The paint wasn't as dark as he wanted it to be. The shadows were too light, things weren't hidden the way they were supposed to be. The buildings of the small village, the people walking down its streets, even the clouds in the sky. The details he could all recall from memory. The small cracks in the building where they had bought most of their food, the missing cobblestones near the turn towards the motel. It was all exactly where it should be.
And yet, it felt completely wrong.
It was all too…bright.
He sighed and looked down at his palette. There were several shades of very degrees of black and grey, even a spotless white blob, but none of them spoke to him. None leapt forward, telling him how to fix the problem in front of him.
He rubbed his eyes after a few moments, letting his mind envision the scene. Seeing everything he knows to be there. Then he opens his eyes. The two images are identical. Or…at least they should be.
He sets the paints down and takes a step backwards.
The painting looked finished. Lisa had even come by yesterday and asked why it was still on the easel. It did look finished but…there was something wrong with it. There was a flaw hidden somewhere in his lines and shades.
A flaw that was glaring at him. A flaw he couldn't see, couldn't place. Couldn't tell why it was making the entire thing look wrong to him. Off in a way that unsettles him.
Like a dream you can't remember, but still leaves you shaking in the morning.
He doesn't know how to fix it.
He resists the urge to simply paint over the whole thing and start again. A feeling he has had many times over the past few days.
He's staring at the small man selling handbags in the corner of the painting, scrutinizing every detail, when he hears a sound behind him.
A loud, crunching sound.
Roy turns, expecting Mardon or Shawna. Though the two have not been by recently. Choosing to spend most of their free time in the Mirror Verse. Even when they weren't watching Luthor or on a mission. Roy wasn't sure what they were doing in there. Using their powers most likely.
Axel is sitting on Roy's bed. A bag of open Doritos are sitting dangerously close to Roy's other finished paintings. Roy narrows his eyes at the crumbs that are littered all over his bed. The boy is reaching into the bag and pulling out handfuls of chips. Eating them without ever taking his eyes off the tablet on his lap.
"Axel."
The boy doesn't look up. His eyes focused completely on the screen in front of him. His crunching is only increasing in volume. Between the chewing and Axel's ridiculously large headphones, Roy doubts the boy can hear him at all.
"Axel!"
The kid is transfixed by whatever he is watching. Roy wanders over, slightly intrigued by what has kept Axel's attention. It was unusual for the kid to stay quiet for so long. Normally choosing to interject all manner of noises and commentary while watching a movie.
Perhaps it has something to do with the fight between the Rogues and Luthor's forces. It had been the only thing the news showed for several days following the event.
The first real sighting of all the Rogues together since they had disappeared from the cabin all those weeks ago. The cat was officially out of the bag about Scudder and Dillon working with them now. Snart said they had to plan for the cops and Luthor to start building defenses against Scudder's powers.
Axel is watching cartoons.
Roy wonders why he thought it would be something useful. He taps the kid on the headphones.
Axel tears his eyes away and glares at him.
"What?"
Roy raises an eyebrow at the boys tone and the level of his voice. Finally, Axel gives a long and dramatic sigh and removes his headphones. He then makes an exaggerated show of hitting the pause button. Roy feels a bit like a schoolteacher, asking a student to put away a phone in class.
"Was there something you needed?"
"What? No." Axel diverts his eyes. Staring down at his hands, picking at the flaking nail polish on his left hand.
"Axel…"
"Dude, it's nothing. I was just chilling…" Axel lets out another dramatic sigh. "Ok, so like, I was having this totally reasonable talk with Mick about his gauntlets and the dude flips out. So I took them without telling him, he was sleeping. Even he can't start fires when he's sleeping. Plus, I made them! They're technically mine. But then he said something about burning my intestines blah blah blah, so I said not cool. But then he makes me sit there and put the gauntlets back together. Even though his whole argument was that I touched them in the first place! I mean, make up your mind dude. But then he's all, you need to learn a lesson or whatever. And he's like making me sit there to watch him test them and write down all these heat measurements so he can upgrade them himself later. But he got distracted after he set this big tree on fire, and side bar, how the hell is he like pulling whole trees and stuff in there? Like it was real weird just floating there with its roots all hanging about. I thought I would rather watch paint dry than watch Mick set another boring thing in the Mirror Verse on fire. So I came in here."
Roy takes a moment to process Axel's rapid fire speech.
"You, came in here, because it was slightly less boring than watching a fire."
"Exactly. I mean I know you can't watch yourself paint but it's like super boring. You stand there for like whole minutes without moving and make like two brushes or whatever then stare at it again."
Roy sighed.
"Please leave."
"Whaaaattt? I was being super quiet! I've been here for like half hour. How do you not notice that by the way?"
