscles in his arms became suddenly flimsy. The big man shook his arms to try to bring the strength back to them, and looked up just in time to see a shiny black pump zero in on his face. He grunted loudly as Nina's quick kick snapped his head to the side. "I promised you a few good kicks, didn't I, darling?" the lovely amazon grinned, her shapely nylon-clad leg again shooting forward to drive her foot to his face. He grunted and stumbled back slightly. Bringing her leg back down, Nina stepped up and clasped her fists together, swinging them at his battered face. The punch landed with a loud smack, sending Bruno lurching back from her, his head reeling, the taste of blood fresh in his mouth. "You should see yourself, hon," a cruel female voice said as he fought to clear his vision. "A few kicks from a girl and you can barely stand. They don't make bodyguards like they used to, do they?" The giggling brought his anger to the surface once again, and once he could clearly see the amazing fighting female before him, he snarled and prepared to launch a knockout punch, putting all his remaining strength into a last desperate gamble. He never got to play his gamble. Seemingly from out of nowhere, Nina's foot slammed hard into his ribcage. The kick sent intense pain convulsing through his midsection, so she happily repeated it. "Oomph!" Bruno cried. Nina was practically licking her lips with anticipation as she shifted to her other foot, raising her leg menacingly. "See if you can keep an eye on my foot, honey.. here it comes," the shapely amazon grinned at her male opponent. He couldn't, as her foot blurred into action. All he saw were brief flashes of light off her shiny high heel as she shot two blindingly quick high kicks to the side of his face. Her kicks sent him staggering back, his every movement was filled with pain, and he knew for certain finally that he would indeed be shamed and made to be a fool. He was about to lose this fight to a woman. But he was determined to hang on as long as possible. She continued to tease him. "There's nothing better than watching a big man go down after a few of my kicks," she smiled. "Did you ever think such a lovely pair of female legs could do this to you, hon?" In response, he weakly clenched a fist and tried in vain to lift it. All he saw was Nina shift her weight slightly. Like a shot she had launched her kick, her foot blasting through his face. He barely managed to avoid being knocked off his feet, but he did manage. Nina examined the black man wobbling helplessly before her. She was impressed her last kick didn't floor him. But looking into his glassy eyes, she knew he was finished. She savored the moment as she did every time she fought a man, knowing her supreme fighting ability had totally rearranged his ego from the top down. It seemed every man she had fought had had the deluded opinion that no woman could possibly hope to put him down; she delighted in using her amazon power to prove just how wrong they were. "Lights out, sweetie," she purred. "Remember me." How could he ever forget her? he thought. He never stood a chance fighting this incredible woman, and he knew that now. He watched her begin a graceful pirouette in front of him, watched her raise a long, curvaceous leg as she turned. The sheer black pantyhose she wore gave her legs an irresistible sheen, and made them look as if they had been sculpted by the finest artist. Her high heels made their every curve seem even more enticing. He watched one of those heels come up slowly, closer, then felt it hit.. Nina's spinning kick slammed home hard to Bruno's face, knocking him 180 degrees away from her and down into a stack of crates. She knew he was out cold before he hit the ground. The crates scattered and thudded around under his large, limp body as he came to rest. The lean, sexy amazon stood, hands on hips, smiling down on the sleeping man. He had taken a lot more punishment than most of the men she'd fought. Most of them would have been blown away by half the kicks she'd given to that monster. That made the process and the eventual outcome seem even more appealing to her. On the other side of the room, Tara wasn't having quite as much fun, although she was having the same success against the men she was fighting. Rob shook his head and stood, his anger still driving him despite the obvious lurid bruises the blonde amazon's beatings had given him. "Dammit, Tara," he cursed as he stepped forward and threw a rather lame punch at her head. "You're.. condemning my life.. to be a pile of shit!" he continued, throwing punches all the while. Tara easily dodged them, then blocked his last effort with a muscular forearm. "It already is!" she snarled at her former friend, punching him hard in the gut. He bent around her punch, and she quickly grabbed him and pulled him back upright. "You're the one who made it this way, Rob!" Her fist shot up like a lightning strike, jabbing him hard in the jaw. His head flopped back and he stumbled a step under the onslaught. Then whack, a straight punch toppled him back to the wall and then to the floor. Rob struggled to focus his eyes on his former friend. "I.. I didn't have a choice," he groaned, spitting forth a mixture of blood and saliva as he forced the words out. Desperately trying to get back up, his pained voice continued, "You'll never know what it's like, Tara.. but you'll know what it's like to.. destroy