Jim smirked back at her, raising an eyebrow. “I know. It’s simply the epitome of class and elegance.” He laughed as he noticed her reaction. The inside wasn’t much better than the outside. There were a few holes in the walls, cobwebs in every corner, and even a few animal nests scattered throughout the room. He sneered as a raccoon rustled around in the small fireplace.
“Seb, clean up, will you?” He said to Sebastian. The man wrinkled his nose, but did as he was told. Jim looked to Alice. “We will be staying here for the night while we set up our plan. Tomorrow we will begin.” He put his bag on the rickety table and pulled out a small handgun. He made sure it was loaded before sliding it into his jacket pocket. “Always need to be ready. Now, you’re the expert on our dear friend, Red. What are his weaknesses? Is there anything we can use against him? Any way we can lure him or trap him?”
Alice found herself slightly amused at the way Moriarty treated Sebastian. He was clearly a well trained assassin by the way he carried himself, but Moriarty acted like he was a house maid.
“Red likes to keep himself clean and invisible in the background, to get him out of hiding we would have to severely cripple his personal guard or provoke him enough to make him want to take on something himself. Both options would be hard to accomplish, although Red does have a huge sense of pride. The kids that work for him are pretty messed up in the head though, it’s really easy to confuse them if you talk to them long enough. Their grip on reality is fried, so if you can slip a few logistic words into their ears they’ll short circuit like a robot.” Alice smiled slightly remembering the tight squeezes she had gotten out of by simply talking to her captors.
“The only thing he really wants is to add to his personal collection of perfect mock soldiers. That’s one of the reason’s he’s after me, it’s not that he necessarily wants to kill me, it’s more that he wants to break me and bend me to his will. So I might personally be able to lure him out if everything goes to plan.” Alice said considering the risks involved.
Jim licked his lips slowly in thought, a plan forming behind his eyes. He looked at the girl before him. “I’ve got a plan. Oh, but you will hate it.” He sat down in one of the chairs at the table. It creaked under his weight, having not been used in quite a while.
“Before I tell you, I need to know that you trust me.” By the fireplace, Sebastian scoffed. Jim glared over at him before continuing. “I know, I know, trust me? The thought is absolutely ridiculous. But in this case, trusting me is vital. Besides, you’re much too valuable to let anything happen to you. Those fighting skills are simply beautiful. I just might have to persuade you to join me when we’re done with this.” He laughed. “Now, do you trust me?”
Alice looked at Moriarty solemnly, her trust levels where nonexistent. Trust was a foolish idea created by the weak to help them get to sleep at night, and this time she would have to put her self on the line. They both had a common goal and there was absolutely no way it would get accomplished if they didn’t work together flawlessly. Alice swallowed down her unease, Sebastian’s reaction hadn’t helped. It wasn’t that she was scared to say yes, it was that his simple question sounded much more like a proclamation of war. It felt like Alice was standing on the edge of the rabbit hole, being asked to jump in. But just how far down does it go?
“Yes, I trust you.” Alice said meeting his eye with her own, I’m really playing with fire now. “And I might just let you persuade me.”
“Good choice, my dear.” He said, digging into the bag. He pulled out a small kit and placed it in his lap. He pulled out a needle and a bottle. Cleaning up the needle, he spoke. “I’m going to put a tracking device just under your skin. It will hurt a bit, but I should think this is preferred to being captured with no way of being found.” He stuck the needle into the bottle, pulling it out when it was just barely filled. Inside was a clear liquid along with a small black speck. He held out his hand, a silent request for her to give him her arm.
Alice’s cold expression faltered slightly, remembering the needles and experiments of The Warehouse. She could still here the screams and feel the burning pain, but she pushed down her childish fears. That was far behind her now, and Alice knew that if she never wanted that to happen again she would have to take one more needle. She took a step closer and offered her arm to him. “Momentary pain is always worth monumental gain.” She muttered and focused on the damaged roof.
alicegrey reblogged this from professorofmadness and added:
Alice nods and leaves him scribbling away and pouring over important looking documents. An ache is starting to wash over...
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