<< Discuss this fan fiction
EMPTY EYE SOCKETS CHAPTER 15
Nick took a sip of his drink and sighed. This was the first night in a while when he had time to drink something excusable.
Actually he didn't have the time, but he wasn't on the mood to concentrate on his work.
Damn, everything had gone all wrong.
He had no idea how Salvador had found out about their plan, but somehow he had done it anyway. And unfortunately for him, Chowchilla Charlie seemed to think Nick had been a part of it.
Hah, only an idiot would think that Nick Virago, the most successful and corrupted lawyer in the Land of the Dead, was a freedom fighter!
But who would believe him?
If he didn't manage to get Charlie and Maximino convinced of his innocence his afterlife would really take a bad turn. There was no way he could re-join Hector, his new partners were about to abandon him and he would have to run away from Salvador Limones too.
Dammit! He really needed a drink and he lifted the glass again without being able to hide the slight trembling of his hands. He had never been that close to getting sprouted.
There was a sharp bang when he hit the empty glass against the table.
"They say we have a traitor among us. Someone who works for Salvador Limones."
The lawyer flinched when heard Olivia's familiar voice, and raised his gaze as the woman took a chair next to him. Olivia crossed her legs and tilted her head as she watched him.
"Who told you that?" Nick asked. Olivia chuckled softly.
"Hector did. Who else?" she replied.
Nick didn't say anything, just poured a new drink for himself. Olivia watched his drinking for a while before talking again.
"Tell me, do you have any idea of who it could be?" she asked and from her curious tone Nick guessed that she didn't suspect him. It made him feel extremely relieved, if Hector LeMans's girlfriend had found out that they could blame him for this...
He shrugged.
"No. It could be anyone," he replied.
Olivia snorted.
"Really? You mean we can't be sure of anyone's loyalty? Is the situation already that bad?" she asked.
Nick placed his glass on the table. Part of him told him to stop drinking before he got careless and revealed something, but the dominating half wanted to take the bottle and pour more.
"Fine, we can leave each other out," he admitted.
Olivia thought about it.
"It is very strange," she stated.
"What?"
The woman glanced at the lawyer. She was clever and knew that something was bothering him, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it. She didn't know Nick as well as she wanted and now she regretted not learning to know him in Rubacava. She guessed she would have been able to read him better if she had.
Maybe she could still set that right?
"Hector is busy with this mess now. He has no time to watch what I am doing. Or you. Or we," she said and it was clear what she meant.
"Hector always has time for something that he cares about," Nick stated. Now that he had drunk, Olivia's suggestion felt more appealing than ever. Even more than when he had arrived in Rubacava years ago and met the woman for the first time.
"Are you sure?"
Olivia bent closer and leaned on the table with her elbows. The purple beret that she would never give up made her bony face look very fascinating.
Or maybe it was because of the drinking, Nick wasn't sure.
"Yes," he snapped. He poured another drink.
Olivia shook her head.
"Where is your sense of adventure?" she asked in disappointment. She had tried seducing Nick a while now, but the man seemed to be immune and said that Hector would catch them. It seemed like the lawyer didn't enjoy danger at all and only wanted to hide in Hector LeMans's shadow, serving him.
Olivia stood up and observed Nick coldly.
What a coward. How could she ever have been interested in him?
---
"Aah! It's going to get us!" Pedro exclaimed and grabbed the rail of their boat. He was wet; the waves the huge octopus had caused had hit him over and over again.
"Hold on!" Meré replied and tried to do the same. He wasn't as strong as his partner, but had already proved to be capable of taking care of himself in the struggle against the demon and the sea.
Pedro and Meré had done as Hector LeMans had told and traveled to the Edge of the World to see what Domino Hurley was up to. The trip had taken a few dew days despite their attempt to travel as fast as possible. They had had the fastest cars and now this small motor boat.
The bad thing about it was that it really was small. Klarhet could have destroyed it already, but the demon wanted to play with these souls before taking one of them.
The octopus wasn't hungry itself, but its children were and demanded a soul to eat. One of these men was perfect and the demon had already made its choice.
Meré flinched as a tentacle wrapped around his body.
"Pedro! Help me!" he exclaimed as the creature lifted him in the air, and Pedro stared in terror as his friend was in the octopus's mercy. As if in a dream he pulled out his gun and aimed at the tentacle. There was a bang and the red sproutella dart hit, but flew immediately back.
It hit the boat with a soft sound.
