Chapter Eleven: Familial Ties

Author's Note: I am trying an experiment and I'm writing this fanfic using speech recognition with a microphone. I hope that this will work well so that I can update my stories faster because I won't have to type so much, please tell me if it reads better. Please enjoy this new chapter.

Gwen Tennyson sat down in a chair as she rubbed her forehead as she sighed, it had been a long day and she was in a foul mood. The Dollars hadn't been able to find anything that could be useful to her when it came to Charmcaster's finances and knew she was losing patience, but she had to bide her time because this would only work when the timing was right. But she hated waiting.

Gwen hadn't seen Kevin in after it two days; he had been busy fighting more aliens as they broke out of the Null Void, which was a common occurrence. Ben 10,000 had searched for Michael Morningstar, but he had disappeared again terrified of the experience he had at Gwen's supposed funeral, horrified that her ghost would haunt his nightmares, although he didn't believe she was alive. He didn't know Warden Morrg was in an Incarcecon cell.

"What did you find it about Charmcaster's money; do you have access to all of it?"

"Yes Boss, But we don't know what you want us to do," Leroy said.

"I'll tell you what you have to do when I'm ready," Gwen replied, "Meanwhile, you won't do anything without my approval, understand?"

"Of course, Boss, do you have any work for me today?"

"Yes, Michael Morningstar has been getting bolder, we captured some of his gang, I need you to have a "conversation" with them, but you don't get to kill them, I want him to tell me everything knows, don't go overboard."

"Of course, it seems you're having too much fun with this," Leroy smirked.

"You're having too much fun here; I only let you indulge in your psychopathic tendencies because they benefit me."

"I only wish to be of service, after all I am paid well for this," Leroy smirked.

"It's always about the money for you isn't it?"

"If you didn't pay me so well I wouldn't be here, and there are bonuses when it comes to working with you, we all get what we want in the end. Of course, you get the nice end of all this. You've got a lot of money and a nice boyfriend too. No wonder they were jealous of you."

"Yes they were, they took me and dumped me in hell, I have dealt with one of them, only two are left, and that's where you come in."

"I guess I'll be going," Leroy turned to leave.

To his surprise, Gwen got up and followed him.

"It's time we get going, Giovanni," Gwen looked at the man she had referred to as Leroy in public but only she knew his true name.

He raised an eyebrow in surprise.

"It's funny that you're not calling me Leroy," Giovanni looked at her, "Considering the fact that you gave me that name."

"I know, but your part in this is all very important, you know," Gwen smiled. "Remember I've made you what you are, don't think I can't take it away."

"Of course, but I thought you'd be a little bit nicer to me, after all, I am the age of your own son."

"Yes, and I am aware of that," Gwen smirked. "Be glad I found you in penal colony or you'd be in the mines of Saturn or some other distant planet for the rest of your life."

"But hooking up you, I get to indulge in my psychotic urges and you get yourself a top notch interrogator," Giovanni chuckled. "But you offered me revenge for what my parents did to me, burying me alive I was a baby."

"Yes, we'll get our revenge." The expression on her face filled him with an indescribable terror.

You aren't lying to me are you?" Giovanni asked. His boss, beautiful and powerful, and resourceful, still puzzled him.

"I've done many things in my life, but I didn't get to where I am by lying to people, I keep my word, and if you must have proof I brought the DNA tests," Gwen slapped down the papers.

Giovanni took them and looked them over, "I've seen both of them, why didn't you tell me it was the two of them?"

"It's not time yet," Gwen told him calmly.

Giovanni lurched forward, looking as if he were about to lunge at her a fit of rage.

Gwen calmly reached out and twisted his arm around and slammed him into the table. "You should learn to control your temper!"

"Don't think I can't overpower you, perhaps—"

Gwen summoned her powers, creating a sharp blade and holding it to his throat. "I don't usually kill people, but for rapists, I make an exception. Why should I spare your life?"

"I—I'm sorry," Giovanni stammered. "Boss, forgive me. I was just angry. I'd never do something like that to you, I swear."

"I accept your apology, but should you even speak another threat to me, I will kill you, and as punishment for this little incident today—" Gwen cut him across the face.

"Don't worry, it won't scar, but it will hurt," Gwen glared at him. "And to think you'd been doing so well."

"I got tired of playing the loyal puppy dog," Giovanni smirked.

"But I'm the one who holds the leash, don't forget that."

"We're clear as crystal Boss," Giovanni was much calmer and the expression on his face was admiration. "If only were older, I could fall for a girl like you."

