forum A Snake in The Hen House (2/6) spots opennenneenenenen

Started November 03, 2019 by Deleted user

tune

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Chris could hear Shane's cries but they kept on walking, that warm smile was now purely grim. If Shane wanted to speak to them, he could do so in private. They went around to the back of the house to retrieve their things, taking the cases and the files back up to the room that Chris used to use when living with Bear. They dumped everything onto their bed and rummaged through the cases for new clothes.
Chris didn't look like 'Chris' when they'd gotten changed and removed what little makeup they'd been wearing. Cargo pants and combat boots replaced the leather pants and heels, a tank top instead of the halter neck. They swept their hair up into a ponytail and put their glasses on.
They caught a glimpse of themselves as they wandered back downstairs with the files, and paused for a moment. Even Chris forgot what they really looked like sometimes, and oh how they were looking forward to everyone else's reactions.
With the files in hand, they took themselves to the dining room, and sat down with the papers on the table. Would Shane bother looking for Chris there?

Shane heard the stomp of combat boots enter the dining room, and knew it had to be Chris. He carefully tiptoed into the room and gingerly sat down as far from Chris as he could. The change in outfits was surprising, but wasn’t exactly the issue at the forefront of Shane’s mind. Watching Chris flip through the papers that basically made up his entire life was painful, and he winced slightly. He cleared his throat. “Um, yeah. I’m sorry, really. I’m clearly the one at fault here, and I know I need to apologize.” He let out an awkward laugh. “Apparently everything’s about me now. I can’t stop talking about myself.” Shane looked down at the polished hardwood floors and started over. “You shared a lot earlier, things you didn’t have to say. It makes sense you’d expect the same thing in return, and be angry when you were lied to instead. I am really sorry that trust wasn’t returned.”

"I don't mind being lied to." Chris shrugged and looked up at Shane, their voice was a lot deeper, naturally husky. "Lying is how a spy survives, so I know why you lied to me." They continued to flick through the papers, eventually pushing them away with a sigh. "Do you fancy talking about them, now that we are here in private?"

“Sure. Sure,” Shane said hurriedly. “These files are from the last 10 years, and should be organized by the type of event that occurred. The cipher key should be the fifth page down. If you hand me that page and the first one I should be able to get started with the decryption.”

Chris did as Shane said, passing him the required pages. They crossed their legs on the seat and watched proceeded to watch Shane work. Honestly, they would have given Shane a hand should he want it, but something told Chris that the former would have it done a lot quicker by doing it himself.

Shane squinted as he examined the papers, a little pout forming involuntarily on his lips. He pulled a pen out of his pocket and began to scribble in the English translation. Sitting back, he smiled a little in satisfaction. He turned to Chris and passed them the page without really comprehending the contents. A shame, because that page was a diary entry from the first day he had joined ‘the family’. “Here. I’ll get started on the rest of them,” he muttered.

Chris didn't bother looking at the page Shane had translated, at this moment in time they were more intrigued by just watching the man work rather than looking over the things he had written. Besides, it would have been easier to assess the documents after all of them had been translated.

Shane’s brow furrowed as he continued to work through the stack, mumbling shreds of what they contained as he translated. “telephone… remote explosive… Operation Daydream- wait a second! Chris, I might be onto something!” He jumped up from his chair and began pacing. “Operation Daydream was a mission to make contact with a rival ‘family’ about forming an alliance. At least, that’s what it looked like on paper. It was more like a massacre. 37 of their guys slaughtered. Anyone would want revenge for that.”

Just curious, may I join?)

"You're right, and that does give us more of a lead on who would want Bear dead." Chris found a blank piece of paper and started scribbling stuff down. "Do you remember what the name of the leader is?"
(Sorry it's so short, I couldn't think of anything else)

(It’s ok!)

Shane scratched behind his ear with his pen, leaving blue marks on his skin. “I think it’s… Evelyn? Evelyn something. She goes by Nemesis.”

The name sent a shiver down Chris' spine, and all the colour drained from their face. "Evelyn Hallowfield. She's only 26 but she knows how to lead a family of mobsters like an alpha to a wolf pack." Chris had a less than comfortable relationship with Nemesis, but it wasn't an area they were wanting to delve into at that present moment. "She knows for a fact that should Bear pass away then all the partnerships and businesses he had formed would be vulnerable, and who wouldn't benefit from all that wealth and power?"

“You make a good point,” Shane mused thoughtfully. “Her family is nearby enough for it to be a convenient trip, and she’s already known to openly hate Bear and want what he has- had.” He turned to Chris. “Do you know Nemesis personally? From the way you talked about her…” he trailed off, aware of the personal nature of the question.

Chris let out a low chuckle and shrugged. "Maybe, maybe not. Why does it matter?" they leaned in towards Shane with a dangerous glint in their eyes, their expression suddenly became serious. "Just a warning, Evelyn is not one for bargains. If you, or anyone else, plan to face her, do so at your own risk." Nemesis was known for being a violent woman, and she was good at what she did—a little too good—so it wasn't ideal to face her under any circumstance.

“I-uh, ok.” Shane blanched a little with fear, but regained his composure. “I mean, I wasn’t planning on meeting with her, but now that you bring it up, it makes sense to check if she’s got a confirmable alibi for the night of Bear’s death.” He tapped his chin with the pen and frowned. “And the only way to do that is ask her about her version of events first.” He shivered involuntarily.

"When do you want to confront her?" Chris asked, rubbing their chin, deep in thought. Perhaps they could find a way to stop Evelyn from being a bad player in this game—Chris still had that thing, right? "Of course," he sighed, "There is nothing forcing you to talk to her, I could always do it myself if you're uncomfortable with the idea of it."

“No, no, I would have to do it. It sounds like you and Evelyn have a complicated history, and that could be risky,” Shane reasoned. “I only know Nemesis through mission reports and rumors. She doesn’t know my face; almost no one does.” Shane turned to Chris. “You might get hurt if you go to a meeting with Nemesis. Putting you in danger should probably be avoided.”

"Listen Shane, sweetheart." Chris leaned in a little, taking off their glasses to make direct eye contact with Shane. The next words they spoke were no longer in their deep, husky voice, more like the light, feminine tone Chris had been using earlier. "Evelyn knows only one side of me. Besides, I'm not going to let you go there alone. I'm not giving you a choice in this, I'm going with you even if to only be a getaway driver."

Shane scooched back a bit in his chair, but kept the eye contact. Props to him! “Alright, then, guess it’s settled. We’ll both go to see Nemesis,” he whispered, almost out of fear. “Who’s car are you driving? I never got my license.”

A bright smile grew on Chris' lips, their voice returned to normal when they spoke. Oh how they loved it when they struck fear into the people they cared about. "Mine. It's around the back."