Fearless Leader (Juxtapose City)

by Tricia Owens

  The man visibly swallowed before answering in a scratchy voice, "Kelpy. Eric Kelpy."

  "Truth," Starr said, sounding bored.

  McCahill lowered the gun. "Smart move, Eric. Now tell me who set you up to kidnap the lady?"

  Kelpy's eyes darted to the empath nervously. "N-no one. It was Skiv's idea," he said with a nod towards one of the dead kidnappers.

  Starr rubbed at his eyes. "Lie."

  Kelpy looked at the empath in desperation, obviously realizing the futility of resisting. "If -- if I tell you, I'm a dead man. They'll send someone to kill me in jail. I won't last--”

  "You're dead here too, if you don't tell the truth," McCahill interrupted. The leader of R&R shared a look with Dickerson as though they had discussed this possibility already. McCahill raised his gun again. "You're dead no matter what, Eric," he said in a softer voice. "The moment you kidnapped Lord's mistress you started digging your own grave. You know that."

  Black hid his surprise. So the woman in the bedroom wasn't just a nobody-- she was the lover of one of Juxtapose City's most powerful Bliss dealers.

  Kelpy let out a quiet sob and dropped his head, sweat-matted hair hanging over his face. "I didn't have a choice. They were gonna kill my sister--”

  He started to cry then, his voice loud in the silence of the room. Black ignored him to watch Starr. The empath was rubbing the back of his neck in agitation, shifting from foot to foot. The tremors Black had seen earlier had progressed to visible shaking. "Hurry up," Black thought he heard him mutter.

  McCahill patted the kidnapper's raised knee. "You know what's going to happen now, don't you, Eric? When we take you in whoever it is who hired you is going to think you ratted, even if you didn't. You and I both know that they'll kill you but they might take out your sister first just to teach you a lesson."

  "No!" the handcuffed man wailed.

  "You know it's true. You're dead either way it's just who you take with you that matters now. Give us a name, Eric. We'll put him in a bag and send him after you."

  The young man sniffed and raised his head, his helpless state beginning to sink in. "And my sister?"

  McCahill shifted. "We'll protect your sister. You, well... we'll make it quick."

  Execution by JCPD's hands or risk a slow, painful death at the hands of the goons of whoever had initially hired him. Kelpy knew his choices were limited.

  Black looked to Starr, curious to see if Kelpy’s decision would be reflected in the empath. It was. The strained expression on Starr's face melted to a mixture of relief, sadness and fear.

  "Volton," Kelpy whispered, his tears drying. "It was Volton's men who hired us. Said they didn't want us to kill her just hold onto her, make sure Lord knew we had her. Didn't make any sense."

  McCahill looked up at Starr. The empath nodded but he looked vaguely ill. "He's telling the truth."

  McCahill smiled slightly at the young kidnapper. "Good boy." He grabbed Kelpy's arm and pulled him to his feet. The young man allowed himself to be dragged into the second bedroom, his face expressionless, already resigned to his fate.

  "Close the door," Dickerson called after them.

  After the door had shut, Dickerson reached into his pocket. Starr watched him hungrily, his fixation almost animalistic. The captain tossed him a small tube which Starr immediately tore the cap off of. A roll of narrow paper slid out, covered with rows of small pink tablets. Black felt his mouth twisting as he watched the empath peel off a tablet and slide it quickly beneath his tongue. The look that came over Starr's face was one of absolute relief. Of bliss. The odd thought shot through Black's head that this must be what the empath looked like when he was about to orgasm. Black quickly banished the stray thought.

  "Freak," Dickerson muttered, laughing quietly. He rejoined Black and led him outside into the hall. His expression was one of supreme satisfaction. "So what do you think of my little experiment? Impressive, wouldn't you say? We'll never have to worry about lying sacks of shit ever again. Not with him around."

  "He's a drug addict," Black replied, unable to hide his disgust. "How reliable can he be?"

  "I told you. He can't go back to the streets and we're giving him enough drugs to keep him sane. He has no choice. As screwed up in the head as psypaths are Calyx is street-smart. He knows what's up. He'll cooperate for as long as we need him to."

