[REND] B2. 4.4 - Rise of the Queenpin

They all stared at me after I spoke, and did nothing else. Their expressions weren’t one of shock but of confusion. They might’ve thought they’d heard differently. I could hear the sound of crickets. Or that could be a creaking bed outside, caused by someone jumping up and down on it to relive their childhood.

“Yes… A Purple Bloom,” I slowly repeated. “Just like the one in Madagascar. You’ve seen what’s happening there on TV?”

“You gotta be shitting me,” Dulce Maria exclaimed, shaking her head. “No way the PCM’s planning to make a Purple Bloom.”

“This is levels above my pay grade,” Kelp said. “And I’m not even a salaried employee.” He had a ponderous expression as he scratched his beard.

I understood their reactions. My revelation was too far out there compared to their problems of getting pushed out of their territories. They didn’t come to this meeting for something this serious.

But I was sticking to my lie. “What do you think the PCM is trying to do? Just earn more money? There are too many ways for a religious organization to gather funds instead of taking over your businesses. They don’t even need to do illegal things, do they?”

Kelp nodded. “True that. Those megachurches get mighty rich from donations alone. Our businesses are chump change in comparison. People spend more on churches than on drugs.”

“Huh, you’re right,” said Dulce Maria. “I also found it suspicious that the PCM suddenly took over after Big Marcy chose to leave the city. Yeah, yeah…. This shit is something more than just business.”

I didn’t elaborate on my Purple Bloom revelation. As the boss, I had to hold back from trying to convince them because I wasn’t desperate for their cooperation. Someone will do the convincing part for me. I looked at Overdrive sitting on the opposite end of the table.

“It all makes sense,” Overdrive said, understanding his assignment. “The PCM is rushing to gather members. The more brains, the higher the chance of making a Purple Bloom. I’m betting my ass that this mysterious drug they’re spreading everywhere is connected to it.”

I could count on Overdrive to suck up to me. If I get to be the boss, he’d have a high position because he was my first minion.

And he’d really want me to be the boss because he was in danger after betraying the 2Ms. His sports car was pretty recognizable, and he had no reason to be at the docks at the time our group raided it unless he was helping us. It was also ‘public knowledge’ at this point that Overdrive and Teflon knew me.  

“That’s my first thought, too,” Teflon chimed in, “when I heard them PCM bastards were connected to Adumbrae business. This is before their takeover. Just thinkin’ about it, why would they make their group about religion and divine visions, yeah? No need if they just want to do illegal business. We all know that a lot of Purple Bloom start with cults doin’ mass suicide rituals and shit.”

Kelp and Dulce Maria became convinced after that, adding their own thoughts about the weird actions of the PCM. They even theorized that the PCM were only using Big Marcy to further their goals of making a Purple Bloom. I grinned while listening to them. This was worth staying up late for.

“Now that Big Marcy’s gone,” Dulce Maria said, “the PCM is implementing phase two of their plan to fuck everything up! It all makes sense!”

“Big Marcy wants to earn money,” said Kelp. “The PCM wants something more. I knew that limp-dicked Auron wimp couldn’t be trusted. Rat-faced bastard always slick-talking during rallies.”

Teflon added, “Accusin’ others of betrayin’ humanity, when he’s the one doin’ it himself. Classic deflection.”

Listening to them, I was starting to believe my own lie. Their observations did weirdly make sense.

But I didn’t really believe the nonsense about the Purple Bloom that I had spouted. For one, Big Marcy wouldn’t allow that; it was the opposite of what they were doing of making artificial Adumbrae in return for money. They even developed ways to control the transformation, which was totally contrary to making a Purple Bloom. And if a Purple Bloom did… uh, bloom… in this area, then everything would be gone, money, properties, all the stuff that the 2Ms and their clients cared about.

I very much doubted that the PCM had a motive directly opposite the 2Ms. Though if this Auron guy was a crazed cult leader, then who knew what he could be thinking? He might really want to make a Purple Bloom.

Still, it’d be impossible for him to do because where the hell would he even find a powerful Adumbrae as a base to connect all the brains he’d gather? Could that be why he wanted to talk to me?

Nah… Drug dealers would say, ‘Don’t get high on your own supply.’ In the same way, I shouldn’t believe my lie. I was using the Purple Bloom story to unite these gangs under me.

