Hey everyone, sorry for thelong delay. Life got complicated and I had a serious case of burnout. Hopefully i can get back to writing again
Chapter 7
Most assumed Jericho's name was fake or even some form of code name, but the secret brilliance about it was that was indeed his real Christian name. Jericho was a genuine article, right down to his own identity. He found himself driving out to a park near the Indianapolis suburbs. The ride was rough due to rush hour starting. He found the park where his siblings were and he parked himself in the parking lot.
Walking out, he saw a familiar brunette standing a fair distance from the playground. She was wearing jeans and a tshirt, while Jericho was still wearing his combat gear, just keeping a pistol hidden on him though. He carefully walked up to the woman and spoke softly "How long has he been here?" He asked. The woman carefully turned to him, a glare on her face. "Three hours. I have been trying to get a hold of you." She said.
"Sorry, had a bit of an issue." Jericho said. The woman turned to a young man sitting at a sandbox. He was about 12, wearing a bright orange shirt and black shorts. Jericho crossed his arms as he looked on.
"Has it been bad?" He asked. She merely nodded. "He misses you. You act more like Dad." She said. Jericho looked to her, "Em, I can't do my job and parent him." Jericho said.
"Well Charles, you might need to look at your life decisions more!" She snapped at him. Jericho snarled back, "My job pays the bills, keeps us fed, keeps a roof over us, keeps Sam's medical bills in check." Emily turned away, not wanting to fight anymore. "He still would rather have you." She said. Jericho nodded, feeling bad for snapping at his sister.
His brother was born to parents already to old to be raising a child. He was born with some mental issues, namely autism. His parents couldn't handle him and dropped him off at a firehouse when he was 4. Jericho spent a week searching for him and when he located him, he tried to force his parents to take him back. They responded by slamming the door in his face. Both Jericho and his siter have not spoken to their parents in years.
"I'm sorry I leave him with you like this." Jericho said. Emily merely nodded. "He made some great progress recently. But I think he wanted to show you." She said. Jericho shook his head. "This job is complicated. I dunno if I will make it out." Jericho said. Emily looked at him with shock. "It's okay, I have a damn good life insurance policy." Jericho said. Emily shook her head. "I don't care about the money, I would rather have you around." She said. Jericho nodded. He then walked over to his brother.
He sat down next to him, and saw his brother working on an art project. "Hows it going Sam?" Jericho asked the young man. Sam did not look up, drawing what seemed to be in front of him. "I made something, I needed to show you. I'm sorry I frustrated Emily." Sam said, not breaking his contact with the drawing. Jericho looked at him curiously. Occasionally Sam would 'see' things and draw them. Jericho kept that a secret from his men. Hell he usually didn't believe in psychics, until today when he saw someone making things fly with their mind.
"Yea, sorry bud, I have been having a hectic day." Jericho said. He was sounding non-chalant, but sometimes Sam made predictions that came true in his drawings. Sam kept working while Jericho sat with him in the sandbox. Eventually Sam stopped drawing and put his work pad down. "It's in my backpack. I think you need to see it." Sam said. Jericho nodded and grabbed the bag. He opened it and pulled out one of Sam's drawings.
The picture was of the girl from earlier, still looking at him, pleading for help. Jericho looked up at his brother. "When did you see this?" He asked. Sam looked at him, or at least as close as he could. "After you left for the day. She still needs your help." He said.
"Have you seen anything else?" Jericho asked. Sam nodded. "You were followed here."
Saverio was sitting by a park bench when he noticed Jericho walk away from the kid. He was under orders to grab this one at some point, but Jericho could be very crafty. But considering he heard a story from the kids parents about him seeing things got Dr. Brenner interested. "Just got to monitor this one. Hopefully Jericho will be dead." Saverio muttered to himself. As he wondered where Jericho vanished, he felt a gun on the back of his head.
"What part of personal time eludes you?" Jericho snarled. Saverio put his hands on his lap, he needed to play cool. "Look, I was just curious. You can't expect me to not learn about an employee." He said. Jericho was not amused.
"I am a contractor, not an employee. Once this job is done, I leave and will never work for you or Dr. Brenner ever again. And if you come near my family ever again, there will not be a crack you could hide from me." Jericho said. Saverio nodded, wishing he did bring a small assault team. He felt the gun leave the back of his head and when he looked over, Jericho was already headed for his car.
Mike
Will drove as Mike detailed his plan. "Your sure it will work?" He asked. Mike nodded. "It's the only way." He said. Will sighed, the plan was batshit crazy, but he couldn't think of another way. "Well, we should have backup coming. I called Jonathan. He should be bringing Nancy." Will said. Mike nodded, glad to have the extra firepower. "Well, when we get to Hawkins, I'll call Max. Hopefully Susan can watch Harrison for a bit." Mike said.
