Prohibited Spirits (Closed, Started)

[DarkRawen]

"I'm not trustin' that scene back there, coulda' just whacked that guard quick and easy, it's a dark night out..."

Pips didn't reply, it sounded like she had something else to say, and he'd rather not interrupt her. He did, however, not agree with her methods, if they were to take someone out, he hoped it would be the last resort, a final, desperate move.

"Then again. Wolf's good at dealing with sticky situations, got me out of some, no doubt he has a way with words too"

"I'm sure he does," Pips said. He hadn't been involved with the mafia affairs the same way Suits had, but he had heard enough. "And, I'm sure the others will manage to do something. I'm not really that worried."

Even though he said it in a somewhat confident voice, he still looked back at the others, hand touching the area where he kept the knife before sliding back to cheek, in an attempt to keep himself warmer. It also covered most of the spots of very pale skin on the side of his face. Anyone who had seen him worried before had likely noticed that habit, though few cared.

"Ain't no way that girl is ganna get anything out'a her, should just chuck her in the car, shake her up a bit, it'd be more than enough to scare what we need out'a the dame..."

"Now now," Pips replied. "I'm sure Cynthia can manage. Besides, I'm not sure how much a normal girl could know either way, and gossip is hardly reliable, so if Cynthia manages to get anything out of here, you can color me impressed." With that, he strode over to the boat in question, a small, simple boat. By now they were far enough from the others to be unaware of what was going on.

A small man with greasy dark hair stopped them from getting closer to the crew.

"What do you think you're doing?" he started, trying to scare them away. However, it didn't take a word from either of the others before someone else, a taller man who looked as if he hadn't slept for about 5 days, stepped in.

"Not now, Ricky," the man said, his voice low-pitched and dark grey eyes examining Lucy and Pips. Pips didn't seem intimidated, though he didn't seem like much of a presence now. "What's your business?" the newly arrived man asked.

"You're L---"

"Louis Hall, yes, and you better not be with the cops. Or involved in anything related to the coast---" he trailed off as Pips showed him the bottle. He clearly recognized it, from the expression on his face, though he quickly turned to leave.

"Never seen it before."

"I don't think that's true," Pips replied, frowning. "Please, someone could get hurt if you don't let us know."

No reply came, though Louis had stopped walking, either thinking it over, or trying to figure out the best way to get rid of them.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"I've come here to meet a few friends. Which is why we've pulled up here with them, to meet. Are we trespassing? There are no signs around and if there were we wouldn't be meeting here."

"This is hardly the place to meet friends," the guard said, a bit sourly. It didn't sound as if he had been expecting that kind of answer, and, quite frankly, it seemed to disappoint him.

"And there is no signs, yet, at least. However, I've been asked to keep an eye out for suspicious people, and your lot do look suspicious, ladies who look a bit too old to still be gossiping with the girls, and..." he trailed off, he couldn't really see the last person from where he was standing.

"Now, you've come and checked what we're here for and I've told you, nothing fishy so you can get back to work."

However, the guard didn't leave, instead walking a bit to the side. Having noticed Ross, he smirked.

"I'd like to talk to the other gentleman, he seems a bit... out of it. Hardly the condition to meet some "friends" in."


---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Oh uh, I met them at another place they asked me to drive them around and I figured why not. I figured I hadn't seen you in a while so I was happy to take them here."

"That's not saying an awful lot," Alice mused, fixing her hair as she listened to Cynthia speak. "What place was this? Was it..." she leaned over, whispering. "One of those Speakeasies I keep hearing about? Or perhaps another secret club?" she sat back, however, Cynthia's expression would probably say a lot, and so she was content. Sort of. The rest came as Cynthia continued.

"They're pretty nice, or have been so far. That one over there is Jack, now then what else did you say you heard?"

When she noticed that this Jack was going to come over, Alice waved as well, insisting that he come sit with them. When he was close enough to hear what she was saying, she continued.

"Well, this lady, I don't remember hearing a name, but I simply call her the Maroon Lady because of what she wore, seems to have been getting a shipment from one of the boats here, loads of bottles, all brought to the cars and driven out. It was supposedly late, too, though, I have a suspicion of where she might have taken these bottles, and what was in them, but it's not coming to mind right now. Oh, and there was also this guy who drowned himself, but I don't really think that's something one should think about on a day like this."

