Between a Rock and a Hard Case
Panting raggedly, he faced his opponent one last time, knowing he was one blow away from total collapse, so when Texas swung himself around, sweeping one leg low in an arc, the already winded Tooley went down like a sack of potatoes, his legs knocked out from under him along with the rest of the fight he had left. Face down on the cold concrete, a knee in his back, he let his limbs go loose, because he'd been bested and knew resistance was futile against his more accomplished attacker. It didn't mean he didn't feel the sting of defeat any less, but along with the other emotions that had him at a disadvantage even before he'd been ambushed, Tooley didn't know which one made him feel worse.
"You got a nerve coming down here," Texas rumbled dangerously, one broad palm hard across the back of the beaten man's neck, pinning him to the ground as he wondered what to do. "Wait 'til Mike finds out you came back."
Exhaling hard, Tooley concentrated on getting his breath back, no mean feat since it had been comprehensively driven out of his body by an earlier swing to his solar plexus by the much smaller man he knew only by appearance and notoriety. When he managed to master the panicky reaction at not being able to draw breath and air began seeping back into his protesting lungs, he gasped "No more…" feeling sensation returning to his heavy limbs and with it, a whole bunch of bits of him that hurt.
"Why not? You came here to spy on us, why shouldn't I drop you off the nearest flyway?" Texas growled, shaking the taller man a little, still wound up at having discovered Abraham Kane's right-hand-idiot here in Motorcity.
"Not…a spy…" Tooley groaned, still breathing heavily, but Texas' rough laugh cut him off.
"Yeah sure, you just dropped in for some of Jacob's food," he scoffed, gripping the pale blue shirt Tooley wore in a tight fist, quickly crouching to rise to his feet, pulling the beaten man over onto his back so he could plant one booted foot square across his chest and look down at him. Tex was barely breathing heavily, yet the prostrate man beneath his hold looked as if he'd just run a hundred yard dash followed by a sprint for his life, which in retrospect, was pretty accurate, except he'd not got very far at all before he'd been brought down like a gangly antelope on some distant savannah, and knocked half senseless by a barrage of kicks.
Whatever he was doing down here, it was bad news, and Texas' mind was powering along, trying to figure out why Arthur Tooley would be here in Motorcity. It had to be some kind of a setup, or maybe even something worse, and quickly straightening, Texas pressed down harder, hearing the fallen man's breath hitch once more and a pained expression of focussed distress colour his face.
"If you're not a spy, you're a distraction for something else! Where's Kane, huh?" he grated, eyes narrowed, fists still bunched.
"I don't know," Tooley finally gasped, moving both hands to push Texas' foot away, abruptly ceasing all movement when he found the muzzles of a pair of charcoal and scarlet gunchucks pointed directly at him. Swallowing his pride, the beaten man added more softly "And I don't care…"
"Whaddya mean you don't care? You're his lapdog! Where you are, Kane's not far behind," Texas huffed, voice hard. "It's like when you can't get gum off your shoe," he added, suddenly realising he'd lost the comparison he was aiming for, but not caring. Shaking his head, brow furrowed, he growled "You better tell me what's going on, because if I see one Kanebot anywhere near here before I get you back to Mike, you'll be the first target taken out."
"You gotta believe me," Tooley sighed, voice wavering, closing his eyes in defeat, realising he had no chance of avoiding whatever the Burners had in store for him. If he wasn't so exhausted, he'd have been shaking in apprehension, but not only because he'd been caught by Motorcity's martial artist par excellence. Through numb lips, deadened with tiredness and not a few knucklemarks, he mumbled, "I've got nowhere else to go."
"Why? Kane finally get sick of you?" Texas snorted, wondering what possessed the guy to say such a thing, but when his captive let his hands fall away and closed his eyes, turning his head away, his barely audible reply made Texas' expressive eyebrows rise.
"Mr Kane said he didn't need me anymore," Tooley's voice was small in the silence, every word heavy with hurt and confusion and Texas blinked in astonishment.
"Kane said what? Nice try, Fooley," he fired back instantly, but why did it look like the much taller man had given up? If he didn't know any better, Texas would have said the guy was on the brink of bursting into tears, but before he could say another word, his defeated opponent was speaking again.
"It's true," the fallen man sighed in a low dispirited voice devoid of all but sadness, his eyes still firmly closed under a wrinkled browline. "He told me I was useless, and he found someone better," and this time the hurt Texas had suspected was even more apparent.
