Chapter Nine
"Tell me how I'm gonna get down from here? You only ever just disappear, but I can't let you go."
-No Place Like Home by Marianas Trench
August 13th, 1907
"Stay out here. I don't know all the details, but I'm pretty sure your sister did a number on him." Carlos told Brendon as they stood in front of a bar proudly proclaimed McSorley's Old Ale House Established 1854.
Brendon nodded, "She's got trust issues after the last bastard left her high and dry."
The Spaniard shrugged, "Trust issues. Don't we all." Before leaving the Irishman outside while he stepped inside the dark, smoky interior of the bar. He searched through the gaunt, shadowed faces for the one he vaguely remembered.
"Can I help ya?" The bartender asked him, eyeing him suspiciously.
Leaning casually against the bar, Carlos removed his hat, "Looking for Blink. Blonde hair, six foot tall." He raised his hand to indicate the man's height.
Nodding, the bartender used a less than clean rag to wipe up a spill to the right of Carlos, "Yeah, we threw him out back. Started a brawl, broke half a dozen tables, and punched the owner's son."
"Wasn't a kid, was it?" Carlos asked, wincing at the fast deterioration of the man. Hell, if it wasn't for Race and Mush looking for him, Carlos probably would have been right here with him to drink away the pain.
The bartender shook his head, "Nah, spoiled brat, sure. But, a full grown man. Most of us were actually quite entertained. That's why we only threw him out back and not to the bulls."
"Thanks." Carlos said, leaving the man a tip for the information and heading towards the back.
It was good he knew where he would be, because Carlos wasn't too sure he'd have recognized the man. Blink's two days of binge drinking had aged him a good twenty years. The generally clean cut, shaved male had quite the facial growth and probably some fungus growth from the smell of him. Carlos had smelled worse, though, so he approached the man anyway and stared down his nose at him. "Ya just gonna drink it all away?" He asked, folding his arms across his chest.
Blink, who'd been sitting on the ground with his back against the wall of the bar, looked up at him with blue eyes that were unfocused, "Fuck yeah."
Raising an eyebrow, Carlos took in the dried blood on his lip, the bruise on his cheek, and the ravaged knuckles that spelled out the fight the Bartender had told him about.
Sighing, Carlos unfolded his arms and put a hand out to him, "You're a little more gone than I'm equipped to handle. Let's get you to someone who can."
Blink smacked away the proffered hand, "I don't need to be handled."
"Do you know why I'm here?" Carlos asked, curiously.
Glaring, Blink spit a bit of blood out of his mouth just to the left of Carlos' boot, "Yeah, ya Race's skiptracer friend. I hope he ain't paying for ya services, I sent Dave a message two days ago about where I was."
"They didn't get that message, clearly, or I wouldn't be here. They've been worried sick." Carlos took a page out of his late mother's book and decided to make him feel a bit guilty.
It worked like a charm. "Fine, I'll go with ya. But, only cuz theyse family." Sighing, Blink forced himself to stand but when he took a step, he almost fell over.
Sliding Blink's arm around his shoulder, Carlos hefted the guy up, "If it wasn't for Race, I'd be right here with you."
"Yeah, your girl leave you, too?" Blink muttered, sarcastically.
"Yes, she did."
That shut up the drunk. Carlos hid a smirk as they rounded the bar and Brendon caught sight of the two and headed towards them.
"What's wit' the wall?" The drunk blonde asked, gazing up at the broad shouldered man in front of him.
"Blink, meet Brendon. Brendon, this here is Blink." Pausing, waiting for the reaction, Carlos rolled his eyes at Blink's density, "This is Katherine's brother."
"Don't fucking say her name." Blink roared, pulling away from Carlos to stumble away from both men.
Carlos and Brendon shared a look, "Alright, you probably shouldn't have come." He told Brendon.
Brendon grinned, grabbed Blink before he could bolt, and tossed him over his shoulder in a firemen's carry. "Where are we taking him?"
"Now, I'm glad you did come. To the Benjamin Hotel." Carlos pointed to the direction and they began maneuvering through the crowd, "If you ever need extra cash, I could use some muscle for certain assignments." He told the larger man, ignoring Blink as he complained and cursed them.
"I might take you up on that." Brendon replied.