With that, she turned to Jack especially. "So, how about you, sweetie? Jack, right? Do you want to tell me about yourself? I love meeting new people, you learn so many things."

 

[PlastikThief]

The ride lulled. The bottle was passed through the back and Rosa twiddled her fingers, imitating basic cantrip sigls to throw off the drunk or the driver. The blind one ? Dana, she thought to herself ¬? didn?t seem too fussed about much going on, but then again, she was blind. In Rosa experience, anyone with a long-term impediment like that tended to have ways of hiding themselves.

The misdirection was more for the sake of keeping Rosa?s secrets, well, secret. Her natural magic was limited to basic illusions and glamours, simple charms and the like. The ability to detect magical poisons and curses? Nope, way out of her league. She?d have to set up a meeting with here benefactor if she wanted to get a hold of artefacts with that kind of power.

As it was the car ride didn?t last much longer, as Mr Wolf pulled up just a bit behind the car they had been following. Rosa could see from her position in the car that the barkeep ? Pips, the meek one ? was making his way over to them. She pre-empted his intentions and rolled down the window, flashing a wide smile that showed just enough teeth.

"Hi, did you figure out anything about the bottle?" His voice was chipper for someone who was just press-ganged into an investigation, and Rosa appreciated that, she was about to reply but the man dropped a few rungs in her book by interrupting her.

"Actually, never mind that now, I need the bottle. I'm heading over to talk to someone who can help. If anyone wants to help, I---" His glance caught Rosa?s eye and she passed out the bottle quick as a snap, and rolled the window back up.

Through the haze of the smoke-filled cabin of the car, past Dana?s diminutive form and the hulking drunk, Rosa could see some security guard approaching. The man greeted them with the sincere paranoia that was the standard holdout of dock workers (at least according to her cousins who had come to the city years earlier), and Rosa began twisting her fingers into a glamour to hide the back seat occupants from all but the closest scrutiny. Particularly the drunk, who had maintained an unsolicited stream of grumbling and partial obscenities the entire trip.

Unfortunately, even Rosa?s significant pact-earned skill with charms was not enough to dissuade the dock guard, and he peered into the back window, coming eye to bloodshot-eye with the drunkard.

Doing the first thing she could think of, Rosa dropped the now useless glamour, switched her charm up to maximum bore and focused its considerable force on the guard as she stepped out of the car.

The slam of the door was the first thing to catch his attention and his gaze show upward to investigate, but the expression drained as his eyes locked on Rosa?s imperiously condescending glare.

Without words she paced the length of the car, coming around to stand before the man. There was a head height difference in her favour and Rosa?s tattoo itched with magic. Mr Wolf was standing just behind the now blissfully unaware mark, and Rosa cocked an eyebrow in the direction of the Pips and the female enforcer who seemed to be accosting another workman across the way a little, the intention clear. I can handle this. Go do your job.

"Wouldn't you rather talk to me, officer?" Rosa uttered, a finger trailing down his shirtfront.

 

[alandavidson]

On Alice's inviting wave, Jack joined the girls at the table.

"So, how about you, sweetie? Jack, right? Do you want to tell me about yourself? I love meeting new people, you learn so many things."

He was unsure of what to make of her tone. It seemed one part flirtatious, and another part patronizing. Jack decided to give her the benefit of the doubt. He pulled up a nearby wicker chair and sat down, the chair groaning a bit under his weight. He glanced down, uneasy and not trusting the chair.

"Well miss, I came east from California. Was chopping redwoods up until recent." He shifted a bit, but stopped when more creaking came from the chair. "Can you give us the favor of telling me of yourself?"

Jack wasn't quite sure why he was suddenly shy, but he found himself stumbling over words more than usual in the presence of the two very pretty girls.

 

[IFS]

"What place was this? Was it..." she leaned over, whispering. "One of those Speakeasies I keep hearing about? Or perhaps another secret club?"

