DISCLAIMER: I don't own the rights to Lupin III, nor do I own a pony, but I would like either, truth be told.
Um….
Let me just start this off by saying that I've never been called evil so many times at once in my life. Even when I drew a really a picture of Ally holding a hockey stick over a chicken and smiling evilly… My parents wonder what happened in my brain to make it so, ha ha. But, um, yeah… It seems like no matter what I do, Max ends up sounding gayer and gayer with each chapter. He could probably give Collin a run for his money. Anyway, happy readings, dear reader, I'm off to go steal some candy from small children and stomp on some poor defenseless butterflies… Because I am evil….
P.S.: If there are more grammatical mistakes than usual, please forgive me. I just had my wisdom teeth out, and the painkillers may make me a little loopy, hee hee… I'm just lucky that I don't think that I'm writing a Pokemon fic right now….
Chapter Twenty Seven
A Few Moments Later: Trust Me
'And the people—who hide themselves
behind a wall of illusion,
Never glimpse the truth—then it's far too late'
—The Beatles, 'Within you Without you'
"Fuji! Damn it!" Leo pushed his sister out of the way moments before Yukiko shot, blasting a hole through a nearby building, "What were you doing!? Do you have any clue at all, huh!?"
"Do I look like I know what I'm doing!?" Fuji inquired with annoyance, "I'm wingin' it! Mom and Dad never really prepared us for a situation like this! I've never really planned to have all of my friends turn into mindless zombies and try to murder me before!"
Max let out a yell as Odori lunged for him, missed him, and spliced a bicycle straight down the center. It fell over in two halves, and Max looked downward horrified at a still spinning front wheel. He stood, rose, and removed a pair of handcuffs from his jacket pocket. He swung them at Odori, and managed to bind her wrists. He did not count on her being small enough to slip out of them, and choked in disbelief as she did so and then topped it off by slicing them into small bits.
"Well, I'm out of ideas," Max muttered as he backed up against Fuji and Leo.
"Ari, think of something!" Fuji muttered hurriedly, "And think of it quick!"
"There's got to be something that will break them out of this!" said Leo, "There has to be!"
"Like what?" asked Fuji.
"A noise, a potion, or something… We have to go and find out," Leo replied.
"That'd require getting away from them, first!" said Max.
Fuji smirked, "I can do that…. Run for it, boys!"
"Huh?" Max inquired, puzzled.
"Max, just do it Trust me on this!" Leo said worriedly, taking his friend by the arm and running with him. Fuji smiled as she watched the group approach, and tore off her necklace. She removed a pin from it, and threw it into the air, and then broke off into a run. She heard a loud BANG!! behind her, and turned briefly to see a nearby dock fall into the ocean, leaving the hypnotized gang confused as on what to do next.
Fuji met up with Max and Leo in a vehicle, which Leo had hijacked, and they found a nondescript hotel to stay at for the night.
It was late in the evening, and Fuji sat on a small cot polishing her gun while Leo sat with his head laid on an equally small table. Max was still pacing back and forth in the room, and had not said anything for quite a while, leaving Leo nervous. Max was not nearly as scary when angry as he was when he was brooding. But LeBlanc was unsure as what to say to Zenigata—What could he say?
Fortunately, or, more rather, unfortunately, Max was the first to speak, "What? Why… How could you!?" he screamed, stopping in front of Leo and looking downward critically at LeBlanc. "Will you look at me when I'm talking to you and give me that courtesy, at least!?"
"There's nothing to talk about," Leo sighed heavily.
"My ass there isn't!" Max scoffed, "You're Lupin IV! I'm so stupid to not see it! I, I mean—You look just like your dad! You sound like him, too! You just use that mousy voice to draw attention away from it! No wonder my father didn't like you—It wasn't because he thought you were my boyfriend!"
"Your what!?" Leo choked, "You never told me about that!"
"It doesn't matter," Max grumbled.
"He thought I was your…?"
"Who the hell doesn't? I'll bet even your ex thinks it!"
"Don't put Ryoko into this, Max… What was between us is over…" Leo sighed, "I was scared, all right? I admit it… At first, I didn't tell you because I was afraid you would blow my cover… But later I was scared you would hate me… I didn't want to lose a friend like you!"
"Friend? Friends don't lie to one another, Lupin!"
