A/N: Okay, people reading this! I will ask you just one simple thing. Review! I have more than 70 hits for the first chapter but only two people took the time out of their day to say if they liked it or not or what they wanted me to do. Please people, who are reading, review! I want to know how you feel about my work and I'll take any kind of advice from you. Even if you just say one word I'll be fine with that. But I like to know how readers like my stuff. But thanks for reading anyway. If you don't review it is still fine. I would just like to get better as a writer, and I can't do that when no body tells me what I'm doing wrong or right. So please R&R. It would help me so much! Thanks!
Disclaimer: I like Pepsi. I have a reason for saying that randomly. Just like I don't own Pepsi, I don't own the Teen Titans. I'm sure I got at least one of you readers to laugh at me.
Chapter 2 Blackmail
Red X silently ran towards the small apartment squished between two other buildings. As he ran in the dark early morning, the boy started to take off his costume. The mask came off first to show a teen's face instead of the adult he tried so hard to portray. He had a pointed chin just like Robin's. His hair was a mix of the real color black and the died color blonde. He always had his hair in his face and blocking his breathtaking blue eyes.
The teen ran up to the door and fumbled with a key before quietly going into the small and rundown building. He took the stairs to his small dwelling that only had two bedrooms with one bathroom and a small kitchen. It was enough for him to get by, though.
Red X opened the door to his small home silently and came in with a sigh of relief. He had made it home! He leaned against the door while closing his eyes to relax. He rubbed his forehead as a headache started to form. Sure, he made it home, but without anything in his hands. It had been a total flop. He kicked himself for not picking up anything before leaving.
Red X picked himself up and made his way to his room. He was all worn out from jumping to different rooftops to lose the Titans for two whole hours. He had cuts and bruises from various attacks. A huge bump was on the side of his head from Raven's attack in the safe. It would hurt worse in the morning.
The teen grumbled a curse under his breath while peeking into the other room where his little sister, Valentine, slept. Boy, did he love her. When Red X was only eleven years old his parents died in a car accident and him and Val were sent to an orphanage. Valentine was only three at the time. Then when Red X was fifteen he and Val got adopted. But the parents were always drunk, so X took it upon himself to be Valentine's new mom and dad and got himself a job and house where they now lived. Red X was still low on money at the moment, though. And that had started the brilliant idea of being Red X.
"Sleep well, Val," the real Red X whispered into the room. His real name was Jake White. Another name he was known for was Red X. He had two lives to live every day. Sometimes it was just too much, and he would lock himself in his room for hours thinking it over. He just wished things would go back to where they used to be. But they could never be that way again.
Jake washed up in the bathroom and swallowed a few pain-killing pills for his poor head. It was around 4:30 in the morning when he finally collapsed onto his bed and fell into a deep sleep from so much exhaustion. He could only be an insomniac for so long.
He woke up to the phone in the kitchen ringing loudly. With a sleepy and annoyed moan, Jake glanced over his clock and saw that it was 5:15. He still managed to gather some strength and stumble out of his room to the counter where the phone was. He yawned before picking it up and asking, "Hello?"
"You did not come," that calm yet dreadful voice said from the other end. Suddenly Jake was awake. He stiffened in fear. It was Slade.
"So," Jake said in his Red X voice. He pretended that he did not care at all. "I did not want the job. Go get someone else, Slade."
"I only want you," Slade said. "And I don't take no for an answer."
"First time for everything, Slade," Jake said into the phone with anger burning in his voice. The more he talked to this man the more he got mad. No wonder Robin hated Slade so much! "I'm strong. I can take care of myself. I don't need your help, Slade. And I'm not scared of you! You can't scare me into working for you, so get another person, or dump the idea in your crazy head. I'm not and never will be interested!"
Jake heard a laugh from the other end of the phone, and it sent a shiver down his spine. The guy could be so freaky sometimes. And when the enemy laughs it always meant that they were one step ahead of you. This was not good. What did Slade have up his sleeves? What scared Jake so much was that he had no idea for once in his life. He had always been quick thinking and knew how to get out of the toughest situations. Right now he was left in the dust.
"I'll make you come to me sooner or later, my dear boy," Slade said. "You will come to fear me and respect me. I'm not someone to be messed with. Take the job before you hurt yourself."
"No!" Jake yelled into the phone. Slade was just trying to scare him with threats. "You're just talk, Slade. Stop bugging me and get a life!"
