Chapter 220 B4. 15.1 – Target Acquired

“Good evening,” I said, in a low voice, trying to sound more masculine.

I stood my tallest, inching over a smidge over Adrian’s height. Compared to these girls, Adrian might not be so believing of my lies, so I went for confidence and a bit of intimidation. Being the bigger male worked to fend off challengers in the animal world. It should work with humans, too.

Humans and, hopefully, Adumbrae. I was freaking out in my head. How long had Adrian been an Adumbrae? Was he trying to get close with Deen to entice her to become a 2Ms’ client? Wait till Deen hears about this!

“My first time seeing you here,” I continued. Third time using this strategy tonight. I didn’t introduce myself because it was against Rule #3. I also couldn’t offer a handshake, which would’ve been a power move, because of Rule #9.

“Adrian, this is Dean,” Nyx said, sounding proud to introduce me. “Dean Clifford. He’s related to the actor.”

“I can see the resemblance.” Adrian extended his hand. “Pleased to meet you, Mr. Clifford. I’m Adrian… Elmwood.” He slightly tilted his head, as if waiting for me to recognize his surname.

I shook his hand. Mine was bigger. And my grip was also stronger, though we didn’t really set out to crush each other’s hands. Adrian raised his brow but didn’t exert more force. He probably thought it’d be disrespectful, assuming that I was the more ‘senior’ client of the 2Ms.

I hesitated from absorbing Adrian’s identity. If I kidnapped Adrian, I wouldn’t need to infiltrate the Latch. But he was my classmate! Could I kill him?

“Nice to meet you, Adrian,” I said. Using his first name while he addressed me by my surname was also a power move. I have to establish hierarchy so he wouldn’t question stuff about me.

“It’s also my first time seeing you at this place,” he said. “To be fair, I barely visit the Roost until recently. I’m studying law at Eloyce, you see.” He let go of my hand first.

“Very impressive,” I said. “It’s always good to know more lawyers. Well, not always. Not if I know a lawyer because he’s filing a case against me.”

A couple of laughs. I was relieved I could pull off jokes while stressed. What to do next? Stay or go?

“Let me buy you a drink, Mr. Clifford,” Adrian said. “Maybe you have some interesting gossip to share? My parents won’t tell me anything. It’s very concerning what’s happening in La Esperanza.”

Vanessa, who had been absentmindedly scrolling through her phone, turned to listen to us. She was also eager to know more.

“Yeah, chat a bit with us, Dean.” Nyx tugged the sleeve of my illusion clothes. “You really don’t have a date waiting for you, do you?”

“No, no. I’m alone.” I lowered my butt to the chair while scolding myself in my head. Was I seriously going to do this? “I get what you’re feeling, being in the dark. You, Adrian. And Vanessa as well. The BID is here. Well, over there at La Esperanza. The Corebrings are there, too. First, know that Big Marcy doesn’t share crucial information for security reasons.”

I wanted to rationalize that I was trying to gain information. It’d be a lie. No way Adrian and Vanessa could tell me the location of Red Island or the 2Ms’ actual plans. I could say that I wanted to glean Adrian’s intentions with Deen, but Deen had no interest in him anyway.

The truth was… I wanted to spread stories. I was still Erind deep down.

“Roxanne’s going to blab to her boyfriend,” Nyx muttered.

“No, I’m not.” Roxanne made a zipping motion across her mouth. “I’ve sworn to secrecy and everything.”

“Tell us what you know, Mr. Clifford,” Vanessa said in hushed tones. Everyone leaned closer. Adrian pulled a chair to a table to join in. “I’ve heard that Red Hood and the Corebrings fought,” she said. “Is that true?”

I nodded. “It is. The Corebrings expected the fight to escalate, which is why they formally announced their presence in the country. But their encounter with Red Hood didn’t turn into a full-blown battle. I think only an apartment building was destroyed. Red Hood escaped.”

“A damn shame,” Adrian said, clicking his tongue. “I hoped the Corebrings would get rid of Red Hood. What does she have against us, anyway? All I know is that she controls the gangs of La Esperanza. Did Big Marcy intrude into her territory?”

“A bit of that,” I said. “But it’s mostly Big Marcy’s connection with the PCM. You know about the PCM, right? Beyond their protests and rallies clogging up the streets.”

“Yeah, the PCM supplies Big Marcy with…” Adrian didn’t finish his sentence, glancing at Roxanne and Nyx. “The PCM supports Big Marcy. But didn’t they have a falling out? Something I’ve overheard. And Red Hood also attacked the PCM.”