It was common knowledge amongst the Rogues that Roy could not notice an entire army entering his room when he was painting. Cold had given him several talks about it over the years. That he needed to work on his situational awareness. That he needed to be able to tell if someone was in the room that could kill him.
Roy liked to think he had gotten better at it.
Clearly he had not.
"Plus, I gotta work man! And how am I supposed to do that if I'm on fire? I mean that's just irresponsible."
Roy almost said that Mick wouldn't set Axel on fire. That the man wouldn't do that to any of the Rogues. But the way Mick's been acting recently. The still constant fights with Snart. His insistence on wearing those gauntlets at all times, staying in the Mirror Verse for days on end. Not to mention, how annoying Axel can be sometimes…
"You're watching cartoons."
"I'm doing research. See!"
"How is SpongeBob research?"
"It's the episode where the Krabby Patty is…"
Roy rubbed his eyes again, as Axel began a detailed explanation of the history of SpongeBob SquarePants.
"Axel."
"It's inspiration man! Don't you ever look for inspiration when…"
Axel cut himself off abruptly and sort of glanced back down at the tablet. He didn't need to finish the sentence.
When you're stuck.
It had been almost a week since their meeting with the Wests. Since Iris had given them most of the data on the flash drive. And exactly five days since Axel had said it would take him an hour to find the information Iris wanted before she would give them the rest of the data on how to remove Snart's chip.
A piece of cake the kid had said.
All she wanted was some info on the homeless people that had been taken. Giving the missing people names for her article. Giving the public faces to link to the tragedy at Evergreen. The police and Luthor had never let that information be released, protecting the victims they had said. Iris had insisted it was so the surviving family members wouldn't ask questions.
Axel had said a baby could do it.
Five days of coming up against Luthor's defenses and being easily defeated. Three days since they had to leave their Italian motel and relocate to a safe house in Mexico. Luthor had been able to backtrack one of Axel's programs and had pinpointed their location.
They had all escaped unscathed. But Axel had taken the brunt of the blame.
The boy was becoming more and more agitated as the days went on. Spinning his wheels, second guessing himself. Sitting quietly and thinking. Not something that Roy generally associated with the bombastic youth.
And there was no one who could really help him with it. No one to bounce ideas off of. The only other people who had experience breaking into systems like that were the Snarts and Digger. And they all admitted it was way above anything any of them had ever done.
Roy turned back to his painting. He could imagine the frustration Axel was feeling, not being able to see the flaw in Luthor's code. Knowing that cracking it would mean Snart would finally be free.
That they would have concrete proof to show that Luthor was the one who was to blame.
It was all on Axel's shoulders now.
The others were trying not to compound the pressure.
But it was difficult when there were constant reminders of everything they'd been through. Mick's burns, Snart's ever present anti-meta collar. The news reports. The mirrors in their pockets in case they got found again.
Snart had actually sent Scudder, Dillon, Lisa, Shawna, and Mark out on a simple run earlier. Trying to find information about anyone who could potentially remove the chip once Ms. West gave them the rest of the data. Break into an old LuthorCorp building. Stealing records of former employees. Ones they could intimidate. Ones who had medical backgrounds.
An easy job. Meant to give the Rogues something concrete to do. To give Axel some space to just work.
They should be back soon. And Axel doesn't appear to be any closer to finding a way in to Luthor's defenses.
Roy turns back to Axel.
"Don't get any Dorito crumbs on my paintings."
"Dude would you even be able to tell? Like does this look just like I have dust on my fingers to you?"
Axel stuck his hand in Roy's face. Roy jerked his head back, avoiding contact with the kid's dirty and no doubt slobber covered fingers.
Roy isn't sure how agreeing to let Axel keep watching cartoons on his bed somehow ended up with them sitting on the living room couch playing video games.
Or why it was such an affront to Axel that Roy had no interest in playing something called Wolfenstein.
"But it's literally the best, like is there anything better than killing Nazis? They're the ultimate bad guys. No one can be sad when they're blowing a Nazi's head off. Ok, what about Resident Evil?
"No."
"Come on, we can start now and have it beaten in like 26 hours max."
Roy tried to think of any video games he actually remembered playing. He doubted asking Axel if he had a copy of Frogger on his computer would get him back to painting any sooner.
"Mario Kart?"
That was a thing. He remembered a few of his dorm mates playing it in their rooms.
"Ugh, that's so old school. Fine Grandpa, we can play Mario Kart."
Whatever game Axel put in, it was definitely not the game he remembered. He didn't remember vortexes into space on the version he had played in college.
He decided to simply go along with it.
Even if he kept falling off the side of the road and catching fire.
"How can you be so bad at this? It's your level!"
Axel had already gotten first place, his character raising its arms over its head. It wasn't Mario or the Princess so Roy didn't really know which character it was. It looked like a vacuum cleaner with a bow on its head.