a friend's life.." His words just angered the tall blonde amazon. "Fuck you!" she screamed in frustration. She charged at Rob, grabbing his jacket in one hand, the other slamming a hard punch to his face. "No friend would put me through this shit!" she cried, punching him over and over. Rob's head shot back and forth with the powerful blows, blood pouring forth from his cracked lips and battered nose. Tara felt his nose break under a sharp punch. A couple more punches and she felt him go limp in her grasp, the savage beating finally overwhelming him. But she couldn't stop. She kept raining punches down on his broken face, her anger compelling her to do incredible damage. His head bobbled limply on his neck, batted back by her punches then falling forward only to be driven back again by another punch. Tara shrieked incomprehensibly at him, only stopping when two hands grasped her mighty shoulders. "Tara!!" Nina screamed in her ear. "Stop it! You'll kill him!" Tara landed one last punch, then finally realized what she was doing. "Oh my God," she whispered, letting Rob go. He crumpled to the ground like a rag doll. Everything seemed to catch up to Tara in that moment, and she almost fell forward, leaning wearily against the wall Rob had collapsed against. "Nina?" she asked. "What have I done?" Nina didn't answer immediately. She had never seen Tara that angry before. She had never seen Tara angry, period. To lose one's temper in a fight was either going to result in a humiliating loss or hideous damage like what had been done to Rob. Tara probably would have killed him if Nina hadn't stopped her. As it was, Rob's face looked like a slab of meat. Terrible cuts and large purple bruises covered his face in a hideous mask, and his nose was bent sideways across his cheek. "We did what we had to do, Tara," Nina replied slowly, reassuringly. "We had to stop these guys." She then heard something else she never expected to hear, the sound of Tara beginning to cry. Nina wanted to put a hand on Tara's shoulder, to reassure her friend, to take away the pain, but she knew it was too late for that now. The damage was done. "Tara," she said, "I'm going to go get your jacket. I'm going to get the cops in here. We've finished with these guys." Tara remained leaning against the wall, hiding her face, sobbing softly over Rob's horribly beaten body. "Good.. get me the hell out of here.." she pleaded quietly. Nina turned and walked quickly towards the door to the main warehouse area, to retrieve the signaller from Tara's jacket. The sooner we get out of this place the better, she thought. Unfortunately, she was met at the doorway by John staggering into the room. The black man was still staggering from the beatings the two girls had administered to him earlier. He looked around quickly, seeing several more unconscious men, including his boss.. and two very dangerous amazon women, one of whom was practically on top of him. His mind immediately gave him the correct decision. Get the hell out of here, it said. Nina gave him no chance to escape. "Uhhhh!" he shouted as she ran up and kicked him hard in the stomach. It was an effort for Nina to control her own anger. She hated seeing the obvious emotional damage Tara had been put through, and she wanted revenge on these men for it.. But she knew that wasn't the way. Roxanne had trained Nina well, and one of the most important points she had emphasized was keeping a clear mind during a fight. Letting emotion cloud your judgement was a sure way to defeat. Nina knew these men would pay for their crimes. Besides, this one was so nearly out of it, it wasn't worth wasting effort on him. Just get him out of the way and get Tara out of here, she thought to herself. The amazon dancer leapt up in the air as John came back upright, her long left leg coming up in a graceful, glorious arc. Thwack! Nina kicked the man hard in the face, sending him sprawling to the ground, shouting in agony. He skidded across the floor and came to a rest, completely unconscious. Nina looked back at Tara, who hadn't moved from her position against the wall. Sighing, Nina strode out into the warehouse, finding Tara's jacket and pulling the beeper out of the pocket. The other two men were still out cold. She pressed the button to summon the police. Tara sat in the chair in my office, her eyes red from the tears she was obviously holding back with a supreme effort. Roxanne sat behind my desk, listening intently as Nina finished the story of what they had been through. "Was Rob all right?" I asked. Nina began to reply, only to be cut off by Tara's cracking voice. "They said he'd live, Black," she snapped bitterly. "Most of the damage was superficial. Broken nose, bruised and cracked ribs.. nothing they couldn't reconstruct.." Her voice tapered off weakly. Roxanne sat up straight, looking sympathetically at the blonde. "Tell me what you're thinking, Tara," she said. Tears began to fall down Tara's cheeks as she answered. "That was the hardest thing I ever did," she sobbed, managing to keep her voice level. "I've beat up dozens of men.. but I never felt like this before. I'd have sooner killed myself than what I did to Rob." "It's understandable," Roxanne began. "He was your friend.." "He was," Tara interrupted. "And I did what he said, I destroyed his life." Her sobs intensified. "I didn't know what else I could do! I had to stop him, and he made it worse! I