Carter walked through the huge shelves of unused goods at a slower pace. He checked bags every so often, taking note of those that seemed suspicious. There was a bag of dried plants halfway along the row. He wrote that down on the pad of paper he kept upon him.

It was slow going, heading down that cavernous row. The fluorescent lights did a good job of illuminating the materials on either side. Smooth stone covered the floor. It was pockmarked by puddles of flour and the odd cookie crumb.

Carter had chosen the row closest to the factory wall. There were still shelves on either side of him. Up at the end of the row, Burnes could see a winding set of metal stairs. They seemed to lead to a landing that disappeared out of view up to the right. That was a definite point of interest, he thought to himself.

The row seemed to stretch as Burnes walked along it. The end didn't seem to come any closer, until he was standing right at it. He looked both ways once he reached the end. He couldn't see the other officers. Maybe he'd been walking faster than he'd thought.

Burnes hesitated for a second. Maybe he should wait before going up. There would be no back-up available to him up there. If the suspect was on that floor, he would be by himself. But on the other hand, the more he hesitated, the more chance the suspect had of getting away.

It was with this thought that the detective began to climb up the stairs. There were two sets, with a small landing in the middle. It only took no more than thirty seconds to scale them.

At the top, Burnes looked over the factory. He could see over the four rows, all the way to the conveyor belts by the ovens at the far side.

He turned back to the metal floor he now stood upon. There was a room at the end of the floor. It was small and rectangular, with no windows that he could see. The door was metal, but the walls appeared to be made out of something like concrete.

Burnes walked towards it slowly. It appeared to be a manager's office. He hoped that wasn't all it was.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Every minute seemed like ten to Elle. She watched the green bar drag itself across her laptop screen. 30 minutes remaining. 25 minutes remaining. 15 minutes remaining. 12 minutes remaining. It was agonising to watch.

Elle's head snapped up when she heard footsteps just outside of the door. There was someone on the landing. She hoped it wasn't him. She hoped to God it wasn't him.

Had she locked the door? Elle could see the key on the filing cabinet next to her coat. The handle dipped down. No, she hadn't locked it. Of course, she hadn't locked it.

Elle took the pistol out of the top drawer of her desk. She held it in her hand. She could feel herself trembling.

The door opened slightly, and then more, and then completely. Carter Burnes stood in the door frame. She could see his face in the light from the window behind her. There was nothing but shock plastered upon it.

"El...Elspeth?" Burnes sounded like a child. She had never heard his voice so soft, so confused. He stared at her like she was a ghost. "Elle, what are you doing here?" There was a touch less softness in his tone.

Elspeth Burnes straightened her back. "My job." Her voice was strong to her ears, she didn't sound in the slightest bit scared. Her blood roared in her veins. She could feel her heart throwing itself at her ribs.

Carter took a step forward. What was she doing here? Why was she here? What did she mean her job? His mouth opened and closed. He took another step forward, and only then did Carter Burnes see the gun held within his wife's hands.

Elle moved around the desk, so that she was facing him straight on, so that they could see each other fully. He could see the steel in her eyes.

Elle felt a sudden eerie sense of calm. She wasn't sure where it had come from or what it meant, but it washed over her like a cold shower. "Don't come any closer, Detective."

"Elle, drop the gun. Now." Burnes kept his hands at his sides, palms towards his wife. His voice now carried that same chill that her own did. She could hear the slight wobble of shock mixed into his words.

"You shouldn't have come here, Detective." Elle knew what she had to do. Her priorities had always been the same, and they would continue to just now. Nothing had changed. She looked down at the white-gold wedding ring on her left ring finger.

Carter watched her movements like she was a wounded bear. She wouldn't hurt him; he knew she wouldn't. She was his wife. She loved him. He'd been married to her for over twenty years.

Carter saw her look down, for just one, two, seconds, and he jumped at her. He dashed forwards without a moment's hesitation. He stretched his arm out for the gun.

Elle didn't hesitate either. She raised the gun, pulled the slide back and released it. Her breath caught in her throat.

Elle fired the gun. It kicked like a wild bull in her hand. She pulled the slide back again, and fired a second time. She had trained in marksmanship on and off for years. She had aimed for his chest. She had hit her mark.

The next few seconds seemed to pass in slow motion. Carter felt the impact of the two shells. They smashed through him, and kept going. His knees buckled beneath him, and his shirt suddenly felt too warm against his chest. He hit the floor and didn't get back up. There was a shout of alarm from somewhere in the factory. It was followed by others.

Elle saw the blood blossom on Carter's chest, she saw it splash across his shirt and the floor after he'd fallen. She stared at his body with eyes as stone-cold as the metal of the gun.

She cocked another cartridge into the chamber, and turned away from her husband. The business had always come first. Her family was second place, and they always would be. It was just the way things were.

Elle strode back towards her desk. She bent down and removed a lighter from the bottom drawer. It was a light blue, with small flowers around its base. A 500ml bottle of nail polish remover sat just behind her laptop. It was a recent buy, for a contract she'd been considering taking up. She picked it up too.

Elle twisted the cap off of the bottle and tossed it to the ground. She hesitated for a second or two, and opened the top drawer. Elle pocketed the remaining bullets for her pistol. She then began to pour the liquid across her desk, covering the laptop, the chair, the desk itself.

She strode past her motionless husband and grabbed her jacket and the gloves beneath it from the hook by the door. She doused the filing cabinet, and the door handle. When the bottle was empty, she was satisfied that she had covered everything in the room. Burnes lay dry on the floor still, a dark red stain creeping out around him.

Elle flicked the lighter open. She watched the flame dance before her eyes, and then tossed it at her desk. It hit the floor, still aflame, and immediately the nail polish remover caught fire. She didn't stick around to watch.

Carter's body lay, as still as a Greek statue, on the floor. His arm was outstretched still, grasping towards something he would never be able to reach. He was inches away from the fire climbing up the legs of his wife's desk.

Elle opened the window and stepped out onto the balcony. A cool breeze buffeted her hair. It reminded her of a night not so long ago.

She could see the ladders that led to the underground part of the Dasker factories. That would be her ticket out of here.

Elle stepped onto the first rung of the ladders and descended down. She didn't look back.