Happy Holidays and Merry New Years! Thank you again, everybody!
Warning: Character death
The office is in an uproar when it's announced.
"John caught the Chinese Mafia Hitman Quarry."
They cheer and laugh and celebrate, and Gatlocke's annoyed behind belief. John? Really? The reason why Quarry's been caught is because the Chinese Mafia abandoned him, and not because of John's plans. Besides, everyone already knows that John can't do anything! That's why he got put on this case to begin with. Because everyone knows that Quarry can't be caught.
But everyone gives John pats on the backs like he actually did something.
Gatlocke scoffs and looks back down at the files. Something here doesn't make sense. Why did Quarry attack the Consortium? What the hell is the Consortium anyways?
Two weeks later, Gatlocke finds an interesting agency called Providence while looking into the Consortium. He doesn't pay too much attention to it. At that moment in time, Providence is a no-name agency that looks more like it's been created to protect Consortium members.
At that moment in time, Providence is nothing. At that moment in time, Providence exists.
It starts with a small message.
"Your security is surprisingly weak."
Gatlocke stares at the computer in disbelief. "Who is this? How did you get here?"
"Just a curious passerbyer."
"This is a secure line. You couldn't have access here."
"Hey, this Providence... You really think they're nothing?"
Gatlocke frowns. "I'm tracking your IP address. You won't get away with this."
"Thanks for the info."
Then the connection's gone before Gatlocke can track who that is.
Two hours later, Providence disappears from existence.
Gatlocke doesn't believe in coincidences.
His obsession with finding who that person is transfers to his obsession of finding Providence. He gets few more messages from the unknown sender. Gatlocke knows that he's being teased with, that the sender is mocking him. But at the same time, it helps him tracks it down to this location.
And he finds the Consortium again.
He finds a scientist who's willing to damn the world if it means helping his brother. He finds a man named One who is just as obsessed as finding Providence as he is. He lies and cheats and worms his way in to everyone's trust.
And eventually, he sits across from Quarry.
"You're a scapegoat. You're the frigging scapegoat!"
"That's right. But you figured it out too late. You don't have any evidence to back you up."
Gatlocke howls with fury. How dare he? How dare he? But it makes sense. The reason why those messages had been so childishly mocking. The reason why this man in front of him did not answer to anything but the name "Rex Salazar."
"It's Rex Salazar, isn't it?" Gatlocke says.
Quarry's eyes meet his. He doesn't answer. Gatlocke doesn't expect him to anyways. He just wants to know the truth.
"How did he do it? How did he make Providence invisible? How did he hack into FBI?"
"That's enough," Office Calan says. "No more."
"Why did you block me?" Gatlocke snarls at Calan.
"Because we have what we need. There's no need to ask anymore unnecessary questions." Calan's outwardly calm, but Gatlocke can see that he's shaken. This man knows something.
"What are you protecting?"
"You're too paranoid, Gatlocke."
"If I find out that you're-"
"What are you going to do? Quarry's been arrested. Unless you're here to tell me that we arrested the wrong person?"
Gatlocke's mouth snaps close.
"Rexy boy! There you are!"
Rex runs, and before Gatlocke can give chase, a hand stops him in his tracks.
"Tell me, Gatlocke. Was all of this for the FBI?" One looks at him through the sunglasses, but Gatlocke isn't bothered.
"No. It's all for me. I told you, the hunt for Providence ends with Quarry's arrest."
"Then why are you here?" Gatlocke hears the unspoken "Why are you after Rex?"
"Because you and I both know that it wasn't Quarry who led Providence."
The two of them exchange a look. Then One smirks. "Good luck proving that to the judges."
"You lied to me," César says. He crosses his arms and leans back against the wall. "You were just using me."
"Oh come now, you were using me, too."
"I want my money back."
Gatlocke rolls his eyes. "Touchy, touchy."
"Stay away from my brother."
"Then answer me this. How good is your brother with technology?"
"Stay away from Rex."
Gatlocke takes the next few days for himself to reorganize all the information. There are still holes, but he's managed to fill a lot of it in.
It begins with Quarry's assassination of key Consortium members. It strikes fear into the Consortium members' hearts. Enough to create a secret agency "Providence" to protect them. But somewhere along the line, Providence gets hijacked by Rex Salazar. Gatlocke still doesn't know how or why, but this is an irrufatable fact that he cannot prove.
From there, Rex Salazar prepares everything. He reels people in, he tosses people out. And worst of all, he creates a fail-safe in case he ever gets caught. Quarry is just one of the many names that Rex Salazar probably used to cover up his tracks. Gatlocke won't be surprised if One falls into that trap as well.
The one thing that makes no sense is the phone call that One told Gatlocke about. The phone call from White Knight. The disbanding of Providence. Why would Rex Salazar disband it? It makes no sense. Worst still is his motive. Just what is he after?
Gatlocke gets to the hospital room just as an Asian kid is leaving. If it's any other time, he wouldn't have looked twice. But the way this kid holds himself, the dark atmosphere about him... It reminds him too much of Quarry to not pay attention.
"Hey kid," he calls.
"Yes?"
"What are you to Rex Salazar?"
"My goodness, the number of people after him sure have increased. I would highly recommend not going after him in that room, though. Currently, the number one dangerous man in the world is guarding him."
"That doesn't answer my question."
The kid smiles. "I'm nobody."
But Gatlocke knows that look better than anybody. He's seen it on too many people's faces to not recognize it now on this kid.
"Killing someone isn't going to make anything better."
"Says who?"