  Black didn't want to talk about the empath anymore. Seeing the blatant use of-- worse, the supplying of -- Bliss in his presence made him sick inside. "It's your show. You know what you're doing."

  Dickerson shook his head, a secretive smile upon his face. "No, this is your show. I'm assigning him to JC2."

  He should have known. The moment Dickerson had brought up the subject of an empath Black should have guessed something like this was up the captain's sleeve. Dickerson may have saved Black from an early death in Hangway, given him command of JC2 at the unheard-of age of 23, but he still had a twisted streak that compelled him to occasionally punish Black. Just small reminders that Black owed him big time. Of course, Black could never argue. He knew his debt as well as Dickerson did.

  That didn't mean he couldn't put up some resistance.

  "My team is in tatters right now," he argued, keeping his voice pitched low so Jake wouldn't overhear. "Besides dealing with the loss of two men my team will have to incorporate new members. Now you want to throw in an empath? JC2 is in the middle of a major transition. Don't make me have to deal with this on top of it."

  "But you can handle it," Dickerson replied confidently. A touch of pride-- not for Black, but for Dickerson's own decision-making skills -- came over the older man’s face. "Do you think you'd be leading JC2 right now if you couldn't cut it? Do you have any idea how much pressure I fended off when I gave you the team? But I dealt with it because there's no one better for the job, Black. Consider this one more way to prove that my faith in you is well-founded." He clapped a fatherly hand on the younger man's shoulder. "Calyx won't give you any problems, not if he wants his Bliss. And you know you have my backing should you require extra force to keep him in line."

  Black looked away from the meaning in the captain's eyes but the words followed him. "You can have your fun with him too, Black. He knows his place. He won't fight you. Might be a nice diversion from Cole every now and then, hmmm? The freak's got a talented mouth when you shut him up."

  Black didn't want to hear this. "I'll take him on but he won't be an active member," he bit out even though he knew he had no leverage in this fight.

  Dickerson shook his head. "You may start him off slow but I want him to be an active member of JC2 eventually." He raised a hand to fend off Black's protest. "He's from the street; he knows how to take care of himself. Right now we're allowing him a faze whip for personal protection but he's good enough with a gun to be rated if he were ever tested. I trust you to train him to the standards of the other agents."

  This was ridiculous. Black wanted to storm out right now. A nice fantasy but it would never happen. Black was as good as a dog on Dickerson's leash.

  "Fine," he grated out. "Starr and Sola. Thank you, sir."

  Dickerson ignored the hint of sarcasm. "Go speak to Sergeant Sola. I'll have Calyx waiting for you outside."

  Black watched his captain walk down the dirty hallway to the stairwell. He needed aspirin badly. His head felt like it was going to explode. He turned and braced his hands against the peeling wallpaper of the hallway, shutting his eyes as the implications of what he'd just agreed to struck his brain like a mallet. What a mess.

  He didn't jump when large hands wrapped around the back of his neck and began to carefully knead the taut muscles. He'd heard Jake approach. He'd also heard the muffled thump of a silenced weapon being discharged from the bedroom-- the end of Eric Kelpy.

  "How's your head?" the larger man asked.

  "Do me a favor and cut it off," Black muttered. "It's more pain than it's worth right now."

  "You really need some rest, Black. I'll bet you hav
en't slept since-- for a while now." Strong fingers dug in, making Black bite back a moan of pain-pleasure. "So what's up with that little scene we just saw?"

  Jake's hands encouraged him to submit to the massage but Black knew he didn't have time for the indulgence. Ignoring the other man's snort of irritation he shrugged off the touch and turned around. "Volton and Lord are at each other again, nothing new. I doubt there's much more to this."

  Jake rolled his eyes. "Not that. I'm talking about the psychic freak in there. What's his name?"

  "Calyx Starr," Black murmured, feeling the weight of Dickerson's demands hanging like a stone around his neck. "He's joining us along with Sola."

  Silence from Jake. He was too stunned to speak. After a long moment, he sputtered, "Are you joking?"

  Black firmed his expression. "We'll speak to Sola now, and then you’ll wait for me while I deal with Starr."