"My level?"
"Rainbow Road bro!"
Roy was about to make a comment about exactly what he thought of the level when a turtle knocked him off the side of the road. At least he assumed it was supposed to be some kind of turtle.
"Daaammnnn dude. That Koopa Troopa just straight up…."
Roy glanced over at Axel, the boy was staring slack jawed at the TV. He dropped his controller and basically sprinted out of the room.
Roy watched the space Axel had disappeared from for a moment.
Did that count as a forfeit? He was going to count that as a win for him.
"Really been slacking off lately Roy."
Roy turned his head at Snart's voice. The man was looking slightly bemused by the scene in front of him. Roy looked around, several empty Red Bulls, three bags of Doritos, and small packs of Pop Rocks littered the ground around him.
"Axel…"
Snart waves a hand.
"I saw the dust trails he left when sprinting out of the room. Did he say anything?"
"No."
"Well, here's to hoping it was inspiration related and not indigestion related."
Snart looks like he wants to pick up some of the trash littering the living room. He finally decides against it and lounges against the couch's arm rest.
"The others checked in?"
"Hmm. Lisa said they found the files no problem."
Still there was something in the way Snart was sitting. Looking idly around the room.
"Digger and Mick?"
"Last I saw they were sparring in the Mirror Verse."
It was an oddly quiet moment. Incongruous with the constant rush and fear their lives had been recently.
"Do you want to…?" Roy sort of nods towards Axel's abandoned controller. Snart raises an eyebrow. Roy supposes he should feel foolish asking Snart to play video games with him. But he was getting that same feeling he had when he realized Axel was sitting in his room.
They were all in this odd holding pattern. Waiting for something to happen. Something that will give them what they need. For Luthor to make another move on them, or perpetrate another attack to blame on metahumans.
Axel wasn't the only one who was stuck.
"Maybe next time."
Roy starts to stand and head back for his room when he hears the door in the kitchen opening. Snart glances towards the entering Rogues, a small frown on his face.
"Where's the rest?"
Lisa is the only one who comes through the door.
"They decided to go for a drink."
Roy gets the feeling there is something both of them aren't saying. Something that they will discuss as soon as he is out of the room.
"So, I'll just…"
Roy heads back to his painting. Well. Back to staring at his painting.
Maybe he should go out for a drink, get away from it for a moment. It's too bad he can't go back to the Italian village and look at it one more time. No doubt it was crawling with cops tearing their motel apart. Trying to find any clue as to where they went.
Axel doesn't leave his bedroom for 34 hours.
When he finally does emerge, most of the Rogues are on assignments, staking out potential doctors to remove Snart's chip.
Roy and Lisa had scoped out a man in California with little luck. The man had clearly become an alcoholic in his years since leaving LuthorCorp. The man's hands would never be steady enough to do what needed done. They could only hope the others had better luck with their candidates.
Roy was only mildly surprised to see Wally and Iris West in the living room when they returned.
Axel looked like he hadn't changed or slept since ending their impromptu video game session. Roy was certain he could smell the kid from here.
Kid Flash looked incredibly annoyed.
Of course, that could have something to do with the fact that Digger was flicking paperclips shaped like boomerangs at the back of the kid's neck every time he turned around.
Roy wasn't going to mention that there was one stuck in the kid's hair. Especially since his sister didn't appear to be mentioning it either.
Roy glanced around. Mark didn't appear to be back from his recon with Dillon. Which was a relief for everyone. Hopefully, they can get this done before the man's return.
"Hey sis, I was just telling Ms. West here about Axel's discovery."
"Really? The boy genius finally came through?"
"Like there was ever any doubt! I was like, oh what's that Luthor, you've got 27 layers of security surrounding this? Well not today asshole, I was like…" Axel descended into making machine gun and explosion noises. While widely moving his arms around.
"Easy man." Kid Flash took a step back when it looked like Axel might accidentally smack him in the face.
"I believe what young Mr. Walker is attempting to convey is that he was able to get through Luthor's security and obtain videos of the homeless people that were experimented on. It's not exactly the list you asked for, but there are ID numbers linked to locations of collection. You should be able to do the rest. I believe an exchange is in order."
Iris stares at the flash drive in Snart's hand. She reaches out and takes it slowly.
"And it's all here?"
"Ms. West, it's like you don't trust us."
She smirks slightly at Snart's tone.
"I really must insist."
Snart waves a hand.
"Axel, grab one of your laptops so that we can show Ms. West the contents of your findings."
"Right so like, I was so focused on finding the data and I was completely missing like totally obvious holes in storing large video files like that. And he's hardly the type to have it on a VHS tape somewhere, dude thinks he can't be hacked so he can keep all the digital files he wants…"
"How did you manage to get through his defenses?"
