Fearless Leader (Juxtapose City)

by Tricia Owens

  Razzy laughed heartily.

  Black smiled thinly at Razzy. "Threatened because someone wants to take your job?"

  The Bliss dealer's eyes narrowed, his smile fading slightly. "I'm no one's bitch, baby. Just ask your boyfriend. I give it to Calyx good, don't I?"

  Calyx rolled his eyes at the posturing. "Whatever you say, sweetheart. You were the best I ever had. Now can we get on with this?"

  Razzy grinned. "Yeah, let's go." He threw Black a last smirk. "Stay. Good dog."

  Calyx shook his head in exasperation. Cleaning the toilets with his toothbrush might be the gentlest punishment he could receive later. He was afraid to look at Black's face as the door shut in the man's face.

  Razzy's office consisted of an old, battered metal table and chair and two more chairs that faced it. The cheap shelving on the wall held half-filled bottles of liquor. A safe sat in the corner where Razzy kept his goods. The shorter man took the swivel chair behind the desk as Calyx straddled his own chair and leaned his forearms on the back.

  "So what's up?" Calyx asked as Razzy spun leisurely back and forth in his chair. "It's dangerous for me to be down here, sweetheart. This better be worth it."

  "Ch', you're lucky it was me who saw you and not anyone else," Razzy scoffed. He leaned back in his chair and propped his heavy boots on the top of the desk. He crossed his hands over his abdomen. "Lot of guys would like to see you taken out, Calyx. There's a nasty rumor going around that you were helping the cops when Lord's girl was found."

  Calyx's spine stiffened. As far as he knew, no one beyond the cops had survived that night to rat him out. So who else was there to leak news of his involvement?

  "That's a nasty rumor, indeed," Calyx murmured.

  Razzy waited. When the empath looked back at him blankly, Razzy nodded. "So I guess that's all I'm gonna get out of you on that subject, huh? Doesn't surprise me, actually. You do what you think you gotta do, Calyx. Just don't take the rest of us down with you, got that? I still can't get over the fact that you brought a cop here. Who's to say he doesn't come back here tomorrow and bust me?"

  "He won't," Calyx replied tersely. He knew however, that he would have very little control over what Black chose to do.

  Razzy obviously felt the same way. "You'd better hope not. Friend or no, I'm not going to Hangway without extracting a little vengeance."

  "I knew that when I brought him," Calyx said grimly. "Now tell me why I'm here."

  Razzy nodded. "I've been hearing some things about you. More than just the rumor that you're working for the cops. There's a new rumor going around that someone wants you gone."

  Calyx rubbed his chin. He'd had a lot of friends while living on the street. He was easy to get along with and he was good at rubbing people the right way. Literally. His enemies were few and far between.

  "Why?" he asked bluntly.

  "Something involving JC2," Razzy replied, shrugging. "I don't know how those guys have anything to do with you but apparently someone wants both you and the team taken out together."

  Anger filled Calyx. He didn't take kindly to threats. But he was surprised at how much of his anger was for JC2's benefit. How dare anyone threaten Black's team? How dare anyone threaten Black?

  "Give me a name," Calyx ground out.

  The one he received raised his eyebrows.

