hardlydead | (( them gods gonna hurt you son; when you play with a loaded gun ))

[ evan sneers at the sunglasses. as if those could do anything to hide the way david swaggers, the way he practically warps the air around him in service of himself and his fucking ego. but far be it from him to comment on that, because at least he's not wearing something really stupid and drawing more attention than he should. it means he might be taking this at least a little seriously.

evan, knowing people would probably recognize him in a body bag, is dressed as normal, less official than he was the last time. there's wear and tear to his clothes this time. like long-faded bloodstains, because he's not going to ruin a good jacket with what's happening next.

he doesn't respond verbally, instead jerking his head toward a nearby window. inside, the empty lobby of the brewery is ... well, empty, but there's also signs that people have been there before. footprints in the dust and chairs having been dragged into a position where people could sit and talk. ]

Three minutes, then I go in. You follow me after two more. Take the left door and follow my voice. If he tries to run, don't let him get to the back door.

[ evan knows david probably doesn't want to take instructions - or orders - from him of all people, but he's the one with the contacts. ]

[ evan's right about that, and it's obvious in the way david clenches his jaw and the flare of his nostrils, but it's evan's contact. he gets to take lead. david's much more interested in making sure this gets done than trying to assert himself — it's not the first time his ego's taking a battering in service of the family, and unfortunately it won't be the last either. ]

[ david nods, rolls up a sleeve to check his watch — like the rest of his clothes, it's not one of the high-end pieces of jewellery he's usually got on his wrist. it's simple and utilitarian. whatever image he projects, whatever he's seen doing in his downtime, david does at least take his actual work seriously. ]

Right then. [ voice tight, distinctly unhappy, but he still moves toward the indicated door. ] See you in five.

[ the tension is obvious. evan's ready to fight back, bite back, argue with him until it's too late to do anything - but david backs down, taking the orders like he knows his choices are to do it or suffer. and evan, for his part, is surprised. it shows for just a second, and then it's gone, replaced by the dull anger that has its grip on him all the time anyway.

he stands as david moves, and nods, and heads inside himself.

the contact is someone unassuming, but greedy. a man who's trying to pretend he's doing this to help the underlings about to get trampled in the bloodbath the macmillan and king families are going to unleash on them. really he just wants a head start on getting out, evan knows, so he can try to get more power for himself. that's why he's not going to make it out of this alive.

he listens, expression flat, as the man trades information for vague, unhelpful reassurances. he keeps himself between the most direct path out, but knows david will be coming around shortly. and if he doesn't -

but he will. somehow, evan's certain of that.

if he doesn't, then evan's got his backup plans ready to go. that being to beat the hell out of him alone, possibly instigating an alarm and a bigger fight, which he'll get his ass kicked over. but it'll still be better than letting him get away. ]

That's all you've got?

[ it's a question asked a little too sharply, especially for him. that's when david should step into the room, condemning its occupant for good. ]

Edited 2024-06-14 21:41 (UTC)

[ despite his apparent willingness to be a team player, david only waits as long as he figures it'll take for evan to be occupied with his contact — just a bit of time to get the conversation started — and then he steps inside as quiet as he can. careful with the door, slow footsteps as he moves down the hall toward evan's voice. it only gives him an extra minute or so inside, but it's enough to be able to listen to this guy talk for a little before he's supposed to step in. ]

[ really, the fact that this guy went to the macmillans over the kings tells david where his priorities lie. far as he's ever been able to tell, the kings are nicer ("nicer") to their people, but with the macmillans you can make some real money and hold some bit of noteriety to jerk your dick over much quicker if you play your cards right. and those guys never seem to understand they're still just as expendable as they ever were.
]

[ That's all you've got? evan asks, and even if he wasn't checking his watch to make sure he doesn't step in early, david knows a prompt when he hears one. slips in and leans his shoulder against the wall, hands tucked in his hoodie's pockets. nonchalant, as if he's not intentionally blocking off a route of escape here. ]

Nah. I'm sure he's got a little somethin' extra in his back pocket. Smart guy like this?

[ he smiles in response to the guy's visible surprise when he realises who just joined them, that's entertaining enough it takes the edge off just a little, but that's not where david's focus is. a greedy asshole like this has to be holding back information, stuff to try and keep himself ahead of things for as long as possible. as if it really makes a difference. ]

[ evan's sure david was listening in. it's what he'd do. but there's no time to be hypocritically angry or offended, because there's a plan, right here. and david comes in, right on cue, which despite being exactly what evan asked him to do pisses him off anyway. of course he could walk in at exactly the right moment. it's almost theatrical.

the contact knows right away he's in deep shit, because david king is exactly as recognizable as evan macmillan - moreso, even. and if these two are in the same place, with the same target, then there's a lot of problems coming up over the horizon for him. evan can see him trying to figure out which door to take to escape, and when none of those options are quick and easy enough, how to talk his way out of this. ]

Probably. [ because he's not going to agree with david fully, even right now. evan makes sure to keep himself between the contact and the front door, just in case. ] Somethin' about where your bosses are already puttin' their fronts up, maybe. Because I know you assholes are starting that shit already.