"Yeah it was a speakeasy," she replied, somewhat conspiratorially "maybe I'll show you where it is sometime, I bet you'd love it."

"Well, this lady, I don't remember hearing a name, but I simply call her the Maroon Lady because of what she wore, seems to have been getting a shipment from one of the boats here, loads of bottles, all brought to the cars and driven out. It was supposedly late, too, though, I have a suspicion of where she might have taken these bottles, and what was in them, but it's not coming to mind right now. Oh, and there was also this guy who drowned himself, but I don't really think that's something one should think about on a day like this."

"The Maroon lady?" she muttered to herself, I bet the others will want to hear about this, maybe I can give her a reason to say more? The location would definitely help... But it seemed that Alice had already started chatting up Jack, who seemed somewhat embarrassed by the attention. Wouldn't have pegged him for the timid sort.

"You know," she interrupted gently "I might be willing to show you where that speakeasy I mentioned is if you can tell me where you think the bottles went."

 

[Random Fella]

"Please, someone could get hurt if you don't let us know."

Lucy spoke up
"Yeah, someone could get really hurt." she stated in an smooth, intimidating voice
"You got worse than the cops to worry about, you should reconsider your answer."
Her hand hovered over her pistol, ready for any response that might come.

 

[Terratina.]

"I'd like to talk to the other gentleman, he seems a bit... out of it. Hardly the condition to meet some "friends" in."

Unfortunately for the guard, as soon as that smirk of superiority appeared on his face rage got the better of caution. It burnt through the drunken haze and ignited a trail to old memories and old grievances. Ross, having thought he saw an 'old friend' in that smirk erupted from the car and pushed past the stuck-up whore (who was apparently trying to get in bed with the bastard!) and grabbed the guard, pinning him against the car. One hand kept him there while the other was poised above him, ready to strike.

"Whi? ye slebbern oan aboo'? Juist a bawherr o' travel sickness, officer." The drunkard snarled, mimicking the guard's smirk with the same finesse as a wild dog, "Noo ye shi'ae win` fowk up wi' a smile lik' 'at, micht git ye hurt..."

 

[DarkRawen]

"Wouldn't you rather talk to me, officer?"

The guard became visibly taken with her, his grin turning somewhat more expecting in nature. It was clear that he wasn't used to a beautiful woman being so familiar with him, and he stuttered a bit as he spoke.

"Oh, I... yes, certainly, I am sure you could explain it all very well, miss. Would you like to come with me for a moment?"

He asked, and brought his hand down to hers, wanting to grab it but not courageous enough to do so. It seemed like he no longer cared about the drunk in the back-seat, at least not at the moment. However, whatever enchantment she did have over him quickly disappeared as her pretty visage was replaced by that of Ross, slamming him against the car.


"Whi' ye slebbern oan aboo'? Juist a bawherr o' travel sickness, officer. Noo ye shi'ae win` fowk up wi' a smile lik' 'at, micht git ye hurt..."

"Hey, what's your problem?!" the guard growled, more than a little disappointed to have to face the drunk rather than Rosa. He opened his mouth to further speak, only to shut it again, as a gunshot filled the air, and yelling could be heard from the direction some of the others had gone towards. A large group of people had gathered around one of the tables where Cynthia and Jack were sitting.

"What was that?" he asked, and struggled, likely in order to fulfil his purpose as a guard. While he couldn't see too much from where he was, he did noticed that something terrible was going on.

"Isn't that your supposed friends?" he spat. "Do you really think holding the guy who can help them against the car is a good idea?"

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------


"Yeah, someone could get really hurt. You got worse than the cops to worry about, you should reconsider your answer."

Pips didn't comment on Lucy's statements this time. He hoped it would be enough to persuade the smuggler, else he would have to step in himself. At least if they wanted to keep this a secret still. Finally, Louis Hall sighed, and waved for them to get closer. With a frown on his face, he looked over at the two of them, to Pips, then to Lucy, before he looked at their waists, at their body language. He understood that they were serious, or at least his facial expression seemed to convey that.

"You're not cops, you have to be mafia or something, right? I don't like it, but I'll help you, so keep your hands away from your hips." With that, he waited for them to do so, muttering something under his breath.

