Young Offender, Part 48:
They ducked into a small, seedy hotel room. It was rundown and not very clean, but it was out of the way with an apathetic hotel clerk. It had one rickety table, one crooked chair, one plain bed, and one scuffed dresser. He glanced in the tiny bathroom and looked back at Jet.
"Why don't you get cleaned up?"
Jet stumbled into the bathroom and slammed the door. Albert sighed, aggravated at this complication. He'd have to make sure Jet was stable before going to confront Dr Dressler. Jet was his top priority, at the moment. He broke off his thoughts when he heard the shower run and then stop after several long minutes.
Jet finally reappeared wearing nothing but jeans; his damp hair was brushed back from his forehead and hung loose down his neck, now free of pomade. Albert sat on the chair as Jet stumbled over to the bed. The bed squealed horribly when Jet sat on it. His shoulders slumped.
"I didn't want this to happen," he mumbled, hanging his head low.
"I know." Albert kept his tone as gentle as possible. He really couldn't guess how Jet was going to react over the next few days. Albert was just grateful Jet had pulled himself together to escape that murderous trap.
"I shouldn't have come back home. Now they're dead. And the last thing we did was argue, not that we did much else."
"You were trying to do the right thing by making them aware of the Black Ghost. You aren't responsible for what happened. The Black Ghost is. Not you."
"Damn it! I just..." Jet's voice choked off, his shoulders were trembling horrible. Jet wasn't allowing himself to express any grief or regret; he was too shocked. Albert moved over and sat beside Jet. He slid his left arm over Jet's shoulder. "I'm a screw up, just like they said. Worthless."
"Stop with that," Albert gently chided. "They didn't know you now. It's a shame they didn't have the chance to know who you've become. You're not that same kid going down the wrong path. Everyone... me, I mean me, I'm very proud to know you."
Jet shivered and turned his face away from Albert. "There were some days I wished them dead. But now... now I really regret that. They were drunks, and they used to smack me around a lot, but I should have never even thought it. They were my folks and the times with them weren't always bad, and compared to the Black Ghost... I guess I just don't know what I'm thinking. I'm so damned confused."
"I'm not surprised you're confused. You have every right to feel that. There are two very different things at the bottom of it, I'm guessing. You've had a lot of hardships in your life. It's made you strong, and I see a compassion in you, too. The two sides of you don't have to war against each other. They can coexist in peace. All you can do now is carry on. Listen, an agent knows we're here. We'll have to be careful around Dressler, and I don't think you should stay in The States after this. Come back with me to Sicily."
Jet slowly met Albert's eyes. "I'm tired of running from the Black Ghost."
"I know. You've been angry lately and withdrawn. You've been struggling alone and and that's burning you out. I've been worried about you."
Jet slumped down on the bed, laying on his stomach, face buried on the thin pillow. Albert stretched out beside Jet and gently rubbed circles on his back. Jet alternated between choked sobs and angry curses. Eventually, Jet's breathing evened out and it seemed he was drifting into a restless sleep. Albert felt his eyes droop closed, heavy and scratchy. He vowed to take a quick doze, not relishing the floor.
"Your brother left you custody of his only child, Akira Shimamura."
Hitomi Kitagawa lowered her eyes from her brother's bland, graying lawyer. For once, real emotions, rather than feigned, could be seen: anger and bitterness. She nodded after tucking away a thick envelop full of legal documents in her over-sized handbag. She quickly slipped on her sunglasses, knowing there were some reporters outside the building.
"Is that all?" The man nodded, and she quickly stood. "My lawyer will be in contact with you about the paperwork submitted. Thank you very much for your efficiency."
"If I can be of service, just let me know. Hondo and Takuma were good friends. It's a real tragedy for two sons to lose their fathers. At least they'll have someone as gracious as you to raise them."