Looking down at the man lying on his back, arms lax at his side, Texas eased back, raising his foot, but still keeping his weapons trained on his captive. Something was WAY wrong here, but it didn't make sense. Kane had kept Tooley as his trained gorilla ever since he'd passed out as a Cadet, and though his mental acuity was often in dispute, his abilities as a bodyguard were impeachable and well-nigh part of legend when people spoke of Kane. So why did one of the strongest guys in Deluxe come to be wandering around down here looking like a lost dog whose master had kicked it one time too many?
"Why would he say that?" Texas found himself asking, narrowing his eyes, still not willing to trust a word his opposite said. "You're his right hand man, and therefore, just as bad as he is. Mike'll want to know about this, something's not right," he mused aloud, but his attention never wavered and Tooley made no attempt to move.
"He called me 'lateral damage' or something," the fallen man said slowly, opening his eyes again, and frowning as if trying to recall the painful events that had led him to come down here in his misery. Even if he'd wanted to, he couldn't bring himself to look down at the front of his dress shirt, the star and sabres 'K' he'd worn since almost as long as he could remember now missing, stripped from his sky-blue tunic shirt not two hours ago, by the hand of the man he'd come to see as a father figure, his own having long ago stepped out of his life.
Just thinking about it tore him apart, the nightmare vision of Mr Kane shouting at him and tearing the insignia from his shirt in a tirade that had left Tooley stunned and fearful, not understanding what was going on. Hadn't he been one hundred percent dedicated to his job and his treasured position at Mr Kane's side? Hadn't he looked up to the man with adulation and unashamed loyalty? Everything he did in his name had been an honour and something to be done to the best of his abilities, even if sometimes he messed up. He knew he messed up sometimes, because the thoughts sometimes got stuck and he couldn't get them straight in his head, but as long as Mr Kane told him what to do, he'd done it as best he could and with unswerving dedication because that's what he wanted to do, to show him how much he respected him, wanted to be like him, because he was his world. And now he'd been cast out, told he was nothing, and the pain that throbbed through his chest and mind was worse than any physical discomfort he'd experienced from being beaten or otherwise mistreated in the line of duty.
He knew he wasn't smart, or even bright, but every molecule of his being had revolved around doing whatever Mr Kane asked of him, because all Arthur had wanted was to have him rest one brawny hand on his shoulder and tell him he'd done a good job. He'd done that a couple of times, and the elation of being recognized by the great man had made him feel drunk, as if fireworks were going off in his head, so bright that he could remember how it had felt for days afterwards, probably longer than he'd ever been able to remember anything else. But now, the vision that haunted him was the look of scorn and the way Mr Kane had dismissed him, telling him to get lost and get out of his sight, just before he'd announced he had a new second in command who could run rings around him with one half of his brain tied behind his back.
The almost panicky surge of adrenaline he'd felt had had him paralysed, but then that hand he'd wanted nothing more to feel as a pat of approval had torn his life away with nothing more than a soft ripping of stitching and with a shove towards the door, Tooley had found himself cast adrift, the door whispering closed behind him. He'd stood in the corridor for a long time, unable to move, emotions tearing through him, the panic rising at the last words Mr Kane had said to him: "I don't care where you go as long as it's somewhere I never have to see your face again."
When he'd recovered his faculties enough to walk dazedly to the anti-grav elevator, even through his distress, his mind had decided to work literally at making Mr Kane's last wish come true, and before he'd realised consciously where his feet were taking him, he'd found himself walking through the darker accessways that led down, deeper than he'd been on foot before, until he'd paused, to look up at the floating ceiling hundreds of metres above him. Deluxe was up there, and Mr Kane didn't want him to be part of it anymore, so this was the only place he had left to go, and still stunned and unresponsive, his thoughts whirling, Tooley had drifted along until he'd found himself emerging from a dimly lit narrow walkway, the shocked and curious faces of a couple of passers-by not even registering with him in his confused state.
He'd just been wondering where he'd go and with a groan, he realised he should have been smarter and got his stuff from his room, dully realising he could never go back. Mr Kane didn't want him anymore, didn't want to see his face, so keep away he must. Maybe if he laid low for a while, Mr Kane would change his mind, see he'd made a mistake and call him back home. This thought had been all that had sustained him through his journey down to Motorcity, but now that he'd found himself wandering aimlessly, another more disturbing thought had taken over.