  "Genesis."

  ~~~~~~

  Black gave up trying to hear anything through the door. Starr and his drug-dealing friend were speaking too quietly for him to pick up their words. Impatient, he leaned against the wall and pulled out his PRU.

  He switched on the GPS and pinpointed his location within the city. He recorded it for later reference. He planned on returning to pay Razzy a visit that would be considerably less friendly than this one. Black looked forward to planting his boot in the man's back. How's that for a good dog?

  Black glanced at the closed door again, scowling. He knew Razzy. They'd met before. The last time they'd crossed paths Razzy hadn't been a dealer yet, just a punk wasting his life away on Bliss. Those years of heavy abuse must have had an effect on the man's brain since Razzy hadn't recognized Black. Then again Black and his men always took great pains to insure that their faces remained concealed during missions.

  He looked around the inside of the store, at the empty display cases and the shattered glass shelving that jutted out from the walls like dirty icicles. Cigarette butts carpeted the concrete floor and empty liquor bottles and curling tab sheets had been shoved into the corners of the room in a haphazard attempt at some order.

  Depression settled over Black. It seemed like every time he opened his eyes it was to a scene like this. He couldn't get away from it. Every day was more of the same. He breathed deeply, trying to calm himself, but he felt anxiety beginning to build up inside him. Never again. It's over.

  He ran the back of his hand across his damp forehead. This was stupid. He was the leader of JC2 now. He was important. Respected. He was everything he never thought he could be.

  But it wasn't enough.

  He looked down wearily as his PRU buzzed twice in his palm. He looked at the screen and felt his heart skip a beat.

  Lieutenant Sundhill had left him a message.

  Black looked at the door to Razzy's office again, double-checking that it was shut tight before he opened the message. It was a video message. Sundhill's handsome, smiling face filled the screen of Black's PRU. Black touched the screen with a fingertip, tracing the other man's hair.

  "Lieutenant Black, I know I told you that I'd upload my schedule to you but I got to thinking. Giving you my schedule would just allow you to rearrange your schedule so that we couldn't get together. See, Mama didn't raise no fool." Sundhill grinned. "Something tells me that you want to accept my offer but you're reluctant to."

  Sundhill knew him better than Black realized. It was... flattering.

  "So I'm taking the choice out of your hands. I've got a free day on Thursday. Since I was there when the captain forced you to take a break I know that you don't have anything coming up to give you an excuse to blow me off. You're stuck." Sundhill laughed. "I want you to come see me at my place. We'll share a couple of beers, shoot the shit and compare war stories. Sounds like a winner to me. See you then."

  He'd left Black with no option to refuse or postpone, just a bright, confident grin that demanded capitulation. Black realized that he appreciated that. Lieutenant Sundhill was a take charge man, just like himself. Sundhill was also extremely influential in the department and he could do a lot for Black's career. If he could get Sundhill to like him Black would be able to keep JC2 for as long as he wanted it. If he could convince Sundhill to like him--

  Maybe they could become friends.

  Black closed the message and held the PRU to his chest. His eyes scanned the debris-littered store. His ears picked up the sound of police sirens in the distance. Sundhill wanted to be his friend. Maybe... maybe be more than that, though Black wouldn't hold his breath hoping. But one thing was clear: Andrew Sundhill, the darling of the JCPD and Black's secret idol was perfection personified. Whatever the man could do for him, Black would let him.

  ~~~~~

  Calyx knew he gaped like a fish out of water but he couldn't help himself.

  "Genesis," he repeated in disbelief. "The Genesis? The one who killed Starwood’s gang?"

  Razzy snorted. "If that's what you want to call it. Though 'killed' seems too polite a way of putting it, you know? Starwood was fuckin' slaughtered."

  Calyx agreed with a passion, though he wouldn’t let Razzy know it. Like everyone else on the streets he was familiar with the bloody story. Starwood had been a main player in the Bliss landscape. Seven or eight years ago, Volton hadn't been the big dealer he was; Starwood and Lord had monopolized the drug trafficking in Juxtapose City. Starwood especially had been a particularly dangerous and effective force because he'd included psypaths in his higher ranks. It had been a seemingly brilliant move at the time, giving him an advantag
e in drug negotiations and keeping him abreast of what the cops were up to. It had also been his biggest and ultimately fatal mistake.

  One night one of Starwood's favorite psypaths—a telepath named Genesis -- went berserk, coldly murdering the drug king-pin along with most of his high-ranking officers. But Genesis hadn’t gotten off scot-free: he’d been turned into a vegetable in a confrontation with the only other surviving member of Starwood’s gang, a telepath named Phoenix who’d afterwards disappeared off the face of the earth.

  The result had left a huge gap in the power structure of JC's underground drug scene. With a mental shiver, Calyx recalled the tense days that had followed the slaughter when everyone waited to see who would step in to fill Starwood's shoes. Anyone affiliated with a drug gang -- and if you were a psypath, it wasn't a question that you would be -- had been pressured with violence to switch allegiances. People were gunned down on the streets, stores were blown up. Violent battles were waged to gather the support to take over Starwood's turf and the tattered remains of his gang.

