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Post by skybright on Apr 25, 2006 22:37:21 GMT -5
"You get ahold of everyone okay?" Daws raised a questioning eyebrow at Father Rick.
The two of them were waiting with some apprehension in the basement meeting room of Our Lady of Refuge; it was nearly seven and so far (except for Mike Whitebird, who was somewhere upstairs) they were alone in the church.
Padre frowned as he considered Daws' question. "Actually, no. Mel Scheerer wasn't home -- or wouldn't answer."
Daws flinched. "That ain't good, Padre." She murmured, mind racing through several unpleasant possibilities. "We best pray he just wasn't pickin' up his phone, and not . . . "
"No sense worrying about possibilities." Padre interjected sensibly. "We'll just have to wait and see what happens."
Daws nodded in response -- and turned her head sharply at the sound of feet on the staircase.
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Post by Jordanna on Apr 25, 2006 22:43:47 GMT -5
"Hi, Daws," said Alex Malone, as he reached the bottom of the stairs, with Miriam and Sid following behind him.
"Henry an' Grace both oughta be along, too," Sid remarked. "We called 'em after we got your message. Consuela's home with the kids."
"What did you mean about someone blowing up Tiernan's warehouse?" Miriam asked in puzzlement.
Sid snorted. "'Bout time somebody kicked him in the slats."
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Post by skybright on Apr 25, 2006 22:50:19 GMT -5
Daws raised an eyebrow at Sid before turning to answer Miriam. "Someone doused one of Tiernan's warehouses in several dozen gallons of gasoline and then detonated the place.
"My friend from the arson investigations office says he thinks it might've been a mutant -- or possibly someone with a flamethrower." She glanced around the small group, "Don't suppose any of you guys know anyone with a flamethrower?"
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Post by Jordanna on Apr 25, 2006 22:58:36 GMT -5
Miriam blinked. "I might think you were joking if you hadn't called us here in person."
"I can't light a candle without burning myself," Alex put in.
For his part, Sid smiled wryly at Daws. "I saw that look. And yeah, I'd love to've been the guy to do somethin' like that--but you know I don't wanna start a fight between mutants and humans. 'Sides, if I wanted to, I could just slip a word to Cousin Tony an' watch the fireworks... but I know better'n that."
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Post by skybright on Apr 25, 2006 23:04:38 GMT -5
Daws nodded. "I know, Sid." Then she shook her head sheepishly. "I'm sorry -- I shouldn't even have considered that. It's just . . ." She laughed. "My life's turned into a whole series of puzzling events lately, that's all."
Father Rick crossed his arms and looked grave. "It's always possible that it was one of the people who were here for our last meeting. I'll admit we were somewhat vague about what we meant by 'standing up to Tiernan'. But this sort of behavior," He shook his head. "It's dangerous and morally questionable, and I don't want any of us having any part of it."
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Post by Jordanna on Apr 25, 2006 23:12:06 GMT -5
Henry came down the steps at that moment. He was followed closely by a confused-looking Grace, who knew him only from the previous meeting, but had arrived in front of the church at the same time he did.
"I saw that story about the warehouse arson in the newspaper today," the undertaker remarked. "Miss Dawson, do you mean to say the place belonged to Tiernan? What in heaven's name did he have in it?"
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Post by skybright on Apr 25, 2006 23:27:56 GMT -5
Daws half-laughed. "Well, as-of last night it was full of, and I quote, 'pharmaceuticals'." She crooked her fingers in quote marks. "But apparently Tiernan rotates the contents of his warehouses on a regular basis. If they'd struck a few nights ago, though -- they'd have hit a warehouse full of weapons."
"And that," Padre interjected, "Is precisely why I don't like this whole affair. None of you have ever seen a munitions dump explode -- I have. For something like that to happen in a crowded city block, where any number of bystanders might have been involved . . ." He scowled. "It's a bad business as it is, but it could have been a horrible one."