"Don't call me that!" Leo snapped, "She's Lupin, I'm Leo LeBlanc!"
"You're a liar above everything else! You probably used me just to get into police headquarters!"
"If you remember correctly, I was there before you! They hired you as my partner!"
"It was probably all some elaborate plot…."
"Listen to yourself! You're sounding like some kind of psycho conspiracy-lover! Look at me, Max--I'm not smart enough for elaborate!" Leo fumed, "I can barely finish a damn jigsaw puzzle! I don't have patience for it!"
"Don't yell at me!" shouted Max.
"Don't yell at me!" Leo retorted, "You, you…. You sound just like your dad!"
A hand went up, and Max slapped Leo clear across the face, "That's…. Crossing the line…" he muttered to a stunned Leo.
"You blond son of a bitch!" Leo yelped, "You—At least your dad had some compassion for people! You don't even have that!" Max said nothing, but gritted his teeth together, and stood in front of Leo, has fists clenched and shaking. He hadn't meant to slap LeBlanc, but the crack about Zenigata had sent him over the edge, "You hate being compared to your dad…. Hee hee… Don't you think I hate being compared to both of my parents!? I'm trying to go straight here, and you can't get over the fact that my parents were two of the greatest criminals in history! I'm nothing like them!"
"You're all alike when it comes down to it. You're nothing but a Wolf in sheep's clothing…"
"Blah, blah, blah… You two are like a crotchety old couple…" muttered Fuji, "You two will be one of those cute old couples who go gambling in Vegas together in the matching shirts and fannypacks, I can see it now."
"We aren't a couple!" Max replied, snapping his head back at Fuji.
"Please. You wouldn't be bitching at one another like you are if you didn't care about one another…. If you really didn't think that much about him, Zenigata, you wouldn't be feeling so betrayed. And you look like someone just kicked you in your shins, LeBlanc. If you two aren't, you know, you're at least really good friends. Like brothers, I guess. Zenigata would be the brother you would've had had mom not made dad get a vasectomy, Leo."
"Mom made Dad…?"
"You sound like that surprises you," Fuji chuckled, laying down her gun on the bed, "Now you two kiss and make up… Just don't go doing the kissing in front of me, you hear? I'm just not that type of girl!"
"My head's starting to hurt," Max muttered, seating himself and removing his glasses, "I think you're both giving me a tumor…"
"Oh, can I name it!?" Fuji asked excitedly. Both Leo and Max looked toward her with looks of question. "What?"
Leo kneeled down in front of Max, and sighed, "You know what, I thought I was paying back my debts by helping to rid the world of bad people, like I was, but I guess it wasn't enough. Zenigata, if you really feel that it's in the best interest of everyone to arrest me, then do it. I won't stop you. I know you'd do the right thing, Max-- You always do. That's what makes me look up to you like I do. Just keep in mind that no matter what you do, I can't bring that man back to life. I'm sorry for what I did, and if you feel that arresting me's the best thing to do… Then arrest me, okay?"
"I… You're serious…"
"Uh-huh," Leo nodded, "Just let me help Fuji, and then we'll go to UN headquarters, and I'll turn myself in. No tricks, I promise."
"Aren't you going to talk some sense into him!?" Max yelped, looking onward at a reclined Fuji, "He's telling me he wants to go to jail, when he knows damn well that they'll hang him up like a Christmas ornament the first chance they get!"
"If he wants to go to prison, let him," Fuji shrugged, "He's a grown man, I'm not stopping him. I trust Ari to make the right decision. What he says, goes, according to me. He calls the shots in my book."
Max sighed heavily, "You know, if we don't put a stop to these guys, we're going to be writing parking tickets in those ugly blue uniforms you hate somewhere in Tours…"
"What are you saying?" Leo inquired as he watched Max rise and look out the window.
Max looked back at Leo, "You know, maybe we should go out…"
"…Say what…?"
"Well, you're good-looking for a guy. Smell nice, too… Imported after-shave, right? We could get married in Canada, even, and adopt about six kids. I could become a playwright, and you could stay home and garden… We could have cats, even!" Max shrugged a continued with a small hysterical laugh, "What the hell!? Would it honestly surprise anyone!? My dad, your dad!? Really, would it!? Ha ha, I'm such an idiot!"