"She should, you know how she loves playing grandma." Will said. "Yea, and how her and my mom love to fight about who is the better grandma." Mike chuckled, remembering how the pair would one up each other on gifts for Harrison.
Mike was glad for Will on his side. Through all their adventures, Mike was glad to have him be the sound board he needed. They had a rough patch years ago, but nothing solidified their bond after a fight in the gym their sophomore year
Hawkins High Gym, years ago
Mike got out of the shower and was getting dressed when he saw the group approach Will. Mike could only get his shorts on when he heard the taunting.
"So Byers, I saw you looking at my friend here earlier. You like him you little faggot?" One of the larger boys sneered. The other boy, one who Mike suspected was the one Will was spying on, also spoke.
"Yea Byers, you want my cock in you?" The boy laughed. Will just looked embarrassed while shaking his head. The other boys began shoving Will around till one punched him in the face.
"Hey assholes! Need 5 guys to beat one person up?" Mike yelled. The others stopped and looked at Mike. Anger blazed in his eyes. "What are you going to do about it Wheeler?" One of the boys said.
Mike didn't answer, and instead ran forward and used his body length to tackle 4 of the boys back. He got up quickly and rushed the one still standing. The boy tried to run but Mike grabbed the back of his shirt and flung him to the ground.
As Mike was punching the boy, the others got up and rushed Mike. Before he knew it, both he and Will were being beaten down while someone was yelling slurs at them.
Hopper walked into the Principals office and saw both boys, heavily bruised and bleeding, but both seemed all right. The Principal, a small accountant looking man named Mr. Moran, was behind his desk, glaring at both of them. Hopper was never a fan of Will getting in fights, but this seemed unprovoked.
"All right, where are the other kids at?" Hopper asked. Mr. Moran looked up at him with surprise. "Well, they are in class. They were defending themselves from these two deviants." Moran said while glaring at Mike and Will. Hopper looked confused. "The hell are you talking about?" Hopper asked.
Moran got up from his desk and spoke to Hopper in the lobby. Mike looked over at Will, who was shaking. Mike put a hand on his shoulder. "Hey, it's going to be ok. Hopper isn't a mouthbreather." Mike said, trying to reassure his friend.
A few moments later, Hopper came back in, fuming. "All right you two, come with me." Hopper said in his Chief voice. Mike noticed Hopper glaring at Mr. Moran, who seemed to be slightly scared of Hopper's glare.
The ride was silent. Hopper kept his signature glare while Will was still shaking. Mike felt uncomfortable in the truck. "I'll try and smooth things over with your mom, but you Mike are on your own." Hopper said. Mike merely shrugged, His parents were not surprised by his antics.
"So that asshole principal didn't punish the other kids because he believed you to be a freak. Oh I can't wait to tell Joyce that. Just love to hear her go off." Hopper said with a slight smile.
"It's true though. I am a freak" Will said. Mike looked over at him and saw tears running down his face. "One of those boys, Chris, I thought he was very handsome. I think there is something wrong with me. Cause I like boys." Will said. For a moment, Hopper had a look of pure fury on his face as he pulled the car on the side of the road. He turned in the backseat and faced Will.
"You listen here William Byers, you are not a god damned freak and if you wanna love who you wanna love then I will support you 100 god damn percent. Your my son and I love you. Do I make myself clear?" Hopper growled. Will nodded and began crying more openly. Hopper left out the front seat and went to the back and gave Will a massive hug. Mike joined in after a moment, accepting his friend.
Present day
Mike remembered Joyce gave Mr. Moran one hell of an earful. Hell the kids who attacked them also got an earful. Just goes to show you don't screw with Joyce Byers kids. Well, Joyce Hopper now.
As they made their way into the Hawkins city limits, Mike's radio went off. "Mike, it's Nancy. We flew in as quick as we could. Do you need anything?" She asked. Mike took the radio from Will. "Yea, I need you to get a CD for me." Mike said. Will looked at Mike with a curious expression. "Trust me, I have an idea."
Jericho
Jericho and his men were in their trucks heading for Hawkins. Wheeler and his friends have a massive head start, but It will be all the sweeter when they catch up. Saverio decide to ride with his men, bunch of untested boy scouts in his mind. "Our orders are to isolate Wheeler and let Dr. Brenner finish him off. He is adamant about that." Lopez said. Jericho merely nodded as he began re reading Wheeler's file. He needed to know what the connection between Wheeler and Brenner was. Hopefully he will find out soon.
So, i hope you all enjoyed the chapter. So one of the reasons i got burn out was kind of felt like nobody liked this story. I am still contemplating deleting Baal. The only reason I push on is because i like writing and want to keep doing it. And i will finish this story before season 4 comes out.
