“Well, we can’t go back to the house.” Luther started, as they walked to a narrow turn from the road, right behind tall buildings. “It’s not secure. Those psychopaths could come back at any moment.” He continued, still carrying Five who remained clutching tight to Dolores.
“My place is closer. No one will look for him there.” Diego said, walking a few steps ahead.
Yura cringed when Five belched, shaking her head as she looked at his drunk ass.
“If you vomit on me…” Luther stated warningly, stopping on his tracks and looking down at Five.
“You know what’s funny?” Five muttered, tilting his head back with a large stupid grin on his face as Luther starts walking again. “Aah! I’m going through puberty. Huh. Twice.” He continued, scoffing, chuckling, and mumbling all at the same time. “And I… I drank that whole bottle, didn’t I?” he finished, caressing the back of Dolores the whole time.
Yura holds the urge to smack the mannequin away, and hits Five square in the face to wake him up.
“That’s what you do when the world you love goes bye-bye. Poof, it’s gone. What are you guys talking about?” He added, making small actions with his hand, to which Yura remembered the vision of memories she had the day prior when she was helping him sew the wound on his arm.
“Two masked intruders attacked the Academy last night.” Luther replied, sighing.
“They came looking for you. So, I need you to focus. What do they want?” Diego chimed in, urgent.
“Hazel and Cha-Cha.” Five mumbled, barely audible.
“Who?” Diego asked.
“You know, I hate code names.” Luther added, making Yura roll her eyes upon remembering what he said hours ago when he was bumping with Diego trying to get in first to the van. ‘I’m One.’
“Ah, the best of the best. Except for me, of course.” Five mumbled again, slurring.
“The best of what?” Luther exclaimed, getting annoyed.
“You know, Dolores always said she hated when I drink. She said it made me surly-”
“Hey!” Diego shouted, stopping on his tracks and turning around to face him.
“Hm. Yeah?”
“I need you to focus. What do this Hazel and Cha-Cha want?” Diego asked, making sure every word is clear, to which Five only smiled widely at, drunk and unhinged. “We just wanna protect you.” He added, trying to make the latter talk.
“Protect me… I don’t need our protection, Diego. Do you have any idea how many people I’ve killed? No. I’m the four frickin’ Horsemen! The apocalypse is coming.” Five retorted, belching forward, before turning to his right and puking right at Luther’s side.
Yura groans, disgusted and annoyed, holding in her laughter upon noticing Luther’s rigid body. Diego could only just roll his eyes.
It didn’t take that long for them to arrive in a spacious boxing gym, where men littered the whole place. Either sparring against a boxing bag or with each other.
There were even two guys sparring right inside the ring.
A few turn to their directions as the three of them walk past with Five past out on Luther’s arms. One particular guy, short and stout, wearing a beanie, met Diego’s eyes and just shook his head, turning his back on them and looking back at the ring.
They went straight down to the back room, past the lockers and stopping right in front of the door that says, ‘Boiler Room’.
Diego went ahead, followed by Luther. Yura stops in the doorway, eyes roaming around the whole room. It was filled with various things, but neat and organized. A bed in the far corner with only a curtain to block it from the whole open sight.
“This is a neat place.” Yura muttered, closing the door after her and stepping inside.
Luther lays Five down on the bed. In between gentle and a drop. Diego puts down Dolores on a chair right below the stairs and walks to Luther’s side.
“Funny. If I didn’t know he was such a prick, I’d say he looks almost adorable in his sleep.” He said, looking at Five’s peaceful sleeping face.
“Well, don’t worry. He’ll sober up eventually. Be back to his normal, unpleasant self.” Luther muttered.
“Yeah. I can’t wait that long.” Diego stated, turning his back and walking towards the table pushed back in the brick wall, checking something. “I need to find out what his connection is with those lunatics before someone else dies.”
“All that stuff he was saying before… what do you think he meant by that?” Luther started, stopping when Diego held out a hand.
Yura looks back at the door when they start hearing loud footsteps from above, heading in their direction.
They all glance at each other.
When Diego pulls out a knife from one of his straps, Yura pulls out her gun from her holster, to which Luther saw and frown. Diego then grabs on to the railing and skips a few steps up the stairs toward the door, in the most silent way he can possibly do.
He turns to Luther and Yura and signals for them to be ready, before he grabs the doorknob and twists it open, pulling his hand away, ready to throw the knife.
“You throw another one of those goddamn knives at me, I’m pressin’ charges.” A man exclaimed from the other side.
“What do you want, Al?” Diego asked, sighing as he opens the door wider, putting his hand down to his side.
“I ain’t your secretary.” The man replied, stepping in.
It was the short stout man with the beanie.
Yura immediately puts her gun back before the man sees it and thinks they were up to something bad.
“Some lady called for you, said she needs your help.” The man added, watching as Diego walked back down the stairs, stopping to look back at him.
“What lady?”
“I don’t know, uh, some detective. I think she said her name was, uh, Blotch or somethin’.” The man continued, hands on the railing, glancing between all of them across the room.
He saw Five but didn’t say anything.
“Patch?” Diego asked unsure, to which the man just shrugged at. “She needs my help.’ Diego muttered, his voice sounding happy and surprised, which was something new.
Yura glances at the confused Luther. Their eyes met and she just shrugged, an understanding smile plastered on her face.
“She needs you to meet her at that motel, a dump on Calhoun.” The man added, pulling up a folded paper from his pants and handing it to Diego, who took it eagerly and read.