"Is… Is this what a mental breakdown looks like?" Fuji asked Leo worriedly, "Because mom usually described it as being something like this…"
"Y-You know, you shouldn't listen to everything you hear, Max," Leo chuckled, rising. Max turned around, and walked back to Leo, and stared at him a few moments, "Zenigata, please tell me you're joking…"
"Oh, I can see it now!" Max laughed, "Hey, Dad, guess what!? I'm dating Lupin, and, even better, it's not his daughter! Yeah, you're right, he only did have one daughter—That he admitted to! It's his son! Oh, that'd put the old man in the grave, neh!? You know Leo? He's really Lupin! You were right, and I'm an idiot! Again! Ha ha, proved me wrong again, Pop! Your kid can't play baseball and he can't tell the enemy from a ham sandwich!"
"Am I the only one who's sort of scared by this?" Fuji inquired, "Leo, would you please do something before he hurts himself or one of us!?"
"You're not the one he's talking about, at least!" Leo snapped, looking back at Max, "Now, Zenigata, you're under a lot of stress right now, and that's understandable… Some people say really weird things when they stress out, that's understandable, too… Now you just need to take a few deep breathes and sit down, and get yourself a drink… Calm, all right? Stay calm, Max… How about we sing, eh?"
"I am not singing! That's where they get you!" Max laughed accusingly, pointing a finger at Leo, "Do you have any idea what it's like growing up knowing every Bette Midler song known to man!? I got my ass beat in school on a weekly basis!"
"Isn't he what mom calls 'high-strung'?" Fuji asked as she looked towards a heavily-breathing Max, who was now shaking in position as Leo continued to speak with him.
"Okay, Zenigata… No Bette, ur… What, then? Um… Just in time, I found ya just in time…" Leo started, reverting back to the old songs Jigen listened to when he was young and enjoyed watching the gunman work on the cars with Ally and Yukiko.
"Before you came my time was runnin' low…. I was lost…" Fuji interjected.
"The losing dice were tossed… My bridges all were crossed… Nowhere to go…." added Leo cautiously as he approached Max.
"Now you're here, now I know just where I'm goin', no more doubt or fear, I've found my way…" Max chuckled as he sang.
"For love came just in time… You found me just in time… And changed my lonely life, that lucky day," Leo and Max sang in unison, Leo eyeing Max's gun whilst he did so. Luckily, the lock was still on it, giving him a few seconds prep time to run if Zenigata totally lost it.
"Well, that did nothing for me…" said Fuji after a long pause, "Except make me wonder how I know a Dean Martin song in the first place!"
"Heh, guess I'm not totally like Dad, after all," said Max with a bemused smirk.
"Do you feel better now?" asked Leo hopefully.
"A little…" replied Max, seating himself at the table, "I… I'm sorry about the tangent, earlier… I was a little off of my axis, I'll admit… And, sorry for the slap, too."
"Yeah. It's okay, I deserved the hit, anyway," Leo nodded, rubbing his sore cheek as he remembered the well-placed physical assault, "Are you all right now?"
"Not really," Max said, "I trusted you, and you lied to me. You broke that trust, Leo."
"My name might not have always been Leo LeBlanc, but everything else I've told you is the truth. I'm 24, I have a sister, I come from rich family, I love to knit, women frighten me, I'm asthmatic and I like Charlie Sheen movies."
"The last one I was never told…" said Max, "Charlie Sheen?"
"Er, don't ask about that one, all right?" Leo chuckled shyly.
"Don't worry…I don't plan to," replied Max, a look of confusion still upon his face as he spoke to Leo.
"Oh, he loves octopus!" Fuji said from her corner.
"No, I don't!" snapped Leo, "I'm allergic to it, just like dad is! It'd make me break out in hives!"
"Great, I'll know what to feed you next time you piss me off… You can't bitch at me with a swollen throat," Max muttered under his breath.
"Ladies, I'm really digging this soul-bearing experience, but we still have a group of well trained, heavily-armed killing machines known as our former/current friends and/or family," said Fuji, "Don't you think we should be a little worried, guys?"
"Christ, she's right!" Max moaned, slapping his forehead, "What in the hell are we going to do!?"
"Give me a computer and an hour, and I'll figure it out," said Leo.
"We have some of Heiji's equipment at the hideout," said Fuji.
"Great!" Leo exclaimed.
