Chapter 17
A few days passed.
Each morning, King and Meliodas took the time to walk me through bits and pieces of what they found. It's more than I ever could have hoped for and honestly, a bit overwhelming. But the men had been surprisingly patient with me. They didn't answer every question I asked fully, and I didn't expect them too. Instead, they'd have one of those damn silent conversations before one of them answered enough to satisfy my curiosity.
It's weird. How well they could do that.
More often than not, my mind wandered to how the two of them could be on such a high level of nonverbal communication. It's something all three of the men seemed to be capable of actually, and I found it more and more annoying.
And also more curious about the past Meliodas had forbidden King to speak of.
Even more curious about what Gilthunder would find out about that picture I sent him. I tried not to dwell on that thought too much. It would be another couple of days before I expected to see anything from him. And that was with the condition that nothing went wrong - there was no guarantee that I would even get the info I was looking for.
My feet pat quietly against the steps as I made my way downstairs. It's another early morning, about the same time I'd normally meet with Meliodas and King. But as I hit the landing, it's oddly quiet. I'd gotten used to the sounds of the two's quiet chatter as they sipped their coffees at the bar, waiting for me so we could get started.
Ban and Diane weren't usually morning people. From what I've gathered, everyone being up so early my first day here was not a normal occurrence. King didn't seem like a morning person either for that matter - a surprise given our early meetings the past few days. Only the blonde leader of the Sins seemed to to be. Knowing Meliodas, he was probably the reason King even bothered getting out of bed. I doubted it was solely for my sake.
I turned the corner and narrowed my eyes at the bar's lone occupant.
King.
As I took a step closer, he lifted his head up off the bar where he was obviously dozing and offered me a lazy smile and half hearted wave. "Morning, Princess."
"Morning, King," I nodded my head in greeting. My eyes traveled across the room, trying to find any indication of the other body that should be here with us.
"Boss is out this morning." He answered my unvoiced question as he stretched out with sluggish yawn.
I flushed lightly. "I wasn't looking for him," I denied lamely.
"Sure," King replied simply, not saying anything more on the matter. His eyes gave me a once over and I swore I saw a small shake of his head. "It'll be just the two of us til he gets back."
"Oh."
"Coffee?" The ginger offered kindly, sliding an already full cup my way.
I nodded my head and gave him a thankful smile. For both the coffee and not pestering me any further on Meliodas. That was one of the things I had come to appreciate from the Sin of Sloth - his calmness. If Ban or Diane had found me searching the room for their Boss, they would have said something suggestive. Where King… I'm not sure if he didn't care, or if he just knew how uncomfortable it made me. Either way, the silence between us had become oddly comforting in this crazy two weeks.
The bar was rarely quiet when I was with anyone else. Diane was an energetic person. When I'm with her, there's never even a moment of silence. And while I had come to enjoy Diane and her antics - reminding me how I desperately wished we could be friends - they were also exhausting. Ban was still a wildcard. He went from hot to cold most days and I just couldn't seem to get a read on the guy at all.
Meliodas… He's a different subject entirely. One I refused to stop and think on if I could help it.
I took a seat next to King, the aroma of the coffee invading my senses as I lifted it to my lips. A pleased sigh left me and I set it back down. As much as I valued the silent moments King allowed, I knew I needed to capitalize on this opportunity. So far, most of the information I'd been able to gleam on the Sins had come from this man. The chance to talk to him without Meliodas around was too good to pass up.
"What is Meliodas up to so early this morning?" I ventured, taking another sip of my coffee as I attempted to appear indifferent.
King barely spared me a glance, but I caught the small quirk to his brow. "Not really sure," he answered with a shrug of his shoulders.
The ginger wasn't stupid. I knew that he wasn't. Despite Meliodas calling him a blabbermouth, I still had to be careful with my questions or I'd rouse his suspicions. "He didn't tell you?"
"I didn't ask." He propped his elbow up on the counter, resting his chin in an open palm. I thought over what I wanted to say next as he took a drink.
"That seems… odd."
"Not really. He usually disappears at least once a month about this time."
"So you do know where he went."