"Help! He -- " Meré shouted before disappearing under the surface with the octopus. Pedro expected the octopus to take him too, but that didn't happen. Klarhet peered at him instead.
"If you are looking for Domino Hurley, he isn't here anymore. You will find him and his mate in Puerto Zapato," the demon said and disappeared in its underwater empire taking Meré with it.
A lonely boat rode on the waves and its lonely passenger stared at the sea...
Pedro shook his head.
Meré had been his only friend. The only one who had seen his true self. They had both been loyal to Hector LeMans, but they had always cared about each other too.
And now he was gone. Gone, because Domino Hurley had abandoned his mission and let that cursed demon free.
Damn him!
It was no more than an hour since that had happened and Pedro was already on his way to Puerto Zapato. He would inform Hector of Domino's betrayal and then he'd find the man.
He would not let the man get away with this. Domino Hurley would suffer, just like Meré had.
And so would his mate -- whoever that might be.
---
Salvador Limones stood and looked at his men in pride. He had trained them all himself and would have trusted his life to them -- had he still been alive, that is. The rebel leader trusted them completely and knew that they were worth of it.
"Our agents in Rubacava are certain of that Maximino will attack Nuevo Marrow soon. He has bought weapons in Puerto Zapato and is finally about to overthrow Hector LeMans," he said. Most of the LSA agents were there to hear him.
Maybe there weren't that many of them, but they were all skilled.
Eva stood next to Salvador and felt strangely excited. She was a very calm and sensible person, but she still felt as if she had never been happier. The woman knew that Salvador was pleased because of that he could finally start to really fight against the corruption. And when Salvador was happy, Eva was happy.
"Our group is small, but we are strong. And cunning, when our enemies fight against each other we strike directly at their corrupted hearts," Salvador continued.
He and Eva had talked about this long and come to the conclusion that the best moment to attack was when Hector had something else to do. They would never be on the same side with Maximino or have an alliance with him, but the gangster would still be useful for them.
LSA was now stronger than ever before; they had over a hundred agents, more than enough fire power and sproutella. The only thing they still lacked was the perfect moment to attack and it seemed that it was approaching.
Maybe the revolution could finally spread its wings and fly.
---
"How are we going to pay for this room?" Meche asked and looked around in the small room that they had got in a cheap motel. They hadn't paid for it yet, the young clerk had just glanced at their fine clothes and decided that they could pay later.
Domino didn't even look at her.
"We won't," he stated.
"What do you mean? We can't stay here for very long if we don't. They will start to ask questions," Meche said. She didn't like it, but because they simply couldn’t pay with anything, she tried to understand.
"We are gone before that happens," Domino replied. It wasn't difficult to talk about them anymore; it even started to feel natural to have Meche around. In fact he was almost pleased. Even though he knew he couldn't quite trust her she was in this with him. It was also assuring to know that he wasn't alone.
"Where are we going?" Meche asked. She sat on the sofa that was too dirty for her liking, but she didn't complain.
Domino glanced at her before answering.
"I am going to find Manny and bring him in front of Hector LeMans. That is the only way to get my position back," he said watching what Meche's reaction would be.
The woman lowered her gaze for a moment and looked like she was sorry. Then her expression turned determined and she nodded at herself.
"I see," she said with a tight voice.
"Don't you want to have revenge against him? He chose another woman instead of you," Domino stated managing to sound like his amused self again. Fortunately he didn't chuckle.
"Manny has never hurt me and I have no reason to hate him," Meche said sharply. Her reply made Domino look confused again. He suspected that Meche followed him because Manny hadn't taken her and she had no other option.
But why didn't Meche want to hurt Manny? Domino knew that if he had been in a similar situation he wouldn't have hesitated but made sure that no one got the woman he wanted. Though, he doubted the chance of that ever happening.
Domino had nothing against love; it was a useful feeling and certainly made those who knew it happy. But he had never really loved anyone. Love meant commitment and he had never liked the meaning of that word.
Maybe that was the main reason to why he had never enjoyed his afterlife as a Reaper.
The work wasn't actually as difficult and hard as they said -- those who said it was horrible were those who had had to walk, and wanted to assure themselves of that it could have been worse. Reapers were a myth among dead souls, they were rarely seen and most had only met one when arriving in the Land of the Dead. At that point everyone was more or less confused so there were many dark stories about the Reapers.
But though the work wasn't physically hard it was very stressing. The part Domino had hated the most was the he had not been allowed to leave El Marrow. Reapers were imprisoned by their job and doomed to one sort of slavery until they had worked off their time.
