Chapter 24: Scratching Backs
Ulysses was lead through the double doors to the backstage area, and the rest of the group followed him as our weapons were confiscated at the door. Logan was sitting on a couch, next to two women in exposing dresses that were just as colorful as the lights in the club. His hired muscle stayed close to the door, keeping their guns ready for us.
"Lennie?" Logan asked, not believing his sight. "You pay me a visit for the first time in years and this is what you bring?"
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean for this to happen."
Logan exhaled through his nose. "What is it you people want?"
"Your help." Ulysses said to him.
"Help? You burst into my club, beat up my customers, and you say you want my help?!" Logan yelled.
"It sounds worse than it actually is." Lennie said innocently as he felt his face.
"That's because it's actually that bad!" Logan shouted. "Where the fuck do you get off, Len? You might have the townspeople under your wing but I don't fall for that shit, ya hear?"
"Listen, Logan I'm just here to ask you for a favor."
"A favor?! A fucking favor?" The fire burned in his eyes, "You don't get to ask me a fucking favor!" Logan shouted as he punched one of his women across the face. "Not after what's happened!"
"Th—That's how you vent your anger?" Joe stuttered in shock.
"You have a problem with that?!" Logan screamed as he punched another woman.
I slowly turned my head to Joe as he stared at him. Joe looked at me and realized he had a choice to make with his next words.
"Maybe..." Joe looked over at me before he finished his sentence.
"Maybe you can punch... a male?" He suggested painfully, trying not to insult him.
"Don't tell me what to do!" Logan yelled as he punched one of the women again.
"Oh my God." I sighed as I held my head in my hand, thinking about the good ol days when Joe had no blood and couldn't speak proper words to people.
"Okay, okay, fuck, stop! I'm sorry." Joe told him.
"Good!" Logan screamed as he gave one final blow to the woman as she bled from her nose. She collected herself from the ground and rested her head on Logan's shoulder as if nothing happened. She kissed him on the cheek. Rilee stared with pure hatred at Logan, shook her head and turned away from the sight.
"That's... dandy." Joe winced, slightly terrified.
"Now excluding the shit you've done to me in the past Len, you have to pay for the damages to my club before I even think about helping you shitsticks out."
"Anything for you, your majes-" I elbowed Joe before he could finish his sentence. "We will do our very best to help repay the thoughtless damage to your bar, sir." Joe said quickly.
"Good. Now what is it you want from me, Lennie?" Logan asked.
"There's this base my friends are looking for, Brotherhood, or... something. It's top secret, and I figured you'd know."
"The only thing that I know of is those power armored fucks trying to steal the generators on the roof. They come in ever so often and try to strong-arm me. Now... I'll give you the general area of the base if you do this job for me."
"Anything." Lennie nodded.
"Coercing a settlement for their generators? That doesn't sound like Brotherhood. Something doesn't sound right about this." Ulysses muttered to me.
"Now what I need you five to do is collect some...things for me over at the train station. You'll be meeting with some friends of mine. That sound easy?" Logan asked us as he looked at Rilee questionably.
"I'll wait outside guys." Rilee told us as she turned to the door.
"Of course we can handle it. It's a piece of juicy dandy boy apples." Joe said as he rubbed his stomach in pain from being elbowed earlier.
"Just say 'cake'." I muttered.
"I'll see you tomorrow." Logan said as he brushed his hands off of blood, and then punched a woman in the face again.
"Tomorrow...why?" Joe whispered without moving his lips or face.
"What was that?" Logan asked us.
"He was saying... uh, why can't we use some of our tech out here? There seems to be a problem with my mapping interface." I asked.
"Do I look like a pussy science bitch to you? Do I wear glasses? Do I jerk my fucking dick to comic books?"
I preemptively elbowed Joe in the ribs before he could even open his mouth.
"No... sir." Joe said hardly in tone.
"You people are going to give me organ damage if you keep doing this." Joe grunted at us.
"Then don't speak." Ulysses told him.
"No more questions. You have work to do. You all can leave, except Len." Logan said as he punched the woman in the forehead.
Joe then forced out a smile, showing teeth, and turned around to the door, exiting with the rest of us back to the loud club that partied even after what had happened.
"Does anybody else realize that's fucked up?" Joe asked us.
"They're probably paid for it." Rilee said as we walked through the crowd.
"Does it matter?" Joe asked.
"Kinda. I wouldn't mind, I'm not a pussy." Rilee answered.
