The three of us went deep into Uptown, so deep we would have needed to dodge the regular patrols of cops who were on the lookout for undesirables if there weren’t literally 15 cops all dealing with someone who I think was eating in their car.

“Don’t y’all love this part of town?” the lady said with her limitless wit and good humor.

I couldn’t tell if Liz was more annoyed at the nonsense we saw or our lovely new friend.

The three of us ended up at a… family physician clinic? I looked at Liz confused who looked just as lost as me.

“Love the cute little thing you two have going, the whole mind-reading glances and stuff but it's annoying as someone lacking your mystical twin-lover-whatever connection. Cut it. I’ll be going in, and let yall in through the back door near the dumpster. Understood?” She starts walking away without waiting for a response.

“Holy shit she’s a prick,” Liz said the moment the woman walked into the clinic. I took a moment’s pause at that, realizing we still didn’t know her name.

“Liz, did we ever get her name?”

“Nope, think it was on purpose too. Her not offering it I mean. Everything she does reeks of petty social power plays. Must’ve peaked years ago,” Liz said with a snort of laughter.

“Maybe,” I said as the two of us made our way around the side of the building. “I can tell us ignoring her jabs are getting to her though, she’s been shooting daggers at us the whole way here.”

“I’ve been shooting her a pleasant smile each time too, gets a funny scowl on her face each time.”

“Maybe I’ll do that before she leaves. Even hit her with a ‘It was a pleasure working with you!’” I said, code-switching to my Uptown accent with a chipper go-getter tone. Liz laughed.

A moment later, the metal door swung open.

“Alright, flirting is over, time to do some work!” the lady came out. I almost chuckled at how the sun managed to catch a particular gleam on her head despite the overcast weather.

“What work are we doing again?” I probed again.

“Just dealing with a human trafficker then heading home. In-and-out really.”

I almost tripped on the steps.

“A what?” Liz and I exclaimed at the same time.

Shiny, as I decided I’d refer to her for now sighed, “Run of the mill human trafficker. Maybe a serial killer. Maybe a rapist-killer combo special, dunno, and honestly don’t really care.

I clenched my fist and jaw reflexively at the utter callousness that the comment was laced with.

Shiny shot a triumphant look at that, and broke into a straight grin when she glanced past me toward Liz.

“Some girls have gone missing since the explosion a little while back. As far as we can tell most of ‘em disappeared in this area. Notably, this clinic is one of the one’s licensed under the Mutual Aid Act. Thus on the hook for providing services to those injured. Apparently, someone saw some of them come in and never come out. I bet on human trafficker, my boy Terry bet on serial killer,” she said, her cavalier nature making my head boil.

“Honestly, it’s those kids' fault for expecting someone to hand out help for free in this world,” she capped her little tirade off with joyous laughter.

I bit back on what my instincts begged me, urged me to do, there was a time and a place.

I shot a look at Liz, who was fighting down visible tremors.

Shiny looked at us satisfied at a job well done.

“Looks like I got you two good and motivated for an ass-beating. C’mon now, we should head in, the doctor isn’t going to wait forever for my bathroom break to be over and we’ll want him in that room—nice and alone—for the rest of this. Remember, little girls died to be your motivation, don’t let their sacrifice be in vain!”

This lady was going to need a new pair of teeth after we were done here, time and place be damned.

This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

______________________

We walked through the back of the doctors’ office with confidence. I slipped on a calm veneer. My mind folded in on itself. I felt my sense of self slink away, pulling back for reality in a way it liked to when dealing with monsters.

I shot a look over toward Liz who looked rattled in more ways than one. Her anger mirrored my inner world, but I forced those ripples to the depths of the pond forcing the surface to reflect a brutal tranquility instead.

Shiny opened the door to the examination room.

“Welcome ba-” the doctor stopped, confusion riding his face.

“Hey shit for brains, let's talk about those kids!”

“What kid-” he started, but Shiny sucker punched him sending him reeling out of his chair.

“Kids. What happened to ‘em?” she said, looking down at him. She smiled as he tried to scramble to his feet and slapped him, sending him crumpling.

She was half his size and rag-dolling him, giddy all the while.

I watched Shiny go to work and realized what this job was—we were thugs.

She crouched down over him, grappling his moppish hair into a fisted jumble, and dragged him up to her face.

“Feel like talking? Cuz I certainly would love an excuse to beat your ass some more. My friends here will make sure that no one will stop us too. So it’ll be me and you for as long as I want.”

“Fucking hells, I don’t know what you’re talking about!”

Liz and I stood there watching. I could see the conflict on Liz’s face. Violence was different with people like Shiny. It was for the fun of hurting. Everyone in the room could tell she honestly didn’t give half a fuck whether or not there were kids. She wanted an excuse to hurt.