He shrugged again, unbothered with my observation. "I have a good guess." I scowled at him and he chuckled, a small uptick to his lips. "It may be early in the morning, but that doesn't mean I'm going to spill all the Boss's secrets, Princess."
My eyes widened and I scrambled to come up with something believable. "I-I wasn't - I was just trying to make conversation!"
"And you're very good at it," he waved off my explanation lazily with a roll of his eyes. "Too bad I have to take everything you say as you trying to dig for information."
"I- that's not-" I struggled for words, caught off guard with his statement. He didn't say it as anything more than a fact - not meant in an unkind way - but somehow his words still stung. "That's not fair," I mumbled, grasping my coffee cup tightly.
"Life's never been fair," he responded pausing long enough to take a drink. "At least in my experience," he added, almost like an afterthought.
I nibbled at my bottom lip. "Has it really been so bad?"
King smiled at me, somewhere between amused and sad. "I'm a Sin. It's not a title I would have chosen. But it fits."
The Sin of Sloth… ran through my mind. How did the Sins end up with these titles? Why the name Seven Deadly Sins in the first place?
He didn't give me much of a chance to think on it as he pushed away from the bar with a heavy sigh. "I suppose, we better get started. Boss'll be mad if we're still here chatting over coffee when he gets back."
"And that will be….?"
He smiled at my second attempt at getting information from him, clearly amused this time. King said nothing as he filled his cup and walked towards the underground lair. When he's through the door, I sighed, already knowing he'd wait for me in the room with the phone. I grabbed more coffee and joined the man, ready to continue from where we left off yesterday.
So far, everything came back to this company; Commandments. Meliodas and King seemed convinced they were funding the criminal market in the city. Nothing was out of the question. Drugs, gangs, corruption, murder… Each crime or individual listed on the Sin's board had some sort of connection to the company - connections that were so obscure sometimes, there was no way the police would have tied them together. It felt like some giant conspiracy. But the one question no one seemed to be able to answer was: were they responsible for XGEN?
"You can tie them to murders our own precinct hasn't been able to solve, but you can't tell me if they're the ones developing and distributing XGEN?" I asked King from my place at the board. I was cross referencing info he'd given me with pieces hanging up.
He shrugged from his usual chair, "none of this is a perfect science. There is a bit of conjecture to some of it, which is why we go out and find the data to back it all up." He swirled around to continue searching the digital data running on his screen, "So far, though, we've found that major dealers of that drug do have connections with Commandments. But we haven't been able to find anyone who can point a finger at the source."
A frustrated growl escaped me as I scratched relentlessly at an itch that wasn't really there, "I just don't get it! Why create something like this? What's the point?"
"There's a lot of money to be had in crime. Sometimes it's about more than that, but mostly, it's about money," his eyes flickered to mine for only a moment before darting back across the screen. "And to be honest, this kind of thing can be a lot easier than earning a wage legitimately."
That made me pause. How would he know that?
"That's another thing I don't get." I started, finding my way back to sitting at the desk with him, "I know why I'm here. But I just can't wrap my head around why all of you are tangled up in all of this." I had his attention. His eyes were glued to his screen as if he's ignoring me, but he had stopped scanning. "This company has a lot of hands in a lot of powerful pockets from what you've shown me. Why would you all risk yourselves by trying to expose them? What's in it for you?"
King was silent. Perhaps I had pushed too hard this time.
"There's nothing in it for us, Princess." King replied quietly just when I thought I had ruined my chances of getting him to talk. "This is bigger than all of us, and we just want to see it destroyed." He looked at me finally. There was no anger there. Just resolution.
Bigger than all of them, huh?
"But why?" I pressed maybe a little too eagerly. There was a familiar determination in his eyes, one I'd seen in Meliodas before. "This isn't the type of thing you just come across and throw yourself into, King."
He snorted, amusement flashing across his features before he returned his attention back to the computer. "Isn't that exactly what you did, Princess?"
My jaw opened and then shut. Why did his question leave such a bad taste in my mouth? "No. It's not. This is my job." I responded simply, feeling the need to say… something to defend myself.
