While the sky was dyed a somber red, preparing to go to sleep, there were still many under its stretch awake and active as ever. Some of such people found themselves gathered in a high school building even though the custodians had locked up hours ago. Hidden away in a conference room, three figures met with the blinds drawn and the door bolted.
A lean, well-built man dressed in a gray suit. He was also considerably tall and had large mouth.
A stouter, round man who, in contrast to his nicely dressed company, bore sweat stained clothes without a care.
And a small, shivering woman whose large, round glasses bounced on her upturn nose.
“So, have you decided on what truck we’re going to use yet? I can imagine for a guy that big you’d need a monster truck to do any real damage, but I don’t know how that’d work driving it on the streets.” The porkiest man babbled eagerly like a teenage girl deciding what outfit to buy.
It was clear from a long time ago that their target, Mordemicai, was likely never going to comply and join Faxton Security Service. Yet, letting him walk away wasn’t an option. The three would hold meetings occasionally to discuss their next best options for making the soon to be graduated student have to go to the company regardless of his will.
The solution they’d landed on was planning an accident to happen so that he’d be put into crushing debt with hospital bills. They’d then use their companies power to blacklist Mordemicai from other high paying jobs with only Faxton Security willing to hire him and offer a large enough salary to pay off his medical bills.
“That might no longer be necessary, if what you said was true…” he peered at the woman barely containing herself to her chair from trembling. Trembling? No, she was shaking. Shaking with rage.
“Yeah it’s right! Haven’t you listened to the recordings from the wire you make me wear? The damned mongrel said it loud and clear!!” Ms. Birnley was frothing with wrath. The gall! The disrespect! The embarrassment that Mordemicai caused her was now fuel for unfiltered rage. She could strangle him. She’d need a ladder first, but then she’d strangle him. Then again, that might not work out either since upon seeing him she’d just start hitting him with the ladder.
“With the proof that the boy himself stated he intends to go to the Wilds, we won’t need to carry out that plan. Rather, going to the Wilds is considered a death sentence. With his guardians’ permission, we can forcefully get him admitted to a mental asylum under the pretense of being suicidal and unsound of mind. His stay there will be paid for by Faxton Security, causing him to rack up a debt under us and have to reimburse the company through labor once he’s released. It’s better this way anyhow. Now we don’t have to risk the product getting damaged.” Garry Gilmorre reasoned as Hal Coeden clicked his tongue unhappily. He was really looking forward to being able and hit someone with his car and have no repercussions.
Garry Gilmorre had purposefully left out the fact that even if they’d proceeded with their original intent, Coeden would not be driving.
“So, did you reach an agreement to get his ‘guardians’ permission’?” Hal Coeden asked what might have been the first smart question in his life.
“I got confirmation just recently. Money really does make the worlds go ‘round” Gilmorre chuckled knowing how easily Mordemicai’s aunt and uncle accepted his bribe, essentially selling their nephew. Originally, he was getting them to agree to not pursue legal action or resort to the police when things started going down. If they were on board for what could possibly kill the kid, they’d be just as pleased with signing some papers to get him out of their lives. They’d be receiving their payment after Mordemicai was secured.
“We ought to let him graduate first. The company only hires high school graduates and up.”
“But if he plans to travel, we’d be risking him getting away if we wait too long.”
“Then we’ll just have to nab him right after. Have the asylum folks waiting for him right outside the graduation ceremony.”
----------------------------------------
Things were looking up.
Graduation day. Young men and women, no longer students, messily swarmed about like minnows in a bucket. They all donned traditional silky robes that danced languidly as the breeze shifted about them. The ceremony had just ended. Smiling faces congratulated their family members as each group found a place amongst crowds. As time meandered on, some of the kids started having heartfelt cries with their friends who they’d soon depart from after all their years together; A touching sight for all who witnessed.
But something was wrong.
Even if they were all wearing the same thing, a certain Dogra should have stuck out like a sore thumb just as he always had. Mordemicai was nowhere in sight.