I got tired of the show and games and walked forward, letting my placid mask shift into something else. I took pieces of my uptown persona with a bit of the unhinged happiness I saw Shiny emanate. The pieces were a bit incongruent but it would work. That might even make the effect better.

“Hey let him up,” I demanded, my voice a bit gruffer with a sing-song tone. Shiny looked back at me irritation, confusion draped across her face.

“Hey man, we don’t wanna be here okay? Well, she might,” I said pointing at Shiny as I crouched to his level while Shiny stared daggers through my soul.

“Then why the hells are you guys here?” he asked, voice filled with malignant anger and suspicion.

“It’s work, it pays,” I responded. “Now I’ll level with you, we know you did something with those kids. None of us care what you did with them, we were just hired to find out what happened with ‘em and explain it to our boss. You tell us, we file a report and leave? We aren’t cops, ain’t out to get you. Our employer just noticed some buzz in the area ‘bout some kids and wanted to get to the bottom of it before undesirables started snooping around.”

The guy still looked wary, the beating from before not helping. He glanced at Shiny, who wasn’t even paying him attention staring at me. I ignored her, quietly waiting for his response to my half-baked fabrication. It was decent bullshit for thinking on my feet, but I hoped he didn’t contemplate it too long or ask too many questions.

I stood up holding a hand to help him up, “I hope you aren’t too roughed up my lady-friend here came out of the oven a tad half-baked and angry if you get my drift,” I said in a mock whisper, using the persona I was putting on to slip a snide remark at Shiny; a petty reprise for her doing similar earlier. I glanced over and swear I could see the vestiges of anger fuming off of her head like a refraction-based mirage.

“I can tell,” he said with a huff, taking my hand and standing up. He dusted himself off and sat gingerly back into his chair.

“Fine, I’ll give y’all an explanation then yall leave. Kids are gone. Had an opportunity to make some money and sold ‘em.”

I swear I saw Shiny do a mini cheer out of the corner of my eye.

“Who to?” I asked.

“Some dude I met online a while ago on some forum. We were discussing some ritual castings, he said it was part of his profession. Even hooked me up with some wards that could do stuff like heat up tea since mana is free and electricity is not. Mentioned wanting some people for a project of his. Willing to pay for volunteers. I wasn’t willing to risk my hide, but some of the street scum was. He promised a bit of a finder’s fee and the kids are off the street for a bit for some harmless experiments. Hells, they might make a pretty penny too.”

“What’s this friend’s name?” I asked.

“Ya know, funnily enough never asked. I got his user though. It was RitchualMeister.”

“Gotchu, thanks man, we might be back if we need any follow-up, we don’t want any trouble for you or us, just trying to keep the hammer from coming down you know? People get finicky with kids y’know?”

“Who are you working with anyways?”

“Ah, the Overseer,” Shiny popped up, saying one of Martha’s many pseudonyms.

The doctor paused at that, “She’s taking interest in some fucking kids going missing down here? We’re barely in her territory.”

“Yet in it you are all the same,” Shiny said, “Try to keep a low profile, will you? She doesn’t want too much attention around these parts right now, understand?”

He nodded.

The three of us left right soon after.

“What the fuck was that?” Liz piped up the moment the three of us stepped back out the side door into the alley.

“Whatever do you mean… I’m out of nicknames give me five,” Shiny jested, further stoking the flames of Liz’s rage.

“What do you mean what do I mean, we just let a child trafficker off with nothing but a damned shake down! What type of shit is that?!”

Shiny laughed.

I cut into the brewing argument, “Look, Martha doesn’t really care for justice that could cause more problems than it’d fix. Hate to say it but the authorities would give more of a shit if something bad happened to him than if some kids ‘leeching’ off of social services and dirtying the streets disappear, freeing up resources.”

I saw Liz bit her lip, teeth digging in to stop the urge to shout. We were outside and this was a conversation none of us were keen to have overheard.

I stepped over to her whispering in her ear, “Don’t worry, we can deal with the doctor another time. On our own time,” I said looking at Shiny.

She huffed, “Fine, whatever! I get it, but it's bullshit. Fucking crimelord scum.”

Shiny cackled at that, “Cute, thug with a heart of gold there. I’m shocked you have enough calories there for a moral dilemma muscletits. Should probably share some of your food with your twink boyfriend over there. He definitely could bulk up a bit.”

Liz glowered at Shiny, “And you, the fuck is your problem”? You’ve been trying to start shit this whole time.”

Shiny just stared at her, “I could just tell the two of you were chickenshit from the second I saw you, might as well enjoy what life hands you right?”

Liz stepped into her face, “Chickenshit huh, willing to bet blood on that?”

Shiny just stared at Liz with a feral grin, “Try me, beefbreasts.”

I just sighed, knowing full and well what Liz thought about people that got off on bullying others.

It was no surprise a few moments later when Liz socked Shiny square in the jaw, sending the other woman crashing to the ground.