King hummed; the only indication he gave that he heard my statement.
I didn't push my luck any further. I frowned lightly, replaying his poetic declaration in my mind, before going back to the papers in my hands.
An hour later, Diane walked in with breakfast and thankfully, more coffee. These early mornings and lack of sleep were starting to get to me. I'd basically been surviving off colombian dark roast and determination at this point. At least King drank the same amount if not more than me. It made me feel a little better about the newly developed habit.
As soon as the door had opened, King immediately stopped his work to just watch her. Something I'd gotten used to whenever the other woman would enter the room in the morning. It was actually kind of entertaining to watch. I'd never seen another human being so enamored by someone as King was with Diane. It was sweet.
"Morning!" The brunette chirped merrily. She did a quick glance around the room before setting the tray of food down. "No boss?" She held up the coffee pot, silently asking if we wanted more.
"It's Thursday." King offered simply as he slid his cup over for her to refill. I mimicked his action.
"Ah, that's right," Diane nodded her head in understanding at his, what seemed to me, vague response.
She leaned over the table after filling our cups and planted a kiss on the unsuspecting man. I looked away, trying to give them privacy in the small room. Not that Diane cared if they had an audience. That was something I learned fairly quickly. But King wasn't near as comfortable with P.D.A so I busied myself with the food she brought.
"Morning, King," she mumbled and I heard her kiss him again. "I missed you in bed again. You weren't there when I woke up."
I flushed at her insinuation.
"Sorry," King replied quietly, voice regretful. "Boss's orders."
Diane straightened in my peripheral and I took that as my cue to look back at the couple. The Sin of Envy huffed. "He could'a let you sleep in until he got back, at least. What's the boss's deal? Having you spend time alone with a beautiful young woman?"
I practically spat out my coffee as she shot me an inspecting glare.
"Diane, you're a beautiful young woman, too and I don't-"
"So you admit she's beautiful?"
King shook his head but I could see the light flush to his skin. "Yes, Princess is pretty but-"
"King! How could you?!" Diane whined. Her bottom lip jutted out as she openly pouted. "You're supposed to be all mine now!"
"I am but-"
"I mean, I have to agree. Elizabeth is a total babe," she went from whining to contemplative so fast it made my head spin. "But if you want to do anything with her, I have to be there too, got it?"
My eyes widened and Kings jaw dropped. "D-Diane! That's not-!"
"W-we wouldn't-!" I tried to argue along with the man. My skin was far too warm and the conversation way too lively for this time of morning. You think I'd be used to it by now…
Diane's laughter interrupted our pointless sputtering. I should have known she was just trying to get a rise out of us. After me, King seemed like everyone's favorite person to torment. How they all seemed to have an unlimited supply of embarrassing suggestions, I'd never know. Nor do I think I wanted to.
"Diane!" King complained loudly. "Stop that!"
"Stop what?" She asked innocently with a tilt of her head. A smile tugged at her lips.
"Making those jokes!"
"Who said I was joking?"
Again, my skin heated to unhealthy levels. I had a hard time figuring out how one woman could be so suggestive all the time with someone she barely knew for two weeks. My thoughts were halted as Diane wrapped her arms around me, her chin resting on my shoulder as she stared at King across the table.
"I wouldn't say no if Princess wanted to have some fun with us while she's here," the other woman practically purred, cheek brushing against my own.
King fell out of his chair.
"D-Diane," I struggled to keep my voice even, thoroughly embarrassed.
The Sin of Envy giggled and planted a kiss to my cheek before pulling away. "You're too much fun Elizabeth! How did I ever fight off boredom without you here?"
"Hey!" King called from across the table, obviously offended. He frowned as he climbed back into his chair.
She rolled her bright amethyst eyes. "Of course we have fun King. But this is the most you've been here in a long time. You and Ban aren't usually around this much."
"... good point."
"Besides," she leaned on the table in between the two of us, pressing her arms together so even more of her cleavage was displayed. "We have a different kind of fun," she winked.
King's face lit up in color. "Diane," he groaned and there's a hint of a warning to his tone.
"Sorry, sorry," she chuckled and pecked him on the cheek.