Axel coughs slightly into his hand.
"Um, that's like a trade secret. And you wouldn't understand all the technical stuff anyway. Anywho, so…" Axel basically sprints out of the room to retrieve his laptop.
"Roy."
Roy looks at Lisa, she gives a slight indication to the kitchen. He turns and can see Mark and Dillon through the kitchen window, walking towards the backdoor. He nods and heads into the kitchen. He grabs two beers out of the fridge. Just a little interference to make sure Mark doesn't overreact to the Wests' presence.
Roy extends the beer towards Mark once he enters the kitchen.
"Finally decided to…" Mark doesn't finish his sentence, doesn't even take the beer.
Mark's eyes are focused solely on the West siblings in the living room. Damn open floor plan safe houses.
"Mark."
The man doesn't react.
Dillon takes the beer out of Roy's hands.
"Have a drink Mark. Might calm you down."
Mark turns to Dillon and takes the beer. He drinks the whole thing then tosses it towards the trashcan. Dillon glances at Mark again, then turns to Roy.
"So, they came through with their promises then? The Wests? They actually gave Snart the info on how to remove the chip?"
Roy looks at Dillon, but keeps Mark in the corner of his eye.
"Axel got the info on Luthor they wanted so…"
She smiles slightly.
"Good. Having a Flash around, even a baby one, seems like asking for trouble. I mean you know how heroes are, what's to stop them from just turning us all in now that they've got what they want?"
"I'd kill them first."
Mark's tone was deadly. Roy sincerely hoped the people in the living room couldn't hear what was happening in the kitchen. The last thing they needed was a bloodbath right now.
"Hm. If Snart lets you, of course. He seems awfully chummy with the heroes these days. Makes you wonder…"
Mark's looking at Dillon, focusing on her face. Her back is turned to Roy, and he has the sudden urge to just hit her over the head with his beer bottle. Roy doesn't like the way she's talking. Doesn't like what she's implying. She's only going to make things worse.
Roy takes a step closer, putting himself between Mark and the entrance to the living room.
"The Wests have held up their end of the bargain."
Her smile makes Roy want to punch something.
"Have they? Seems awfully strange that a bunch of heroes couldn't find this information out for themselves. And that they still haven't gone public about what they know of Cadmus and all the other metas…"
"We need them…"
Mark cuts into Roy and Dillion's conversation.
"We don't need anybody but us."
Dillon just continued to smile at Mark's quick words.
"Once Snart's chip is removed, what use are they?"
She sounded genuinely curious. As though she couldn't understand why they hadn't killed the two heroes yet. Roy sneered at her.
"Seems like we have a tendency to keep our enemies alive."
She smirks at Roy's response.
"Yes. And how has that worked out for you? Sam thinks you should kill them all. And…"
"You do whatever your boyfriend says?"
"He's gotten us this far. I trust him..."
"We trust Snart."
"Of course. He's your leader. He's responsible for getting you this far." She grabs a beer out of the fridge and walks into the living room. Bypassing the meeting happening and disappearing farther into the house.
Roy watches her leave. His anger towards Dillon starts to fade as she walks away. Still…
"The sooner we can drop those two, the better."
Roy looks back towards Mark, but the man wasn't listening. He was still staring at the living room, though his glare seemed to be focused on Snart.
"Mark."
There was a look of pure hatred on the man's face.
"Mark." Roy grabbed the man's shoulder. The look of venom on his face didn't change when he looked at Roy.
"You keep stopping me from killing them. Don't get in my way again Roy."
"What…?"
Mark all but growled. He jerked his arm out of Roy's grip then stalked away.
What the hell was that?
Roy knew that Mark still held on to his anger about his brother's death, that it was unlikely he would ever let it go, but this…
Mark almost knocked Shawna over in his haste to leave the confines of the safe house.
"Watch it asshole. Oh no, just keep walking. Dick. What the hell is his problem?"
"He's…"
Roy found he really didn't have an explanation for the man's behavior.
"…tired."
"Well tell the baby to take a nap. My hair can't handle all the static electricity he generates when he's frustrated."
Roy felt a genuine smile slip onto his face. He hands Shawna a beer. She takes it and sits at the kitchen table, Roy takes the seat opposite her.
"How did the recon go?"
"Ugh. Not great. We stalked out that place for hours and there was no sign of this Doctor. If we are going to get that doohickey out of Snart's neck then we need to find this guy before we get spotted. Not that hanging out in a Starbucks pretending to be a hipster writing a novel is a hard way to spend a day but still. Just felt like a complete waste of time, you know? I mean I could get in and out of these buildings like that, but Snart's still sidelining me. Don't know why he doesn't just send his new BFF Scudder to do it."