Ms. Birnley and Hal Coeden had attended the event naturally as it was expected of teachers to be present. Garry Gilmorre was also there with some of his guards from the company. They had subtly snuck in with the crowd of proud families to watch and step in incase extra assistance was needed to fulfill the goal at hand. In spite of all three looking from different spots, none of them had caught hide or hair of their honored guest. Even stranger, as students were summoned to the stage to take their certificates, Mordemicai’s name never got called.
It appeared that while Mordemicai’s favorite thing to do was solve mysteries, he was exceptionally talented in creating them too.
The three gathered together empty-handed and inquisitive. They tried trading what they each knew to see if they could figure something, anything, out.
It was Ms. Birnley as his homeroom teacher who took notice, but Mordemicai hadn’t attended classes since a few weeks ago. Getting in touch with his family, it was reported that he was sick. This was confirmed by his aunt and uncle to the trio, but they’d also guaranteed that the teen would definitely be at the graduation. They’d promised to make him go no matter what he said or what condition he was in.
Even though what they were discussing was of great importance, Hal Coeden allowed his attention to be veered. The cafeteria ladies had just finished setting up stands to give out free food to the graduates and their relatives. What was jokingly referred to as the ‘last school lunch’ was based in the idea of a cookout. A handful of open flame grills were being used for burgers, hotdogs, ribs, etcetera. The porky man didn’t want to wait for the lines to reach the end of town and quickly thought of an excuse for his break.
“We’re having no luck finding him on our own, so let’s look for his family instead. Those two are the ones who have the most control over him and can probably fill us in as to what’s going on. I’ll go look for them over there!” he said not waiting for their response as he jogged away to the smell of cooking meat.
It wasn’t a bad idea, even if it was just something he said so he could go gorge himself.
Garry Gilmorre grumbled at the pig’s lackluster dependability. He didn’t have time to deal with it, choosing to press forward with the more responsible teacher. However, as he was going to entail how they should proceed in looking for Mordemicai’s family, another teacher bolted straight at the two.
“Ms. Birnley! Where have you been?!” the teacher flailed about “We’ve got a disaster on our hands!”
“I believe I made it clear that I wouldn’t be helping today.” Ms. Birnley scowled.
“What’s going on?” Gilmorre asked, realizing he was out of the loop on seeming important information.
Ms. Birnley groaned, explaining that the principle had assigned her as the head of the graduation committee. She’d tried to decline but was told that all the teachers did it in rotation and that it was simply her turn. She’d neglected telling Gilmorre as she believed she had it under control. Ms. Birnley told the other committee members that she wouldn’t be able to help today but put in extra hours of hard work earlier on the make up for it.
“It’s an emergency, we need all hands on deck. The reserve fuel for the grills leaked, but we didn’t figure that out until after moving them. Most of us are scrambling to clean up the hallways they spilt in before families start coming in for the after-party while a few left to get replacement gas. We’d get the janitors to assist, but they’ve got their hands full too. Some kids started partying too early and came in hung over; our custodians are swamped trying to clean all the up-chuck that just keeps coming. As for the reception hall, that’s where we need you. Too many balloons started deflating and some cheeky brats must’ve messed around in there because the streamers and banners have started falling as well.” It really was a cacophony of misfortune. Ms. Birnley felt frustration bubbling. All her hard work was falling apart.
“Dammit” she hissed as she started towards the gym that was being used as the makeshift banquet area.
“You can’t leave! I need you here!” Gilmorre exclaimed his priority.
Ms. Birnley pulled him aside. “I have to go or people might think I’m acting suspiciously. The last thing we need is to give others a reason to look into us.” Gilmorre ground his teeth. Her logic was sound, but how was he supposed to do this on his own?
She sighed, reassuring him. “Look, the food line and the gym are going to be the two hotspots for people gathering. Hal and I will be watching the most likely places they’ll end up at. We just need you and your escorts to act like sweepers and look around the other areas.”