"We need to get back to work," he sighed heavily as he ran a hand down his face. I wondered if these kinds of exchanges were as exhausting for him as they were for me.
"Are you kicking me out?" Diane teased with a quirked brow.
"Yes."
She hummed as she pursed her lips. "Fine. You're lucky I like you so much, ya know?"
"I know." He gave her a small smile as she made her way to the door.
Diane's just about to leave when she threw a cheeky grin over her shoulder. "Don't forget, no messing around without me you two. Or there will be body parts lost."
And then she left.
I stared at the closed door with wide eyes. "She's joking, right?" My cheeks were still warm as I glanced back at King.
He idly picked at his food. "About which part?"
"Uh… all of it?" The fact that Diane could make such a threat with a smile on her face had me wondering. She did the same thing back when I first met her. To the men who harassed her and to me when she warned me about sneaking out. A chill passed through me at the memory.
"The maiming, no. She's definitely serious about that." He looked up at me, brows knitted together in thought. "Honestly can't tell with the other part, though." He went back to picking at his food.
I began to eat my own. We ate in silence and it's welcoming. The time was spent trying to get my mind back on track to what we had been discussing before Diane stopped in. I found myself thankful that Meliodas hadn't been here to witness the embarrassing scene. Though I didn't doubt Diane would probably tell him and Ban anyways.
"... if Diane makes you uncomfortable at all, just tell her to stop. Or I can talk to her for you," King's voice interrupted my thoughts. My eyes met his and he gave me a somewhat nervous smile. "I know she - that they all can - be a bit… overbearing at times." He went on to explain. "I can't promise Meliodas or Ban would stop if you asked them to, in fact, I know they wouldn't." He shook his head. "But Diane would if you asked."
"What about you?"
"Huh?"
"They all tease you just as much as me… Doesn't that make you uncomfortable?" I played with the hem of my shirt so I didn't have to look him in the eye.
"I'm used to it for the most part," he replied as he leaned back in his chair. "And I really don't mind it coming from Diane."
"You really care for her, don't you?" The words slipped past my lips before I could stop them. My eyes snapped to him, ready to do damage control, but instead of the anger I expected to find, he's smiling. So I took a chance and add, "I can hardly believe that you two have only been together for such a short amount of time."
"Ah," he chuckled and rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. "I had feelings for Diane long before we actually started dating."
That brought me back to what Meliodas had said about the two going 'undercover' back at the Mayor's home. Which reminded me…
"Meliodas mentioned that I should ask one of you how the two of you met." I smiled and folded my hands on the table as I leaned forward curiously. "He didn't give me any details but he seemed to find it humorous."
King flushed and mumbled, "That jackass," under his breath. His gaze met mine and he chuckled awkwardly. He shifted anxiously in his seat before giving me an apologetic grin. "Another time, maybe? We really do need to get back to work."
Not long after that, Meliodas finally joined us. King continued as if he'd been there the whole time, not acknowledging him walking in, but easily incorporating him into the conversation. The ginger didn't give me a chance to question the blonde on where he had been.
And from the way Meliodas was acting, I'm not sure that I really wanted to.
From the moment Meliodas had entered the room, I could tell something was off. He was… irritable, almost. Something I wasn't really accustomed to but King handled as if it was nothing new. When Meliodas made an underhanded jab at him, the ginger merely responded sarcastically and shifted the conversation to something else pertaining to our topic. I thought it would have angered Meliodas, being blatantly ignored when he was so obviously trying to get a rise out of the Sin of Sloth, but he seemed… thankful. As if he didn't really mean what he was saying. And that made me wonder if King knew that.
Just what was Meliodas doing to put him in this bad of a mood?
Diane brought us lunch, no funny business this time - merely saying hi and dropping off food. She reminded us of the time, telling us not to get too carried away. The bar usually started to pick up people around four as people started getting off work. The Boar Hat offered a pretty good happy hour special that many people liked to take advantage of. Thursday was 'buy an ale get the second half priced'. One of our busier days because of the special. I could only imagine how good they would do if the special wasn't in the middle of the week.