She gave him a slight tilt of the head and left the office. In the main lobby of the building, she saw the young nanny she'd hired cradling Akira and trying to keep Ryu from staring at the rotund Russian woman sitting near them. Hitomi wasn't surprised to see her uncanny friend; she suspected her brother's death was due to some foolishness on his part. Erika's appearance only proved it.
"Yuki, take the children to the car while I talk to Gamo-san," Hitomi said.
The young woman bowed deeply and shuttled the children out towards the waiting limousine. After that, Hitomi dropped any pretense of emotion from her face and gave Erika an acknowledging nod. There was no reason to wear her normal masks around a psychic. "I thought you'd be here sooner."
"I had to abandon the search for Ivan to deal with two particularly irritating Greek scientists. Dr Uranus had some interesting things to say after I redecorated his laboratory. Needless to say, he implicated your brother. He knew something about the Double Zero Cyborgs. It seems he ran afoul of them."
"He didn't do anything on my orders."
"I know, dear, please don't worry about that. I was sent to read your mind and make sure of where your loyalties are, I know you understand."
"Of course, I wouldn't respect the Merchants of Death, otherwise. Speaking of which, technically, Shimamura Electronics is under my trust until Akira comes of age. I want a larger say in Merchant of Death business, for my son's sake. Call it compensation for my brother's untimely passing."
"I'm sure Scar wouldn't mind exchanging favors since your lab is producing items that are beneficial. After all, we need some more funding. If that funding can be given in like kind product exchanges, I see no difficulty."
Hitomi's cherry colored lips twisted into a smile. "I want to make sure my son, Ryu, will be the one in control of Shimamura Electronics, not his cousin."
"I understand," Erika said, nodding sympathetically. She tugged her white gloves back in place and said, "Now, that this visit is over, I'll go report your innocences and request. Expect to hear from Scar soon."
"Yes, and good luck finding your son. If my men hear anything about the Double Zero Cyborgs, I'll let you know right away, unlike my brother, who squandered his chance."
Albert started awake, thinking he'd overslept for work. He wondered why Hilda hadn't rolled over and shaken him. The smooth skin under his left hand was icy cold. His eyes focused in the dim lighting, his groggy mind jarred awake seeing it was Jet, not Hilda, stretched out beside him.
He looked closely, relieved Jet was in a deep sleep. He admitted it felt nice to have a body laying beside him again, but then potential situations leaped into his awareness. He eased his left, feeling hand off Jet's bare shoulder and slipped off the bed as quietly as he could. He pulled the chair up to the side of the bed and hunched over, eyes watching for any sign of wakefulness in Jet.
When he had studied music at the Universität der Künste Berlin, before marring Hilda, Albert had discreetly dated several women and a couple of men to keep the loss of his parents at bay. They had all been a distraction, until Hilda. He gladly put away all others in her favor. He had wanted desperately to make a home with a wife and children. Now that was gone, and he found himself starting to crave companionship again.
He had to admit he wouldn't be much of a companion, even with some of the improvements made to his body from his second experience with the Black Ghost. He felt his soul was a little less human as he struggled with his machine side. He found the idea of trying to establish a new, standard family distasteful; that dream he put to a close. It didn't mean physical and emotional cravings had stopped forever; they had just been dormant for a while. It was as if an icy cover was slowly melting, and the closer he got to Jet, the quicker it was disappearing.
He thought back, trying to pinpoint a moment this shift had happened. He figured sometime in Germany, when Jet didn't even flinch away from helping the Schuessler family and their quest to help people escape East Berlin. Jet and he had spent several nights at the neighborhood biergarten, sitting up talking, too many restless nights. And then the memory of what Jet went through that second time in captivity hit Albert hard. He couldn't bear the thought of Jet suffering like that, especially now that he had a glimpse of how he was raised.
Jet gave out a slight moan and thrashed around, landing on his back with arms splayed out. Albert could see he was starting to slowly wake. Jet turned his head and whispered, "Water?"
Albert stood and got him a paper cup of water from the bathroom. Jet sat up, took it, and drained it. Albert sat back down and leaned forward, elbows on knees. "You're coming with me to get Dressler and then we're going back to Sicily."