Roy sincerely doubted that Scudder and Snart would ever be anything even remotely considered friends. Shawna was just continuing her habit of complaining about every mission that Snart didn't put her on. Every mission where he used Scudder, where Scudder's powers were implied to be more useful than hers.
There were very few doctors they could go to do what needed to be done. All of their usual underground contacts would sell them out, any respectable doctor would call the police or refuse to do the surgery. From the files they had stolen earlier, Shawna and Mick had staked out a doctor who used to work for LuthorCorp in the Research and Development arm of the weapons programs. A man who was fired from Luthor Corp for "violating company policies in regard to ethical practices."
Roy didn't want to think about how unethical you had to be to be fired from LuthorCorp.
"Hopefully he will show tomorrow."
"Fingers crossed."
Roy hesitates a moment. He doesn't want to ruin this calm moment. But he can't stop thinking about the still unfinished painting in his room. About Snart's disquiet. About Mark's outburst. And Dillion's questions.
"What do you think of Dillon?"
"Scudder's a piece of shit. But Rosa's alright."
"Really?"
"I mean, don't get me wrong, I don't trust her or anything. But I think she's just gotten pulled along by Scudder. I mean that dude is so egotistical I'm surprised he remembers she's in the room half the time. She loves him so she follows whatever he says. I've been trying to talk to her, you know, get her to see she doesn't need him or whatever. But…" She waves a hand and takes another sip of her beer.
"Do you think you can get through to her?"
"I don't know. I don't even know if there would be a point. Pretty sure Snart's going to put a bullet in both of them when this is all over. Maybe he will be lenient with her. You think he might?"
"I don't know. Maybe."
Even to Roy's ears, his maybe sounded distinctly like a no.
Shawna smiled sadly.
"Yea, that's what I thought. You finish that painting yet?"
"No, there's still something wrong with it."
"Maybe you should stop being a perfectionist and just let it be done. I mean, everyone else thinks it's done. You're the only one who sees something missing."
"Hm."
He had started another painting. Though the village painting still mocked him from its easel.
Why couldn't he just put it away? Why couldn't he just let it be done?
What was he missing?
Scudders a bit of a twat. Far too clean for Digger's taste. Sort of turns his nose up at some of Digger's more hilarious jokes.
But Digger's feeling generous.
And he's on a bit of a mission.
The Snarts weren't exactly excited about this alliance. Makes sense of course, and Digger figures they'll kill Scudder and Dillon once this is all over, but they ain't going to go into anything blind.
And Lisa's been saying she thinks they're up to something. Don't trust Scudder's mirrors, don't trust that he's not hiding something that can screw the Rogues over.
So here Digger is, trying to chat up some bloke who's never even tried moonshine before.
And people call Digger the uncultured one.
"Tastes like your mum's apple pie. Go on then."
"I'd rather not go blind."
"Aw that's a load of shit that. Most moonshine in the US don't make you blind no more. Ain't done it that way for decades. Now it's all proper. Hipsters make it in their kitchens, sell little kits at Walmart."
Digger's going to leave off the part where he didn't buy this from some 20 something out of a bodega. But from a man in his fifties whose IQ was probably lower than the number of his remaining teeth.
No reason to worry the man about it. Besides, Digger's already had a few swigs and he ain't blind yet.
"No."
Nothing funnier than a hard no to a simple request. Digger smiles at the man.
"Your loss mate. Not any other alcohol around though. So you'll just have to get through listening to Trickster talk about his hacking mumbo jumbo while stone cold sober. I've never managed it me self. Not to mention listening to Snart explain all the details of his latest and greatest plan…"
Scudder clenches his fist.
There it is. The first little crack in the façade. He ain't happy about this little alliance. Course he's never been quiet about that, always undermining Snart every chance he gets. But the frustration of it all is starting to get to him. Having to follow a man he hates, that'd get to anybody. Might do something stupid, like give away more of his plan than he means too.
"I know what you're doing."
"Is that right?"
"You're trying to figure out if I'm hiding anything. If I'm going to betray you all."
"Oh I know you won't."
Man looks a little stunned at that.
"Really? You're actually going to say that you trust me?"
This time, Digger really does laugh.
"Aw, no mate. Trust you? Come on now. I barely trust this lot. See, I know you won't betray us because…"
"I'm not that stupid?"
"You're not that smart."
Man's pissed now. His little girl's been stroking his ego, amongst other things, getting him all riled up. Saying he's all powerful. Controlling a whole other universe like he does, gone to the man's head. Way Mardon's powers go to his. They all think they're more than they are.
But Digger's spent his whole life around drug lords, and generals, and men who built themselves up as saviors. And despite all their armies, and weapons, and followers, and supposed divinity, at the end it was always the same.
They're just men. Some had better weapons than others sure, but they all fall the same way.
All died choking on their own blood.