"I'm not just talk, Jake," Slade said calmly. He seemed almost relaxed at the moment. "You will see my power in due time." He smiled when he heard nothing on the other end. He had called Red X by his real name, and the kid had heard it. He then heard Jake hang up. Everything was working out perfectly.
"How does he know my name?" Jake asked himself while staring at the phone as his hand shook slightly. "Calm down," he told himself while closing his eyes. "He is just trying to scare you. He can't do anything to you."
"Who can't do anything to you?" someone said from behind Jake.
With a small gasp, the teen turned around to be faced with his little nine-year-old sister. She had her mother's looks while Jake had some of his dad's. She had long brown hair and lively green eyes. But you can't let the cute figure fool you. She was a little pistol and hard to handle.
"No body," Jake said quickly. He ran a hand through his hair and stared down at his sister who just watched him carefully with one eyebrow raised as if she was sizing him up.
"You were Red X again this morning," Valentine stated while crossing her arms in front of her and giving her older brother a stern look. Both knew stealing was not a good thing, and Jake tried to hide it from her most of the time.
"No," Jake lied to her. "What gave you that idea?"
"One, you're all sweaty," Val said while counting on her fingers. "Two, you look like you just battled the Teen Titans. And three, you're still wearing the boots." Jake's eyes went wide with surprise as he looked down to see that he had not taken off the things. Opps.
"Okay, Sherlock Holmes," Jake said while kneeling down to her eye level. "You got me. But remember that I only do that when I'm desperate. I have not paid all my debts yet, and we really need the money right now. Paying for your school is not a walk in the park."
"I want to go with you next time, Jakey!" Val said while using his nickname. "Red X is so awesome!"
Jake scowled at her in silence for a few seconds as he pondered the ridiculous idea. "Too dangerous, Val," he said finally. "Maybe I can teach you some moves so you can tag along when you're older. Don't want to be mean to kids your age, but this is hard stuff. And I can't have you out there with me just yet."
"Kay," Valentine said with a sweet and sticky smile. "I understand. 'Night!"
"Not so fast, kid," Jake said while grabbing her shoulder before she could leave. "Why the nice act?" He gave her a sly smile as she groaned in defeat. Kids could be so predictable. "You're never this happy and gay all the time."
"Jake!" Val said with a moan. "Don't use that word ever again like that. You know I hate it when you use it like in the old days."
Jake laughed at her and said, "That is why I do it. It is too much fun. So what's the problem?"
"You," she said simply.
"The other problem," Jake said without even skipping a beat in their usual bickering that was like their own love language. "I hate you," meant, "I love you". "You suck and I hope you go to hell" meant something along the lines of "I love you till the day you die and beyond that." To onlookers it could be complicated, but to them it was an everyday thing.
"You have to talk to my teachers," Valentine said with another sigh. "I'm in trouble again."
"You suck in so many ways it is not even funny," Jake muttered to her. She then smiled at him sweetly and tried to give him an innocent look. "You know I will have act like your parent that day. I'll get over it, but you're in deep doo-doo, kid."
"I'll buy you pizza," she said to him with an over exaggerated smile.
"Nice try," Jake said to her with a wink. "But I'm trying to watch my figure." He did a funny girl model pose to make her laugh. She gave a giggle and punched him in the stomach. She did not know her own strength and ended up knocking the air out of him. Jake bent over gasping for breath as his sister laughed at him.
"Since when did you have a figure?" she asked him with a wicked smile coming to her cute face.
"Oh, you just earned yourself some brownie points as little sister," Jake said sarcastically to her. "Get over here, you monster!"
"Oh, crap!" she yelled while running away from him. She tripped on the surface of the slick kitchen floor because of her socks, and Jake ran past her and tried to stop himself before ramming into the wall. Valentine let out a loud scream while picking herself up and running into her room. She slammed the door closed, but Jake cut it off by putting his foot in the doorway.
"OW!" he yelled as she slammed the door a few times on his toe. "Enough!" he shouted while jumping into the room with a smile on his face. "You're going down, kid!"
"Ha-ya!" she yelled while trying to hit him with a roundhouse kick he had taught her. He caught her small foot and flung her into the air. She screamed with surprise and fell into his strong arms. Her weight made him stagger back a little. She laughed at seeing him wince in the pain.