"Why did I get involved with something like this... he trailed off, as something had caught his eyes behind where Pips and Lucy. Looking off into the distance, he cursed, then motioned for them to follow him.

"Quickly, into the boat," he told the two, his words followed by the gunshot.


-----------------------------------------------------------------------------


"Well miss, I came east from California. Was chopping redwoods up until recent. Can you give us the favor of telling me of yourself?"

Having noticed his sudden shyness, Alice just chuckled. "We'll get to that in a bit, hopefully," she said. "Don't worry, we've got all the time in the world. Right Cynthia?" she teased, having already seen through what Cynthia tried to portray, and having noticed the fact that it was not exactly a joy-trip. It was a lot about how they sounded, and the fact that if Cynthia was looking for the Maroon Lady, there was something amiss. Still, the blonde didn't exactly look scheming, more playful and friendly.

"You know. I might be willing to show you where that speakeasy I mentioned is if you can tell me where you think the bottles went."

"Oh!" Alice exclaimed, eagerly. With her back turned towards the entrance of the dock, she didn't notice that a group of people was approaching. They looked innocent, but one could never know. It definitely felt wrong to Cynthia and Jack, however.

"I was waiting for that, and sure, I'll let you know. Of course, the maroon lady won't be that happy!"

"Whatcha talking about, girl? The Maroon Lady, is it? That... that was some mistake you just made."

A voice from behind said. Cynthia and Jack could see that it was a short man with a large black hat and his company of not quite suspicious looking men.

What happened next happened too quickly for anyone to interfere, a gun was raised and fired, Alice clenching her shoulder and several of the man with the hat's group rushed forward to hold her, perhaps to detain her, or perhaps to ensure that the next shot hit closer to the heart. For whatever reason, they were taking their time doing so. Whimpering, Alice looked to Cynthia and Jack.

"Please, help... I-I don't want to die. Cynthia, please.

They man in the black hat had clearly noticed them, yet chosen not to target them, for some reason. It was difficult to know just why. However, what they did know was that they could likely try to run and get away safely, but at the cost of Alice's life.

 

[IFS]

"Please, help... I-I don't want to die. Cynthia, please.

Cynthia was shocked, for a moment she couldn't move, couldn't believe what was happening but Alice's words pushed her into action. I'm training to be a nurse, there has to be something I can do. She bent down next to Alice, inspecting the wound carefully and beginning to apply first aid as best she could.

"Alice stay with me," she said, heedless of the man who had shot Alice, part of her wanted to run away but she couldn't abandon Alice.

"Jack," she said, desperation creeping into her voice "Do something, I have to help her."

By do something she meant something to do with their attackers, who seemed oddly willing to let them act, at least he hadn't shot her or Jack yet. I need bandages, or something like them, she'll probably need to get to a hospital quickly! But we probably can't do that with those men there. She wasn't sure what to do, but something definitely had to be done.

 

[Random Fella]

"You're not cops, you have to be mafia or something, right? I don't like it, but I'll help you, so keep your hands away from your hips."

Lucy relaxed her hands, sensing the man nor his employees were of any threat.

"Why did I get involved with something like this..."

His eyes suddenly strayed from Pips and herself, noticing this she quickly turned her head to observe his loss of focus.

"Quickly, into the boat,"

Before she could fully observe the situation however *Bang* Cynthia's friend dropped to the ground, a bunch of suits surrounding her, almost as if to finish the job.
In her mind she came to two conclusions, either get the information quickly now, or take out some of the men to give the others support, risking his escape. Her decision was not easy, yet made in a split second. She hardly cared for the three, and they needed this information now, she also knew Wolf and 'the drunk' could handle the situation for at least a short amount of time before she could support them.

Grabbing Pips from the situation, unsure of if he would freeze up or even slow down from the rattle, she followed Louis hastily to the cabin, quickly closing the door behind her.
With haste she pulled her side pistol from it's holster, pushing the man against the wall as she turned him to face her, thrusting the barrel to the bottom of his chin, she scowled as she looked into his eyes.
"You're ganna tell me what you know about this little 'curse' and ya' ganna do it quick, bub."
She turned her head to Pips, keeping her focus on Louis
"Take this, watch the door, and be ready for when we get back"
She opened her jacket, keeping her right hand firmly placed on her pistol, and chucked the two pieces of her Thompson onto a nearby table.
"Socket A goes into part B. Remember to take the safety off, and take damn good care of John." She frowned at the thought of letting a barman use her favourite gun.