Then the kid's gone and Gatlocke feels like he's missed something important.
One refuses to let Gatlocke into the room.
"I just want answers!" Gatlocke protests.
But One shakes his head. "It's not going to matter. He's lost his memories."
"I didn't come all this way just to be told no."
One sighs. "Five minutes."
"Hey there, kid," Gatlocke greets as he walks into the room.
"I'm sorry, I still don't-"
"Gatlocke. I'm here to ask you a few questions and I need you to answer to the best of your abilities, okay?"
Rex nods, looking at him with wide, trusting eyes.
"How good are you with technology?"
"I'm... not sure. I haven't used anything since I've been here."
"If I said the word 'Providence,' what is the first thing that comes to mind?"
"Isn't that... a bible term?"
"What about 'Quarry?'"
"I'm not sure why, but a mine comes to mind."
Gatlocke sighs heavily. Six is right. This isn't getting him anywhere.
"Uh... there's just one thing."
"What is it, kid?"
"Before everyone came in, there was this guy..."
Gatlocke raises a brow. The Asian? Is that who Rex is thinking of? "What of it?"
"He said some alarming things and I'm kind of worried for him. Can you... please make sure that he's okay?"
"Yeah, yeah. I'll go look after your brats. Rest well, kid."
Black Knight's death does not come as surprise to Gatlocke or any of the other staff members at Holiday Hospital. She was close to death when she was brought in anyways. But Gatlocke knows that that wasn't the reason.
The Asian looks at him bored. "What?"
"You killed her."
"I don't know what you mean. Kill who?"
"Black Knight. Did you kill her as revenge?"
There's a small silence before the kid sighs. "I want him to have a normal life. That's what he asked for. That's what I'm giving him."
"But why? Why are you so dedicated to him? Why did Quarry sacrifice himself? Why did you risk getting caught as a murderer?"
"Do you know why Rex Salazar became who he is? There was a girl. There's always a girl. She was his everything. I never understood that. What did he see in her? What was so special about her? She was dying. Everyone knew that. But Rex... He gathered money. He gathered troops. He did all of that by himself because of that girl. He became powerful because of her. But she's gone now. Don't you think that it's high time that he got peace? That he got happiness? He can have that now. She won't hunt his dreams anymore."
"That doesn't answer my question."
"I'm still standing over water."
"Excuse me?"
The Asian smiles. "There's no more solid ground left for me."
Calan holds up coffee as a peace offering. "You can't tell this to anyone, but I was part of Providence."
"... What?"
"Don't give me that look. I joined after Quarry took over, so I never had to bother with the sworn to secrecy stuff that White Knight went through. Ah, I guess that's wrong. Quarry's not the one who ruled us, is he?"
"No."
"You really think it was Rex Salazar?"
Gatlocke nods, and Calan sighs.
"Okay," he says, rubbing the back of his neck. "This didn't come from me but..."
Gatlocke snarls. These people are driving him mad! Beverly Holiday, little sister to Dr. Rebecca Holiday, was the cause for Rex Salazar's motives. She's the reason why he moved the pieces, why he did everything. But there's still a gap. What changed his mind? Why did he suddenly disband Providence?
He slams his hands down on her desk. "Tell me the answer," he grits out.
Holiday doesn't even bat an eyelash. "My sister recently died and this is what you bring to my office? Get out."
"Not until I know why!"
"Why does it matter to you?"
"Because I've come too far to not leave without the truth!"
Holiday rubs her temples and takes a deep breath. "You want the truth? Fine. They fought. Beverly asked him to quit. Rex refused. He got into a motorcycle accident later that day. Since then, he stopped visiting until she..."
"She died waiting for him. And he stopped because..."
And the pieces finally fits together.
Gatlocke punches the hall and earn himself dirty looks from the staff. He can see Rex Salazar in his room, surrounded by his family and friends. He smiles and laughs with them, everyone chattering excitedly as they try to fill in the gaps in Rex's memories.
But don't they get it?
That's the biggest con.
Rex looks up and their eyes meet. Rex smirks at him and even without words, Gatlocke understands. He understands and it burns him because damn it! He should've seen this coming! He was too short-sighted! Why did he think that everything would be over once Quarry was arrested? Why did he think that everything would be fine once he figured out the truth?
Rex Salazar never lost his memories.
He's just given Gatlocke pieces and scraps. He's pointed Gatlocke in the vague direction of the truth. And Gatlocke realizes with a start that this was in the plans since the moment the first message arrived. Rex Salazar set all of this up all for this moment, for when Beverly died. Rex had been the shadowy hand that guided Gatlocke through the steps, had handed him all the pieces of the puzzles, and Gatlocke had taken everything without a grain of doubt because he truly believed that he discovered it all on his own.
In order to quit everything quietly once Beverly died, he used Quarry as a scapegoat. In order for that to happen, he needed someone with power to be obsessed with catching an organization and what better organization than one that "didn't exist"? In order for everything to come to this perfect conclusion, Rex Salazar manipulated all the pieces to perfection.
And now Rex Salazar sits on the other side of the door, untouchable by the law or any of the consequences for what he's done.
Gatlocke laughs. Because no, that's not quite true. Rex Salazar is untouchable by law at this moment in time, but there will be consequences for what he's done. After all, Rex had a taste of the underground world (He and all his friends that he's dragged through the muck). He wouldn't be able to adjust to a normal life (Just like his Asian friend). It's only a matter of time before they meet again.
And when they do, Gatlocke won't hesitate to arrest him.
He does have a reputation to keep, after all.