What if Mr Kane didn't change his mind? What if no matter what he did, it wasn't enough to be called back into service? It had been while he was pondering over this troubling thought that he'd suddenly found himself flung forward, and reacting without thinking, he'd started swinging, his reflexes snapping him into defence mode, the sight of who it was attacking him making his mouth fall open in shock.
After the dust had settled and he'd realised he'd hit nothing but air but had taken a few hefty blows that had knocked more than the wind out of him, everything had just seemingly hit him at once, his surprise, his uncertainty and his dismay, because he didn't even know which way was up right now.
Which brought him back to the present and his predicament, captured by one of the people he'd sworn to defeat at all costs, because that was what Mr Kane had wanted. He felt useless, hopeless and utterly demoralised, and Texas' blunt statements had done nothing to dissuade him from the notion he was royally screwed.
"What are you going to do with me?" he asked quietly, because there was no fight left in him. The world he knew was gone, he couldn't go back, and a tiny spark of anger flared in him to think this was the reward he'd got for his loyal service. It was followed by a sinking, gut wrenching sensation as if he was falling from a great height, terrified of the fall, but even more terrified of what waited ahead, because he didn't know how far down he was and where he'd end up.
"That's up to Mike to decide," Texas growled curtly, but he sensed there was no more resistance in the man at his feet and frowning, he stepped back a little, wondering why. "He'll probably dump you back in Deluxe where you belong."
"I don't belong there anymore, he doesn't want me back," Tooley husked, turning his head, because he felt like he was going to be sick and he couldn't stand having one of the hated Burners see him so low. "I might as well be dead."
"Let's face it, you'd be doing everyone a favour," Texas replied. "Your hands aren't exactly clean, mister."
"I know," Tooley whispered, closing his eyes, seeing all the people he'd 'removed' from Mr Kane's service over the years, the sudden pain of realising he was now one of them, except he hadn't beaten himself up. Texas had, though, so maybe he had it coming after all, he thought dismally, half curled on his side, just wishing he could stop thinking about it al. It was as if he was caught in a giant whirlpool, everything moving faster and faster, out of his control and his head hurt and his mind swam with conflicting emotions and feelings.
He could hear his captor talking, but only on the periphery of his senses, too caught up in his misery to process anything external but dimly aware that the discussion going on between Texas and whoever it was he was talking to on the holo was about him. Something about what to do with him, and resigning himself to whatever was going to happen whether he liked it or not, he was suddenly nudged in the back, Texas' low "Alright on your feet, soldier," breaking him out of his stillness. Feeling the ache of muscles that had been whaled on by an unrelenting fury of fists and feet by Motorcity's most well-known proponent of the martial arts, Tooley climbed slowly to his feet, daring to look down at him, surprised at how short he was. Didn't stop him packing a punch though, he thought, and a fleeting wisp of admiration passed through him. "You're pretty good for a little guy," he found himself saying, not expecting an almost instant reply from the other man.
"I know, I'm the best there is and much as I'd like to pound you into the dust, Mike said I gotta bring you back to HQ. He wants to keep an eye on you in case Kane's planning something."
"Okay," Tooley sighed, shoulders sagging low.
"Hey, what happened to your dogtag?" Texas crowed, flicking the bare patch on Tooley's shirt front where a few torn stitches still showed. "You slip your collar before you got lost?"
"Mr Kane took it," Tooley replied simply, feeling exhausted as well as totally demoralised, knowing he was as hated here as he was up in Deluxe. He was a dog with no owner now. "He told me I wasn't fit to wear it anymore."
"What did you do? Pee on the rug?" and here Texas laughed as if was the funniest thing he'd ever heard, slapping one thigh, the other still holding his gunchucks, but the slump-shouldered Deluxian before him didn't move, or even react and eventually Texas' chuckles tapered off until he found himself staring the taller man down, challenging him. Tooley looked whipped alright, Texas thought with satisfaction, still not knowing why Mike has asked him to bring the guy back with him. "Come on, move it, Fluffy," he smirked, "And if you try anything, I'll turn you into a Tooley-skin seat cover," he added as he chivvied his unprotesting captive into Stronghorn's passenger seat, pocketing his gunchucks. Not that he'd need 'em. This guy was done, he could see it plain as day. Growling out another warning not to touch anything, Texas started the low-slung vehicle and headed back to headquarters.
