Chapter Twenty-Two: Lieutenant Anderson

One of Hank's first thoughts was to check the medical wing to see Jerry but then a better idea came to mind. If that didn't work, then he would check with Jerry. The only reason Jerry came to mind is because there was a chance that Zlatko might want to silence him. At that point, Hank wouldn't be surprised if there were more murders or beatings.

Hank scanned the hallway closely to see if any guards were near the captain's quarters doing their job. None were there that he could see. They could be scouting the area or they were actually inside and at Lucy's side. Hank was still on the fence if all the guards were part of the Sterns or not.

Hank silently made his way to the door and paused when he heard voices. He leaned in and pressed his ear against it. Connor watched him with raised brows and a tilted head.

"I've done what you told me." It was Lucy's voice, as calm as ever. "Now, I expect you to hold your end of the agreement."

Zlatko was in there. He had to be. Hank didn't know anyone else Lucy could be talking to like that.

"The thing you people don't seem to realize is that you should never make deals with unreliable people."

Fuck. That wasn't good.

"You don't seem to realize that you don't have a choice," Lucy responded. Hank had to give her props for remaining calm. "There's a lieutenant on this ship and by now he knows everything."

Hank frowned and furrowed his brows. Was Lucy really counting on him of all people? She must've known how terrible he's been in the past three years. Why she would trust him, Hank honestly had no idea. It was a terrible thought process to have.

Or perhaps it wasn't exactly Hank she was counting on. Perhaps it was the connections he had, the rest of the DPD. All he needed to do was call Jeffrey and let them know what was happening. Back-up would arrive in time, he knew because Jeffrey constantly reassured him, and the Stern problem would be taken care of.

That was a better thought process than trusting just Hank.

"Hank-"

"Shh."

Connor shut his mouth.

"I wouldn't rely on that old man anymore. He isn't what he was."

Hank rolled his eyes.

"He's just a washed-up, useless, old drunk."

What happened next was so fast that Hank had no idea what just happened and he just stood frozen at the wide open door. The wide open door that Connor forced open. The kid ran into the room and went straight up to Zlatko and Lucy. Although Hank stood a couple feet away, he could easily make out the anger in Connor's brown, glaring eyes.

"How dare you?!" he shouted. "Hank isn't useless!"

Zlatko, at first, appeared shocked with his eyes wide. Then he narrowed his eyes into a glare. Connor was supposed to be locked up after all. He also wasn't supposed to be bad-mouthing him the way he was.

Lucy on the other hand, didn't react outwardly at all. She was just her usual calm self and made it seem like Connor's outburst was nothing.

"You know nothing about him!" Connor was relentless. "He's a better man than you'll ever know!"

Hank rushed into the room and forced Connor behind him the moment he saw Zlatko try to reach him. Zlatko and Hank matched glares.

"How the fuck did you get out?" Zlatko growled. "It was Luther, wasn't it?"

"No," Hank snapped.

Technically, Hank supposed, part of it was Luther. He did let the two of them leave the room. However, other than that, it was all Hank and Connor. They got themselves free and left on their own. It took a while but that was expected. All that mattered was that they were out.

He gripped onto Connor's shoulder when the kid tried to step forward again. He didn't want him to have another episode and kill Zlatko, despite how much Hank hated the man. He still didn't want Connor to do it.

"Keep up your end of the deal," Lucy repeated, as if none of the shouting happened. "Let Alice go."

Hank looked between Zlatko and Lucy. "How are you related to Alice?"

"None of your business, Anderson-"

"Lieutenant!" Connor snapped.

Hank suppressed a groan. He appreciated the kid's respect but now wasn't the time for that.

Figuring he wouldn't get an answer about Lucy and Alice, Hank tried something else. "I want my fucking gun back."

"I'm sure you do," Zlatko said. "I want my employee back."

"No. He's not your employee, he's your prisoner," Hank said. "You aren't getting him back. Give me my fucking gun."

Or at the very least, his phone. The gun was more important but if he could call Jeffrey then he could stall while back-up came. He would have to do that anyway. He would just prefer to do it if he had his gun. It gave him an extra sense of security. His body was also still sore and he didn't know if he could put up many more fist fights.

Out of his peripheral Hank could see Connor silently moving in the background, going to Lucy's side. Hank met his eyes for a split second and understood what he was trying to do. Hank needed to keep Zlatko's attention as Connor tried to sneak behind him.

Lucy also tried getting Zlatko's attention as well, moving to Hank's side and blocking Connor. "If you cooperate, things will go so much smoother for you. You won't get as heavy a sentence."

"Oh no, you will. You're never going to see the light of day again."

If Lucy was the type to face-palm, Hank was sure she would've. He didn't care. He wanted Zlatko to know what was coming to him. He was going to make sure that this cruel man wasn't going to hurt another person again. Enough was enough. This had to stop.

Connor jumped up on Zlatko's back. He removed the syringe and jammed it into Zlatko's neck mercilessly. The man let out a strange cry and stumbled and flailed around. Connor kept the syringe in him and jumped off his back. He went back to Hank's side, but kept his eyes glaring at Zlatko's suffering.