A little while later, they had taken one of Heiji's computers, and Leo had set to work scanning through a few pages in a foreign language unfamiliar to Fuji in Max. While he did this, Max and Fuji set to work replacing their bullets with tranquilizers.
"Huh, you're kidding…" muttered Leo as he stared at the computer screen.
"What? You found a cure?" Max and Fuji asked excitedly.
"Ur, no… New Richard Gere movie coming out soon…" replied Leo with a chuckle.
"Richard Gere?" Max wondered aloud, "You like Richard Gere movies, too!?"
"That movie ain't the only thing coming out, apparently," Fuji mumbled, turning back to their weaponry.
"Ah, here we go!" Leo said with a happy gasp, "Guys, I've found it!"
"What, a new Hugh Grant movie coming out, too?" Fuji sighed.
"Nope! There is a cure!" replied Leo, "It's a sort of drink…"
"We have to get them to drink it?" Max inquired, rising and walking over to Leo.
"Shouldn't be too hard for Yukiko and Toshiro…. It is Friday after all," Fuji snorted, "Or, as they like to call it, weekly 'Drink Like an Irishman Day'…. Followed by Saturday's 'Where did we Wake Up Today? Day'."
"We have to go get these ingredients," said Leo, pointing to the screen, "I'm printing out the list now… We can divide it into thirds, and meet back in an hour."
"We only have one car, though," said Max. He watched as Fuji and Leo turned to one another and smirked, "Oh no, no, no! No way! We're in deep enough crap as it is!"
"You know, as police officers, we have the authority to take vehicles for the purpose of official business, Max," said Leo.
"And I am an unofficial deputy," added Fuji.
"You don't even have a badge!" growled Max.
"You wanna bet?" she chuckled, removing a police badge from her jacket, much to Max's shock.
"This looks real!" gasped Max.
"It is!" Fuji chuckled, "I swiped it off of an Interpol officer last time I had a run in with the offices in France… But don't worry, boys, it's neither of you two!"
"I'm so sure. Makes me wonder what else you have on you…" Max snorted.
"Well, if you want to do a strip-search…"
"LeBlanc, list, now…"
"Here," Leo passed the papers to the two, "We'll need enough for six…"
"Where are we going to find these ingredients?" Fuji muttered, scratching her head in confusion.
"We'll have to, somehow," Max shrugged tiredly, "Let's get a move on! Meet you all in a few!" The three went their separate ways at about two in the afternoon, and all joined up again at four in the morning.
"Found everything on my list," Fuji yawn, lying down her ingredients on the table.
"Same, here," Max nodded.
Leo coughed uncomfortably as he laid his ingredients out, "I couldn't find one…"
"What!?" both yelped.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry! I tried everywhere, but I couldn't find it to save my soul!" Leo moaned.
"And we were so close, too," Max sighed, shaking his head, "Now what?"
"Which ingredient is it?" asked Fuji.
"Here," Leo pointed on his sheet of paper to the loan word not scratched out.
Fuji chuckled, "You two are both idiots! You don't know anything about women, do you!?"
"No, but that's besides the point," said Max, "What's so amusing?"
"It's acetone!" Fuji laughed.
"Um… Yeah… So?"
"That's the stuff in fingernail polish remover!" Fuji chuckled wildly.
"What!?" both gasped.
"Are you for real!?" Leo wondered aloud.
"Here, I have some in my purse," Fuji smirked, removing a small pink bottle. Max and Leo read over the ingredients, and Max threw his arms up in frustration while Leo simply shook his head in shock.
"Won't acetone, like, burn a hole in your stomach?" Fuji inquired.
"So would mom's cooking, but hey, we survived," Leo shrugged, setting the bottle next to the other ingredients, "Now we'll have to get to work on it…."
"How does this stuff work, anyway?" asked Max.
"It tastes so disgusting it knocks them out of their stupor," replied Leo as he went to combining the ingredients.
"You're kidding. I could've just had my mom mail some of her steamed white fish, instead of going through all of that trouble," muttered Max. He watched out of the corner of his eye as Fuji gave a yawn, and turned to her, "Why don't you go to sleep? It's a long drive to prison."
"Good idea," Fuji stretched, and lied down on the bed, and soon fell asleep.