  After the vicious, bloody power struggle which had kept even the JCPD out of the darker neighborhoods, Volton finally emerged to take Starwood's place.

  "But I thought Genesis went insane," Calyx said, standing up and pacing the small office in agitation. "Then someone shot him, or so the rumor goes." He would know; he’d been searching for the telepath for years.

  Razzy dropped his feet off the desk and leaned forward, bracing his forearms on the metal. "He did go crazy for awhile. But he's powerful. I guess he was able to pull it together. He's got a small gang now and word has it that he's trying to make a move on Volton."

  Calyx rubbed his bare arms, his skin suddenly chilled. His friends had always been fellow psypaths. Birds of a feather flocked together, especially when being persecuted. But out of preference Calyx had hung out with empaths. Through bitter experience he had found telepaths to be tricky. Nearly every telepath he had ever known had been borderline insane because the constant influx of other people's thoughts was simply too overwhelming to handle. The only telepaths he'd known who’d managed to remain somewhat lucid were those with weak abilities who didn’t sense much at all.

  But Genesis had been strong. Perhaps the strongest telepath in the city. He was the only psypath Calyx had ever heard of who could project instead of merely receive. Genesis could hear thoughts and he could also send them. That was a powerful and seemingly invincible talent. Its price was Genesis' sanity. Or perhaps not.

  "So Genesis is back and he's not crazy." Calyx stopped pacing. "What does he want with me and JC2?"

  "JC2 is obvious, doncha think? Those assholes have been harassing us constantly. One of these days they're gonna take down either Volton or Lord, I guarantee it." Razzy watched the empath. "If Genesis is trying to regain his place in the scene he's gotta get rid of the obstacles along the way, and JC2 is the biggest one. It'd win him huge support among our kind."

  Calyx gave a clipped nod. "But what about me?"

  Razzy eyed him, smiling faintly. "Maybe he's got info about you that I don't. You keeping secrets from me, Calyx?"

  Enough to give you a heart attack, sweetheart. Calyx studied his old friend. "Do you think Genesis is as much of a threat as he was before?"

  Razzy's smile fell. "Let me put it this way: that mindfucker scares the shit out of me. I'm glad it's not me he's after."

  Calyx smiled thinly.

  bang! bang! bang!

  Calyx's head whipped around as the office door shuddered within its frame.

  Razzy jumped out of his seat and came around the desk, pulling a gun from one of the pockets on his pants.

  "What the fuck is this?" the short man growled. "Is your boy getting impatient?"

  "Yo, Razzy! We got some crazy shit goin' down out here. Get your gun, man!"

  At the sound of the voice coming from the other side of the door Razzy lowered the gun with a groan.

  "That idiot," he muttered before flinging open the door.

  A skinny kid with a green checkerboard pattern dyed into his short hair jumped into the room. "Razzy!" he blurted, breathlessly. "Right on, dude, you got your gun. There's this crazy guy out here kicking our asses and he's like, seriously pissed and he's probably gonna attack you next." The kid paused, wiping a hand across his nose and sniffing. "Dude, thank god you're here 'cuz I need some bad, man. My head's really hurtin'."

  "Just shut up for a second, Froggy." Razzy motioned for Calyx to follow as he moved out into the store.

  Calyx nearly groaned when he saw the scene. One kid, looking to be about Froggy's age, was kneeling on the ground clutching his wrist to his chest and fighting back tears. Another kid’s face was mashed to the dirty concrete floor as Black twisted his arm up between his shoulder blades. Sammy stood in the doorway, grinning at it all.

  "What the hell is going on here?" Razzy demanded. "Calyx, get your boyfriend off of Froggy's friend. The poor kid looks like he's gonna piss in his pants."

  Calyx held back his laughter as chocolate brown eyes swung to him in irritation. "Sweetheart, let the poor boy up. No need to be so rough with them. You know I'll let you do whatever you want to me when we get home."

  "Shut up," Black muttered. He released the kid's arm and stood up. "No one would have gotten hurt if they hadn't tried to jump me."

  "Dude, he was just some guy standing in the dark!" Froggy exclaimed. "We'd never seen him before. We thought he was robbing you or something, Razzy!"

