CHAPTER 4 #2
Derek kneels next to me and guides my head between my knees.
“Deep breaths,” he coaches. “In through your nose, hold, and out through your mouth.”
I take a breath, then another. This isn’t what I want! I’m pissed. I’m hurt and confused and feeling too many things to be calm. I slam my hand and the ground and stand, fists clenched by my side. Oliver stands before the doorway, blocking my exit.
“I’m going to break something,” I threaten. “It could be that bartender’s nose or that door. Take your pick.”
“If you want to run this, you have to compose yourself.” Derek steps back in front of me again. I’m getting real tired of this shit. “You can be angry. Fine, I don’t care. But you’re being irrational and rash. Use your rage, channel it, control it.”
“What’s your plan, Sparks?” Oliver asks. “We’ll back you up.”
“The bartender knows something.” I roll back my shoulders. “Knows enough to have coded warnings. Interrogate him, then go from there.”
“Oliver, talk to the owner,” Derek delegates. “Since his deal is dissolving before his eyes, we might be able to renegotiate for favorable terms. Complete ownership or nothing. I’ll go with Sparks and see what information we can extract.”
The door opens and I stalk through. The crowd parts like the Red Sea as I walk straight up to the bartender. A trickle of blood has dried beneath his nose. He is being restrained by some of our men. It’s time we had a little chat.
The men lead the bartender into a secluded room in the back.
It looks like they had the forethought to set up an impromptu interrogation room.
Single chair in the center, table with some makeshift tools on the side.
I’ll have to remember to give them a bonus when we get back to base.
The men tie the bartender to the chair, and I dismiss them to guard the door outside.
Derek drags in a second chair and reclines in the corner, whistling to himself.
“Do you need your boss to babysit you?” The bartender sneers.
“Nah,” I reply, dragging my fingers along the table edge. “He just likes to watch a good show. Unfortunately for him, I’m in a bit of a hurry, so let’s wrap this up quickly. What do you like to be called?”
“William.” He spits at my feet.
“Hiya Billy, nice to meet you.” I lean against the table, fiddling with a screwdriver. “I really only have one question. Where’s Jack?”
“Who?” Billy smiles with mock innocence.
“I guess you’re at a bit of a disadvantage,” I ponder aloud. “I know who you are, but you don’t know who I am. Jack never told you about his ex, I suppose?”
“I don’t know who Jack is,” he sneers. “But even if I did, I wouldn’t care about some bitch ex-girlfriend.”
“Do you hear that?” Derek chuckles amusedly. “You practically have a fan club.”
I take a step forward, allowing my power to surge through the room causing the lights to flicker.
“Whoa, whoa, whoa!” Billy panics, tugging at his restraints.
“Does that jog your memory?” My mouth curves into a malicious smile. “Where’s Jack?”
“This can’t be real,” Billy stammers.
“Are you willing to stake your life on that claim?” I glare at him as I move closer with slow deliberate steps. “Where’s Jack?”
“I... I don’t know, probably back at the compound.”
“What compound?” I pick apart his wording.
“He’s planning on making a move, reinstating the Tributaries. But that’s all I’m going to say.” He raises his chin indignantly, confidence suddenly regained.
“What do you think, Derek?” I banter. “Want to see a show?”
“Kill the lights.” He gives a nod.
For a split second, I see the realization cross Billy’s face as he realizes just how real I am, but before the gravity of the situation can sink in, I pull the electricity from the room. Billy shrieks as the room goes black.
I cackle as I play around with the energy coursing through my veins.
Silver sparks cascade from my fingertips as I stride toward the center of the room, casting a feral glow on my face.
I snap as I launch a flash of light over his shoulder.
He cowers in the brief ray of the beam before the room is once again encased in darkness.
“I’m sorry!” Billy cries. “I’ll talk, I’ll tell you everything!”
“How boring,” I pout. “I was just beginning to enjoy myself.”
“Jack was planning on taking out Derek,” he blubbers. “He’s bitter that the Tributaries was being replaced by a former member. I was supposed to warn him if I thought he was compromised. When I saw you walking toward him, I figured you knew.”
“Where is the compound?” I seethe.
“I don’t know.” A lie. Not acceptable. I charge my hand with electricity and grip his shoulder. He howls as the energy courses through his body.
“I believe I mentioned earlier that I was in a hurry.” I drag a fingernail along his jaw. “Do not make me repeat myself.”
“571 Northridge Avenue,” Billy says dejectedly. “Jack will probably be in the panic room in the basement. The code is 772757. It spells ‘Sparks.’”