"Diane, I've been meaning to ask you… where did you get that dress I wore?" I cautiously broached the topic. Diane froze in the doorway at my question. "It fit in perfectly at the party." It was extremely expensive. I could tell by the material and not to mention the tag. How did she get her hands on it?
"... it was a gift.." she threw a smile over her shoulder. But it's nothing near her usually bright face. Even her tone seemed off. I didn't get to question her anymore before she left.
I frowned, turning back toward King. I was shocked to find his knuckles white, hands holding far too tightly on a folder. His eyes were downcast. I blinked and suddenly he's back to sifting through papers. I half wondered if I imagined such a weird reaction from him at the mention of Diane's dress.
Because what reason would he have to act like that?
Meliodas was quick to change the subject, "so basically, this," he tapped a folder sitting in front of him, "is what lead us back to the Mayor."
"So you think he has a hand in running that Commandments company?" I dragged the folder to me and began looking through the papers within it.
"Running? No. But him or someone in his office is involved," King commented as he handed me a piece of paper. "I'm assuming you know what this is, right?"
"Of course I do," I rolled my eyes at him. "It's obviously phone records." My words come out a bit harsher than I intended.
The ginger didn't seem phased, shrugging as he answered. "Just double checking. You'd be surprised by the amount of ignorance on a police force at any given time."
"King," Meliodas warned.
"What is that supposed to mean?" I felt the sting of his words and it sparked my defensiveness. Who exactly was he talking about?
"Just as I said. Not everyone who joins law enforcement is a good person, Princess." He told me flatly.
A remark was on the tip of my tongue when Meliodas stepped in again. "Don't mind him. He's just crabby today. Probably woke up too early." He squeezed King's shoulder, the man wincing at the touch. "I think that's enough. Let's call it quits until tomorrow."
"At least let me finish this explanation," King mumbled, removing Meliodas' hand from him with a frown. "As I was saying, that," he pointed at the paper in my hand, "is phone records of calls from the Mayor's office. I haven't finished processing the information from the bugs we planted but I have a good guess at who's been making them."
"The mayor?"
"Close," that small smile King usually wore, returned. "His wife."
Dom: *Walks outside hearing the strangest combination of clothing - A hat, scarf and gloves, shorts and a tee-shirt, and fall boots* LUV! I'm ready!
Luv: Yay! *She beams widely, not at all thrown off by the odd clothing combination* You're ready for spring in the midwest! *grabs hand and starts dragging her along* Let's go!
Dom: YES! LET US DEPART! *Willingly follows, but then stops after several feet* WAIT! Where are we going again?
Luv: *pauses and thinks* Uhhhhhhh… *brightens as she thinks of something* A baseball game!
Dom: But… I'm not dressed for baseball! *Ignoring complete lack of sense of style*
Luv: *tilts her head* You aren't? That's usually how people dress for the first few spring games… *takes in Dom's appearance for the first time.* You could… put on jeans… I guess? But I have this for the random cold winds. *pulls a blanket out of nowhere*
Dom: But… but… I don't have a foam finger or a beer hat or anything! How can I go to a ball game without proper cheering attire?!
Luv: If you really need it, foam finger can be bought at the game. *starts counting off Dom's 'problems' on her fingers* You'll drink the beer too fast to have it in a hat annnndd *swaps out the hat with the team appropriate one* now you're covered!
Dom: YES! LET US GO ATTEND A SPORTS BALL EVENT! *Starts marching proudly in some random direction* LUV! TURN OUR PREVIEW INTO A SPORTS CHANT!
Luv:... Uh. No. No thanks. *starts walking in the opposite direction towards the stadium* Next Time on Don't Trust Me: Questions, Answers, and Sleepovers? Elizabeth is learning quickly that there is more to the Sins than she originally thought - And the Sins are starting to show her sides she never dreamed she'd see. Can she stay detached?
Dom: LUV? WHERE IS THE SPORTS BALL?! *Yells out into the parking lot*
Luv: *sighs heavily and ignores the odd looks from other sports fans as she leads Dom in the right direction* This'll be interesting *mumbles under her breath before saying* See you guys next time!