Daws nodded her agreement. "We've got to figure out who's responsible for all this." She gestured at the small groups of people who had started filtering down into the basement. "If it's one of us, or one of Tiernan's other enemies, or what."
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Post by Jordanna on Apr 26, 2006 19:20:58 GMT -5
Sid arched an eyebrow. "Nobody here was doin' anything about Tiernan before. I can't see as one little talk from us woulda filled 'em with the get-up-'n-go to start blowing things up."
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Post by skybright on Apr 26, 2006 19:37:08 GMT -5
"That's a darn good point, Sid." Daws agreed, "Which of course beggars the question -- if it wasn't any of us," She frowned, "Who the heck was it?"
"First things first." Padre gestured towards the seated individuals and the front row of empty chairs. "The sooner we get this meeting started, the sooner we'll have a clear picture of what's going on."
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Post by Jordanna on Apr 26, 2006 20:07:48 GMT -5
"You're the one who has talked to Tiernan," Miriam said to Daws. "You know more about this than the rest of us. I guess you're the one who should talk first."
Miriam, Alex, Sid, Henry, and Grace then took their seats in the front row, to wait and see what would come of the meeting.
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Post by skybright on Apr 26, 2006 20:19:12 GMT -5
Daws stood at the front of the room and surveyed the crowd, sharing a concerned glance with Father Rick as she noticed that Mel Scheerer was, indeed, absent. Everyone else who'd been at the previous meeting was there, however -- most talking to each other in low, curious tones. Daws cleared her throat and waited until most of the group stopped talking.
" 'Evening, everyone," She slipped her fedora off and looked around, "Sorry to call this little meeting together on such short notice, but we've had . . . well, a bit of a situation come up." She paused. "I guess most of you read the newspaper. There was a warehouse burned down last night -- an arson. It belonged to Nicholas Tiernan."
Murmurs of concern, interest, amazement and a few exclamations of satisfaction passed around the room. Daws waited for them to die down and then continued, filling in the details she'd learned from her contact in the arson investigations unit. When she'd finished, she glanced gravely around the room and then at Father Rick.
The priest nodded and said firmly "We said last time that all of us were in the fight against Tiernan together. So I think it's only fair for me to ask -- on behalf of all of us." He surveyed the room with a hint of sternness. "Did any of you have anything to do with this?"
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Post by Jordanna on Apr 26, 2006 20:40:18 GMT -5
"It was my handiwork, kiddies."
The murmuring assemblage turned to see who had spoken. A figure stepped from the shadows behind the steps, where he had been leaning, and moved toward the front of the room with the stride of a stalking cat. He was lean and solid, with a long scar that covered much of the left side of his face. His hands were buried in the pockets of his coat.
He stopped in front of Daws and Father Rick, regarding them with mild interest--and perhaps a touch of disdain.
"The name is Jerod Vance, and I'm here to help this little Sunday school of yours grow up."
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Post by skybright on Apr 26, 2006 20:49:28 GMT -5
Daws raised an eyebrow and opened her mouth to reply -- but a solid hand on her shoulder stopped her.
Father Rick stepped in front of Daws, raised himself to the full extent of his five-foot-six, and crossed his muscular arms. He looked the newcomer up and down and then said gruffly "You say Jerod Vance like I ought to know that name, boyo."
He raised his chin and continued brusquely "Well, my name's Richard Steele -- Father Steele, if ya please -- and this 'little Sunday School', as you call it, is an invitation-only affair." Padre frowned and added "To put it another way -- how'd you find us here?"
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Post by Jordanna on Apr 26, 2006 20:59:54 GMT -5
Vance cracked a half-smile.
"A friend of mine was here at your last meeting--and you better be glad he was. It was just A-1 dumb to organize this neighborhood watch the way you did. He recognized a fella that was here last time as one of Nick Tiernan's playmates... Scheerer, I think the name was." He smiled ominously. "Don't worry. He won't be talking to Tiernan or anybody else again."