“This is all so complicated,” Vanessa said.

“I’m checking my brain out of this, you guys,” Nyx said with a sigh. “I don’t understand and don’t want to understand what’s going on.”

“What I’m going to tell you…” I began. “You didn’t hear from me. Understand?”

All of them nodded, except Nyx, who just shrugged. The waiter came with the drinks Adrian had ordered. I waited for him to leave before continuing.

“The PCM was experimenting on Adumbrae,” I said. “Real ones that they’ve captured. They did it behind Big Marcy’s back. They probably wanted to start their own business. Could also be that they wanted to find a way to control Adumbrae. Whatever the reason, they pissed off Red Hood. Guess what Red Hood did? Attack the docks.”

To make my stories sound believable, I didn’t simply narrate. I controlled the flow, using short sentences to make it snappy and insert questions. It’d make it sound more realistic than straight exposition. I also inserted my own guesses about the situation.

Spreading lies wasn’t my goal. Vanessa and Adrian believing my story didn’t bring that much value to me. They could add a bit more confusion to the already confusing situation, but nothing more than that.

I had to admit to myself that I just loved lying. I was an awful person. But so were most people here.

Adrian said, “Red Hood thought Big Marcy had a part in the PCM’s bullshit. Goddamit! I don’t want a real Adumbrae angry at us!”

“Keep your voice down.” Vanessa also had a troubled look.

“Fortunately, Red Hood is keeping a low profile,” I said, feeling bad for making Vanessa worry. She became an Adumbrae to save herself. I didn’t want to immediately assume that she was a bad person. “The Corebrings are focused on La Esperanza because of the Adumbrae attacks,” I continued. “If you’re wondering who’s behind those, the PCM is my guess. Could be an experiment they’ve left behind, escaping their prisons under the city.”

“What does this mean for us?” Adrian asked. “Are we in danger? BID agents are closing in…”

“They’re investigating my uncle,” said Vanessa. “He’s not an Adumbrae, but several of our family are. Including me. Lawyers can only do so much. I fear that I may have to leave the country.”

“Oh, don’t say that, Vanessa,” Nyx exclaimed. “You’ll be safe here. Isn’t that right, Dean? Tell us that there’s a plan.”

They were afraid. I wanted to sympathize with them. I pitied them. Should I? Even Vanessa didn’t have clean hands because her ‘cure’, if it could be considered one, cost human lives. But I also couldn’t tell her to just accept death. I didn’t know how to judge them!

“Nothing more than waiting this out,” I said. “This one’s just my hunch, so don’t spread this. If I were in Big Marcy’s shoes, I’d sacrifice some people. A few important ones. Make the BID think they got all the fishes.” It was a logical move. I wondered what the 2Ms’ real plan was.

“I agree,” Adrian said. “Sacrificial lambs. But it’s not going to be us because we’re too well connected. And if the BID captures us, we can implicate more people. Don’t worry too much, Vanessa. We’ll survive this.”

“I hope you’re right,” Vanessa said.

“Yeah, cheer up,” Nyx said. “Let’s talk about something not so grim. Adrian, how’s your love life?”

“No progress in that department,” Adrian said before sipping his drink.

“Aren’t you courting the younger Leska sister?” Roxanne asked. “What’s her name?”

“Amber, I think,” Nyx said.

I almost squeezed my glass upon hearing that name. If Adrian had evil intentions toward Deen, I would… What would I do to him? Something violent. I wouldn’t allow him the opportunity to harm Deen.  

“Trying to court her,” said Adrian. “I might be barking up the wrong tree. She’s not interested in guys. At all.”

What the fuck? I pretended to drink to hide my sudden jolt of a reaction.

“Is she already taken?” Roxanne asked. “As in, she has a secret boyfriend?”

“Girlfriend,” Adrian clarified.

“Girlfriend?” repeated the three girls.  

“Some guy, an Eloyce student, took a photo of her and another female classmate of ours,” Adrian explained. “There’s no confirmation yet, but it did look like them. He said that they said they were a couple.”

The frat boys! Skull Tattoo Bro had taken a picture of Deen and me at Barstow Station. He must’ve shared the picture with his other frat brothers through a group chat or something. Pretty common thing that guys did. And then, when I claimed that Deen was my girlfriend, he also spread the news.

This was the final act of Skull Tattoo Bro to bother me. I felt less bad about his death. And then, someone eventually recognized Deen in the picture. It was bound to happen since we were Eloyce students, too.

But… it was also my fault this rumor was spreading. I started it. I’m so sorry, Deen!