 

[alandavidson]

"Jack, do something, I have to help her."

Cynthia's voice was desperate, pleading. All previous hesitation left Jack as he grew less like a man, and more like a raging animal. He rose from his chair, eyes blazing with the fury of the fight. In a flash, the table they were seated at became a projectile, hurled at the attackers by Jack with a guttural, horrifying scream. The knife left its sheath as Jack kept towards the attackers, not backing down.

Jack didn't like going against guns, but he knew that if he didn't take action Cynthia would have no chance to save Alice, not to mention saving his own skin. The people after the girl probably didn't care if they shot anyone nearby. His only hope was to get close and crack skulls until the threat was over.

 

[deathbydeath]

While her ... compatriots were taking turns "dealing" with the guard, Dana mused to the driver, "I'm aware that we weren't anticipating this, but don't you think we'd handle this ordeal better if the people here actually tried to coordinate? If we could manage to-". Dana was interrupted by a gunshot. How rude.

Dana pulled herself out of the car and back onto her feet, murmuring as she reached the side of the car. "This evening only gets more exciting, doesn't it?"

"Do you really think holding the guy who can help them against the car is a good idea?" Interrupted again; hopefully this won't become a recurring trend. "We appreciate your offer, but that isn't how trust works, sir, especially under these circumstances. If everyone else agrees, however," Dana faced the others for their input, "we could find a way to accept your assistance."

 

[The Harkinator]

As soon as the gunshot rang out, Mr Wolf was moving past the guard and Rosa, his gun already in his hand and firing. Someone was down and the crew in suits made their move on her, looking for the kill. They were taking their time though, perhaps feeling complacent or yet to reveal some ulterior motive.

Mr Wolf dashed over to the other car and used it for cover, he kept firing his gun and the figures seemed to back off for a moment.

"ALL OF YOU, GET INVOLVED!" He barked, hoping to galvanise the others into action, some had already started moving but others were stationary.

 

[Terratina.]

"ALL OF YOU, GET INVOLVED!"

"Oh aye. Cin dae 'at." Ross said, giving the guard a rather scary look. It was just perfect that some tossers were interrupting their little intimate moment together. Really, how rude. Not to moment Wolf getting rowdy over the other's lack of action - they were busy dealing with the guard for Christ's sake! Ross, still holding onto the poor guard by the scruff, dragged him towards the sinister-looking, gun-toting group of people and threw him down near the wee burd's car with a shout of, "Sin ye'r sae eager tae hulp, git doo'ere!"

That done, Ross got his shotgun out, loaded it (not caring if he got shoot while doing so) and turned to the source of the gunshot, "Scram, noo. Ah'll shoot ye doon if ye di'ae wan' tae stay staun'n'."

 

[DarkRawen]

Pips found himself grabbed and dragged into the boat before he could work out what was going on. He had realized that the gunshot had to be somewhere close to the others, but he didn't get the chance to see who. Even so, he trusted the others to manage on their own, if not... well, if not, he likely wouldn't be much more help. Inside the small, yet durable boat cabin, a small room with a bed and a writing desk, as well as a couple of chairs.

"You're ganna tell me what you know about this little 'curse' and ya' ganna do it quick, bub."

"I've already said I'll talk, just don't make a racket in here," the tall man muttered, before taking a seat. He certainly wasn't too happy about guns being waved around, him being bossed around, and likely not about what he would have to talk about either.

"Take this, watch the door, and be ready for when we get back. Socket A goes into part B. Remember to take the safety off, and take damn good care of John."

Pips nodded, taking the gun hesitantly, and putting the gun together, before checking that it was loaded.

"Yeah, I... I know." He didn't think he would need to use it, but if he did, he would be ready. Walking over to the door, he opened it, slightly, peering out. The situation outside had escalated, and he quickly shut the door again. "Better keep this closed," he muttered to himself.