"See, way I figure it. If you was going to turn us over, you'd have done it by now. But you'd have had to made a deal prior to coming after us. Had to have gotten immunity from Luthor. But I don't think he'd let you in the front door. Despite your powers, you weren't able to get out of Iron Heights until there was a mass breakout. And you're staying here with us because you know if you go to the cops now they'll just arrest you too. Think you're one of us. So you'd have had to had a better plan than the one you came at us with. And I don't think you got the brains to plan a fake out like that, so…"
Digger notices the man is clenching his fist very tightly now.
Boy don't like being talked down to. Don't like being told he ain't the best. Vanity is the beast of man, or something.
He thinks he read that on the side of a beer bottle once.
"We have a deal. And that is the only thing that is keeping me from killing you right now."
Alright. Digger takes it back. He likes Scudder. Threatening to kill someone just cause they talked down to you a little, was exactly the type of people Digger is used to keeping company with. Never did learn to keep his mouth shut around those types.
"So that's all there was to it then Sammy? Just grab us and throw us at the cops?"
"Don't call me that."
Man don't like getting riled up. Tries to keep up the persona, the calm leader type, but the real him is slipping through. Always does in the end.
"You got a bit of an anger problem. Anyone ever tell you that before?" Digger tipped his mason jar towards Scudder, the man continued to glare at him. "Course so does most of the people in our little group of thieves. Saw a documentary on a bunch of kids who was always screaming and hitting people. Always blame it on the parents. All the doctors and teachers and shit. Figure there's gotta be a couple kids just born with some screws loose..."
"I find it difficult to believe you have ever watched a documentary."
Digger smirked.
"Ok, so maybe it was on in this girl's room while we was having a good time. I was in just the right position behind her to…"
"Please stop."
Digger tips his drink towards Scudder. Takes a good look at the man. It's all about finding out what people will react to. What they are willing to listen to. If they tell you to stop. It's when they say it, that's the important thing.
"My father was a right prick. Same sob story a million boys out there got. Moved us around all the time, military family and all that. Last place was this little town in Australia. Couple months of living there and one day he just comes storming in, saying we're moving off the base. He doesn't like the houses or something. Now, me and my ma knew better than to ask questions. So we packed up, moved out into the middle of nowhere. Fifty miles from the nearest town. Even farther from the base. I knew something wasn't right, but my dad left in the morning, and came back at night, so just figured he liked the commute. Wasn't going to argue about having less time with him. Then one day, I walk into the kitchen and my ma's dead on the floor. Looked all around for him, but he'd skipped out. Took a bag and everything. Didn't have a phone or nothing at the house, hell we didn't have running water, just the well out front. Left me alone with my dead ma and no way to contact anyone. He'd taken our only car. Course I was only 11 at the time, so not like I could have driven anywhere. But it's the principle of the thing."
Digger takes another swig, keeps a discrete eye on Scudder. Man's watching him, looking a little confused. Trying to figure out why Digger was sharing his life story. Digger knows he talks a lot, more than people expect a former spy to. Got it so most people sort of ignore when he's talking. Got them so they don't realize they're subconsciously reacting to his words. Little twitches, glares at certain phrases, eye rolls, every micro expression is like a little confession. Little bit of information about who they are.
People never realize how much they give away when they stay silent.
"He killed her?"
"Nah. Thought that for a while. But turns out it was just a blood vessel in her brain. Just blew out or something." Digger forces his hand down when he starts to rub at the chip in his neck. Now's not the time to be giving anything away he don't want told. "He must have just seen an opportunity to be free of us and took it."
"Father of the year." Scudder's trying to be placating. Trying to play nice. Digger smirks. He doesn't have to go much deeper. Doesn't have to tell Scudder about the years between. About getting lost in the outback trying to walk to town to tell someone his mother had died.
Almost dying of thirst out there, his skin cracking and peeling. Knowing he was going to die, getting saved by…
Nah. Scudder don't need to know about any of that.
"He was a real class act. Hell, I joined up with the army when I was old enough just so I'd know how to kill him if I ever saw him again. Was a couple years in, got my skills up. Managed to finagle some things, blackmail a few people. Tracked him down. Stole a gun from a drug dealer during a raid. No way to link it back to me. Sneak up the stairs, slip in unseen. Got it out and cocked…and there the fat bastard is. Dead in his recliner, beer in hand. Heart attack two days earlier. Couldn't even live long enough for me to get the chance to kill him. Had to let me down just one last time. But you don't see me running around with anger issues."
Scudder looks a little confused by Digger's change in tone at the end. Laughing it off. Gotta keep the boy off balance. He'd been looking closer at Digger, trying to spot the lie.
Ain't going to find one.
That's the thing about interrogations. You have to go in there knowing you might be the one laying everything on the line. Be the one giving out all the details.