betrayed everything we once had!" Her crying became wailing. Roxanne quickly moved to Tara's side, holding her while she cried. "Tara, he betrayed you, too," she said. "You trusted him implicitly, and he knew what he was doing would hurt you if you found out. Everything will be all right now, your friends are all here." Tara's breath came in gasps as she sobbed. "Rob was my friend too," she said. "Roxanne.. I don't know if I can do this anymore. Tonight was so hard.. I don't know if I could do this again.." Roxanne held the blonde closer. "I understand," she whispered. "Tara, you need time off, time to think everything over. Rob will be all right, but it's important to me that you are too." She stood and helped Tara up, gently directing her towards the door. "Thanks, Roxanne," Tara tried to smile. "You really are a friend." She slowly moved outside, walking as if she were carrying the weight of the world on her shoulders. Roxanne beckoned Nina over. "Take her home, and make sure she's all right, please," she instructed. "Right," Nina said, following Tara out. Roxanne closed the door behind them, then walked over and virtually collapsed in the chair Tara had been sitting in. She too suddenly seemed exhausted. "Damn the police and their 'mission'," she muttered half to herself. "I should never have sent Tara to do something I could have done myself." I put a hand on her tense shoulder, trying to comfort her. "You couldn't have known this would happen," I said. "Yes, yes," she answered. "And Tara's a big girl, I know. But that doesn't make me feel any better. She'll need to get over this herself, and that will take time. None of us can help her deal with this." She looked up at me and smiled. "Thank you for the reassurance, David." She stroked my face gently with her hand, pulling me down into a long kiss. When it ended, I thought I would melt down into her arms. "You've been wanting to talk about us for a while now, haven't you?" she asked, looking deeply into my eyes. I wasn't that astonished. "Has it been that obvious?" She smiled as she let me back up. "It's been all Nina and Tara have been talking about," Roxanne said. "Maybe you should sit down." I sat as she stood, walking over to the desk and leaning back on it. "You're in love with me." It wasn't a question, but a simple statement. I stammered as my cheeks flushed with color. I wasn't quite sure how to answer, but there was no sense in hiding my feelings when they were so obvious. "Yes." Roxanne was no longer smiling as she began an intense study of her shoes. "I.. I wish I could feel the same," she began, as I felt my heart begin to sink. But she quickly continued, "I'm not sure what I feel.. you see, most of my life has been spent competing with men, against them. Like Tara, I've beaten literally dozens of men in fights. I think I've told you, the only way I seem to be able to achieve sexual gratification is after I've beaten a man.." She glanced up at me and I nodded, and she quickly dropped her gaze back down. "I had gotten so used to that. Some man, or group of men will challenge me to a physical confrontation, I proceed to beat them, then take another afterwards for sex.. you wind up almost thinking of men as objects, just there for your personal pleasure.." She looked up at me again. "That's Tara's problem at the moment. She's thought this way for a long time. She's never had to think of the men she's fought as anything other than stupid, egotistical, hormone-driven targets." Roxanne sighed, then continued. "I myself have been guilty of the same thing. But I can't think of you like that. I.. I want to be able to give you more, but it takes a lot of effort to change the way one thinks." "I think I understand, Roxanne," I said hesitantly. Considering the sorts of idiots she'd met and fought since we first met, this wasn't too hard to understand. "It was much more simple to deal with when I knew you just wanted to worship me," she said, a slight smile forming. "I'm used to having men feel that way about me." This was the first statement she made that I was 100% certain about answering. "You should be, Roxanne.. you are magnificent." The smile broadened, then vanished as she resumed her speech. "We do have to worry about practical concerns, as well, David. We've made several enemies in the time we've been fighting for you. Imagine if Olson ever suspected the true feelings you and I have for one another. Knowing he has no chance trying to hurt any of the girls, he would fix on you as a potential target, and I can't protect you 24 hours a day.." This part made extremely good sense. "I see.." "I would never forgive myself if something happened to you because of anything I've done," she said. "I do hope you understand.." I tried my best to smile for her. "I think I do," I answered, feeling somewhat better. Roxanne smiled, walked up and kissed me as I rose to meet her. She then wrapped her strong arms around me in a sweet embrace. "I know you're not happy about it, though," she whispered in my ear. I returned her embrace as best as I could. "I'd be happier if I could still worship you," I ventured. Her giggling sounded like music in my ear as I felt the powerful, beautiful amazon lift me off my feet. The sensation was disconcerting, but I loved it. "Of course," she laughed. "I've never objected to admiration from a worthy worshipper." I grinned as we embraced, wishing the moment to go on forever.