"She may be annoying and a felon, but she's still my little sister," Leo sighed as he looked back at the sleeping Fuji, "I know we could all potentially be massacred, but I still appreciate all of the time I'm getting with her. I never get that sort of stuff, anymore. Stuff I used to take for granted. I always thought it'd just be the two of us, side by side, until we died!"
"Must be nice to grow up with siblings…" said Max as he passed Leo another ingredient.
"Well, we lived together for a little while," Leo smirked, "You know that dream you keep having about the tree? That was me who carried you into the house."
"What?"
"Uh-huh," Leo nodded as he dumped a sort of strange gray powder into the mixing bowl and stirred, "I still remember it… You broke something, if I'm not mistaken."
"Uh, yeah," Max nodded numbly, "I thought I recognized you… Um… Thanks…."
"No problem," Leo shrugged, "We didn't really see much of one another after that… You know how some people just drift apart. It's a part of life we can't escape, I guess…"
Max paused, "That's pretty deep, especially when it's coming from a guy who's a member of the International League of Knitters."
Leo shrugged, "Hey, I get pretty deep under pressure, I suppose. That and the fact that I haven't slept or eaten in eighteen straight hours probably has something to do with it…"
"Well, finish up, and get some rest… Long day tomorrow. I have no idea how we're going to restraint them all… If we get them one at a time, we'll still have others to worry about…"
"We've worked bigger miracles," Leo reassured him, "And I have backup if needed…. We are part of an international organization, after all… Well, I guess you are…"
"I haven't taken your badge yet," Max smirked, "How much more do you have?"
"All of this," Leo sighed heavily, pointing to a series of bottles and bags in his wake.
Max stood, and cleared his throat, "Listen, this is probably the worst time to bring this up, but I've been thinking, and…"
"Tell me later, okay?" Leo mumbled absently as he commenced his addition of ingredients.
"Yeah, okay," Max nodded, and seated himself in front of Leo.
LeBlanc took a half of an hour to complete the concoction, and announced it to Max tiredly, "Done… At last…"
"Do we have to chill it or something?" Max asked, poking the bowl questioningly.
"Just give it to them," Leo yawned, and stretched, "I'm calling it a night. I've been up nineteen hours, now… Max?" he asked as he saw Zenigata slumped over in his chair, "You okay?"
Leo felt someone grip about him and cover his mouth and nose with a damp cloth, which he recognized as chloroform right before his vision became a blur. He fell to the ground, and looked upward to see Fuji looking back downward at him. He watched wordlessly as she lifted Max onto the bed and then himself.
"F…Fuji…" he choked.
"Shh… Thanks for your help, but I can take it from here," Fuji whispered, "You just take a nice little nap, now, Bro. I'll see you and Blondie around… If I make it back alive…" she chuckled wryly.
"Stop…" Leo wanted to shout, but felt no words come out as Fuji took the large bowl from the table and left the rank hotel room. He soon fell into a deep sleep, and Fuji took their only legitimate vehicle to the mostly likely place that Victor would be.
Toshiro and Yukiko were standing guard in front of Victor's small home in the Netherlands countryside. Both seemed like statues—One, a stiff mobster with a fedora, and the other a stoic samurai. Much like their fathers had been, in other words.
"Well, here it goes… Let's hope there's a little bit of them left in there, somewhere…." Fuji muttered nervously as she filled a bottle and tossed it at Yukiko's feet. It was near identical to Yukiko's metal flask, which she kept in her fedora. Yukiko looked downward at it curiously, and lifted it up in interest. She shrugged, and opened the flask, and took a long drink, and commenced to spit it out.
"God! Don't tell me I put sake in this thing again!" Yukiko grumbled.
"Yuki!?" Fuji gasped.
"Hrm? Fuji?" Yukiko looked to her left and right, and yelped as Fuji pulled her into a shrubbery, "What in the hell are you doing?!"
"You know who I am?"
"Uh, yeah…"
"And you don't want to kill me?" Fuji asked hopefully.
"Well, not right now, no… But if you don't let go of me, it could change," replied Yukiko.
"Oh!" Fuji chuckled, and let go of her hold, "I'm just so happy that you aren't under that spell anymore!"
"What spell?" Yukiko asked, "What are we doing here, why did you hug me, and who put sake in my flask?"
"Okay… You know that diamond? It's evil, and Victor's was using it to turn you guys against me, and you all tried to kill me, and I had to get Leo and Max to help me, and…"
"Leo!? Max!? Where are they?"