"Oh, you think that is funny?" he asked her while gaining balance. She giggled while struggling to get out of his arms. "How about this?" he asked her while dropping her suddenly on her old bed then tickling her all over. She screamed and giggled because it was too much. "Surrender!" he said above her screams.
"I give up!" she yelled through giggles. He finally stopped and sat down next to her with a satisfied smile on his face. "You're evil," she said to him while shaking her head and glaring at him with pretend hate.
"It is my job," he told her while laying on his back at the end of her bed with a smug smile crossing onto his lips. He sure did love these moments with Valentine. They were so close.
"But I like you that way," she whispered to him while curling up in a ball next to him. She rested her head on his chest and heard his heart beating. He let her trace her tiny finger over his scars and bruises on his chest as he closed his eyes. He was worried but tried not to show it. He wondered what Slade was going to do.
It was the end of the day. So far nothing bad had happened. Slade was all talk. Jake had nothing to worry about. He could go on with his normal life. Once he was done stealing he would be able to buy another home and live peacefully with his sister. He loved her so much and more than anything.
"Sorry, Dave, but I have things to do tonight," Jake said into his cell phone while walking closer to the elementary school where his sister was. He was talking to a school friend and was telling him that he was busy that night. Really it was Red X who was busy, but it was pretty much the same thing.
"Okay, man," he said with a smile. "I'll see you on Monday." He pressed a button on the device and closed it. He put it into his back pocket for quick reach and ran his fingers through his hair once again out of some nervousness. He had to walk Valentine home today because she liked to beat up some of the kids, and he had to stop that. She was a tough girl and no one tried to mess with her. She would grow up to be a kick ass rocker chick or something along those lines when she got to be Jake's age. Jake shook his head in amusement of the thought.
Jake walked around the school to get to the busy front where the cars were parked or picking up kids at the end of a long Friday. He spotted Valentine with her back to him. She was walking down the sidewalk and not knowing that Jake was there early. He smiled and was about to shout out her name to get her attention, but something stopped him.
He was stopped dead in his tracks. He froze in pure fear as he spotted one of Slade's robots in the driver's seat of a car that Valentine was walking next to. He finally kicked back into gear and yelled frantically to her, "Valentine!"
"What, freak?" she yelled back with a smile while turning around to face him. She frowned while seeing panic in his eyes as he ran towards her. What was wrong?
Then the car door opened next to her and two hands grabbed the girl from behind. She had no time to scream. One second she was there and the next she was gone. The door closed, and the car took off. No one had enough time to see it except for Jake. The only good in his life was gone and stolen from him. His whole heart ached as he saw the car speed off with his sister in it.
"No!" he yelled as he tried to run after it in a desperate attempt to get her back. "No! You can't do this to me!" he shouted while slowing down and watching the car leave in defeat. What was going on? Everything had fallen apart so quickly. How could this happen?
Suddenly his phone rang. Jake opened it because he knew all too well who was on the other end. He heard the cold voice of Slade ask that simple and dreaded question. "Do you still want the job?"
"Give her back, you…you…no swear word could describe you!" he screamed into the phone. "Leave her out of this!"
Slade gave Jake a hellish laugh and said, "It is your fault, Jake. You did not obey me."
"It was not an order, stupid," Jake hissed back with venom dripping in his voice. He could kill the monster for doing this! "Even if you did order me to do the job I would have refused. Die and go to hell! No wait, that is your home, isn't it?"
"I want to be fair, Jake," Slade said with his voice placid and unshaken. "It is not an order. It is your choice still. Do you want the job now?"
"What are you going to do to her?" Jake said with his voice suddenly changing. He sounded hopeless and weak to Slade. This was what the man wanted from Red X. He was breaking him down by hitting relentlessly at his only soft spot. Slade was so pleased when he heard Jake say helplessly to him, "Please, Slade, don't hurt her."
"So now you're saying please?" Slade said with a heinous chuckle. "You must really do love her." Jake said nothing. He just shivered and tried to control himself. "I'll do nothing to her if you tell me right now your new answer, Jake. If it is still the same old no then she is in my hands and I can do whatever a want with her."
Jake paused. Slade was waiting for this from him and smiled under his mask again as he finally heard the words of defeat. It had been easy to tear this boy apart. He captured the only thing the teen had loved. It had been that simple. "I'll do anything you tell me to do, Slade. I'm yours to command. Just don't hurt her."