"Sixteen and you're a pervert," Gwen glared at him. "Go; contact the men who are running Charmcaster's assets, tell them to make sure she loses everything!"

"I could treat you like my own mother," Giovanni suggested.

Gwen slapped him across the face.

"But Boss I hold you in the highest respect, in many ways you are the mother I wish I could have."

"And you have such a fine way of showing it, now get out of my sight!"

"Yes Boss," Giovanni nodded. He turned and left.

Kevin walked in. He glared at Giovanni. "I saw what he did. How can you keep him around?"

"He's part of my revenge, which is the only reason he's working for me."

Kevin put a hand on her shoulder. "I'll keep my eye on him; I didn't know you'd gotten a psycho for hire."

"Thanks," she gave him a smile.

"Just who is this Giovanni?" Kevin asked.

"That is a long story," Gwen smiled. "I'll take the time to tell it to you."

The white haired young man wiped the sweat off his forehead as he continued to dig, searching for Bicenthium Alloy. Giovanni Andrea had an infamous criminal career, he'd become a con artist, a thief and an all around criminal, he had murdered an alien in a deal gone bad and was sentenced to the mines on Saturn.

"Come on, Giovanni, you have a visitor," Magister Prior Gilhil told him. He put him in binders and led him to the visitor's area.

Giovanni saw a beautiful woman with dark brown hair sitting with her fingers steeped and her expression, inviting, but very serious.

"It's been forever since I've seen a lady, let alone one as pretty as yourself," Giovanni greeted her suavely, "What's your name?"

"Ellie," she replied.

"Ellie…?" he fished for her last name.

"My last name's not important. But I have a proposition for you."

"What would that be? I have all the sorts of people asking me to do things for them, but you can see I am incarcerated so I can't exactly do anything inside this cell. But you seem well connected; can you get me out of here?"

The girl calling herself Ellie looked at him with an indescribable gaze, it was as if she could see what he was a really thinking, it chilled him to the bone. Who was she? He'd never heard of her before. Judging from the nice suit she was wearing, she had a lot of money and a lot of money meant that perhaps she could get him out of there, he didn't like living in the colonies of Saturn, the mines were hell and he'd do anything to leave.

"I know someone who can offer you a very job of for the "things" you like to do, my associate could use your skills in her organization."

"And what organization that?" Giovanni asked. "I've worked for them all, and they all got rid of me when I was no longer useful to them."

"Have you ever heard of the Dollars?"

"Who hasn't heard of them? They are the most powerful criminal organization in the known universe. Why would I want to join them, they're probably just like every other criminal organization around, I've heard that she can break people at a prison, but I don't really believe it, it's just a story criminals like to tell."

"She can get you out of here, but only if you'll work for her, she'll pay you whatever you want, but you must do whatever she says."

"How do I know she'll really keep her word and get me out of here?" Giovanni asked, still skeptical all this was too to be true, was he really going to leave, or was this just a silly whim of his imagination?

Ellie gave a sly smile, "Miss Gwendolyn always keeps her promises."

"Gwendolyn, you mean Gwen Tennyson? I heard she was dead."

"Is she really dead?"

A realization washed over Giovanni and he stared in awe. It was her, in the flesh, she had gall to walk into a prison after she had incarcerated for 16 years.

"How do I know you're really Gwen Tennyson?" Giovanni questioned, hiding his admiration for the girl. The most powerful criminal in the galaxy had just waltzed into a prison like it was nothing. It took a lot to impress him, but needless to say he was very impressed, but if this woman could keep her word he gladly work for her. Still, she'd have to keep her end of the bargain and get him out of prison and off Saturn. No small feat there, only God could pull off a miracle like that.

"So you're interested in working for us, you'll be out within a week, I'll see you around Leroy."

"But that's not my name!" Giovanni exclaimed.

"It's what I'm going to call you from now on, after all you don't want people to know that Giovanni Andrea the notorious torturer is a part of the Dollars now would we?"

Giovanni wasn't sure she actually keep her promise, but within a week he heard that the Incarcecon had received papers notifying the warden that Giovanni Andrea was to be released from the Incarcecon. He walked out of there a free man, although he figured that the papers were forged, when Gwen showed it to him, he was shocked that they were forgeries because they looked so legitimate that he couldn't tell the difference.

At first, although he admired Gwen, he was very put off when that he wasn't allowed to kill anyone, after all criminal organizations to kill their rivals, didn't they? But slowly he came to understand how she thought and why she did what she did. They didn't have a friendly relationship but they did understand each other, and he followed her without question because he yet knew she could put him back into the mines of Saturn any time he stepped out of line.