"Firstly, I don't know anything about this "curse" of yours," Louis Hall started off, huffing. "However, I recognize the bottle from a couple of nights ago. Another, small boat with a "special" delivery was making a delivery not far from where we normally load ours, I didn't hear anything, but one of my guys heard something about it being "a ruse" and that they soon would be prepared for "taking out some of those scum". We had no idea who they were talking about, and decided to shut up... of course, then someone approached one of my guys during a break, telling him to deliver a letter to me. A troubling letter."

Another frown, as he tried to convince Lucy to let him go.

"I can give it to you, if you promise to pretend I never did anything to help you, and if you let go of me, of course, so I can find it."

Pips looked to Lucy, as he kept half of his mind on ensuring that he couldn't hear any footsteps outside the door. The shooting had stopped too, which was either very good, or very bad.

"I think we should do it," he replied. "A letter could be really useful."




_______________________________________________________________________________________________________

"We appreciate your offer, but that isn't how trust works, sir, especially under these circumstances. If everyone else agrees, however, we could find a way to accept your assistance."

"I Don't need your permission," the guard spat. "You lot have no idea what you're doing, just let me go!" Of course, without that permission, he wouldn't be able to get away from Ross' grip. It was first when Mr. Wolf spoke, urging the others to move, the guard moved as well. However, he hadn't expected getting dragged into the situation by the at least somewhat drunk man, and thrown into the crossfire.

"Sin ye'r sae eager tae hulp, git doo'ere!"

The guard nodded, and got up... only for a shot barely missing his head to scare him into hiding behind the car, next to where Mr. Wolf was taking cover. He didn't speak, just kept an eye out, either hoping for a chance to shoot, or to run away.

There were few attempts made at shooting the people close to the cars, as Ross caught their attention with his shotgun, and because of his yelling.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________

It was the surprise at the two people springing into action that made it possible for Cynthia to reach Alice before the men could get ahold of her. The young woman was bleeding from the shoulder, and clearly in pain, but she didn't seem to be dying. Yet, at least.

"Alice stay with me,"

Alice's eyes fluttered in response. She opened her mouth to speak, but decided not to, grabbing at Cynthia for some kind of safety, shaking, frightened. Around them, the people Jack was attacking were scattered quickly, some were hit by the blade, while others were distracted by the gunshots coming from the direction of the cars.

The man in the hat bit his lip, still not seeming too worried, but started shooting towards Jack, none of the bullets hitting him, but only barely so. Some of the others, who had stepped away when Jack started attacking managed to get their guns out, but started shooting towards the newly arrived Ross, but there was no danger for him.

"Scram, noo. Ah'll shoot ye doon if ye di'ae wan' tae stay staun'n'."

Suddenly the man in the hat wasn't as above the situation as he was before, though if he was bothered, he hid it well. With a smile on his face, he raised his hands, and motioned for the remaining of his people to stop fighting, the lot of them backing away, making it clear that they were done fighting.

"Fine, I just wanted to have a chat with the young lady," he pointed towards Alice. "You see, one of my... little friends has been here, trying to hear if there was anyone who might have a clue about... well, you likely already know about that, because if you're after the maroon lady, we're both here for the same reason, just different families. However," he narrowed his eyes.

"Leave. We don't work together with other families, and we will get the people responsible." He turned to Cynthia, and almost friendly tone this time. "And we will take your friend with us. Don't worry, all we want to do is talk. Shooting her was simply letting her know what will happen if she talks to others. A warning. So, what do you say? Ready to fuck off?"

 

[IFS]

"And we will take your friend with us. Don't worry, all we want to do is talk. Shooting her was simply letting her know what will happen if she talks to others. A warning. So, what do you say? Ready to fuck off?"

"I'm not leaving until I know she's stable," Cynthia said, continuing to try and treat the injury as best she could with what little she had available. At this moment she could care less why they wanted Alice or what they intended to do, she wasn't about to let her out of her sight when she had a bullet wound.