Back in the room Lennie stayed with Logan. Lennie turned to face Rilee, and the two looked at each other until the hired guns closed the doors to the office.
Logan sighed and looked at Lennie as he wiped his bloody hands on a rag.
"Now to talk about what you owe me." Logan growled.
"Logan... I'm so sorry. But she's gone, ok? There was no way she was-"
"YOU DON'T KNOW THAT, LENNIE." Logan shouted as he got up from his chair and pointed a finger aimed underneath Lennie's chin.
"You think it didn't hurt me? She was my mother too."
"It wasn't your call to make... you're a murderer." Logan said as he returned to his seat. "And you were never her son. Never will, and never will be. And don't you fucking dare say another word. My men have taken a tour of your home, we've seen your 'wife'. You're a fucking hypocrite."
Lennie nodded passively. His hands were tied.
"I take it you know what I want in return, right?" Logan asked him.
"C'mon... We're still kids, Logan. She's 16."
"And you know I don't give a fuck."
"And that's what it'll take? That's what'll get me back in the town?"
"Yes. You want to return home, you'll give her up to me at your deal tomorrow."
"I thought you said it'll be just my group going?"
"Who the fuck do you think you're talking to, Len? You think I'll just leave you chucklekfucks to make that delivery? This shit needs to get to Nevada, fast and you certainly aren't trustworthy enough to do it yourself." Logan pulled out a paper bag of fuzzy dice and played with them.
"Nevada?" Lennie said quietly to himself.
"Do we have a deal... or not? You wanna come home... or fend for yourself out there with the Kraken?"
Lennie looked at his feet. After a long moment of silence, he stared Logan in the eyes with disgust.
"Okay... I'll give you her. I'll give you Rilee."
Logan clapped his hands and bellowed out a laugh. "Haha! Now that's what I like to hear, Len!"
Lennie's lips quivered, silently mumbling the hate he wished to release at Logan. He inhaled loudly through his nose and his fists were clenched.
"Tomorrow, my men will intercept y'all during the deal and you'll give her up. Better not be no fight, either. Use that classic charm everyone says you got to make her come home with me without a fight."
Lennie nodded. "No problem." He said weakly.
"Haha! Alright! Now get the hell outta here you sick twisted fuck. Go work on fetching me that poon, huh?" Logan laughed as Lennie exited the office and returned to the group.
"What were you talking about, Lennie?" I asked him.
"Let's just keep on going, okay?" Lennie sighed as he brushed past me, ignoring my question.
"What's wrong with him?" Joe asked me.
"Just shut up." I said to him as we walked outside.
Lennie sighed and looked around the night sky tiredly as Ulysses pet Dogmeat.
"Let's go, Dogmeat." Ulysses told his dog as he wagged his tail.
"Do you want to rest up?" I asked Lennie.
"He's fine." Rilee glared at me.
"We can't disappoint Logan. He wants us there tomorrow, we need to be there." Lennie said.
"It's eleven at night, we can rest up for a little bit." I shook my head.
"Look at that, sleep is your biggest enemy." Rilee smiled as she took out a canteen and lifted up her mask, drinking it.
"Is that coffee?" Ulysses asked.
"Eh, something like that." Rilee told him as she put her canteen away, and took off her mask, clipping it to her belt.
"You do know that dark roasts causes people to lash out and have elevated adrenaline levels?" Ulysses asked her.
"Ooh, a bonus. Goodie. Also just so you know its light roasts that have the highest caffeine level, boss." Rilee smiled.
"Where did you learn that?" Ulysses smiled.
"None of your business."
"Can we stop talking about this?" Lennie asked everyone angrily.
"Sure. Right." Rilee said as she raised an eyebrow at Ulysses, and flipped her hair out from her armor.
"So what are we going to do for food?" Rilee asked.
"Sarah packed the food for us." Joe told her.
"We're out. Our emergency supplies were eaten up by a bloodless adult and a dog." I told him.
"Nice job, Lassie." Rilee sighed at Dogmeat.
"Who the hell's Lassie?" Joe asked with a raise of the eyebrow.
"A dumb blonde dog that was stupid enough to get killed, kind of like this one. And this one." She pointed to Dogmeat, then me.I glared at her. Lennie walked between us.
"It's alright, I saw that little bastard's den not too far from here." Lennie pointed to some dead trees and rocks in the distance.
"What are you talking about? Who?" Joe asked.
A wide, sinister grin grew upon Lennie's face. "We're eating at Nathan's tonight."