Gwen had told him that he was very important to her schemes and at first he thought it was just about him torturing people, then she had revealed something that he didn't know, she knew who his birth parents were.

He had pestered her for the answers, but he wasn't willing to give him the answers he wanted. And so he continued to work for her, he was in her debt and so he was grateful to be free.

"I can't believe you hired him, he's worked for every known criminal organization in the galaxy, he enjoys cold-blooded torture; how can you let him work for you?" Kevin asked, shocked.

"Well this is a criminal organization after all, what did you expect?" Gwen retorted.

"I just didn't think you hire people who were so…ruthless, I mean, I'm not exactly squeaky clean myself, but had not nearly as bad as they are—known murderers work for you!" Kevin had heard Giovanni Andrea, he was well known to the Plumber's because of his criminal career, but he had never imagined he was working for Gwen. That was an unwanted surprise.

"I'll do whatever it takes to get revenge! No matter what I have to do to get it, or who I have to manipulate, they will pay for what they did to me!"

"So do you actually care about Devlin, or are you just manipulating him to get back at Charmcaster because she married me?" Kevin was worried; he didn't like this side of her at all.

"I'm not manipulating Devlin, I love him like I love Evan," Gwen glared at him. "If I were manipulating him, you would know, because you know me better anyone."

"All right, I believe you," Kevin conceded. "I'd better let you go; it seems you to have somewhere you have to be. Ben just called; Vilgax had showed his face on earth again. I have to go."

Gwen watched him leave; she left the building and had Faria drive her to the warehouse where the prisoner was tied He was working for Michael Morningstar and that this was just the opportunity Gwen wanted to get to him. All she needed to do was break one of his flunkies, and everything Michael built would come tumbling down. She was looking forward to this.

"He really went to work on you didn't he?" she asked. "I can make him stop, all you have to do is tell me I want to know about Michael's plans."

Walking through the door she looked at Leroy, who had blood on his hands. He'd been beating he crap out of him, his face was a mess and he was covered in his own blood, he was also missing some of his teeth, Gwen also noticed his fingernails were missing. She knew just how badly it hurt; Michael had ripped out her fingernails when he had tortured her. She felt a twinge of sympathy, it vanished two seconds later.

"Okay, okay!" he exclaimed. "I'll tell you everything! I know all his plans! I just want to live!"

"Nice to know you're going to cooperate with us," Gwen turned to Leroy, "Take him to the Null Void and place him in solitary confinement in the Incarcecon. My business is done here."

"But I've told you everything I know!" he pleaded, "You were supposed to let me go!"

"I said I'd make him stop, I never said I would let you go."

Members of the Dollars came in and took the mobster away; Gwen felt a ghastly smile pull at her lips. Everyone was dancing in the palm of her hands, just like she had had planned it.

Gwen was walking towards her car, when she heard a voice call her name; "Guinevere!" she turned and stared at the man she hated more anyone in the world. She took a deep breath and forced herself to remain calm and collected. She smiled Michael, "Can help you, Michael?"

She was relieved, her men were long gone and all the signs they had been in there were erased.

"I was hoping to do business with you, I've heard you're quite wealthy," Michael had a greedy expression on his face, he was just like Charmcaster, Gwen was right, the scum did deserve each other. But she wouldn't pass up this chance for anything. This was just the opening she had been looking for. Now she could get some of her men on the inside of his gang and spy on his operations without being noticed.

"Of course, I'll do business with you, but only if you'll let me buy 50% of your company, with my business savvy I could help you get your company in the black, I heard you have a lot of debt."

"It's a deal!" Michael eagerly agreed, getting money was his number one priority and he didn't care where it came from. Gwen wanted to laugh, what a fool he was, falling for her trick so easily. He didn't even ask questions about her.

After he left, Gwen couldn't help but laugh.

It was late at night, and Gwen had finally drifted off to sleep. She thought she heard a noise, she had heard it for awhile now and it had become increasingly louder over time. She woke with a start and looked around. Gwen got to her feet and pulled and some clothes.

She grabbed her Plumber's firearm and prepared to use it. She heard a loud, agonized scream and started running toward the noise. She made her way down to the basement and opened the door.

There was a young man, about three years her senior, with dark brown hair and sea green eyes like her own. He was in severe pain and looked like he had been tortured by her men, the defiant expression on his face told her everything, she immediately knew who he was; there was only one family in the world whose expression could convey so much.

The man being tortured was Kenneth Tennyson, her older brother. Gwen lost control as she flew into a rage. Someone was going to die.