Sighing, Mush leaned against the front desk at the Benjamin Hotel, bored because of the slow day and the fact that Blink, who usually left the kitchens to socialize with him, was still missing. It didn't help that they hadn't heard at all from Carlos, making Mush wonder why they even hired the guy if he was going to disappear.
Just as he thought that, the front door opened and Carlos came in, followed closely by a huge man, probably six foot four with broad, hulking shoulders, one of which had a person slung across it. Straightening, Mush watched them head right for him as excitement and hope blossomed in his gut.
"I can fucking walk, ya know." The person slung across his shoulder muttered, the angry, yet familiar voice music to Mush's ear.
"Blink!" Mush exclaimed, taking a second back to yell down the hallway, "David! Call Race, Carlos found Blink!" He hurried around the desk as the large man set Blink on his feet and Mush got his first glimpse of his best friend, "What happened ta ya, Blink?"
Scowling, Blink folded his arms across his chest, "I don't wanna tawk about it, Mush."
Mush Meyers was surprised at the aggressiveness that was in those words. Blink had always been the jovial friend, laughing and joking. Never taking life too seriously. This man in front of him was an entirely different person than the one Mush had known since he was twelve. It actually alarmed Mush to the point he found himself searching for something familiar, "Hang on, I'll get the first aid kit ta clean ya up."
Still sullen and surly, Blink glared after him before turning it onto Carlos and Brendon who stood back a bit.
Mush met David just as he was leaving his office, "I called Race, he's on his way." David told him before taking a second look at Mush, "What's wrong?"
"It's Blink, but…it's not him." Mush told his friend, unable to accurately explain. He moved around David to grab the first aid box. "C'mon." He told the hotelier, interested in seeing David's reaction to their friend.
David's pace slowed just a tad as he saw Blink for the first time since Race's wedding, but he made no comment as they stopped in front of him. Mush set down the box with the bandages and alcohol on a nearby table and moved to clean up Blink's face.
"Carlos." David greeted the skiptracer.
"David." Carlos nodded at him, "This here is Brendon Finnegan." He waved at the man next to him, "Bren, this is David Jacobs, owner of this hotel, and that's Mush Meyers." Mush glanced over as the last name caught his attention, forgetting for a second he had a cotton ball of alcohol pressed against Blink's cut. Blink hissed and he immediately turned his attention back to his friend, but not before he caught the resemblance between the hulking man and Katherine, Clara's maid, in the shape of his eyes and mouth.
Brendon shook David's hand but only nodded in Mush's direction since he was busy cleaning up Blink, "Nice place ya got here, sir. Good to meet ya both."
"Nice to meet you, too. Where did you find him?" David directed that question at Carlos, his head jerking at Blink.
Blink rolled his eyes, "I'm right fucking here." He muttered, wincing as Mush pushed a little too hard on one of the cuts, "Be a little gentle, Mush." He snapped, glaring at his best friend.
Mush quirked an eyebrow in annoyance as he replied, "I wouldn't have to be nothin' if you didn't get into a bar fight from the looks of it."
"Found him at McSorley's and he was in a bar fight." Carlos informed Mush, a little too cheerily.
Ignoring him, Mush continued to clean up Blink, but he couldn't help but notice the deep sadness in his best friend's eyes. Vivian had told him once that anger was a secondary feeling, generally a response feeling to hurt or shame. He opened his mouth to ask Blink who had hurt him, but glanced over to see Carlos watching them both with an assessing gaze and decided it was best to do so when they were in private.
"Let me get you to a room we can clean you up a bit." Mush said, passing a glance to David who subtly nodded.
Blink grumbled, but let Mush lead him to the front desk where he grabbed a key for a room on the first floor and they disappeared down the hallway.
David turned his attention to the skiptracer and Brendon, "I'd like to know everything you know about this whole sordid mess."
Carlos quirked an eyebrow at the demand, the hotelier's blue eyes icy and unforgiving. "I'll tell you…if you help us out."
Narrowing his eyes, David folded his arms across his chest, "I do not like playing games, Fuentes."
"No games." Carlos replied, raising his hands defensively, "But, we need Blink in a solid state of mind if we're going to rescue Brendon's sister here and keep his wife safe."
David surveyed them with a perceptive gaze that actually made Carlos a little wary. He didn't know much about the man in front of him, had only heard that he was a workaholic and that he mostly kept to himself. No ties to any of the gangs around town, uninterested in the politics and inner workings of the city-which was rare for a man so esteemed and wealthy. As a general rule, wealthy men ruled the city, protected their interests, and kept the poor down. David Jacobs was not a man of that general caliber.