They could be lying, what kind of people just shoot someone they want to ask questions? It doesn't make any sense! Even as she fought to keep her emotions in control to keep working on Alice she couldn't help but feel something of a rush from everything, similar to what she got when she drove recklessly, she pushed concerns about this aside though and focused on the task at hand.

"Jack she needs medical attention," she said "I can't treat her with what I have here."

 

[Random Fella]

"taking out some of those scum"

Lucy's ears perked, but the reason for the attack wasn't one of the greatest worries she had.

Louis began talking about a 'troubling letter', a frown came across his face, she got the message and pushed him out of her grasp, lowering her weapon, but not sheathing it.

"I can give it to you, if you promise to pretend I never did anything to help you, and if you let go of me, of course, so I can find it."

Another voice came from the door

"I think we should do it" Pip's said. "A letter could be really useful."

Lucy turned her head for a moment with an expression on her face as if to tell him to bugger off. She knew how to handle these sort of situations, and didn't trust his input.
He did have a point however, and a letter was better than waiting to see what more they could get out of him, especially considering the number of men near the cabin and the situation going on off-ship.

Finally she came to a response.
"You never did anything for me, in fact, I've never met you in my life, and that goes both ways." She motioned to him to hurry up and hand her the letter.

With relief of the weapon being lowered from his face, he took a letter from the drawer in his desk, putting out his hand to offer it to her.
Lucy came in close, snatching the letter from his hand with some force, bringer her mouth to his ear.
"But if I find out this letter is some sort of trick, well..."
A smile could be felt grinning across her face and the barrel of her gun against his stomach.
"Let's just say it's in your best interest we're never introduced."

Usually she would contemplate covering their tracks, a dead man cannot tell others that they are looking for whoever was responsible, but with all that was going on, it was counter productive.

Pulling herself away and putting her pistol to her sheath she motioned to Pips.
"Come on, lets go figure out what the bloody hell is going on out there." Before exiting the cabin.

 

[alandavidson]

"Jack she needs medical attention," she said "I can't treat her with what I have here."

By that point, Jack had reached his limit. The sun from far from setting, and so far Jack had seen someone magically poisoned, had a gun shoved in his face, gone to the territory of his direct competition to ask for help, and he was staring at a man who shot a girl as a form of greeting. If anyone was going to be fucking off, it wasn't going to be Jack. He took a step forward and placed his blade to the man's throat. Blood from the man's fallen companions mingled with a small trickle of blood from the shooter as the razor edge pierced the skin on contact. Jack, barely holding back his rage, wrapped his free around the man's gun and squeezed tightly. If the man pulled the trigger, one would wonder if the bullets even had the power to phase the angry giant.

"I hope you're seeing the girl ain't alone. Be looking at your friends now; they're needing of a doctor or a gravedigger." Jack slid the knife across the man's neck, bringing the hilt to touch the vein. The flow of blood increased, but wasn't anything more than a flesh wound - though Jack could easily change that. "So I think you'd better be saying about who you are, and who this fucking Maroon Lady is about."

 

[deathbydeath]

While Dana headed in the direction of the shot at the same time as the others, her impairment slowed down her arrival.

"Leave. We don't work together with other families, and we will get the people responsible. And we will take your friend with us. Don't worry, all we want to do is talk. Shooting her was simply letting her know what will happen if she talks to others. A warning. So, what do you say? Ready to fuck off?"

Of all the stances to take regarding a manhunt, Dana found his to be the most interesting one.

"So I think you'd better be saying about who you are, and who this fucking Maroon Lady is about."

"Now now, let's be civilised about this; there's no need to resort to such coarse language."

She halted her advance a couple yards from Hat, so that they both directly faced each other. Dana's hands rested atop her cane and her face was aimed straight at Hat, about as close to eye contact as she would get.

"Now, much like you, I would like to avoid ... physical measures. Much like you, I would like to ensure this Lady is no longer able to cause havoc like she currently is. Third, just as you don't trust us, we have no reason to trust you."

As she continued Dana began pacing, taking her gaze off of Hat and looking around.