It was a plan at least. With a nod of confirmation, it was time to get to work.
Ms. Birnley ran off to go grab helium tanks, Hal Coeden licked barbeque sauce off his fingers, and Garry Gilmorre summoned his men to organize their approach.
----------------------------------------
How had they not found those two yet?! Half an hour of professional level maneuvers when looking for them still left the men without a clue in sight. Gilmorre blamed himself for bringing rookies. He’d chosen to take new recruits for support because they wouldn’t be recognized as the company’s subordinates. If something went wrong, he could tell the authorities that they didn’t represent Faxton Security because they’d been on a trial run; throwing the weak links to the wolves without scratching the company’s character.
The recruits had been told this was their final field exam. It was pass or fail and their future as security/body guards depended on the results. With this, they should be desperately trying to make their best impression. If they couldn’t even find two people in a crowd, how could they be expected to locate hostile targets in a ruckus? Garry Gilmorre grumpily made note of how pathetically he’d score them.
Feeling the veins popping out of his head, he violently ran fingers through his hair. While trying to relieve his tautness and think of a new method, a color caught his attention.
Mordemicai? No. The Dogra he was thinking of and the person he was eyeing simply had similar hair colors. Looking closer, the girl gave him deja vu. Had he seen her before?
That’s right! It took him a bit because he never figured her important, but if his memory served him right, he often saw that girl clinging to Mordemicai’s shadow. What was her name again? Sarah? Samantha? Oh, what did it matter what her name was? What mattered was that the two were cousins which meant she was the daughter of the couple he was looking for. His first lead. He can’t risk to lose it.
Yet, as he was thinking, the girl had quickly left his line of sight.
He instinctively asked one of his rookies where the girl scuttled off to but only received a baffled look in return. That’s right, because he never figured her important there was no way a photo of her would’ve slipped its way into their briefing. He currently had an entourage as useful as a group of baby ducklings. Resigning himself to giving hand-holding directions to the dead weight, he told them to be on guard and stick with him because they were approaching a target.
If he had to make a guess of which way she went, it looked like she might have been headed towards the food area. Finally, a stroke of luck. Hal Coeden was standing guard there and should know her face well. With the two of them, they could perform a pincher approach and have his lackeys circle around in case she was inclined to run.
Turning the corner, his expectations fell through once again. The girl was still missing but it was possible she’d just gone a different way than he’d expected. What was unacceptable was that Hal Coeden was missing too.
It was the final red flag to push Gilmorre over the edge.
Something was wrong and it wasn’t something small like a hitch in the plan as he’d first expected. He’d brushed it off earlier, but there has been too many coincidences. The target is a no show, he can’t get in contact with his insiders, one of his cohorts conveniently had a distraction placed on her, and the other was now missing.
Garry Gilmorre wasn’t an immature man who’d dig in his heels and refuse to leave until he got what he wanted. He didn’t know what was going on and that in itself was a big enough problem when he entered the situation believing everything was under control.
It was time to cut his losses and leave before something else out of his control happened.
He’d parked the company vans behind the school by recommendation of his teacher allies. There weren’t any security cameras back there and he wouldn’t have to deal with the traffic caused by all the families’ vehicles.
It’d take too long to redirect his subordinates into a new formation, so this time he simply told them to follow him and play it by ear. Hopefully none of them would get any crazy ideas about standing out to make an impression now. Gilmorre wondered if he should’ve added that they needed to act as inconspicuous as possible.
Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.
Not even halfway to their checkpoint, his suspicions proved correct with a gut-wrenching drop.
Skirting along the outside of the main school building, he finally caught sight of an ally, Ms. Birnley. Ms. Birnley, however, was too busy to notice him as he quickly backed behind a corner. Tears intense as rainfall raced down her face as her muffled emotions seesawed between rage and fear. Short legs kicked and clung to the ground while she was being hauled away by men in uniforms.