"I won't," Slade promised and Jake knew the man was smiling under his mask in triumph. "I knew you would see things my way. Suit up as Red X and come to the warehouse right away so we can discuss my plan. And hurry, or I might get bored and kill the girl just for fun. And I know you don't want that to happen."
-Val-
He said that nobody could do anything to him last night to her. It was a lie, but Valentine could forgive her big brother for it. Sometimes he was just too over protective. He always did not want her to worry about him, but she still did. Everyday she feared that the police would come into the house and arrest her older brother and take her back to live with her other parents. She would never see him again if that happened.
Now look where she was! Tied to a wooden chair and gagged in an old warehouse that could be anywhere in the city. She gave a pretty good fight and made it clear to Slade's robots that she did not like being kidnapped. Who didn't?
Valentine heard footsteps in the darkness around her. Finally a light came on overhead and she could see a table next to her filled with different gadgets and papers. A glass tank was close to the table. She had no idea what it was going to be used for. No one else was there that she could see. She could only hear the buzz of the light and the echoing footsteps of someone else. Finally she saw him. Slade.
"Don't worry, young one," he told her while walking up to his table. "You're brother will be here soon."
She started to swear incoherently into her gag while struggling to get free with all her strength. Slade paid no attention to her and went back to work at his table. She finally gave up and glared daggers at him. He was after her brother. What had Jake ever done to Slade? Jake must be worried sick about her right now. But what did Slade want with Jake? That was the main question going through her head.
Some birds flew away from the rafters, and this got Slade's attention. He turned around and put his hands behind his back as if waiting for someone. Valentine could see nothing in the dark and waited just like Slade was. Then a figure came into view. Red X was here. But at first he stayed in the darkness right next to the edge of the light from above as if he was only a shadow. He was unsure of himself.
"Glad you chose to come, Red X," Slade said to him in that usual calm and collected tone.
"Where is she?" Red X demanded while walking steadily up to the man with his hands curled up into tight fists. Valentine knew that he was boiling inside. She had never seen him this angry before. It kind of scared her. She hoped he did not start a fight with Slade. If that happened, the results would not be happy ones.
"Right here," Slade said while pointing over to Valentine.
"Let her go," Red X said while heading for his sister.
"Patience, X," Slade said calmly, and Jake stopped suddenly as he saw one of Slade's robots come up from behind Valentine with a knife in its hands. He took a step forward and stopped again as the knife was pressed up against his little sister's throat. He could see her eyes go wide with fright and it killed him inside. This had been his fault.
"What do you want?" Jake snapped at Slade. He had a bunch of pent up anger in his body. He was ready to strangle Slade. But he had to keep a cool and level head. He had to think things through. "And how do you know so much about me?"
"You were good at covering up your tracks," Slade said while walking up to Red X and standing behind him. "For some reason you knew where to find the suit. No one ever knew that the real Red X was Robin. You knew because you were there when the boy took off his mask. I caught you on videotape afterwards. I did some research on you and found out your whole past. The Red X idea was very clever and you somehow had the skills for it. I'm still not sure how you know how to fight so well, but it does not matter now. You now work for me. You're in my control."
"So you know about my past," Jake yelled at him. He spun around and said, "What I don't get is why you want me in the first place?"
"I'm going to use you to get to something I want," Slade said. "I want Robin of the Teen Titans. The only way to take him right now is to fool his little friends. To pull the wool over their eyes, I need to make them believe that they still have Robin. To make them believe that, I need someone to be and act like Robin. That someone is you."
"So you want me to be a clone boy?" Jake asked him in a disgusted tone. He thought on it for a few seconds then said, "It will never work."
"It will work," Slade said with a hint of annoyance in his voice. "You would look exactly like Robin if you cut the hair and put on his mask and uniform. You think like him. You even fight like him. So you two are not exactly like each other, so what? I can train you to be like him in most ways. At the right time, I capture Robin and you take his place like nothing happened. The others will never see it coming till it is too late. By that time I'll be out of the country, and you will be somewhere else."
"And what if I screw up?" Jake asked him. The plan could work. What Jake did not like was that he would be the one betraying the Titans.
Slade shrugged and said, "Then you're sister will pay for your mistake."
"You can't…" Jake started but stopped when he realized that Slade could and would kill her with no mercy. "Fine," he finally said with a sigh of hopelessness. It was not easy to admit that Slade had beaten him. But what could he do? Fighting would only kill Valentine. "Why do you want Robin so much?" he asked Slade while looking strangely at the man.