  "Jesus Christ. This is nuts. The captain's fucktoy--"

  Black fisted a hand in the larger man's jacket, shoving him against the wall. Despite the differences in height and weight Jake looked suitably intimidated. "If I ever hear you say that again I'll write you up, Jake. He's going to be a member of the team from now on. So deal with it."

  Jake held up his hands. "Sorry, Black. It's just-- it's a surprise, you know?"

  Black felt suddenly very, very weary. The stress of his fallen teammates and now this was starting to get to him and shorten his admittedly volatile temper. He released other man. "I know," he muttered, backing away. "Just go with me on this, Jake. This is difficult enough as it is."

  The rare admittance of need got through to the other man as threats never would. "Sure, Black. You know I'll back you." Jake started to reach for other man's chin but when Black tensed he dropped his hand. "Let's go talk to Sola, huh? I wanna know if that guy's as big an asshole as he seems."

  Shaking his head, Black followed the other man back into the apartment. As they headed to the bedroom where the victim was being kept, Starr and Officer Aines passed them on the way out.

  "We'll be waiting outside," Aines told them, a hand on the empath's arm.

  Starr threw Black a quick smirk, all visible evidence of stress erased from his body. "Don't keep me waiting, sweetheart."

  "Shut up and keep going," Aines snarled, pushing him forward.

  "God help us," Jake mumbled, continuing on to the bedroom.

  Black followed but could not help a glance back. Green eyes caught him, amusement bright in their depths. Shit.

  "Naughty, naughty," the empath called out before being shoved outside into the hallway.