  "Yeah, well, thank god you stopped him, huh?" Razzy rolled his eyes. "You guys are idiots. Get in here before you cause any more trouble." He glared at Black who returned the favor. "You too, boyfriend. I want you where I can see you."

  Calyx linked an arm through Black's, tugging him along and preventing the man from reaching for his gun. "Come, sweetheart, you can sit on my lap while we talk."

  He'd been joking -- he wasn't suicidal, for god's sake -- but after following Razzy's kids into the office he realized that there was only one unoccupied seat. Oops.

  "What're you waiting for?" Razzy snapped, clearly annoyed after the theatrics he'd just witnessed. The dealer had pushed his chair in front of the safe in the corner and was waiting expectantly.

  "Remember this isn't my doing," Calyx murmured into Black's ear. He dropped into the seat and yanked on Black's arm, pulling the other man onto his lap. Black started to buck his way free until he noticed Froggy and his friends watching. Black turned his head and saw that Razzy had paused as well to see what was going on. Darkness was trapped, Calyx realized with delight. Muscles jumped in Black's jaw as he tried to relax on the empath's lap. His spine was so stiff it could have been used as a ruler.

  In the corner, Razzy resumed working on the safe and at last spun the dial. From within the safe he removed a handful of tubes before shutting the door again.

  "You boys got your money?" he asked, pushing his chair back to the desk.

  "Dude, even if I didn't I'd sell my kidney or something to get some," Froggy said, digging into the pocket of his jeans and pulling out a crumpled wad of cash. He shoved it along with his friends' contributions across the desk towards Razzy. "Hurry, man, my head feels like it's gonna pop any second."

  Black watched Razzy push across three amber-colored tubes. He knew that the vials contained sheets of Bliss tabs. It took all of his willpower not to pull out his gun and arrest everyone in the room. It didn't help that when he looked up, barely able to contain his loathing, he found Razzy smirking at him.

  "It just kills you, doesn't it?" the dealer taunted. "Well if you care for Calyx you'll forget you ever saw this, right?"

  Black said nothing. The only words he wanted to speak to Razzy were the man's rights as Black arrested him.

  "Hey, Calyx, looky here," Razzy cooed. He waved a fourth tube. "You know what I got in here? I call this my Omega mix. Strong shit. Send you flying for an entire day."

  "Hey!" Froggy protested while shoving a tab between his lips. "I want some of that!"
/>   "You can't afford this, idiot. My Omega mix is pure. It'd cost you both your kidneys and a lung."

  Froggy scrunched up his face, considering.

  Razzy ignored the kid, focusing on Starr again. "For an old friend I'd let you have a free sample." He opened the bottle and let the paper slide out. Two bright green tabs were affixed to the sheet. "Come on, Calyx. One for you, one for me. Just like old times."

  Black clenched his jaw so hard it ached. He wanted to grab the tabs and stomp them beneath his boots until they were nothing but powder. Pure Bliss was frighteningly dangerous, so addictive that it pretty much guaranteed that you used it until you died of an overdose. Or until you were arrested for trying to rob a place in order to get the money to pay for the tremendously expensive drug. Fortunately, pure Bliss was difficult to come by. He doubted that even Starr had much experience with it.

  Razzy picked up the sheet and waved it. Black realized the dealer was getting off on offering Starr drugs while a cop sat in his lap. Too bad Starr wasn't going to bite.

  The legs beneath Black trembled, ever so slightly.

  Black tuned out Razzy and the others, his awareness zooming in on the body beneath him. There... another shiver, this time stronger. A hand settled on his hip and he forgot to push it off, concentrating on how the pale fingers trembled against his jeans.

  Dread stole over Black as he felt Starr fighting the temptation of the Bliss. How long had it been since he'd given Starr a tab? It was this morning at the funeral, and then nothing afterwards because they'd gone to the firing range. Captain Dickerson's instructions had said that the empath needed at least two small doses a day to keep him from getting edgy and aggressive. Starr was long overdue.

  Anger and helplessness washed over Black. He didn't want to feel sympathy for Starr. He didn't. Why should he feel sorry because Starr was an addict and didn't try to fight his own addiction? It was his own fault. And why, damn it, was Black now forced to be his dealer?