“Leska’s daughter is gay?” I asked, steadying my voice. Just sound casual. I entered their conversation pretending to think we were talking about Deen’s sister. “She has lots of relationships with men. It’s all over the magazines and—”

“The younger sister,” said Adrian. “She’s a first-year in Cresthorne law, like me. She doesn’t have a boyfriend now, but she’s had a few before. That’s what I’ve heard. There’s nothing at all to indicate she’s gay.”

“It’s probably just a rumor,” I said.

“Know what I think?” Nyx moved forward. She was interested in this topic, not the Adumbrae thing. “The guy who took the picture was trying to hit on her. To make him go away, she lied that she had a girlfriend.”

“I can see that happening,” said Roxanne. “Vanessa tried the same trick last week. We were in Eve and—”

“It wasn’t the same tactic,” Vanessa cut in. “I said I had a boyfriend, not that I was gay. Maybe Amber and her classmate were really a couple.”

I listened to their discussion while taking a couple more fake sips. When no one was looking, I poured my drink under the table.

Though I didn’t learn anything new about the 2Ms, the fact that these people weren’t talking about the frat boys meant no one realized they were missing. Their friends likely assumed they were passed out drunk somewhere from too much partying.

“Adrian, will you continue pursuing Amber?” Nyx asked. “This girlfriend bit is a hoax, I’m betting.”

“Fuck that,” he replied. “She’s too boring for me. Her beauty’s not making up for that. She’s serious in her studies. In life. She’s more responsible than ten of me. That sucks.”

“You just don’t want a strong, independent woman,” Roxanne said.

Adrian laughed in a hollow way. Roxanne hit the nail on the head with her comment. “My ego’s secure,” he said. “If I do make Amber mine, she’s going to follow me. I just don’t want to be troubled with that.”

I’m starting to dislike this guy, I thought. “Why did you try courting her, as you put it?” I asked. “Did you intend to invite her to our little circle? Would be a huge credit to you if you’re the one to bring them in.”

“That was exactly what I had in mind,” said Adrian. “But I was going nowhere. She doesn’t know how lucky she was that I gave her my attention. She probably thinks too much of herself because many guys had courted her.”

Nyx, Roxanne, and Vanessa exchanged knowing glances. They didn’t comment. They were familiar with Adrian’s self-centered thinking. But to me, this was a surprise. Adrian was the generic handsome guy in class. He wasn’t a jerk or anything during our minimal interactions in law school.

“I think I’ll have to go,” I said. “Thanks for the drink.”

“Aw, we barely talked,” Nyx said, placing her hand on my arm. “Can’t whatever that is wait? You really do have a date you’re hiding from me.”

“Girl, relax a bit,” Roxanne said. “Let the man go to his, uh…”

“Meeting,” I said, standing up. “I have a meeting down at the Latch.”

“I’ll go with you,” said Adrian. “There’s an exclusive event tonight, I’ve heard. They won’t let me in without a recommendation. Can you vouch for me, Mr. Clifford?”

“Of course, Adrian.” I waved goodbye to the girls and headed to the elevator. Adrian followed me. This was his choice. He was responsible for the consequence of his choice.

As the elevator doors closed, I said, “Adrian, when did you abandon your humanity?”

“Last October,” he said. “Not even half a year. I’m a newbie to this life compared to you. How long…?”

“A year and a half already. I tell you, the process was much messier back then. But I pushed through with it for health reasons. Same situation as Vanessa. What about you?”

“I wanted power,” Adrian said, grinning. “When my father became an Adumbrae, he told me everything. It’s much better if our whole family knew. He demonstrated his superstrength and his regeneration. I… wanted that, too. It feels like a drug, Dad told me.”

“It really does,” I said. This was Adrian’s last chance to remove his head from the chopping block. Otherwise, I’d lead him to his fate.

“I fucking begged Dad to pay for my operation. I said, use my entire trust fund. This is an investment that I needed now. I have to… evolve. I don’t want to be a regular human.”

“Do you know that many human lives are—?”

“I’m aware of the human experiments and the death games,” Adrian said, waving his hand. “Morality was never an issue. We buy products made from sweat shops in poor countries. A large fraction of the world’s cocoa supply is farmed by enslaved children. Not a single person can say that they never took advantage of another. I’m not putting up a façade of morality.”

“I like your thinking,” I said. “You’ll probably be open to my proposal.”

Adrian furrowed his brows. “What proposal?”

“I can’t talk about it here.” The elevator doors opened to the first floor. “Let’s talk outside. Follow me if you want to protect yourself from the BID and Corebrings.”