Jet chuckled and clenched the cup in between his hands. "What happened to all the talk about me making my own discussions."
"That was then, this is now. You can't stay in New York with the Black Ghost."
"What if I refuse?" Jet asked with no fire or spunk. He was just drained.
"Then I'll stay with you and persuade you to come home with me after I get Dressler to leave the Black Ghost," Albert answered. He gave his head a rueful shake. "But I really want you to come back with me without all that drama."
Jet hopped off the bed suddenly and marched over to the dresser where his white t-shirt lay. He tugged it on and looked at Albert. "Well, let's go get Dressler."
Albert stood and gave Jet a firm, lingering pat on his upper arm. "I'm glad you're coming home with me."
"Hey now, New York is my home. Lots of shit just went down and I have to let things cool down. One day, I will come back... for good."
"How about your parents?"
"I'm coping. It's complicated, and it'll take some time to sort it out."
"I'll listen when you're ready to talk it out."
"Right now, I'd rather concentrate on getting Ivan better."
Albert went over to the door and opened it. "So long as your head is in the game."
"Great! Thanks to your idiocy, we're banished out here!" Gaia raged at Uranus. Both were pacing around their secret laboratory in Macedonia. Gaia was furious Erika Gamo had packed them off after her husband had suspended them.
"And I told you I was sorry! I thought I had a lead on the Double Zero Cyborgs. Now, calm down! This is a great opportunity for us."
"What! We're surrounded by guards and are forbidden from leaving!"
"Yes, but Gamo is still letting us research, and they haven't found our test subjects in cryogenic sleep downstairs. We'll just quietly do work and keep low. We'll be able to achieve what we want without the Black Ghost stealing from us. Don't you see? This is the opportunity to get some freedom!"
"Yes, but we're still at the mercy of the Merchants of Death's funding!"
"Don't worry about that. We still have some contacts over at the Black Ghost, some scientists that want us to succeed. We'll let things die down and then we'll reestablish our connections."
Gaia glowered, stroked his thick, black beard, but didn't protest. "Fine! You do have a good point."
"I know I do. And when we get ready, we'll use our Greek god recreations to get back into Scar's favor and catch the Double Zero Cyborgs," said sensibly.
"We should get working. Our Olympians await."
Albert and Jet spotted Dressler rambling across a grassy patch in between two domed buildings. Albert was the first to catch up to the doctor and clapped a firm, metal hand on the shoulder. He yanked the surprised man around and smiled.
"Herr Doktor, it's been a long time," Albert greeted.
The man shook his head vigorously and hissed, "No!"
"One of your little inventions made a friend of ours sick, so you need to come and fix him up," Jet said, leaning close to the man's face.
The doctor looked baffled for half a minute and then asked, "Ivan Gamo? He's sick? With what?"
"Cancer, but Gilmore and some others think they can help him with your assistance," Albert said. "So, I think you'll need to come with us."
"Are you mad?! The Black Ghost will kill me! They'll send Mrs Gamo. The Gamos will stop at nothing to get their son back, and neither will Scar. Ivan is one of their greatest weapons right now."
Jet grabbed the man's tweed jacket and gave him one solid shake. "Listen, Poindexter, don't you ever call that kid a weapon. You're going to get your ass on the next plane with us or else you'll end up six feet under!"
Albert didn't flinch away from Jet's side. He knew Jet was bluffing about killing the man, but he figured Jet wouldn't be above dragging the man by force, if need be. And Albert wasn't above it either. Jet's bluff worked and the doctor bobbed his head in assent.
Albert gave him a firm shove towards a taxi across the grassy patch. "I had a feeling you'd see things our way."
Dressler turned, vexed, but kept moving towards the taxi. "I'm only going so I can see what went wrong with my formula. Don't forget it."
"Trust me, we won't," Albert said, vowing to keep a close eye on the man.
To be continued.