“Thank you,” I purr. I restore power to the lights. I glance at Derek who is blinking from the unexpected brightness. “Kill him.”
I walk out of the room and Derek rises, pistol in hand. Billy’s screams are cut short by the ring of a gunshot. I lock eyes with one of the guards.
“Activate the team,” I order. “Everyone who is on call. I want them at 571 Northridge Avenue in fifteen minutes. Everyone else, get ready to roll out. Check your weapons, we’re going in hot.”
In the corner, Oliver and the owner are arguing, probably unable to agree on a deal. Frankly, I don’t give a shit about this place anymore, but I do need Oliver focused on our next venture. I barge into their conversation.
“Look,” I interject. “This den is shit. Your operations are shit. I’m pretty sure your books are also shit.
You won’t be in business for much longer, so either accept our deal or don’t.
Oliver has given you our final offer, which is only on the table for…
” I look at my imaginary watch. “Fifteen more seconds. After that, we’re leaving. ”
“Hold on.” The man waves his hands. “This is my livelihood.”
“Five, four, three.” I tap on my watch. “Oh, look at that. My clock was off. You’re out of time. Oliver, let’s go.”
We turn to walk away before the man grabs Oliver’s arm.
“Three percent ownership,” he pleads. “Something for me to retire on. I’ll be a silent partner, you’ll never hear from me.”
Oliver waits a beat, doing calculations inside his head before shaking the owner’s hand. I guess ex-owner.
“Pleasure,” I say. “Now, we have people to kill and I’m tired of waiting.”
Without checking to see if anyone was following me, I stride out of the den and straddle my bike.
I hear the group clamoring behind me, but I rev my engine and veer onto the road.
Within minutes, the group catches up and I am leading a cavalry of very dangerous people.
Little does the world know, I’m the one to fear.
We pull up to a nondescript house in a seedy part of town.
I don’t even bother turning off my bike as I stalk up the porch steps.
There’s too much electricity running through this house, this isn’t residential.
Good to know we’re at the right spot. My powers connect with the building, and with a solid yank, they lose their lights.
Thuds and clamors can be heard inside, as the inhabitants struggle in the dark.
A team member rushes forward with a battering ram, and with a swing, the doors crack.
Derek kicks through the splinters and I flood the lights back on.
The hostiles fumble for their weapons, temporarily blinded, but they unfortunately won’t have time to grab them.
I reach toward the ceiling and bring my fist down, shooting bolts of electricity into the first group of men.
They fall to the ground. Dead? Unconscious? Who gives a flying fuck.
Derek leads the charge, motivated by the knowledge of the failed assassin attempt. Fights break out on either side of the room as reinforcements flood in, but my men engage with them before they can reach me. My mind is set on my target. Jack.
I leave the fighting behind me and hustle down the staircase.
Three men with pistols guard a metal door.
Looks like that’s where I want to go. I slowly slip my right hand behind my back and pull a small metal disk out of my belt, loading a pulse of electricity into it.
This idea worked once before, maybe it’ll work again.
“Hey guys, do you think we could just talk this out?” I hold my arms out non-threateningly. “No? Fine. Catch.”
I flick the disk toward the leftmost man.
It smacks his forehead, and the charge causes him to collapse.
Bullets riddle the staircase behind me. I feel something pierce my bicep as I jump to the right, but I don’t have time to worry about that right now.
I pull electricity into my suit as the closest man tries to grab me.
He seizes as he comes in contact with the charged aluminum running through the fabric, falling onto me.
I hold him up to shield myself from the final gunmen before heaving his body toward his companion.
Not super effective, as the gunman just sidesteps him.
But that’s what I wanted. Focused on his friend, I kick the gun out of his hand and land a jab directly on his nose.
He rears back, eyes watering. Tired of this unnecessary distraction, I shock him into unconsciousness.
Finally, the path to the door is clear. This is it. I thought Jack was dead earlier, but no matter, I’ll make sure of it this time. I roll my shoulders back and wince, remembering the gunshot I took. Pull yourself together, Sparks. You’ll take care of that later.
I approach the door and place my hand on the cool metal. I allow myself to sink into the electricity, probing for any booby traps or nuisances. Everything seems to be in order. I reach up to the keypad – 772757.
The room is dimly lit, but I can see well enough. A few bunk beds line the far wall. In front of me is a coffee table with two lounge chairs. There’s a note on the table, alongside a small gift box. I unfold the note. “With Love, ―J.” Inside the box is a single rope of black licorice. Damn it!
He’s not here. I scream as I kick over the table, sending the box flying.
I’m going to kill this motherfucker, no matter how long it takes.