Offering them protection was fine and all. I would kick out the PCM assholes, give these guys their territories back. In return, they’d follow my orders. It’d be like Overdrive and Big Marcy’s arrangement before the docks mission ruined it—Overdrive got the Upper East of Marsh Row, so long as he provided human sacrifices to Big Marcy.

However, the instinct to survive was primal. The gangs under me would fight for more than just money—they were living here and would want to save this place. In their heads, they’d be heroes, saving tens of thousands of lives by stopping a Purple Bloom. Overdrive and the rest might be criminals, but they weren’t completely devoid of good in their system. Lots of stories about criminal organizations helping their communities.

I raised my hand. Overdrive stopped talking and pointed at me. “The boss got something to say.”

“Join me in taking back the city,” I said. “Even if being heroic isn’t your thing, and you just want money, you’ll still be doing what’s right just by fighting the PCM. Well, you’ll do the wrong thing again by selling drugs, but you get what I mean.”

“I’m not selling drugs,” Dulce Maria was quick to say.

“Maybe my good deeds will cancel out the wrong,” Kelp said. “Momma always told me I’d go to hell, unlike my brothers with their fancy degrees. Look at me now, going to save the city! I’m in. And I want revenge for my lost boys before anything else.”

One down. I raised a brow at Overdrive.

“I go where you go, boss,” he said. “This city should be ours. We’re not letting no Purple Bloom destroy this place.”

“I’m also in,” Teflon said. “Yeah, I’m not movin’ out of this city.”   

But not everyone was convinced. Dulce Maria was the holdout. “Okay, I'm going to say it if no one else will.” She raised a brow at me. “Why do you need us? We’re just puny humans, mere mortals. In fact, you can kill all of us here if you want to.”

“Shut the fuck up, Maria,” Kelp snapped, breaking his chill aura. “Don’t dare her to do it.”

“What? It’s a valid question, not a dare,” she said. “What can we give her in return for helping us? We’re useless to her.”

Overdrive was ready with the reply. “Red Hood needs troops to control territories. Easy for her to wipe out our enemies, but she can’t stay and run things. It’s going to be a lot of areas that we’re going to take over—more opportunities for us while we’re saving the city. We’re the ones who’ll move in.”

“Exactly,” I said. What a good minion Overdrive was. I’d rate him high on our quarterly performance review. “I can’t be everywhere all the time.”

Dulce Maria still wasn’t convinced. “Don’t you have other Adumbrae buddies? Overdrive told us about it. I’ve also heard that several Adumbrae attacked the docks.”

Overdrive looked at me instead of defending me. He wanted to know the answer, too.

“Red Island,” I said, my brain activating its bullshitting neural paths to come up with another story.

“Red Island?” Dulce Maria asked. “What’s that?”

“It’s that place that you wanted me to investigate,” Overdrive said. “Erm, sorry I didn’t find out much about it.”

“It’s fine,” I said. “I didn’t really expect you to succeed. It’s one of the best-kept secrets of Big Marcy. Before explaining what I know about it, do you know that Big Marcy has a brother named Mark?”

Kelp and Dulce Maria only heard rumors. Nothing beyond Mark doing some other business, different from Big Marcy. They simply assumed that Mark operated in another city and didn’t think much of him. Overdrive, on the other hand, knew something more.

“Mark’s the younger twin of Big Marcy,” he said. “Fraternal twins. They look different, the stories go. Some say that Mark’s actually the one sitting on the throne of their empire. He’s the brains, and Big Marcy’s the muscle. Though Big Marcy is pretty devious and cunning himself.”

That’s news to me! They were twins? All Dario told us was that they were brothers.

Just like I made up stories about the PCM, I thought of weaving bullshit for Mark since the gangsters never mentioned him. It was always Big Marcy this and that. If they didn’t know about Mark, I could use him for a plot twist, revealing that he was behind things all along. These people would have to believe me because they didn’t know any better.

Reality may have beaten me to that story. But there was no going back now.

“That’s right,” I said. “Mark is the real leader of Big Marcy’s organization. He’s not the weaker younger brother, as most people think. No one sees him in the city because he’s on Red Island. And what is this Red Island? It’s the location of the experiments to turn people into Adumbrae in a controlled way.”