He held a rare and interesting position. It peaked Carlos' curiosity.
"Tell me what happened with Blink and I'll think about whether it's in his best interest to help you out." David finally said, his voice strong and his words leaving no room for argument.
Passing a glance to Brendon, Carlos finally nodded, "Alright."
Silently, Mush handed Blink a towel, a razor, and a new change of clothes. He knew he shouldn't pry right away, to let his friend get himself together before diving into whatever had set him over the edge.
"I'm sorry." Blink said, before leaving the parlor they stood in.
"Sorry foah what, Kid?" Mush asked, surprised. The blonde man had never been good at apologizing.
His back to Mush, his head hanging down, he answered him, "Foah not telling you where I was. I…I coulda swore I sent a messenger to David. I remember tawkin' ta one of the guys in red and paying him…but, I guess he never got here or he couldn't understand the message I was saying…I don't know. It was two days ago and everything has just been…" He trailed off and let out an aggravated breath before leaving the parlor and going into the luxurious bathroom that was equipped in every room of the hotel.
Mush sat down and waited, listening to the sounds of the water splashing. He couldn't believe the change in a man that only four days ago had been laughing and joking with him. The curiosity to know what had happened ate at him. But, he sat still and patient. Just like with Vivian, you had to let those who were hurt find the time to be ready to tell you their story. He could wait it out.
About a half hour passed as he waited, and then a knock on the door brought him out of his thoughts and he opened it to see David and Race, along with a food cart. "Thought he could use some grub." Race said, wheeling the cart in as David followed silently behind.
"Is someone watchin' the front?" Mush asked David.
"Greg came in for his shift. I sent a messenger to Vivian so she would know you'd be late." David replied offhand, his thoughts clearly faraway.
Relieved that David always managed to think of everything, Mush picked a grape from a bowl on the cart and popped it into his mouth just as the bathroom door opened and Blink came out looking nearly like his old self.
"Gangs all here." He said, sardonically, giving Mush a bit of hope that the old Blink wasn't too far gone in his well of sadness.
"You got it, buddy." Race replied, cheerily, "Now, ya gonna tell us what happened? I'm still on my honeymoon, ya know." Tossing himself on a settee, he looked up at Blink expectantly.
The smallest quirk lifted the corner of Blink's mouth, but he didn't follow it to a smile. Sighing, he took a seat in an armchair and closed his eyes for a brief moment. "Awright, so…Katherine and me got taken by Barkers thugs at the wedding." He paused to look over at Race, "I'm sorry we missed the whole reception, man."
Race shrugged, "Not like ya wanted ta be kidnapped."
"Yeah…anyway. We found out her brother, the one out there with Carlos, had run away with Barkers daughter Beth and married her. He couldn't find them, so he kidnapped Katherine to hold her hostage until Beth's returned."
"Why did he keep you?" David asked, his blue eyes calculating.
Blink looked away, seeming to debate answering them before rubbing his forehead and telling them the truth, "My fathah was Barkers right hand man my entiah childhood. I used it as leverage to get him to let me stay with her."
"I didn't know youse grew up in a gang." Mush breathed out, staring at Blink like he was a different man.
Blink glowered, "If they had found me after I left, it was possible they'd kill me. So I didn't exactly promote it."
"Why'd you stay with her when you could have left?" David was on a roll with the questioning, Mush thought, all of them ignoring Blink's biting anger.
"Because I grew up in a gang, David. They don't treat hostages nice all the time and she was a defenseless woman. I couldn't just leave her there." Silence followed his statement as they all absorbed that and Mush felt a hum of pride for his best friend. Maybe some of what Mush had said about his treatment of women had rubbed off on Blink. Finally. "Swifty helped us get out. He joined not too long after the strike but it was the middle of the night so we went ta my place to lay low."
Race and Mush passed a knowing glance at where this was going. They had spent a year and a half watching Blink pursue the one woman who wouldn't give him the time of day. She had always had somewhere to escape him, but any woman spending all that time locked up with him would undoubtedly give in to the smooth-talking charmer that was Kid Blink.
"Ya slept with her." Race finally said after a long stretch of silence.