"Oh, they're both back at the hotel. I used my chloroform tissues to knock them both out," Fuji replied, "The stuff I slipped you is the stuff that'll knock everyone out of that sick little spell that Victor has you guys under!"
"You mean, everyone's under it?"
"Ryo, Ally, Odori, Heiji, even Toshiro," replied Fuji, "We're the only ones, as is. If we get Toshiro next, that means that we can get in to get everyone else," she concluded.
"Um, I'm not exactly up to going against a 6'1 guy with two swords right now, how about you?" Yukiko said to Fuji, peering out from the shrubs. Toshiro had yet to realize that Yukiko was no longer on post with him, and continued to stare ahead.
"Hey, you're how tall, 5'4? He's only got about half a foot over you," Fuji shrugged, "You could take him…"
"Cute. But really… I don't want to shoot the guy, but—"
"Could you give him a tranquilizer?" Fuji inquired.
"Nah, we'll need him to fight off the others… Especially Odori. She has Zantetsu, remember. And Ryo's a pretty good shot, don't forget…" said Yukiko, "And Ally is good with martial arts, and Heiji can use a sword when needed."
"There's something really amusing about thinking about Heiji doing any physical activity, no offense to the little patron saint of hackers," Fuji chuckled.
"Okay, seriously… How did you get me out of my trance?" Yukiko inquired.
"I did what I always do when I need you to do something that you don't want to… I offered you a drink," replied Fuji. A smile came upon her face, then a smile, which Yukiko did not like the looks of at all.
"Um… Why are you looking at me like that, Fujiko?" Yukiko asked with a gulp.
"No matter how deep a trance it was that you were in, you still remembered one of your favorite things…" Fuji smirked, "He may seem like a robot, but Samurai-3PO's still a human underneath the mask."
"And what does that have to do with me?" asked Yukiko worriedly.
"Everything," Fuji said with a wide smile.
Toshiro tensed as he heard a noise from the bushes, and grabbed onto the sheath of one of his swords. He let down his guard, however, when he saw it was just Yukiko returning.
"Sorry," she shrugged, returning to her post, "You okay?"
"Yeah," he nodded, looking over at her skeptically, "You…?"
'If this doesn't work, I'm going to shoot you, Fuji,' thought Yukiko with a roll of the eyes as she prepared to set up her attack, "Good. Tired, though."
"Tired?" Toshiro wondered aloud.
"Oh, yeah," she sighed, "I'm feeling a little dizzy, actually…"
"Sit, then," he said worriedly, seating himself next to her on a bench.
Yukiko took a drink from her bottle, and shuddered, "Here, you want a sip?"
"Not really…"
"Go on ahead," Yukiko removed her fedora, and smiled, "Please? For me?"
"Why…?"
"Just do it, you big idiot!" she chuckled, putting a hand on his shoulder, "Come on… Please? It'd mean an awful lot to me, Toshiro-chan…" Toshiro looked downward at her hand, and took a look swig of it. "Tastes like crap, don't it?" she chuckled as Toshiro coughed the vile liquid up.
"Yeah, I… Yuki? What are we doing here?" Toshiro inquired as he fell out of his trance.
"Long story," Yukiko replied, "Are you okay?"
"What is that stuff that you gave me? Chardonnay?"
"Close," replied Yukiko with a chuckle, "Fuji!" she called, and the young thief made her way out of her hiding place.
"I told you that you were his weakness!" Fuji said triumphantly, "Toshiro, how are you feeling?"
"Like hell," Toshiro replied, "What's happening?"
"Ally, Dori, Ryo and Heiji are all under hypnosis and want to kill me," Fuji shrugged.
"They had to be hypnotized to think like that?" Toshiro wondered aloud.
"See, that's what I told her!" Yukiko interjected.
Fuji sighed tiredly, "Anyway… Now we've got one another, so we might have a chance."
"Where're Zenigata and your brother?" asked Toshiro.
"Doesn't matter," said Fuji with a shake of the head, "We don't need them right now…"
"I beg to differ," Fuji heard in a sadistic chortle. Lupin looked upward at the second story window to see Victor sitting on the ledge and Ryo next to him. There was a gun pointed to Ryo's head, and Victor looked prepared to pull the trigger.