"Whoa, this is amazing," a stunned voice said from his right and knowing he wasn't even doing a hundred, Texas rolled his eyes, but when he turned to face Tooley, what he saw surprised him. The previously somnolent youngster was sitting bolt upright, both hands planted on the austere dashboard, leaning forward slightly, his eyes wide and mouth formed into a broad smile.
"What?" he said, mystified, looking around for something mind-blowingly fantastic, because he couldn't see what had provoked such a dumb comment when there was nothing out of the ordinary in sight as far as the eye could see.
"This!" Tooley breathed, mouth hanging open, his eyes fixed on the world outside Stronghorn's cockpit flying by.
"What?" Texas asked again, nose wrinkled, upper lip quirked up in confusion.
"THIS!" Tooley laughed, turning his head from left to right, in order to take in everything through the wide low windscreen, an expression of such joy on his face that Texas ran one hand down his face in annoyance at his lack of answer that made any sense.
"WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?" he finally shouted, brows knitted into a frown.
"This CAR!" his passenger squealed in delight. "LOOK HOW FAST WE'RE GOING!"
"Huh?" Texas scoffed, incredulously, flicking his eyes down to the holodash, at the rapidly changing numerals flashing upwards as he accelerated the low-slung black car along the potholed road surface. "We're barely moving!"
"I've never been in a car before," came the wonder-filled murmur from the passenger seat, and with a slam of recognition, Texas understood. Tooley was Deluxian, had never driven a car before, and obviously, had never even SAT in one while it was moving, because going by the look on his face, he was about to wet his pants with excitement.
"You're kidding, right?" Texas huffed, but he already knew his passenger wasn't. "You of all people! I thought Kane would have taught all his lapdogs to ride," but the second he spoke, he realised that unless Tooley had been to Motorcity before, that that scenario was impossible. Kane hated cars, it was the main reason he'd been trying for so long to wipe Motorcity out, and its citizens too. To Kane, cars were dangerous, to be feared and hated for the reckless expression of selfish speed they brought up in the driver. In his world, there would be no cars, nothing to challenge his safe, clean, world, and nothing to threaten the lives of those he wished to protect.
"I've never seen anything so beautiful," Tooley murmured, clearly captivated, eyes seemingly everywhere at once. "It's kind of scary though," and Texas saw the way his eyes were switching from side to side, trying to take everything in, while his hands pressed against Stronghorn's flat planes before him.
"Scary? Uh-uh, no way, this is nothing," he snorted, a sudden desire to show this vehicular virgin the best car in Motorcity. "Now, if you want to see something REALLY cool, watch this," and slamming his foot on the accelerator, a bellowed "YEAH!" leaving his lips, he almost swore his passenger turned four shades paler which was really something for someone who'd lived in a pod all his life, he thought with amusement. He was expecting a scream of some kind, and wondered if Tooley might actually outdo Chuck, but despite a few mumbled words he couldn't quite catch over the howling motor, Texas had to admit he was impressed at how the guy was taking his first ride.
"H…how fast can it go?" Tooley shouted over the racket of bellowing engine, having to raise his wavering voice to be heard, wild exhilaration on his face at the speed, everything outside the low windows blurring by.
"Oh, about four hundred miles per hour," Texas shouted back, playing casual, but already deciding. "Watch!" and with that, Texas floored it, Stronghorn leaped forward with a mechanical snarl and he let loose with another whooping cry that would have put a berserker to shame. This finally got an audible reaction out of his companion, and Tooley finally made an incomprehensible sound of amazement and probably a goodly dose of fear, Texas thought with amusement. As soon as he'd gotten what he wanted, though, Texas eased back on the throttle, gradually bleeding off speed until they were travelling at a moderate two hundred and fifty, just enough to keep the heart racing, he thought with a grin.
"Mr Kane never told me about this!" Tooley breathed, plainly still captivated, shaking his head in amazement. "THIS IS FANTASTIC!" he shouted, startling a laugh he hadn't planned out of Texas, who couldn't help himself.
"Stronghorn's the best, forget the rest," he called back, smugly, hands deftly piloting the massive vehicle through a series of narrow service tunnels, the boom of the exhausts echoing in the dark space. This Deluxian reject might be a loser when it came to career prospects, but at least he knew quality when he saw it.