Despite being police officers, they appeared more akin to kidnappers due to their victim’s mouth being taped shut. With how noisy Ms. Birnley was in spite of it, he could imagine they chose to do this to avoid alarming the surrounding citizens. Her screams would definitely cause a stir and alert any of her allies that there was trouble. If he was to guess that this is what happened to the absent Hal Coeden, then it would be safe to bet that the police were trying to round up all of them in one go.
He didn’t know why the police where there, but even if he was to be arrested he couldn’t have it be here. His presence itself could prove incriminating as it’d be suspicious to why he was here at all.
If it was time to leave before, it was now time to subtly run like hell.
On the bright side, unlike the teachers who were easy to identify, they were in disguise. Staying calm but wary would be the key to their escape. Police would have a tough time identifying him and possible eye-witnesses wouldn’t be able to recognizing a face that was never seen.
Garry Gilmorre choose to take an alternate route to the back of the school. Ms. Birnley was caught near here; it didn’t bode well to purposefully tread a path of fire. A fifth of the way back to the vans. They casually passed by where the hungover teens were being nursed as they continued to gag away last night’s joy. A fourth of the way to the vans. They weaved between hungry masses as they had retraced their steps to the ‘last school lunch’. A third of the way to the vans.
A body slam caught him off-guard as he’d just squeezed past the line. It wasn’t heavy or strong enough to be from law enforcement, yet the grip spoke of how he wouldn’t be getting away all the same.
He barely had enough time to glance down and register the familiar color before what happened next.
“WHAT DID YOU DO TO MY COUSIN!!!!” Seryna bellowed.
----------------------------------------
A few weeks ago, Seryna and Mordemicai had just finished a fun filled night with pizza after a long day of bickering against a few certain sleaze balls.
“Mordemicai! There’s something you need to know!”
He stood a distance in front of her, not turning around but swiveled his head to so his ear could clearly catch what she was going to say next. Seryna had to swallow her hesitance; the night and distance shadowed his expression.
“That Gilmorre guy, I think he came by the house when we were out, or something. And, and he…” she sputtered, full of conviction but without confidence. “He offered a deal with my mom and dad…. and I think they took it.”
A quiet void as silent as the starless sky. Mordemicai hadn’t moved. He just kept listening.
“They’re gonna do something, something bad to you and I… and I……” her eyes grew wet with frustration. Frustration with herself. Her incapability to sway her parents, her incapability to protect her cousin, her incapability to just sucker punch all the problems in her way out of existence.
Glaring at the asphalt between her shoes, she collected herself through the pain of biting her lower lip. Whimpering about wasn’t what she did, it wasn’t what they did. They were people of action, biting back at any wolves that dare nip at their toes. It didn’t matter who the enemy was. It shouldn’t matter, and neither should how utterly sucky and downhill this situation felt.
The enemy came from great money, crazy manpower, and deep resources. This was nothing compared to the teachers they’d taken down so far. God, how were they supposed to fight back against this? And yes, it was they. Just as it had always been. If it was Mordemicai’s problem, it was Seryna’s too. She’d probably live on unscathed if she simply turned her back on the situation but fuck anyone who thought she would ever do that.
They probably only had a month, tops, to make a game plan before everything came crashing down. Put into perspective, they’d normally stretch out their rebuttals from six months to a year. Time was short and she couldn’t tell if they’d even be able to do anything, Mordemicai probably knew the same.
“Mordemicai” Seryna thought as she finally looked up to confront her cousin’s face. He’d turned slightly more and she could finally make out his expression under the flickering parking lot lights. He didn’t have to say anything, what she saw said it all. A sad gaze in her direction accompanied by a heartwarming smile. The same face he’d worn when Seryna told him about how the family viewed and treated him.
He knew. He knew everything.
“I think it’s about time…” He mumbled partially to himself, and partially to the sky which he stared at endearingly before returning his attention to his cousin. “Seryna, let’s take a detour on our way home! There’s something I’ve been wanting to show you.” Mordemicai’s face lit up to change the pitiful look he had before as if the painful words had never left Seryna’s mouth.