As long as the details don't matter to anyone but you, it ain't a problem. And it isn't like the fact that he didn't get the chance to kill his bastard of a father is ever going to come up. Not something that can be used against him. He ain't cared about him in decades.
People like that kind of stuff though. Telling deep dark secrets. Makes them feel like they're in on something.
Not killing someone, doesn't even come close to Digger's darkest secret. But that's not something Sammy's ever going to know about.
Not something anyone's going to ever know.
"You think we're going to bond is that it? You have a file on me that told you that my father abandoned me and you thought we'd share a drink and just have a casual conversation?"
Digger smiles.
The easiest way to trick someone, is to make them think they're smarter than you. Digger knows how he comes off, like he never finished grade school. Used that to his advantage every chance he got. Make people think that ARGUS was run by a bunch of idiots that didn't know how to do their jobs.
"Look mate, I'm just trying to have a little chat. You ain't exactly got a lot of people to talk to around here."
"Snart put you up to this."
Digger takes another swig of moonshine.
It's funny how people think they know all the rules. Watch enough cop shows and everyone thinks they're an expert. If that were the case, nobody would ever get arrested.
"Course he put me up to it. You really think he would let you just wander around, especially around his sister, and not try to find out everything he could? Come on mate. He sends me out here to see what I can get you to reveal. It's a classic tactic. I know you've been doing the same thing. The way you've got Dillon cozying up to Shawna. The way she's hanging off of Mick all the time now."
Something flashes in Scudder's eyes. Interesting. Seems he's not the one giving that order.
"Rosa is none of your concern."
"Of course not mate. I'm just saying, we're both playing the same game here. So why don't we just lay all the cards out on the table. Yea?"
Scudder finally sits down.
"What are you suggesting?"
"Just a civil conversation is all. We've been working together a couple weeks now and I don't think any of us have sat down with you. Felt like it was getting a bit unfriendly is all. Although, it is a bit weird to not be the least liked person in the room. Makes me uncomfortable really."
Scudder don't smile or nothing, but there's some amusement in his eyes. He finally sits down. Digger's been doing this too long to smile. He's got the bastard now.
"They do undervalue you don't they?"
Scudder's not as good at this as he thinks he is. Which is throwing up some red flags in Digger's mind. Though he don't know what they mean yet.
"Hardly the worst job I've had. Hell, none of these bastards have tried to kill me in well over a year. That's a new record for me and work associates."
Scudder takes the offered moonshine. He sniffs it, but doesn't drink.
"You can't actually like this."
Digger doesn't think Sammy's talking about the drink.
"Gets the job done. Don't need much else."
"I can think of literally hundreds of other options."
"Oh yea?"
The man actually takes a drink. Digger's surprised for the first time. Didn't think someone as posh as Scudder would actually give it a try.
"Hm. That's not bad."
"Told you so mate."
Scudder stares at it for a moment. He's just holding the glass in his hands, real close like.
"After we broke out of prison, Rosa and I went to a diner in Metropolis. They had apple pie that tasted just like this…"
He takes another swig.
Huh.
Scudder really was just talking about the liquor. He wasn't trying to imply anything, wasn't trying his hand at double speak to get Digger to confess something. Which means he don't have the wherewithal to be setting up big plans or be on the same kind of level with Luthor.
Then why the hell are they still here? Why hasn't he and Dillon made a break for it? Should have done it the first night. After their attempt at grabbing Snart went sideways. Should have just turned and run for it. They don't gain nothing by sticking around here. Now that the cops know they're with the Rogues, it's only going to be harder for them.
"It was our anniversary."
"Mazel Tov."
Scudder looks up. Seemingly remembering what he's supposed to be doing. Supposed to be figuring out Digger's game, supposed to keep his guard up.
Keeping the mask up, all the time, is a hard thing. Not everyone can do it. Most can't do it for more than a couple weeks. Sometimes…you just want to let it slip for a minute.
Just to see if there's still anything underneath.
"She tried to bake me an apple pie on our first anniversary and she set the safe house on fire. So we went out for apple pie every year afterwards."
Digger's trying to pretend like he's interested in this. Keeps nodding his head. Trying to keep the number of inappropriate comments to a minimum. He didn't even make a joke about his girlie's pie.
Scudder's heading towards something. Don't know what it is, but there's something gnawing at his mind. Something he ain't going to be able to keep to himself if Digger just keeps stringing him along.
Everybody wants to tell their story. Was something an old CO told him. People got things in their heads, gotta get out one way or another.
"Should have headed for somewhere sunny."
"We did. We made it to Panama, figured we could blend in with all the other ex-pats. No one was looking for us. At least, not as much as they were all of you."