"Why would anyone hate cars?" Tooley mused aloud, "This is fun!"
"Hey, now you know why we have 'em," Texas drawled, feeling a little more charitable to his captive. "This is what you've been missing up there in Kane's perfect little bubble world," he added, scorn in his voice. "This is how WE live and THAT'S why we'll never quit fighting for everyone else to have the same. Kane's mental, everyone should be able to come and go as they please, and have a car if they want, not be stuck in flying pods and becoming a good little robot," he finished, voice dripping with disgust. They were at the Eastern Gate now, and flying through the porticullis, Texas called up his holoscreen, Mike's face-avatar appearing instantly.
"How's our visitor, Texas?" hailed the leader the Burners had all come to love with loyalty that spanned everything and anything Kane could throw at them.
"Still alive. Never been in a car before, can you believe it?" chortled Tex.
"Well go easy on him until we can figure out what to do and why Kane decided to cut him loose."
"According to Fooley here, Kane found someone with a few more brain cells," Texas volunteered with dark humour, Mike's avatar's slow head shake making his fellow Burner ask "What?" in wounded tones.
"Texas, how about you take our guest downtown to the old Station, don't bring him here. I'll meet you there, just in case Kane's got him rigged up with something dangerous. No point putting HQ in danger."
"Okay, sounds like a plan. Then can I beat him up?"
"No that won't help us any."
"No, but it'll make ME feel better."
"Maybe you should save your energy for Kane in case there is something fishy going on here. Don't waste your energy if you don't need to," Mike reasoned, Texas sighing and agreeing with a low "Man, you take all the fun out of things."
"From the hollering I just heard, it sounds like you've been having plenty of fun," Mike added. "Meet you there in ten," he added, his holo image winking out.
Pondering Mike's words, Texas turned his head a little, quietly watching his passenger still raptly taking in the passing scenery of roads, buildings and grey, gloomy spaces, seeing that prior dead, hopelessness in his expression replaced by the light of interest.
"Mike'll figure out where we go from here. Maybe he'll even let you stay," he volunteered, not quite sure what prompted him to think out loud when the man sitting two feet to his left was essentially one of the enemy.
"Do you think he will? I don't have anywhere else to go," Tooley sighed plaintively, head hanging now, all pleasure gone from his face once more, after being reminded of his unfortunate circumstances.
"Hmpfh," Texas grunted, eyes slightly narrowed, something coming to him at once. It wouldn't do for Kane's right hand man to lay eyes on Julie in case he'd seen her before. He didn't know how many interns there were in KaneCo., but if there was a chance Tooley had seen Julie before, that would put her at risk in case the guy WAS playing double agent or something, he reasoned. Best those two never cross paths, but he was sure Mike had already thought of that.
"Do you guys all hate me like Mr Kane does?" a soft voice said, breaking into his thoughts.
"Pretty much, yeah," Texas replied, not sugar coating it. "But we hate Kane more than anyone, so there's a chance you won't get driven to the outskirts and dumped there. If Mike decides you aren't a risk, that is." His passenger seemed to sink back into the seat, a worry frown creasing his brow and Texas shook his head. "You're not exactly a genius, though."
"I know," Tooley replied dispiritedly, sinking lower, uncertainty taking him over once more.
"You're thick as a brick," Texas said firmly, as if to confirm Tooley's status as being so low that he'd have to reach up to scratch a snake's belly. "Maybe Mike'll think of something you can do to keep you out of trouble until we find out if you're worth keeping around."
"You think so? That'd be great, if he lets me," the other man said, hope tinting his voice, before he hung his head again. "I don't know what else I can do."
"You can lift heavy objects, right? Mike's got friends all over Motorcity who could do with a set of hands to put to work," Texas replied, wondering why he bothered getting the guy's hopes up. He was Kane's right hand man! Mike would want to pump him for information first, but after that, what if he really WAS just a not-to-bright guy who'd been discarded by that maniac in Deluxe? He wouldn't be the first and he wouldn't be the last. He seemed kind of harmless now he didn't have any options, and Mike wasn't the kind to turn someone out in the street based on their past, otherwise none of the Burners would be here right now, he thought with a sigh. Not that any of them had done half the nasty work Fooley here had probably been party to. Anyway, it wasn't his problem, Mike would figure it all out.
