The Last Bullet
by elfin


"This is it, isn't it?"

Crouched in the dirt, back flat against the wooden slats of the fencing, Sonny glanced around their flimsy protection.  "Could be."

Rico checked the barrel of his pistol.  Empty.  He swore silently.

"What have you got?"

Popping the magazine from his Bren, Sonny peered down the dark shaft.  "One left."

"There are hundreds of them."  A slight exaggeration but it made no odds now.  "I think we really pissed them off this time."

Sonny grimaced.  "Can't think why."

Actually there were millions of reasons.  Millions of fresh green unmarked, unconsecutive reasons.

He looked around.  They needed to move before one of the bullets flying passed them actually pierced the wooden panels and one of them was killed right here, right now.  They'd been on borrowed time for too long - it had to run out soon.

"Think we can make it to the car?"

They'd parked the Ferrari in an enclosed parking lot about a hundred metres from the docks.

Sonny considered it.  "Nah, they'd only chase us and riddle the paintwork with bullets."  He shuddered.

Rico stared at him for a moment, utterly incredulous, before agreeing.  "And we absolutely would not want that."

"Absolutely."

Another bout of shooting shattered the silence, one barrage of bullets a couple of seconds after another.

With the respite both men straightened up again into their crouched positions, ready to run when the time came.

"And only twenty years before my retirement," Sonny grouched. 

Rico chuckled.  "We did well to make it this far."  Glancing at the man next to him, he asked, "Any regrets?"

Sonny snorted.  "Only one or two thousand.  You?"

He hesitated before answering.  "Just one."

Turning from his vigil of the wasteland between them and the bad guys, Sonny caught hold of the emerald gaze.  "What?"

Again Rico paused.  But they were down to their last bullet and this had at one time been an arms deal.  The other guys had more ammo than they could ever fire in one night.

"C'mon, Rico.  One regret.  What is it?"

He studied the storm green eyes locked with his own.  Confession time.

"That I didn't take you to bed."

Sonny's mouth fell open and for the second or maybe third time in his life his partner was lost for words.  He was glad of the firefight that started up again at that exact second and it took a moment for his brain to register the two distinct sides.

When he realised what the pauses in shooting meant, he closed his eyes and groaned.  Back up had arrived.  Castillo had rescued their asses yet again.

Just too late to save him.

When he opened his eyes, Sonny was still staring at him.  Something blocked his the light and he looked up to see Stan grinning down at him.

"Need some help, girls?"

For a moment Rico imagined he'd destroyed it all.  Then Sonny waved his hand in the air, effectively dismissing the other vice cop.

"Nah, we're fine.  Thanks, Stan."

He smiled like a piranha and loped away.

They sat in the same place, not moving, for a long time.  The bad guys - those still breathing - had been dragged off to post bail before sunrise.  The bodies had been cleared to the local over-worked mortuary.

They still sat in silence.

"Sun'll be up in an hour," Sonny said eventually.  "Buy you breakfast?"

Rico nodded and they pulled one another to their feet.  Re-holstering their guns they ambled back to the Ferrari.

"Sonny, listen..." 

Whatever he'd had planned was lost in Sonny's sudden and brutal kiss.  It was a single, hammered heartbeat before Rico regained enough composure to return the compliment.

He didn't question it - Sonny was always doing something crazy.  He tangled his fingers in Sonny's thick hair and held on through the assault on his mouth.

Crockett lifted his head, breathing hard.  "No more regrets, Rico.  Not ever."