"If I may be frank, the words you spoke and their implications contradict. Now, I can understand why certain parties would want to work alone, trade secrets are indeed secrets after all. However, when you refuse to collaborate with potential allies and demand sole access to the leads and expect us to trust you ... well, you can't have all three I'm afraid. Right now it looks like you are just an agent of the Lady's, here to tie up loose ends and bury the trail."

Now Dana walked straight towards Hat, her focus fixed on him yet again, and her tone gradually became more menacing.

"You have a choice to make right now, sir. You can swallow your family's pride, enjoy the benefits of teamwork, and we all can rest easy knowing a dangerous threat has been put to rest. Or we can interpret your refusal to mean you work for or with the Maroon Lady, and then we can take you away and deal with you appropriately."

Before turning her back on him, she added "I trust you'll make the right decision. We both want to keep our relationship as pleasant as possible, correct?"

 

[Terratina.]

Ross wasn't really the spokesman sort, being as silver-tongued as one would expect from a drunk Glaswegian. Seeing that the goons had the sense to stop fighting, he relaxed slightly, cradling the shotgun on his shoulder. Sure, being able to stop shoot-outs by proving bullets were useless against him was quite a boon but he'd never forget the price he'd paid for it.

----- "Ower 'e tap, noo!" The lieutenant shouted.

"Aye!" The chorus of privates shouted back, including Ross.

There was a chaotic scramble as the mass of soldiers charged into hell. Each man was utterly terrified; only the bravado from impromptu speeches carried them over. The German didn't delay with the machine gun fire, as soon as they saw the charging horde they opened fire. Bullets rained down on the Scotsmen, mowing down their number. Just like the Devil said, they all miraculously missed Private Kerr. Time seemed to slow as the Glaswegian joyously realised that he was invincible. He was like almost like Moses, running through the rain of bullets as if they were parted like the Red Sea.

Unfortunately, it didn't carry over to his friends.

Private Kerr turned to Cailean, one of the boys and a dear friend, with a stupid grin on his face. One of the Germans decided to capitalise on the moment and took a shot at Ross with his rifle, clear as day. The smiling soldier's face quickly twisted into a frown of saddened rage as he watched a bullet curve into Cailean's chest. As Cailean fell, Ross's eyes widened. There, behind him, were the others. Lying on the floor. Dead. Like slaughtered pigs in a row. Ross tightened the grip around his rifle. Every one of the shots were meant for Ross! Not Cailean, not Micky, not Dougal, not Jockie... Ross would've gladly died for each and every one of them.

Then, of course, the Devil had to butt in.

"Just making some profit on this little venture." A voice inside his head whispered, "Hope you don't mind. You just want to survive right? Cowards always need some shield to hide behind, and I've given you the best of the best in that regard. Enjoy."

Ross was mad with grief. Words failed him, his incoherent mumbling ranged from whimpers to yells; the sounds a wounded animal would make. The Germans would pay for this, the Devil would pay for this. Thoughts of revenge echoed throughout his mind until they were the only ones. Private Kerr lashed out at his enemy, shooting until his ammo ran out then spearing them with his bayonet. Everything blurred into another. In the end of that assault, they found Private Kerr next to a pile of bodies, sobbing and oblivious to the world. They dragged him back to the trenches despite his protests. Repetition was inevitable.

Ross didn't sleep that night. -----

"Wha' she said," Ross mumbled, a shrug indicating Dana. Afterwards, he nursed his forehead. A headache was coming on, and so was sobriety. The monster within was clawing at him, screaming for alcohol as clarity and the memories were beginning to return. Ross sighed, "Ah need a drink."

 

[IFS]

The tension in the room seemed to continue to escalate, though Cynthia wasn't concerning herself with that. She'd bandaged Alice as best she could now she needed to get her a ride to the hospital. Calling for one was likely out of the question given their location, so she needed to either drive Alice there herself or get someone else to take her. She looked up at the men who had shot her, who weren't exactly in the best position to do much themselves.

"If you help us get her to the hospital then we can both talk to her when she's stable," she said "if we all keep fighting while she's bleeding then that doesn't help any of us learn what we want to know."

Like why this Maroon Lady is so important to them that they don't want anyone else getting to her first. Or maybe that's just an excuse and they just don't want us finding her period...