“Holy shit…” Kelp muttered.

“I’ve always wondered where they’re doing their experiments,” Overdrive said. “I thought they had underground laboratories. Turns out it’s on a secret island.”

“And to get to Red Island,” I said, “they need—”

“Ships,” said Dulce Maria, snapping her fingers. “The docks! That’s why they have a base there… and why you attacked it.”

I was pleased that she was helping tie up my fake story. “We were intercepting an important shipment. I’m just going to say what it was—a lot of artificial Adumbrae. It became a huge battle; my group versus all the man-made monsters that came from Red Island. That’s what happened at the docks.”

The gangsters were hanging onto my every word. I couldn’t blame them because it really was exciting. It also felt weird to be yapping this much. None of my previous faces was this talkative. It sucked up so much of my social energy. I’d need sugar to refuel later.

“Another thing we were after at the docks,” I continued, “was intel about Red Island. We succeeded with that goal… sort of.”

“Do you know where it is?” Overdrive asked.

“Not exactly,” I said. “Most of my group is hunting for Red Island with the clues we got. I stayed here in the city to watch over things. Imagine my surprise when the PCM started moving. I expected them to delay their plan after what happened at the docks.”

“I think I know what the PCM bitches are thinking,” Dulce Maria said. “With Big Marcy weakened, they’ll push for their plan to make a Purple Bloom. Auron probably has his own timetable separate from Big Marcy or Mark.”

“A possibility,” I said. “Does that mean you’re in?”

Dulce Maria shrugged. “I don’t know about that Purple Bloom business—I’m frankly still processing all the new information—but I’m on board pushing the PCM out of our territories. You help us, and we’ll help you. But I’m not sure what a measly human like me can do for you.”

“I’ll think about it,” I said in my most innocent tone. That made Dulce Maria balk. Let her stress over what I was implying.  

“What’s the plan, boss?” Overdrive asked. “I’m ready to move out.” Everyone also voiced their assent.

I hadn’t even finished law school, and I was already a boss! This was going on my resume.

“Let’s focus on retaking territory. We’re starting with Marsh Row.” It benefitted me if we didn’t rush things. Less chances of embarrassing myself. I nodded at Overdrive. “I’m thinking we take back your place because I really don’t like it here…” I gestured to our surroundings.

We hatched out a simple plan to attack Overdrive’s base tomorrow night at midnight. We’d meet up there, and I’d lead the charge to minimize the casualties on our side. After that, we’d continue striking other places each night.

“What if they’re going to counterattack?” Dulce Maria asked. “The PCM has taken Overdrive’s base once. They can take it again if you’re not around to protect our asses.”

“They won’t dare,” I said, “if you make it appear that I’m staying there. It’ll be on all of you to keep up that illusion.”

After our meeting was adjourned, I ordered Overdrive to drive Teflon to the clinic—as an awesome boss, I cared for my minions. I’d be along for the ride because I wanted to give Overdrive some assignments. Overdrive puffed his chest with self-importance as we went to yet another sports car.

I told Overdrive to watch out for people investigating me. I almost forgot what I came to Marsh Row for.

“That goes without saying, boss,” Overdrive said as the low bottom of his car scraped gravel. “I’ll make sure no one finds you. Hell, I don’t even know where to find you. And we’ll keep it that way!” he hastily added.

That should cover Myra’s attempts to look for Blanchette. In any case, I’d be with Myra and Deen to ensure that their search went according to my plans. As for the other idiots looking for me, I trusted Overdrive to keep them away from me because it would be in his best interests to protect me. So… I didn’t really trust him. I just expected him to behave in a selfish human way.

“One other thing,” I said. “I want you to investigate a cop.”

“We can buy him off if you want, boss,” Overdrive suggested.

“I don’t think that’d work with this guy. Sergeant Jeremiah Hall. Find out everything you can about him. I have a feeling that he’s part of the ongoing investigation of the docks case. I need to know how much he knows about Adumbrae.”

(Author's Notes: Erind is starting to get sold on her own lies, lol. In all, this was a fun meeting and an interesting direction to take the story. We'll see what this newly established group will do. And do we name their group? Any suggestions?

By the way, we already have 11 chapters for Smite Happens. I'd be grateful for your feedback on them. We can make changes before the release if there are problems. Many thanks for your support!)