"Can I call you Texas?" Tooley blurted out, half turning in his seat. "We never really met before."
"Yeah, you can," Texas sighed. "But I'm still calling you whatever I like."
"That's okay, it can't be worse than the things Mr Kane called me. I can't even pronounce half of them," he went on sadly. "I'm not good at remembering stuff." He fell silent after that, and the engine rumble was the only thing to be heard as Stronghorn ate up the miles. "I want to remember this though. The ride. Not the rest of today, though," he said as they pulled up outside a large column-fronted building in the gloom. "Will I ever get to do this again?" he asked, and there was longing in his voice that even Texas could hear.
"Maybe," he replied gruffly, changing his original response to something milder, not finding it in himself to stomp on the guy any more right now.
"Thanks Texas," Tooley said quietly, letting out a long exhalation as he saw a familiar face step out of the building ahead, taking in the approach of the architect of his impending doom. He didn't look like a dangerous man, and though he had a serious expression on his face, Tooley couldn't quite find himself believing this was the murderous Mike Chilton Mr Kane had told him about so many times.
He'd fought the guy once, well, not so much fought him but been knocked out TRYING to. Oh well, he might as well get it over and done with, he sighed, and struggling with the door for a few moments, not knowing how to get out, he eventually shot the owner of the hand that opened it for him a smile of appreciation that faltered when he found himself looking up into the face of the man he'd crossed paths with only once before, Mr Kane's sworn enemy.
"I'm in trouble, aren't I?" he finally said, standing almost eye to eye with the leader of the Burners who had infuriated his boss for so long, bracing himself for a barrage of abuse which was what he'd always got from Mr Kane every time he messed up.
"That depends on what you tell us," Mike said smoothly, looking him up and down. "Let's start with you filling me in as to why you're down here in Motorcity."
"Mr Kane said he doesn't need me anymore," Tooley sighed, dejectedly. "He said he got someone better and told me not to come back." Head hanging low again, he was surprised by the hand that tapped him on the chest where his insignia used to be, looking up to see an oddly fixed expression on Mike's face.
"Looks like he really did want you gone if he did that," he said, his words a double meaning. He'd heard enough from Julie to suspect Arthur Tooley wasn't a genuine threat to the Burners because he just wasn't smart enough to be putting on an act, and the moment Texas had told him he'd managed to capture the man, Mike had been on the comm. to Julie who had breathlessly informed him that Kane had a new right-hand man installed in the place Tooley once had been. So he was at least telling the truth. "Why did you come here when you knew you'd be in enemy hands, so to speak?" he asked, arms folded, Texas standing slightly behind him, looking intimidating.
"Mr Kane won't let me go back," Tooley murmured hesitantly, fidgeting. "I don't have anywhere else to go," and he raised his head pleadingly to meet Mike's eyes, hoping to find some charity there.
"Texas? What do you think?" Mike questioned the shorter man, figuring he'd possibly got a little more information out of their new arrival, and willing to trust his counsel.
"I think he's safe," the brawny Burner growled. "If he's telling the truth, maybe we can use him. That'd make my day, knowing we've got him here. He might come in useful. Besides, it'll piss Kane off no end if he finds out we're making better use of him than he ever could."
"Wise words, my friend," Mike averred, nodding. "Tell me – does Jacob's friend downtown still need a tow truck driver?"
"He can't drive, Mike, he's never been in a car before today," Texas added, impatience in his tone.
"He can learn surely," Mike replied breezily, turning back to face the apprehensive newcomer. "Might as well put him to work while we keep an eye on him, right?"
"You want ME to drive a car?" Tooley husked, eyes wide, a slow smile growing on his face.
"No, but we might be able to get you into a truck," Mike said thoughtfully, watching the other man's reactions closely.
"A TRUCK? WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Tooley almost danced on the spot with excitement, coming to an abrupt halt, a confused frown on his forehead. "What's a truck?"
"Like a car only bigger," Mike grinned, knowing he was doing the right thing, unable to keep a smile off his face at the enormous beaming one on Tooley's. "On one condition!"
"What's that?" Tooley replied, almost breathlessly, eyes shining.
"Texas is going to teach you how to drive." Hurrying on before the annoyed response he KNEW was coming from his hot-headed Burner buddy, Mike continued. "He's the best we have, and if you're going to stay down here, you're going to have to learn the ropes right from the word go. You got it?"