----------------------------------------
It wasn’t till a few blocks away that Seryna figured out where they were going. They were on their way to the park they used to play in when they were kids. She hadn’t been there in forever, the last time she even passed by was probably three years back.
“It certainly brings back memories” but she had a feeling that wasn’t what Mordemicai wanted to show her. The guy had a taste for theatrics but hated unnecessarily wasting time. He wasn’t the kind who’d drag her here in the middle of the night just to get sentimental.
Following along, Seryna reminisced the view of what the playground and the tree’s looked like in the sunlight. The park wasn’t scary at night, but it evoked different emotions from the hot and giggle-filled days of their childhood. Her memories felt so vivid she could clearly hear the sound of children sprinting about and feel the summer heat on her skin.
Yellow turned dark blue as she came back to reality, looking at the broad stature of her previous playmate. Was it forlornness that flooded this park? A comfortable longing, bittersweet content? Whatever it was, it made her feel old.
Venturing past the familiar area, they stopped at the old landscaper’s shed. Fewer memories came with this sight because anytime a child dawdled within fifteen feet of the shack, all the adults nearby would scold their ears off. Such a dangerous mystery had been too tempting to pass up for the duo of rascals. Turns out it wasn’t hidden monster or a secret dungeon as they so hoped. The much more boring and simple answer they’d found was that a fair amount of gardening tools were sharp so kids ought to be kept away. The truth wasn’t worth the spanking and groundings they’d received as punishment.
Mordemicai, gestured politely to the padlock which barricaded the door to their already solved secret. Seryna in return pulled a bobby pin from her hair to make quick work of the lock. Fashionably pulling it off, the creaking door opened to reveal nothing she didn’t already know about. Where was the thing he wanted to show her?
Holding back her questions, she watched as Mordemicai stepped into the dusty room and walked out with a shovel in each hand.
“A treasure hunt it is then” she speculated silently with an eyebrow raised as she took the shovel offered to her. Jokingly, Seryna wondered if Mordemicai was taking her to an area with a giant ‘X’ marking the ground.
The supposed treasure hunt was shorter than she’d expected as it was a quick trip to the closest flowerbed.
Even her delinquent self didn’t indulge in vandalism so she felt iffy on tearing up the helpless tulips. Following Mordemicai’s lead, they carefully dug up the blossoms by their roots to be placed back later. As they dug, Seryna came to her conclusion on why her cousin choose this spot; flowerbed dirt had a naturally loose look to it so even if they dug around, it was unlikely anyone would be able to tell the difference.
After only about a foot of digging her shovel made contact with something that wasn’t earth. Dusting the crumbles aside, Seryna pulled out a black garbage bag, heavy with contents.
“Oh wow! Litter!” she clowned knowing that whatever was inside was what Mordemicai had set this all up for.
Facing away from Mordemicai she tore open the bag, its contents identifiable even with their limited lighting.
A suitcase and a duffle bag. Her cousin reached over for the empty duffle bag. Removing his school bag from his back, he revealed that the usual utensils and binders had been replaced with pairs clothes. As he began moving the items from one bag to the other, Seryna looked back at the suitcase in realization.
“Mordemicai?”
“Yeah?”
“This is it, isn’t it?”
“……”
“This is the last time I’m seeing you.” It wasn’t a question anymore.
“……..Yeah.” the same heart melting look as earlier.
“I should’ve known when you splurged for the breadsticks.” Seryna’s voice cracked as she began crying.
He’d planned for this to be their goodbye. It made sense now why he had gone all out, buying all her favorites to everything she’d been curious about trying on the menu.
Allowing herself to be embraced, her fingers buried into his blazer as if the clinging would keep him by her side for even a minute longer. Trying to push those feelings into submission, Seryna focused on what it felt like. The arms around her back, the shape of his torso, and the warmth that he brought.