Standing, Blink began to pace across the floor, "I shoulda never brought her there, should have sent her to one of her brothers and let them deal with that whole fucking mess." He groused.
"Didja break her heart?" Race asked, ignoring his grumblings, "'Cause Clara will probably have my head."
"I did not break her fucking heart." Blink yelled, turning on Race, "She broke my fucking heart when she ran off the next morning."
David, Mush, and Race all stared open mouth at his outburst. Neither one really comprehending that their womanizing friend was saying that his heart was broken. Race, master at breaking silences, coughed and then looked around at them all, "I mean, we was all thinkin' that when ya did fall in love, we hoped she wouldn't make it easy on ya. But, damn, Blink."
Blink sighed and sat back down, "I know."
Mush moved to clap him on the shoulder, "Is there a chance she has real feelings for ya? Can ya win her back?"
Gaze faraway and hopeless, Blink shrugged, "I don't know. But, I don't know if I can do this again. What if she tells me she loves me and then abandons me after giving birth to our first kid?"
The three friends shared a glance, the obvious and specific situation cluing them into the reason for Blink never really letting women close. "Is…is that what happened with ya mothah and fathah?" Mush asked, his voice quiet.
"Yeah." Was the man's short, flat reply.
Mush felt a stab of anger towards Katherine. Even if she hadn't known Blink's mother had abandoned him, she shouldn't have just left him without a goodbye or a reason why. Although, how often had Blink snuck out windows of women's apartments while they slept, unaware their lover would likely never come calling again?
Blink would have the messiest ordeal when falling in love.
"So, ya binge drank away all the pain? That's what I wanted ta do when Clara rejected me, but Jack had ta bring reason into things." Race told Blink, trying to lighten the mood a touch.
"That's why I didn't come see any of you. I didn't want ta hear reason." Blink joked, a slight smile lifting the corner of his mouth. Mush almost sighed out loud in relief.
"I didn't know Clara rejected you." David said to Race.
Race nodded, "Oh, yeah. She was scared of her feelings foah me, they were so strong." He said it so cockily it caused all of them laughed.
The tension broke in the room as they laughed and Mush sat down beside Blink, "Maybe she's just scared ya won't change. That she'll love ya and you'll still chase skirts."
Blink mulled that over. "My fathah never loved anothah woman aftah my ma left. The first day at the bar, I tried ta pick up this one woman and for some reason it felt awful. I think she broke me. How didja go through this, Mush, and still fall in love with Vivian? Weren't ya scared she'd do what the others did?"
Mush smiled at the thought of Vivian, "Nah, she was different than the othahs. She was mean and prickly because she was scared she'd fall for another abusive man and end up locked in a marriage she couldn't get out of."
David cleared his throat, "I talked to Carlos before coming here."
The three still seated all turned to look curiously at David as he expanded on that sentence, "He told me Barkers gang had assumed Katherine would go to Brooklyn or Queens where her two other brothers live. They staked out the Brooklyn bridge. She was close to crossing it when she turned around and started heading back. That's when one of the men tailing her grabbed her. She's been there for two days."
For a second, Blink just sat there, staring open mouthed as David's words sank into his still foggy mind. Before any of them could react, he jumped up and over the sofa that blocked him from the door and would have been out of the room if a wall wasn't blocking the door.
"Hi, Blink." Brendon said as his tiny wife squeezed passed him, Carlos right behind her.
"Tommy." Beth greeted, "Instead of running out and doing something rash, how about we plan a nice surprise for my father, hmm?"
A/N: What is this?! A THIRD chapter in one weekend?! I'm out of control, guys. But, I'm having lots of fun with this! Blink's love story is such a hot mess and it's so fun! Now, I'm debating on how to make David's story just as much fun. He's such a stick in the mud, so I'm thinking his lady is going to be wild. Oh, that'll be fun.
Anywho, I was watching Pride and Prejudice and Zombies Friday night and if you want to know what Katherine looks like I'd definitely look up Lily James. She's the actress who plays Elizabeth Bennett and she looks one hundred percent how I pictured Katy! :) Thank you to my faithful, wonderful reviewers Pixielou and coveredinbees! You guys are the best. (Has our fandom lost a lot of people or what? I feel like I used to get mad reviews per chapter for my older stories...) I hope everyone reading is enjoying!
Truly,
Joker is Poker with a J~