And he hated commitment, maybe even feared it. Of course he had never admitted that to anyone, not even himself, really.
"What are we going to do now?" Meche asked waking the man from his thoughts.
"Nothing."
"Nothing?"
"Yes, I have to think. I will find a way out of here tomorrow," Domino replied.
"I see."
The room they had got was small and pretty clean. It wasn't actually what they had got used to and Meche didn't like the idea of spending the night in a strange place.
She glanced around herself.
"We have only one bed," she stated then and made Domino realise that too. Apparently the clerk had supposed that they wouldn't need two, and that disturbed him. He could be sleazy when he wanted, but he didn't want other people to do it for him.
He stood up and was about to leave to complain.
"Where are you going?" Meche asked.
"What do you think? Set this right of course."
"Do you think that is a good idea? She might ask you to pay if you show your face down there," the woman stated.
Domino looked at her.
"Then what do you want me to do?" he asked. Meche was right of course, but he wasn't sure of what he thought of the possible result.
What was wrong with him? He had never said no if a beautiful -- and he was surprised to notice that Meche was more than pretty -- woman was in a situation such as this with him.
Meche tapped the sofa.
"We have a nice sofa too," she stated.
"Well if you like it that much I'm sure you can sleep on it," Domino replied.
"You would make a woman sleep on this?" Meche asked with a hint of repulsion, but her voice was playful too.
"Yes."
Meche didn't doubt that.
---
Meche didn't sleep that night. She lay on the sofa and stared at the ceiling. It was almost dark in the room and when she glanced around she could barely see the shapes of the pieces of furniture. She had tried to fall asleep, but it had been no use.
There was only one thing in her mind. What she would do.
She was free now, Domino had given her the opportunity to leave and she could still do that. It was the best thing she could do, and yet Meche didn't even consider it. She wanted to be with Domino despite that the man clearly wasn't interested in her company. At least not in that way.
Meche sat up and turned to look at where Domino slept. She had never been around when he was asleep. The thought of that Domino was helpless now and had no idea of what was going on around him, was very fascinating.
She noticed that she had stood up and was walking next to Domino. In the dim light Meche couldn't see his face, but it didn't matter. The expression of dead people never changed.
Being careful not to make any noise Meche sat on a chair next to the bed. She felt excited being that close to Domino without him knowing. It was so...
Would she dare to touch him? Meche stretched out her fingers, but when she heard Domino moving she drew her hand back and pressed it against her chest.
"Yes? Do you have something to say?" Domino's voice asked and Meche realised that he hadn't been asleep after all.
"I... couldn't sleep," she said quickly.
"So you decided to come and sit next to me? How touching," Domino stated.
"Well, at least I did something. It's better than just being around."
"What is that supposed to mean?"
Meche shrugged knowing that Domino wouldn't see it.
"I don't know. Maybe it is better to do something when it's still possible," she said. Meche noticed that it was much easier to talk to Domino when she didn't see his face.
The man snorted.
"I wonder if you have something specific to say," he said.
Meche was silent a while.
"I have been thinking," she said then. "I want to come with you and be a part of everything you do, no matter what it is."
"I am not stupid, so I accept all help. But why do you do that? I am not ready to trust anyone whose motive I am not familiar with," Domino said.
"You have known me over a year. Isn't that long enough to learn to trust me?" Meche asked.
"Maybe, but this is the first real chance you have to betray me."
"You are right, but many things can still happen in a year," Meche said.
"Such as?"
"Maybe I have learned to understand and... respect you on some level," the woman replied. It wasn't what she wanted to say, but something told her that the moment wasn't now. Despite his self love Domino wasn't a man who wanted to hear about love with no warning.
"So, you managed to achieve something Manny never could," Domino stated sounding just slightly shaken.
"Maybe. Is that good?"
"It tells something positive of you. Try to sleep, we have work tomorrow," the man replied. Meche stood up and returned to the sofa. Her wild side wanted to curl up next to Domino and see what the man's reaction would be, but she didn't allow herself to do that.
"Good night," she settled to say.
"Good night," Domino replied after a moment of silence.
---
"So, are we off to Nuevo Marrow?" Carla asked Manny the following day. Neither of them had mentioned their trip, the LSA or anything like that the previous night, and now they had to concentrate in what was important.
"Yes, I have to talk to Salvador and I'm sure he wants to talk to me," Manny replied.
Carla snorted.
"Salvador Limones. They told rumours of him years ago. Is he like that at all?"