Despite the comfort, it hurt. It hurt so much but it’d probably hurt less if her breath would stop hitching from the crying.
Directing her efforts to try and calm down, Seryna leaned out of the hug and desperately scrubbed her eyes with cuffs of her school uniform. Her eyes were still wet and continued to leak here and there, but her lungs worked now.
Distracting herself to keep a second wave of tears from coming, her attention wandered back to the suitcase. If the duffle bag was for clothes, what was the suitcase for? Mordemicai hovering by her side, Seryna plopped to the ground and unzipped the luggage which quickly brought her into a giggle fit.
“Pffftt, hahahaha! I fuckin knew it! I knew you didn’t throw these away!!” trails marking their way down her cheeks no longer powered only by sadness.
What sat before her was the entire fifty-four book series of the original ‘Detective Nineyard’. Her parents had told him to throw them away back during middle school but it always struck her as off when Mordemicai had complied to tossing out his prized collection of kiddie books.
She could picture it now, a group of explorers coming across a massive skeleton cradling the luggage to its chest tightly. Excitedly expecting untold treasures, they wrench it from the bony arms only to find these treasured, worn pages.
On the other hand, this meant Mordemicai had been preparing for this since middle school. So much for not having enough time to retaliate.
Peering past the books which had been tightly organized into protective boxes, Seryna counted out the other items. A considerable amount of rope, fishing hooks with line, a sturdy water flask, hiking boots, sewing kits, basic first aid supplies, and few different types of knives with a sharpening stone amongst other things. There were also some other books besides ‘Detective Nineyard’. She could only read a few of the titles, the ones catching her eye being knot tying, something about plants, and a beginner’s medical guide.
“There’s no way this stuff is going to last.” Besides the books, the other items would either be used up or worn into tatters. The supplies were that of someone going on a camping trip for three weeks, not into the Wilds for the rest of their life.
“It’d be impossible to bring enough supplies to last a lifetime anyway. I’ll be using these for the first few weeks of adjustments and hopefully figure out how to use the environment to my advantage before they run out.” A plan based on the best possible outcome, not one that’d work if he finds himself stranded on a desert planet with nothing useful in sight.
“I can’t believe our last caper was wasted on outing a cougar. Well, at least we got her good.” Seryna remarked trying to look at the bright side.
“Nah, Ms. Birnley is the hot-headed type. Outing her like that just made her double down.”
“What, seriously? Then what was all that for? I don’t see the need just to piss her off. I think they were planning to hit you with a car or something. Doesn’t get more off the rails then that.”
“Yeah, I figured as much. When I was looking into other Dogra I couldn’t help but notice the blatant pattern of sappy news stories when one has a great misfortune in their life only to be ‘helped’ by some big-name company.” It wasn’t too far of a stretch to figure out that those same companies had caused the misfortune in the first place.
“That’s why I told Ms. Birnley I was going to the Wilds. By giving them the ammo they needed to take me down, they won’t feel the necessity to create their own. It’ll lull them into a sense of comfort after seeing things going their way which will make the plans for what comes next go all the smoother.” He finished.
“What comes next?” Seryna parroted.
“You really thought our big finale would be stealing a guy’s phone to blackmail a lady? Hell to the no! We’re bringing out the fireworks for this one! The whole shebang!! Or better put, you’ll be bringing out the fireworks, if that’s what you want to do.”
“Oh?” Seryna was intrigued.
“By the time the sun rises, I’ll be long gone. I won’t be able to see this through, but if you’re really craving for one more fling, I happened to set up one final scheme.” Mordemicai’s mischievous side creeping through.
She smirked in return.
----------------------------------------
Plans now set in motion, Seryna has been a very naughty girl.
After saying goodbye to her cousin, Seryna roughed herself up a bit and went to the police station as Mordemicai had recommended. On the way, she’d made sure to throw and trash her phone along with some of Mordemicai’s items into a specific alleyway. It was one of the few without any cameras to catch her and was in the area between Lenny’s Pizza Palace and their house. These factors would help make her story solid.