"Oh yeah, great! I got it," Tooley was dancing from foot to foot, hands clenched in fists of excitement, and Mike winked at an eye-rolling Texas, already starting to splutter in indignation.
"Can I trust you two to not kill each other when my back's turned?" he asked Texas with a smile, already knowing he'd fall into line, because if there was one thing Texas loved, it was showing off his skills and he had plenty to showcase. "And that means not putting Tooley here through the windscreen if you can help it, while you teach him…Texas, you in?"
"Well, okay, but he can help me with some other stuff too, it's not all drive-drive-drive: there's maintenance and overhauls and-"
"All fine by me," Mike soothed, holding up a hand to forestall the flow of words. "And all part of becoming a driver." Turning once more, he faced the overjoyed man before him, extending a hand. "Make me proud, Tooley. Show me I got the right guy for the job," his words making the taller man stand even taller, something in him blossoming immediately under the inferred praise.
"I won't let you down, Mr Chilton," he said firmly, saluting out of reflex, until Mike reached up and pulled his stiffly held hand into a more relaxed handshake, the pride on the other man's face almost painful to observe. Under some careful husbandry, Mike was sure Tooley would thrive with the right support, after all, everything he'd done for Kane he'd done to show his worth, to appease him and his efforts had ended with him being discarded like so many of Kane's other minions once he found someone else to attract his interest. A kind word would go a long way with a guy like Tooley, he knew, and the best way to get that off to a good start was to show him some appreciation, something he knew he'd probably never had before. Shaking Tooley's hand firmly, Mike clapped him on the shoulder and smiled.
"Forget the mister, it's just Mike, now, we should figure out what you can do for us so we can find where you're going to fit in around here," and gesturing for Tooley to walk ahead, Mike gave Texas a quick nudge with his elbow, looking down at the smaller man.
"Think you're up to the challenge?" he grinned, both of them knowing that if Tooley's motivation was as high as they thought, they'd be hard pressed to get the guy out from behind the wheel once he'd been given a task to complete.
He'd be perfect for the job, and Jacob was a frequent visitor to his friend's shop, so he'd be able to keep an eye on the young man as well. It was the perfect solution, and one that meant he wouldn't be underfoot at Burner HQ, putting Julie at risk. As soon as he'd learned from Texas' alarmed communications that Arthur Tooley had been exiled from Deluxe, he'd had to think fast. If he spotted Jules down here, things could get dangerous, even though he'd said he could never go back. What if he tried to let Kane know that he'd seen his daughter Julie down here? That would spell disaster, but now, even though he didn't want their paths to cross, Mike was confident there was no malice in Kane's ex-major domo. All he needed was to be treated decently and given something he could handle and Mike was already betting himself he'd excel. Kane's loss would be their gain, he thought with satisfaction and it did amuse him that one day, Tooley might get the chance to prove himself when it really mattered, particularly if he could thumb his nose at Kane while doing it.
"Hey, he'll be driving a big rig in no time," Texas bragged, puffing his chest out. "He's almost as muscular as me, or will be with some work, so a towie rig'll suit him down to the ground." Shooting Mike a sly look, he nudged him back. "At least the next time that green machine of yours decides to drop an axle, you'll have no trouble getting a tow."
"Thanks Texas, I knew I could count on you," Mike replied breezily, both of them watching Tooley look around him in awe at the old yet magnificent building ahead, it's massive stairway leading up to two dozen towering pillars supporting the long, marble facade. "It's kind of satisfying to have one of Kane's closest allies find a place down here. Think what kind of a message that'll send to the Deluxians, that Kane's right hand man himself ended up down here in Motorcity," he confided in Texas conspiratorially.
"I'm seeing a highjacked transmission in the Deluxe future," Texas crowed in amusement, holding his hands out before him as if seeing a grand vision unfold. "Thousands of screens across Deluxe, prime time: I can see it now: Tooley's Towing Service… Just let me slap a Burner logo on there somewhere and I can die a happy man. Kane'll tear out his own ponytail!"
"That's what I like about you Texas," Mike laughed, as they moved through the doorway, a trio now, the latest citizen of Motorcity between them. "You're an ideas man when it really counts. Now let's sort out a few things and get you and Arthur here on the road… "