"You mean a bitter soul who tears his enemies apart with his bare hands and then eats them? Not that I know," Manny said.
"What a disappointment. Well, it must be interesting to meet him anyway."
"As long as it's not too interesting."
Carla glanced at Manny in amusement.
"Are you serious?" she asked.
Manny shook his head.
"Nah, I never am. Except when it has something to do with green bar chairs."
---
It was just another day in the town of Rubacava. The sky was grey and the whole town was surrounded by fog, and it was impossible to walk on the streets if you didn't know where you were going. And only those who had lived in the town a while could do that.
They would travel to Nuevo Marrow that day and would probably arrive there before the night fell if nothing nasty waited for them in the Petrified Forest. Manny was sure that there were new flaming beavers, or some other hideous creatures. Oh well, if they weren't sharp or in fire they could probably drive over them.
Though Glottis probably wouldn't like that.
The demon had spent the previous night polishing and fixing his car that was the true love of his long life. The Bone Wagon had been in a storehouse at the docks the whole year, but she was in a surprisingly good shape.
Glottis had been pleased and acted like he had just met his lover after being separated for years.
"Now she shines like a new," he stated happily when Manny and Carla arrived. And the demon was right; Manny didn't remember when the Bone Wagon had last looked that nice. Maybe right after when Glottis had finished her.
To think of it, it was two years ago.
"She sure is. Is she also ready to take us to Nuevo Marrow?" Manny asked. Glottis looked at his friend as if he was mad.
"Is she? Of course! Nothing has even been readier!" the demon assured.
"Good," Manny said and eyed the car closely. "But before we leave, I have yet another friend to visit."
---
Velasco liked mist. Fine, that wasn't exactly true. He loved mist. It was always there to greet him when he woke up in the morning, and he was sad to see it disappearing as the night crawled nearer. Mist was one of those things that never changed in Rubacava, and he liked that.
The town had already changed too much to his liking. Everything had become so sinister.
Well, everything had always been that way, but now it was truly turning into something that even he couldn't take. He had seen much when he had been alive and after that too, but the way Hector LeMans and Maximino led things was too much for him.
But there was really nothing he could do. He had never done anything, but watched how it all changed around him. Only the mist had stayed the way it had been before.
To be honest, he had once thought everything would be better again. When Manuel Calavera had arrived in Rubacava Velasco had immediately seen the potential in the man. Manny was quiet and a bit odd, but he had the strength to make things better.
Velasco had even talked about it with his friend Toto, but the tattoo artist had been annoyed with that. Velasco doubted Toto even cared about what was happening around him.
Unfortunately Manny had left. It was a pity, his presence had almost made something change in the atmosphere of Rubacava, and Velasco had felt younger again. Maybe he was getting soft, but he truly missed Manny.
"Ah, this is getting me nowhere," he muttered to himself as he stood on his pier. On mornings like this he was a bit more positive than usually, but it didn't really matter. He doubted he'd leave his position any time soon.
He heard steps and raised his head. He was standing in his usual position, arms crossed behind his back, and staring at the water.
"Manuel?" he heard himself asking as he recognised the man approaching him.
"Yeah, I haven't changed my name yet. Though Manfred sounds almost appealing..." Manny replied. "So, what is going on?"
Velasco chuckled lightly.
"I am the one who should be asking that. Last time I saw you, you were on your way to the seas. Why are you here again?" he asked.
"That is a long story, and I really don't have the time to tell it here. I can't even stay long, I have business elsewhere. I just wanted to see how you are doing," Manny replied.
"Fine, as you can see. Not much has changed here," Velasco said, though that was the exact opposite of his opinion. He just didn't feel like complaining.
"I haven't really been around long enough to know, but I know that things will chance," Manny said.
"What do you mean?" Velasco asked in interest. He was sure of that he had heard most of the recent rumours. None had been encouraging. Did Manny know something no one else did?
"I would love to chat about that, but I really can't. Maybe Toto can enlighten you, he knows more than I do," Manny replied. Velasco was surprised to know that his friend knew anything that didn't have something to do with his work. Then again, nothing was ever what it seemed and he was already used to that.
"Where are you going?" he asked feeling that Manny wouldn't be here for very long.
"Nuevo Marrow."
"That is a dangerous place. More so than Rubacava nowadays," the old sea dog said.
"I know. That is why I am going there."
Velasco and Manny exchanged some more words, and then Manny left. Velasco watched him going and then glanced around himself.
The mist was still there, unchanging.
To be continued...
<< Discuss this fan fiction
|