It also really brought into perspective on how long Mordemicai had been planning this last hurrah. Seryna secretly prayed that he would make some new friends when he got to where he was going; the guy had too much time on his hands already as it was.
Upon being questioned by the officers, her sob story of how she and her cousin had been jumped by men in black on their way home hit hard with how her eyes were still swollen from crying earlier. Seryna told them about how Mordemicai was kidnapped, being knocked out by surprise and then hulled into a van. She heroically tried to fight for her cousin but was no match for the group of adversaries in the end.
The kind workers even gave her a blanket as her parents were called to come in for the ‘shocking’ news.
To the couple, it indeed was shocking. A framed kidnapping was not within the plan that Garry Gilmorre had described to them. Nor had he contacted them or given them their share. Were they scammed? Was the whole agreement just for show? They suddenly realized the company could use the contract they signed as blackmail so they couldn’t go to the police when they were ripped off.
Those backstabbing bastards!
However, to their unbeknownst luck, their sticky-fingered daughter had already pilfered Gilmorre’s copy along with something else. Shortly after they’d signed, she’d snagged the agreement as proof incase Mordemicai didn’t believe her about his imminent danger.
While the two were difficult with the investigators at first, it didn’t stay that way for long. After they arrived home, they found the absently placed paper that damned them. It seemed as though Garry Gilmorre had dropped it on accident before leaving that day. What an incredible stroke of fate.
Now free of their chains and enraged from allegedly being ripped-off, they were ready to comply in every way possible to take their nephew’s kidnappers down. When asked if they thought of anyone suspicious Garry Gilmorre’s name didn’t hesitate to hit the table.
Yet, to the investigator’s surprise, two more suspects came up by suggestion of the victim’s cousin. She claimed to have seen two of their high school teachers conversing with the man regularly. With their limited information, the investigators came to the conclusion that this whole incident was related to human trafficking.
With such a major criminal organization possibly at play, this was a big deal. They couldn’t let any of their leads get away. However, it would be difficult because if the others found out one was caught, they’d turn flighty. If the cops wanted this to work, they’d need to catch all three together.
This came with its own problems though. The only occasion where they could confirm the trio would align at the same place and time was during this year’s high school graduation ceremony; a place that would be packed to the brim with clueless bystanders.
While it was debatable whether Gilmorre truly would be at the graduation, Seryna handed over a calendar schedule which she said he had ‘dropped’. What a clumsy, clumsy man he was. Even if the security of technology was debatable with hackers constantly crawling about, he really should consider the dangers in having hard copies; especially with how accident prone he seemed to be.
If the bust was going to happen at such a high traffic area, they decided to conspire with the princable who could help control the situation. He moved so that Ms. Birnley would be preoccupied and also had a security check installed at the front. However, the attempt to recognize Garry Gilmorre and ensure he was unarmed fell flat as he had snuck in through the back.
For the cherry on top, everyone had to make sure the capture plan didn’t leak or cause suspicion. When Mordemicai’s homeroom teacher called, the parents had to play off everything as it was fine, telling her that Mordemicai was just sick.
This wouldn’t have worked so flawlessly if only Garry Gilmorre had been better at communication. Had the aunt and uncle known Ms. Birnley was working with Gilmorre too, the phone call would have revealed exposing cracks in Seryna’s cover-up.
Finally, that lead to the day of the sting operation, graduation. The boys in blue were trying to keep Seryna and her parents away from the action but she had other plans. Refusing to let anyone mess up her and Mordemicai’s epic finale, she snuck off to ensure everything played out right.
----------------------------------------
That leads us back to the present. Watching the police continue to miss their final target was unbelievably frustrating. He was right there! At this rate, the snake would successfully slither away.
“You think you can just stroll away quietly, huh.” She fumed. Seryna was done this cat and mouse game. If the police couldn’t find Gilmorre on their own, then she’d bring them here herself.