"Doesn't feel very good, does it?" Connor growled. Hank placed a hand on his shoulder.

Zlatko groaned and ripped the syringe out of him, tossing it to the side. His knees shook and he grabbed the area where Connor injected him. Hank wondered how much worse it was when getting injected in the neck compared to his arm. Connor didn't flail around as much or seem too pained when he was injected.

It did spread through his body pretty fast though and it seemed to be doing the same for Zlatko. Hank decided to be the good person in this situation. He rammed his fist in the man's stomach as hard as he could and effectively knocked him out. He stepped back when his body fell to the floor.

Lucy walked around the body and picked up the syringe. She looked it over with curious eyes. Hank honestly had no idea how she remained so calm and didn't question this. He could only assume she had been in this kind of situation before.

"What version is this?" she asked, casually.

"The latest," Connor muttered, looking to the side. "There are a lot of new chemicals…"

So, Lucy was familiar with this. It made Hank's head throb and his heart hurt once again. Then another thought struck him.

"I thought you didn't know Lucy?" Hank said, raising a brow.

"Huh? No, I didn't say that. You asked if she was part of the Sterns and I said I wasn't sure. Or that's what I was trying to say."

Right, because he was gagged at the time. All Connor could do for responses is nod, shake his head and shrug. When asked, Hank remembered Connor looking confused for a moment and then shrugging.

"I'm not from the Stern Institute," Lucy confirmed. "I was, however, black mailed on this ship regarding a young child, Alice."

"And how do you know her?"

"We knew each other from long ago. I used to babysit her and tell her stories," Lucy said. "I haven't seen her for quite some time and now I know why."

"And I know Lucy because of Luther mentioning her," Connor piped in. He sounded exhausted. "But we never actually talked...I don't remember anyway."

Oh no.

"Connor-"

"I feel like there's something important I'm forgetting right now," the boy said. He continued to sound more and more tired.

Shit, Hank didn't want Connor to remember what happened in the lowest deck. He had to stop his thought process before he started asking questions.

"It's alright, Connor," Hank said. "We can talk about things like that when we're off the ship. Like I keep saying."

And he would keep saying it if it meant Connor stopping his questions. Connor looked up at him and blinked slowly. This place was doing a number on his mind.

"Fine…" He didn't sound too pleased. Too bad.

"Now, what were you two planning on doing here?" Lucy cut in. "You didn't come here to rescue me, not that any rescuing was needed." If her pride was hurt, her voice and expression didn't show it.

"We never said you needed to be rescued," Hank said. "We-"

"Hank wanted to see if his gun was here and that's when we heard you talking to Zlatko," Connor interrupted. Hank almost swatted his head.

Lucy nodded. "Your gun is not here."

Hank ran a hand down his face. He didn't expect it to be in the room. What he expected was it being on someone. Now that Zlatko was unconscious, he decided to search him and see if it was on him. He also felt around for his phone.

Some would tell him to use a phone already on the ship. He didn't want to do that. He wanted the privacy his own phone gave him. It felt safer than using a phone anyone could use. He didn't care if people called him paranoid for it. It seemed like the right thing to do here. Besides, Jeffrey knew his number and not the ship's.

He looked up when he heard stumbling. Connor had a hand rested on his head and he had trouble standing. Hank shot up and grabbed him before his knees buckled and he collapsed. Connor mumbled something Hank didn't care to decipher. Hank led Connor to the nearest chair and forced him to sit.

"Sorry, I feel strange," Connor said, a little more coherently.

"Strange?"

"Really hot and my head won't stop throbbing."

Hank frowned. He placed the back of his hand on Connor's forehead. He wasn't lying. His head was burning up, like it had been in front of a furnace for hours. He put his hand down. Now that he looked him over, Connor did look sick. His skin was paler and his eyes were droopy.

"You're catching a fever," Hank said. He sighed. "It'll be okay, son. We'll get you to a hospital as soon as possible."

Connor stared at the floor. "Hospital...Needles."

Right. There was no way Connor would be comfortable around needles anymore after all the injections. Even if he didn't have many injections, there was a chance he already had a fear of needles. Hank didn't know about that. But what he did know was that, after all this, Connor wouldn't like needles.

Hank placed a hand on the kid's shoulder and squeezed gently. "It'll be alright. I'll be there."

Connor lifted his head and met Hank's eyes. It took him a moment and probably a lot of energy, but he nodded. He even managed a small smile.

"You should check with Daniel or Shaolin," Lucy suggested. "They'll more than likely have your possessions."

Hank cleared his throat. Hearing Daniel's name would probably set Connor off. Before he got the chance to say anything, though, Lucy continued.

"Or go to the security room. If they have your items in evidence, it won't end well for you, Lieutenant."

Connor frowned now. "Why?"

"Because this whole trip I've been getting set up for the murders."

Hank wouldn't believe otherwise, even when they got off this hell hole of a ship.

Author's Note: Three more and we're done.

Oh and Connor really gives it to Hank next chapter xD You'll see what I mean when we get there.

That's all for now. I'll see ya'll in the next chapter.

Thanks for reading!

~Kurosaki