Chapter 3

Parking his car in a nearby field, Rocky scouted the surrounding area; taking care that his car wouldn't be noticed.
Looking around, he observed a large manor standing alone in the midst of the field. He'd received a tip that the Marigold's were having a meeting in this particular house on this night.

Rocky didn't know what they'd be discussing nor did he care, but he did know that if they were here, there'd certainly be some bottles kept here as well.

The only thing standing in between Rocky and those bottles were the Marigolds, the rival speakeasy to Lackadaisy. The Marigolds were very unpredictable and chances are you'd likely end up dead if you crossed them.

It was a dangerous mission to do alone– it was dangerous going at all in the first place– but risk wasn't something Rocky was even remotely concerned with currently. He could only think of repaying his debt to Mizzi and Lackadaisy as he tore off toward the house, unflinching.

Night had fallen long ago, its darkness smothering the mansion and giving it a towering and ominous appearance. Despite this, Rocky practically skips toward the front door, unfazed.

Preparing to break it down, he takes a few steps back before charging shoulder-first toward the old wooden frame. Just as he was about to make contact, however, a gust of wind blew past him and sent the door flying open with a surprising amount of ease.

Stumbling through the now wide open door, Rocky fell to the floor in blind confusion.

Looking back at the open door, he wondered if someone had left the door open by accident. Deeper inside him, though, the cynical mind in him pondered the idea that the door was left open on purpose; that the house lured him inside, only to swallow him whole. These dark thoughts caused him to hesitate, but only for a moment. Even a moment of hesitation is a moment too long for Rocky.

Closing the door behind him softly, Rocky quietly glanced around the empty and dark foyer of the mansion. Initially scouting out his surroundings, all conscious thought stopped as his eyes transfixed on the massive crate sitting in the left corner of the room.

Almost squealing with delight, Rocky excitedly shuffled over and placed his paws on the lid of the crate. Opening it, he found that his wishes were answered.

Multiple cases sat inside, some containing the prize—rum, beer— and others containing various other supplies. He took a case and placed it outside. It was heavy, and he probably couldn't get another one without drawing attention.

"Still…"

A sly smile appeared on his face.

Rocky put the case of beverages in his car, then recklessly returned to the house for another. He chuckled softly to himself and lifted the case.

He froze and turned. Nothing. He put down the case, and took a footstep, and sure enough he heard another trying to collaborate with the sound of his.

Wood creaked.

He turned.

No one.

"What a mighty fine coat you're wearing. " Rocky jumped and gasped in fear. It was Serfine! "Mind if I…make some holes in it?" With a gun. Rocky ran blindly as the shots rang out from everywhere.

He entered another room. "That was close. Maybe my luck hasn't run out ye-" He skidded to a stop. Blocking Rocky's escape was Nico. "Go'in somewhere?" He asked, amused.

Dread filled Rocky as he frantically turned a corner in the maze-like house to find an exit. Gun shots came from everywhere, and Rocky wondered why he hadn't died 10 times over.

Then all the sudden, he found the door. "Yes! YES! YES!" His smile got bigger and bigger as he got closer to the exit. But at the last minute, he felt something cut the side of his face and found himself on the floor, looking up at the Marigold trio.

"I pushed my luck…and it ran out."

That was his last thought before he blacked out from some kind of pain that came from his ear.***

Rocky woke up in a sweat. He remembered what happened. No one was there. "Maybe it was just a crazy dream." He thought, then noticed he was in a chair that he couldn't get out of.

Some kind of strong material was forcing his wrists to not move. The same kind of material was strapped around his waist, keeping him from moving. And lastly, his feet was tied together. Yep, he was captured. But what if he was somewhere else? …Not in the Marigolds house?

"Hey, Nico! He's up!" Serfine. "Ohhhno. Please no. Let this be a nightmare!" Rocky prayed. He was spun around and faced the three rival Marigolds.

"Aw, heck. This is great. Just great."

"What do you want?! Why am I even alive?!" He asked them.

Mordecai stepped forward. "We've been thinking. You could be of use to us…Maybe."

Rocky almost laughed in all of their faces. He grinned and said, "Are you guys crazy?! Of what use would I be to you?! Plus, how do you plan to get me to talk? Your hypnotic schemes can't work on me, remember?"

Then, Nico got in his face. "You could be of definite use to us! Like telling all of Lackadaisy's secrets! Mordecai has some sort of tool to help manipulate you, so Don't underestimate us."

Rocky's smile faded. "Well you're no fun." He turned to Mordecai with a smirk. "What do you have to say, Mordecai? What is this new toy that you think will have a chance winning over me? Y'know you tried this some time ago with a pretty epic fail. Are you sure you want to do this again?"

Mordecai's eyes narrowed. "Yes." He fixed Rocky with a piercing hypnotic stare.

"Well, it's not working. Better pull out your thingy. By the way, what is it?" Rocky said, teasingly.

"This." Mordecai pulled from his coat…a dynamite stick. Rocky's eyes grew wide. He started to squirm in the chair. "A. Dynamite. Stick." He shook his head, trying to rid himself from the intense desire.

"No. Keep control. You don't need it. But the spark! The thrill! The explosion! "

He closed his eyes, but the battle between the two sides continued without mercy. "You want it, don't you?" Rocky just barely heard Mordecai. "It's too bad it didn't kill you while you were living with your family."

Rocky's eyes bugged open in shock. THAT. STRUCK. HARD.

"Wh-what are you talking about?!" Rocky stuttered, knowing exactly what. Mordecai continued. "If you would have died, then none of your bad luck would have happened. Like your scar."

Rocky winced as he remembered how he got the gash on his forehead, and sunk into unconsciousness when Ivy needed him most. "She didn't even need to help me…she should've just left me there."

"The many blows Lackadaisy took might've even been because of you. Like the pig farmers. Rocky closed his eyes, shaking. "Make it go away. Make it stop." He thought, seeing Victor getting shot, and everyone was running. Lackadaisy got wreaked for what Rocky did. Rocky almost got shot by Freckle. Rocky wondered if he should have let his cousin just kill him then and there.

"You weren't everyone's friend like you'd want to picture yourself. Your aunt never liked you. Not even your dad! " Tears were now flooding Rocky's eyes. His effort to stop them along with everything else was unormally too small. "…Dad. I'm surprised no one else abandoned me like you…"

"And…" Mordecai hesitated a little, but no one noticed.

"...The death of your mom." Rocky's voice caught in his throat. He was completely still. Then, he lifted his head, and yelled out a wordless, mournful sound. He hung his head and softly sobbed. He almost looked lifeless.

"He isn't wrong." Rocky didn't ask how Mordecai knew so much stuff, but he didn't care. Rocky had completely lived his life on lies and false actions. He didn't belong anywhere. But Mordecai wasn't finished.

"You should just give up and do what you were meant to do. Join us and fulfill your purpose." Mordecai's eyes were unblinking, his hypnotic gaze impenetrable as he held the dynamite stick close to Rocky's face. Rocky opened and narrowed his eyes.

"So this is his game? To break me and make me join them?! I may have thrown my life away, but that outcome just looks worse."

He looked up. "No."

Mordecai's eyes now blazed with fury. "WHAT did you say?!" Rocky boldly spoke up and lifted his chin. "I said n-AHHH!" Mordecai, infuriated, clawed Rocky's face and shoved the chair back. It banged against the wall.

Rocky's eye stung like crazy. The scratch started above Rocky's nose and went straight up and ended above his eye. At least it was a distraction from the pain that didn't come from the scratch. The pain that hurt more than anything else in the world.