"I have my own reasons for the boy," Slade said. "I don't need to tell you all of them."
"Just one more thing, Slade," Jake said. "Let me talk to my sister now."
Slade thought it over then shrugged again. "I don't see any harm in it," he said. He waved to his robots and Valentine was free from her binds and gag. Slade watched as she kicked one of the robots before running over to her brother. He would have a hard time controlling this one. She had a lot of spunk in her.
"Don't do it, Jakey," was the first thing she said to him. "Slade is insane. The plan will never work!"
Red X took off his mask so he could look his little sister in the eyes. He could see that she was really scared under that hard shell. He kneeled down in front of her and held onto her small shoulders. This broke her down and tears formed in her eyes.
"I have to do this, Val," he said quietly to her. "I don't want to, but I have to. You understand?"
She nodded and then buried her face into his chest and cried softly. "I'm scared," she whispered to him so only he could hear. Slade could see the pain in the teen's face as he wrapped his arms around her to comfort her. He smiled under his mask in pure joy of seeing the teen being so tormented by emotions. This was what he loved.
"Shh," Jake whispered to her. "Why do we fall, Val?"
She gave a small giggle and looked up at him. Her cheeks were all wet from her tears and her eyes were red and puffy from crying. "How many times did we see that movie?" she asked him with a smile. She was referring to the movie Batman Begins. They had seen the movie so many times it was not even funny.
"But why do we fall?" he asked her again with a forced smile.
She sighed and said, "To learn to pick ourselves up."
"We will pick ourselves up after this, Val," he told her. "I might get paid. If that happens we can get a new home somewhere else and not have to do this kind of stuff ever again. I promise that I will never let this kind of thing happen to you again. And I promise that you will not get hurt."
"Promise?" she asked him with a hopeful smile.
"Cross my heart and hope to die," he said with a nod. "I'll even shake on it." She hesitated but did the crazy handshake with him anyway. They both slammed their fists together and then shook hands while spitting on the floor. "We might need a different handshake," he said with a small laugh.
Valentine giggled at how goofy they must have looked in front of Slade. Jake smiled at her while pushing a lock of her beautiful brown hair out of her eyes. He then kissed her on the forehead and said, "Now, be your bad ass self and hang in there till I come back." She giggled again at his cockiness. Suddenly she was not so scared anymore.
Slade was now confused. He thought there would be a lot of tears shared between the two siblings. He was also kind of mad that Jake had turned the tables on him once again. He had somehow gotten the girl to laugh. Then they made some kind of promise and did a funny handshake on it. Once again Jake had surprised Slade. The boy could be strong in the worst of times. Another quality Slade saw in Robin. Picking Red X to switch with Robin was such a good choice.
Once Valentine was taken away it was only Jake and Slade. The teen looked to the floor with a small frown on his face. He fidgeted with his mask as Slade came up to him. He had cheered up Valentine, but he had not cheered himself up.
"How touching," Slade said while circling the teen with his one eye narrowing on him. His voice was cold and harsh and always seemed to strike Jake at just the right places to make shivers go down his spine. "But what if her big brother can't live up to his little promise?"
"I rarely make promises, Slade," Jake said while glaring at the man with hatred burning inside of him. He still kept his emotions in check and only let a little slip out to make a point to Slade. "But when I make them I always live up to them. You do not have to fear that I'll fail. I'll do this for you with no more complaining and no mess-ups for here on out. But remember that I'm not doing it for you. I'm only doing it for Valentine. After this I don't want to see your face ever again. I'll just take my sister and leave. Don't bother me or her after that."
"Sounds like a good deal," Slade said. "Fine, Jake. I'll leave you completely alone after you do this for me unless something goes wrong. Not only will your sister die if that happens, but I'll come after you and kill you personally. So I'll give you some more advice. Don't mess up. And this time take the advice. You do remember what happened last time I gave you some advice?"
"Yes," Jake said with a stiff nod. "I remember."
A/N: So how was this chapter? I spent some time on it. I'm trying out new words from thesauruses, so if I get some vocabulary wrong then I'm sorry. I noticed that I'm using the same words over and over again, so I had to pull out my old, trusty thesaurus to get new stuff. Writing about Slade is hard! The guy is the best villain and I can't seem to portray is character right. Well, what do you readers think? Please, please give a review! It would mean a lot. Thanks!