  This, Black decided, was going to be a nightmare.

  ~~~~~

  "Give me a cigarette."

  Officer Aines snorted where he leaned against the police craft. "It's my last one. No fucking way."

  Calyx smiled. "Give it to me or I'll find something else of yours to suck on." He let his voice drip with innuendo. "Or maybe that's why you're holding out, hmmm, officer? Just because you're married doesn't mean you can't experiment."

  The nearly empty packet skidded across the ground at Calyx's feet.

  He chuckled. "Thank you."

  "Why I'm a fucking baby-sitter to a freak..."

  Calyx closed his ears to the familiar rant. Aines was painfully unoriginal. If Calyx had actually had a place worth escaping to it would have been worth it to teach the idiotic officer how inept he truly was. As it was, Calyx had nowhere to go so he was stuck enduring this bore's ravings. Calyx sighed. At least he had encountered one person in the police department who looked to provide some entertainment. Assuming Calyx ever saw him again.

  It looked as though he might. Calyx heard his voice coming down the stairs. Anticipation urged him to push away from the crumbling brick building but he stayed where he was in his casual slouch. His long legs were crossed at the ankles, pushing his hips forward, and his shirt rode up just slightly, baring the pale skin of his stomach. He knew the image he presented. It was deliberate.

  "-- just saying I told you he would be an ass, Black. You're gonna have to keep a close eye on him so he doesn't go ballistic."

  Black. What a hilariously appropriate name for his new source of interest.

  The two men, who unlike the rest who had gathered in the dingy apartment upstairs were dressed in civilian clothes, stepped into the light overhanging the front door of the walkup. The taller man was beefy with muscle. He had light brown hair cut short on the sides and light-colored eyes that Calyx hadn't really noticed enough to determine their color. A good-looking man, though not one to look at twice.

  Unlike his companion.

  "Hello, Darkness," Calyx said again when the two men's heads swung his way.

  His interest frowned. "The name is Black. You will address me by that or 'sir' if we are on a mission."

  "Ah, yes. Mission. Captain Dick mentioned something about that." Calyx took a drag on the cigarette, knowing the brief flare of light would highlight his cheekbones in the dark. "Seems I'm being passed to you like a bad cold. What is it I'm being required to call you 'sir' for?" He smiled slyly. "Though if that's what gets you off I'll do it anytime you like. Sir."

  The man called Black didn't react, simply turned to his large friend and said, "Give us a moment. I'll meet you at the bike."

  Calyx grinned at the glare of warning sent his way by the bigger man. Overprotective teammate? Or lover?

  "C'mon, Aines. Let's get some fresh air."

  Calyx's watchdog was all too eager to scamper away. Left alone, the empath allowed his eyes to drink their fill of the other man. Dark, yes. This man had registered on his brain like a shadow in a white room. The second he had stepped into the apartment Calyx's senses had been overwhelmed with darkness -- grief, guilt, anger. A heady cocktail made all the more intriguing by the iron will that tried to dampen it all.

  "You've lost someone, haven't you?" Calyx asked, blowing a ring of smoke.

  No flinch from those gorgeous brown eyes. Chocolate sin, Calyx thought with an inward sigh.

  "Two of my teammates," Black replied, shoving his hands into his leather jacket. He didn't look defensive, merely stood there. "They were part of JC2. My team. Ever hear of it?"

  Calyx couldn't help his laughter. Of course he'd heard of it. He lived on the streets didn't he? Or least he had. JC2 was like the bogeyman. Get sloppy, screw up a deal and JC2 might get you. Kill the wrong person, don't watch your back and JC2 will be there. Calyx was well aware that the so-called 'special team' was backed by private citizens and did not answer to Juxtapose City's police department despite its outward claims to the contrary. JC2 was a rogue outfit as quiet and deadly as a knife in the dark. How appropriate that its leader was the very embodiment of shadow.

  Ash tumbled from the end of Calyx's cigarette as he studied the dark-haired man. Was it normal for a man in Black's position to be as young as he appeared to be? Calyx had only been 'working' with the JCPD for a few months but he knew this had to be an oddity.

  "I'm being asked to join you?" 'Asked' was a loose term. Calyx knew he either joined JC2 or Captain Dickerson would slap him around some and then force him to anyway. "I'm flattered."

  "Don't be," Black replied curtly. "You're more likely to be killed joining us than if you continued with what you're doing now. I'm giving you the option to back out now."

  Calyx arched an elegant eyebrow. "Captain Dickwad didn't mention anything about having a choice in the matter."

  Black frowned. Calyx wished for a second that he hadn't taken the Bliss. He would love to know what was putting that look of consternation on the other man's face. "It's my team so it's my call. In or out, Starr?"

  Yes, Black was definitely younger than any ranking officer Calyx had seen but he also realized why. He didn't act young. He acted painfully mature, so much so that the empath doubted whether the other agents even realized how young Black was. In that gorgeous, lithe body was a control that made Calyx's jaw ache. Intimidating really. Except that Calyx h
ad seen what the others hadn't. He'd seen underneath.

  "If I join your team," Calyx began, dropping the cigarette and letting it smolder on the pavement, "will I be your plaything instead of Captain Dickhead's?"

  A muscle jumped in Black's jaw. Oh, so he didn't like the mention of his captain's indiscretions, did he? Again, Calyx regretted the psychic deadening effects of the Bliss.

  "No."

  Calyx straightened away from the wall and stepped into the circle of light that held the other man.

  "Not even if I want to be?" He was only an inch taller than Black but the boots gave him an added advantage. He looked down at the younger man and ran a hand up the black leather jacket. "I think I wouldn't mind being your plaything. You strike me as the kinky type. You could cuff me to your bed if you wanted." When Black didn't respond he cooed, "Or I could cuff you, if you prefer that instead. Would you like me to take control, sweetheart? Sometimes all of that fearsome responsibility can be a bit too much to handle. What do you say? Want to be my plaything?"

  Nothing. Calyx might have sighed in disappointment if it hadn't been for that brief glimpse into the man earlier. Outwardly, Black was good. He gave nothing away. But no one could hide from an empath. No one could hide from Calyx Starr.

  His body stirring with the challenge, he took a step back. "Alright. I'll join you, Black. I get the feeling it may be fun working with you and your boys."

  "This isn't about fun," Black told him, eyes narrowing.

  Calyx smiled, amused by his stubbornness."Ah, but maybe it should be. I'll see what I can do for you, sweetheart."

  No response but that didn't upset Calyx in the slightest. He had the advantage here in every way possible. All that was left now was to prove it. He had a feeling working with Black and the boys of JC2 might be more fun than he'd had in a long, long time.