Charging the lithe man, she grappled him and started to scream.
“WHAT DID YOU DO TO MY COUSIN!!!!” With that, all attention turned to them.
“What the hell?!?” Garry Gilmorre was lost as the sound of hurried marching started coming from all sides. If the girl had wanted to create a scene to call over the officers, she’d succeeded.
That wasn’t the only reaction she’d drawn from her surroundings though. Gilmorre’s guards registered Seryna’s perceived hysteria as an attack on their charge. They reacted as taught and pulled out their fire arms with the safeties clicking off. Everyone nearby noticed quickly and began evacuating the area leaving only daredevils straggling to watch.
Then, police rounded from every corner, armed as they demanded Gilmorre surrender himself peacefully. He didn’t even have time to consider his options as the unthinkable occurred.
So shocked to see police attacking them with real intent in what was only supposed to be a test, one of the rooky guards made a rookie mistake. It all happened so fast. A gun fumbled out of the man’s nervous grip and shot out a bullet upon hitting the ground. Everything froze as it made its mark true by hitting one of the grills’ gas tanks setting off an explosion.
Once the blast had ceased, the police changed priority to calming the families, ensuring everything was under contro….
Oh my god. The school was on fire.
The tragedy could have ended with just the original burst dispelling after scaring the crap out of some poor people, but the gas soaked hallways had different things in mind. The unbelievable amount of helium in the gym probably didn’t help either.
Madness erupted in the air. Families fled as police spilt their efforts to helping them and calling for backup. The sound of countless fearful cries and crackling flames was soon accompanied by distant sirens in a symphony of chaos.
There were also those who were left frozen in shock that could only watch on in awe, among them was Garry Gilmorre who’d been thrown to the ground in the racket.
Yet, he wasn’t watching the fire; rather, his eyes were glued to Seryna. Ruby eyes reflected the hot light as if it was her own. The womanly silhouette cut amongst the flames gave out witch cackles of innocent glee as they crowned her like a true demigod of chaos.
Seryna suppressed her giggles strolling over to the abandoned punch table, snatching one of the pre-filled cups.
They’d won. As life played out within the following weeks, the news of how lucky it was no one died from the school being burnt down didn’t even make front page. Ms. Birnley, Hal Coeden, and Garry Gilmorre would forever regret trying to mess with the cousins. While the police would never find evidence of the kidnapping or human trafficking, none of them leave this incident unscathed.
Ms. Birnley was charged with pedophilia after Seryna made good on Mordemicai’s threat and revealed her affair.
Hal Coeden had assaulted a police officer when approached for detainment at the cook out. Seryna was upset that she missed the conclusion of the confrontation which ended with Coeden getting tased. He could have gotten off easier, but that personality of his did him no favors as he constantly fought with the enforcers and continued to dig himself an ever-deeper hole.
Faxton security was the worst off. With warrants in hand, the police had the access that Mordemicai and Seryna could never hope to get when it came to searching for the company’s dirty deeds. Turned out they did have influence in the black market, just that human trafficking wasn’t their poison. Albeit, if they were willing to torment and force Dogra like Mordemicai to joining their cause, Seryna wouldn’t put them above renting out their body guards as assassins.
However the shameful truth was despite justice being served, poor Mordemicai was never found.
“To successful shenanigans!” without her cousin there, she did her best to bring the drink as close to him as possible, toasting to the sky. “It’s a real shame that you missed the firework show!” Seryna exclaimed before downing the beverage in one go.
Recalling her cousin’s features for the last time, she thought back to their final goodbye and decided to repeat to him again what she’d said back then.
“I’m gonna miss you ya jerk! Now go kick some ass!!” her victorious speech was lost amongst the chaos symphony, yet, she was sure that her impossibly far friend heard it all the same.
Tears touched her eyes but refused to fall. The breakout fire wasn’t anywhere in the plan but turned out to be the best present Seryna had ever gotten. The perfect start to her solo career.