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Post by skybright on Apr 26, 2006 21:08:05 GMT -5
Daws gritted her teeth at the implications in that -- not just at what had happened to Scheerer, either; if he had intended on turning them in to Tiernan . . .
Yeah, well, you'll never know if he was or not, willya, Ace? She frowned -- this newcomer, Vance, definitely rubbed her fur the wrong way -- and stepped up to Father Rick's side.
"Funny thing, Padre," She purred dangerously, eyeing the scarred visitor, "I don't remember us hirin' a babysitter, do you?"
"Daws." Let me handle this was implied in the single word. Father Rick pinned the newcomer with a stern brown stare.
"So, you're the one responsible for that little lightshow last night?" He raised one eyebrow. "Out of curiosity, did you check to see what was in that warehouse?"
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Post by Jordanna on Apr 26, 2006 21:23:16 GMT -5
"I know exactly what was in there. That's why I didn't do the job three days ago--though it was tempting, believe me." He shrugged. "I'll get to those guns when they get rotated out to Tiernan's warehouse outside the city. Last night was just a little way of introducing myself; not only to Tiernan, but to you folks."
He withdrew a hand from his pocket--with a slight smile at Daws' wary reach for her gun--and produced a cigar, which he lit using a tiny blue spark of his self-generated energy. Then he paused to give Father Rick a sideways glance that somehow managed to be both half-apologetic and entirely arrogant.
"You don't mind if I smoke in here, do ya?"
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Post by skybright on Apr 26, 2006 21:27:28 GMT -5
Father Rick gave a disdainful half-smile that didn't reach any of his eyes and shook his head. "Go right ahead."
Between the Marine Corps and the Catholic Church, Padre had seen (and participated in) his fair share of power struggles. He recognized one when he saw one.
He inclined his head slightly and added "You can feel free to take a seat, too -- if you're interested in participating in this meeting, that is."
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Post by Jordanna on Apr 26, 2006 21:56:06 GMT -5
"I'm not the taking-a-seat kind," Vance replied coolly.
He turned to look over the congregation. "You folks have got the right idea, but you don't know how to execute it. I can fix that. I didn't spend more than twenty years in the Army just to learn how to talk about problems--I deal with 'em."
He glanced back at Daws and Father Rick. "I bet if I asked you exactly who was in charge around here, you wouldn't have an answer. You've got no leadership. You're not gonna get anywhere without that."
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Post by skybright on Apr 26, 2006 22:05:46 GMT -5
This time Daws ignored any effort on Padre's part to keep her quiet. She settled her fedora back on her head and stepped closer to Vance, claws flexing. "And you're nominatin' yourself for the leadership position, is that it?" She cocked her head quizzically and gave him a cold grey stare.
"So what if we say we're not interested in your particular brand of . . . problem-solving?" She raised an eyebrow. "You gonna do to this place what you did to Tiernan's?"
"Daws has a point." Father Rick interjected, frowning. "You may not be the taking-a-seat kind, friend -- but we," He gestured at the assembled group, most of whom were staring with a sort of morbid fascination, "We are not the fight-fire-with-fire kind. Our idea of solvin' a problem isn't throwing gasoline at it until it goes away."
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Post by Jordanna on Apr 26, 2006 22:25:15 GMT -5
"I s'pose you wouldn't mind if Tiernan still had that load of drugs to feed to the norms," Vance retorted.
"What I did is called a tactical strike. You get that first word? It means a whole lot of planning and information went into it. The rest of the buildings around there didn't get so much as scorched--but Tiernan's lost one little piece of his fortune. If that's what it takes, I'll keep bleeding his organization to death; or, if I get a chance, I'll go straight for the jugular. But one thing you better be clear on: whatever I do, it'll be done smart." He arched an eyebrow. "The point is, it will be done--instead of just sitting around hoping it'll go away on its own."
He shrugged. "As for what I'm gonna do about you people... not too much. I've laid things out clear. Whoever wants to act instead of talking is welcome with me. For the rest of you, it's no skin off my nose to leave you in your rut."
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