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“Understood, Christian, I apologize if the men weren’t as accommodating as they should have been.” He backpedals, trying to smooth over the situation, but it’s only enraging me more.
“The next person who questions my identity is going to end up dead. Do I make myself crystal clear?” I say through clenched teeth. “Now, I don’t have time for this. Retrieve the girl from the basement and bring her to me. It’s time for her to go home.”
“But Christian,” Harvey starts to say.
I turn my gun on him. “Do not make me repeat myself. I’m warning you.”
“Well, what is everyone waiting for? You heard the boss. Go get the girl.” He says, snapping his fingers.
The men snap into action and I put my gun away. As I do, I whisper to Clay, “Remind me later to punish him for his insubordination.”
He nods his understanding and we wait in silence as the men disperse around us, returning to their duties. Several minutes later, a few men return with the girl from the night before. Thankfully, she looks no worse for wear than when I saw her the night in the club. I glare at her as the men shove her towards where Clay and I stand.
“I’m giving you one chance, and I’m only going to ask once, sweetheart. Who do you work for and why were you at the club messing with my car?” I growl at her. My agitation with the situation is impossible to hide or control.
“Maybe we should go somewhere a little more private, handsome,” she flirts.
I sigh in frustration and rub my hand down my face. “Look, I don’t want to murder a woman. It just feels wrong, but you are worthless to me right now unless you tell me who you work for and why they sent you. Once you answer my questions, I can take you home. Let’s do this the easy way, because if you pick the hard way when I figure out who you work for, I will deliver you to them inside a body bag. I don’t think either of us wants that, now do we?” I try to negotiate with her. At first I don’t think she is going to agree to anything, but then she surprises me with an answer.
“I work for the Peacocks, but Le Manchot has infiltrated our operation. Nothing is what it seems.” Her voice is frightened, but she continues, “Now, please return me to my people so I can stop them from joining forces with Le Manchot and destroying the entire city.”
It hits me like a ton of bricks. We aren’t enemies, after all. I’m not supposed to leave loose ends, but this girl, the Peacocks, one of our rivals, they are fighting the same fight. I know I shouldn’t make the next move. I dare not think about what I am about to suggest, but I didn’t get this far inside the Arkham organization by playing things safe. “Tell me who you really are, and maybe we can work together. Le Manchot has something of mine and I will stop at nothing to get it back”
“I think you already know the answer to that question. Do you really need me to say the words?” She taunts.
“Yes.”
“Christian,youknowIalways have your back, but I’m not sure about this. How can we trust her? Are you sure you want to place Quinn’s fate in her hands?” Clay asks, as we wait in the car for Selena to rejoin us.
“Clay, I understand the hesitation, but if what she is saying turns out to be true, imagine the impact and power an alliance could wield us. No longer divided, we could dominate this city. Those so called good guy vigilantes wouldn’t stand a chance against an organized and united front. In fact, it might force them to negotiate with us and beg for our protection from the scumbags who have taken up residency in the dangerous inner city.” I lamented at the thought of a new world order. One where the villains controlled the gameboard and the wealthy politicians bent over backwards to appease us, all in order to keep the city from being destroyed. Oh, what glorious fun it would be, and here it was, within arm’s reach. Everything the organization has worked towards and so much more.
Clay shifted uncomfortably in his seat. When I followed his gaze, I realized why. Quinn will not like this. She will not like this one bit. “Fuck,” I muttered under my breath, in hopes Clay wouldn’t notice.
“See, I told you this was a bad idea, Christian. Quinn is going to lose her shit and if she murders Selena or even injures her we are going to be fucked,” Clay whisper shouts at me.
“Stay calm, buddy. We just need to keep Quinn from going off the deep end. There’s still a few hours left until nightfall. Either we think of something or we wing it and hope for the best.”
“Hope for the best,” Clay hisses right before Selena opens the door and climbs into the backseat. I give him a warning look, then smile in the rearview mirror.
“Thanks boys. I needed to change and grab a few things. Luckily, my father believed in keeping a few safe houses around the city that only the two of us knew about. They were set up in case something like this happened,” she explained.
“Were the cats part of the plan, too? Because they sure do a good job of making this place somewhere, you would never expect to find people like you hiding out.” Clay blurts, without thinking about how it might sound. My knuckles tighten against the steering wheel as I glare at him.
Selena laughs hesitantly. “No, but when I was a child, I often grew bored and lonely. Feeding the cats was one of my only forms of companionship when I was here, locked away alone where no one could find me or hurt me during times of conflict.”
The entire time she’s explaining, her eyes are in a far-off gaze as if she’s remembering wistful memories of the past. She doesn’t seem so different from us. Her story is all too familiar. I think about the first time they sent away Quinn. I was a lowly gruntman at the time. Serving as a guard for their main home. I couldn’t understand why it was happening. I didn’t have the experience. When it happened, a second time, a few years later, my ranking had increased, and they sent me with her as part of the security team. The third and final time was the most recent. I led the team assigned to protect Quinn, except I let my desires and lust for her cloud my judgment. A miraculous act of fate was the only thing that saved me. In a shocking turn of events, I ascended to the highest ranking possible. From that day forward, I fought for the right to call her mine. I became a human weapon capable of doing anything to impress my puppet master in order to convince him I was worthy of the title. To prove that one day I would be worthy of his place. The years I spent laying this foundation were my darkest years. It wasn’t until I had permission to claim Quinn for myself that I was finally able to see the light trapped in the darkness.
Inside, my anger stirs. I’m seething with rage. It coils beneath my skin as a serpent ready to strike. Like a ticking time bomb on the verge of detonation. It teeters away, set on destroying everything that stands in the way of bringing Quinn home. I need her more than I need the air I breathe. Without her, surely I will suffocate and drown in a dark desolation. My light, my love, mon bijou,my jewel.
Clay interrupts my inner turmoil. “Christian, where do you want the team to rendezvous? We need an attack strategy.”
I look at Selena to see if she’s connected the dots. “Oh, no. We can’t meet here,” she hisses. “You have to promise to keep this place between us, no matter what. I can’t have anyone finding out about it.”
“Okay, this place is out, but how about the warehouse in the lower district? It’s close to the dock and we have some extra cars there being stored.” I reply, thinking fast as I mull over the resources at each of our controlled locations.
“I’ll let the team know.” Clay says as he fires off a text.
“Clay, I need you to take a few guys to the bridge and scope things out. Get a feel for the layout. Make note of any spots that might put us at a disadvantage and then leave the guys behind to lay in wait and feed us information once Le Manchot arrives. I’m willing to bet he shows up early. He’s up to no good. I can sense it. I knew the night I met him at the club he couldn’t be trusted.” Selena huffs at my reply. Clearly, Le Manchot has left a sour taste in her mouth.