Digger knows that feeling. When you've made it away clean. When there's nothing stopping you from just disappearing into the night. Was some twisted sense of loyalty that kept him tethered to ARGUS for as long as he was. Something else that keeps him with the Rogues. Don't quite know the word for what that is though.
Maybe he does.
But this is about Sammy. About why the man looks like he ain't got a friend in the world.
Like he's regretting ever even thinking about coming back.
Digger knows that look too.
Lots of bad choices put Digger in situations like Scudder's found himself in. Surrounded by enemies. No one to confide in. No end in sight. Can't tell his little girl his doubts, not when he's supposed to be the big protector. The one keeping it all together.
Can't be as simple as stubbornness keeping him here.
Digger reaches over and slaps Scudder on the arm, trying to shake the man out of this funk. The man looks up startled.
Digger tries to make his smile comforting. Probably don't work by Scudders continued incredulous look.
Yea, optimism isn't really Digger's thing. Still. Gotta give the man something. The illusion of good days to come. Not that Scudder and Dillon got many left. Snart ain't exactly the forgive and forget type.
Gonna be a bad day when he's got to slit Scudder's throat.
Digger's almost a little sad it's gotta be like that. But orders are orders and all that nonsense. Maybe he'll ask Mick to kill Scudder when this is done. Feel a little wrong to do it now that they've bonded like this.
"Sounds like you guys got away clean. Seems like a shitty idea to come after Cold for something as stupid as revenge."
Scudder looks directly at Digger for a moment.
"It was Rosa's idea. Said if we gave them Snart, then maybe the cops would lay off. At least stop some of the witch hunts, keep the cops from focusing on us. The trial of the Rogues would be all anyone would care about. Not a couple of escaped meta humans."
"So it was the skirt's idea eh? Don't sound like you are too thrilled about it. Could be laying on a beach somewhere, drinking little umbrella drinks, 'stead of being holed up here with us assholes."
Scudder looked a little put out by that. Don't know why. He's the one that agreed to do it. He had to have been in on the planning stages of it all.
"It was Rosa's idea."
"You said that already mate. I've met blokes who've done some stupid things for some tail but I gotta say, this might be the top. Getting mixed up in an international conspiracy with a bunch of labeled terrorists. If there was an award for working the hardest for it, you'd win for sure."
Sammy's looking down at his hands. Got a real weird look on his face.
"I didn't want to do this."
"Seems like you was all gung-ho about it not too long ago."
Man rubs his temples, like he's got a migraine coming on or something.
"I…I just wanted to run. To get out while we could…but…"
"But then you realized that we would be safer if there wasn't a witch hunt going on for us." Girl's silent when she walks in. Creepy little trait she's got.
Scudder stops rubbing his temples, glances over at her like she's the bloody sun or something. Smiling a little bit.
"Exactly."
Digger had seen men in love before. The stupid ass things they did, the way they would just agree to anything the girlie said.
Digger wasn't so sure that's what he was seeing now.
Something not quite right going on between those two. Something real twisted up about it. Can't quite put his finger on it.
Scudder's looking at Digger again. No sign of any conflict in him now.
"Thanks for the drink Harkness."
"Any time Sammy."
The girl gives him an odd look at the nickname. More like a glare really. Not like he's flirting with her man or anything. Women can get weirdly possessive.
The two of them walk out of the room without another word.
Well.
That was something.
Lisa had been right. The two of them was playing at a different game than the rest of them. He's not real sure what it is though. Sammy will be the key to figuring it out. Not Rosa like the Snarts thought. She's got the act down pretty good. Pretending to be just the little girlfriend of the big bad meta human. Pretending like he calls all the shots. It's all real convincing.
Good thing Digger Harkness has never trusted a pretty face a day in his life.
She's the one driving all this. She pushed Scudder to come after the Rogues in the first place. Gets the feeling he should have started the interrogations with her.
Original thought was to go after Scudder first, then confirm something against Dillon since she would be easier to break. Easier to get information out of.
Now he's thinking they got that bit backwards.
Digger finishes what's left of the moonshine then leans back.
When he had been working for the Wall, as much as he hated the bitch, he had to admit the woman knew how to get the truth out of people. It had been a delight to watch.
And he had picked up a few tricks when she started to use those techniques on him.
He'd keep an eye on them, see what else he could get Scudder to tell him. Have to buddy up to the guy a little more. Didn't seem like Scudder was into all this mission nonsense.
Question was, why was she?
What did she get out of hanging around the Rogues? If she was looking to turn them in she could have done it by now. Not moving around from place to place and fighting against Luthor's goons.
Digger snorted. Could be she was just bored. Or she was getting her revenge against Cold trying to kill them in some kind of twisted way that only made sense to her.
Women were like that, got an idea in their heads and just decided to make a man's life miserable for all eternity.
He'd ask Lisa about it.
They'd be able to figure out what that bitch was up to.