[ he deflection he gets is that he already told evan where the plans to start money laundering were, but that's not good enough. evan has no proof, but he knows - gut feeling - that there's already cash moving. their cash. his cash. and probably some of david's too, but that's not as important. ]

[ listening to people try and talk their way out of the hole they dug themselves into always pisses him off. of course, most things piss him off, so that doesn't say much, but it manifests differently in him than evan. at least outwardly. his head falls forward briefly with a huff of a disbelieving laugh and a shake of his head, like catching someone with their hand in the money tin and they try and tell you they weren't stealing. ]

[ he assumes evan has information, which is why they're pushing this. if he knew he was backing evan up based on a gut feeling, david would probably just turn around and walk back out the door he just came through. never mind that his gut instinct isn't dissimilar, that's not important here. ]

Honestly, mate. Can't tell if it's more offensive that you're tryin' to lie to us right now, or that you think we're so stupid that you can do it so obviously.

[ david smiles thinly behind his sunglasses, shrugs his shoulders, carries on like he's being entirely normal and reasonable about all this. as if he's being hurt and hard done by by this guy's apparently worthless information. ]

'Course if you wanna be difficult about this, I'm sure neither one of us've got any problem being difficult in return.

[ he glances toward evan for confirmation. who hasn't beat a guy to paste for information before? ]

[ evan came here to cause a problem. this man isn't walking out - not in one piece, and not alive. he nods, very slightly, at david's glance.

which is enough evidence for the unfortunate would-be turncoat to try and make a break for it. there's two doors into the room, but the age and decay of the building has left a half-collapsed wall on one side. it's not fully open, but if he hits it hard enough he'll make it through, and past that are rooms with windows.

it was a move evan didn't expect, which means when he snatches at the bastard to try and catch him from moving back or ahead, he misses. he's quick to recover, though, bolting after him, already pissed off for being made to look like an idiot because he didn't plan for this possibility.

but it also confirms for him that he was right. that there's more information at stake here. or maybe that the prick just realized he was a dead man when david walked in, and he's trying to save his own skin. should have thought of that before he started this whole shitstorm. ]

[ it occurs to david, in the moment after evan nods back, that maybe he should've tried being nice. nicer. good cop to evan's completely unhinged and corrupt cop. his father has a reputation for being reasonable, david could've leaned on that. made it seem like survival is a possibility here. ]

[ that thought takes about as long to process as it does for him to note the way this guy's eyes dart to the side once, but he doesn't figure out what that look means before the guy's running. hurling himself through that wall with a faith that would be impressive if not for the current situation. ]

Fuck--!

[ david's quick to react, quick on his feet too, but the extra distance between him and this guy means he makes it through that wall before david can grab him. david barrels right on through after him though, paying no mind to the dust and rubble that rains down on him, clinging to his clothes, his hair, his skin. the sunglasses keep most of it out of his eyes at least, means he doesn't have to pause to see where this fuck's going. ]

[ out the window apparently. it's the fastest way out of this place now, though with the way he looks after hitting the wall, david's not sure this guy would even be able to do more than limp away after climbing out of it. but shit, he wants to go out the window? he can go out the window. ]

[ his sports career might've been short before he retired, but david is a precision instrument when he charges this guy, drops into a rugby tackle to grab him and sends them both through the window onto the ground outside. ]

[ evan's fast, but david's got a head start - enough of one that he follows through the broken wall ahead of evan. it means evan's through the mess just as he sees david, using all the sports he actually got to play, take the man down - through the fucking window.

it's a very thin sliver of luck that this window backs onto a part of the brewery that doesn't face the street, so nobody's going to see the chaos right away. but they'll hear it, no doubt, and it won't be long before somebody comes to see what the hell is going on.

with slightly more caution than david had - although he can't deny it was an impressive catch - evan follows them through the window and grabs the struggling contact to try and drag him back inside. it's difficult to do with one person. ]

Fucking morons - help me get him back in -

[ with evan on the inside and david on the outside, there's no way he can get out. that does depend on david being willing to help, but so far he's been helpful enough. provided they can get him back inside, things are going to go bad for this fucker - and fast. ]

[ it didn't go exactly as intended, but they got the guy before he could run off, david's counting that as a success. ]

[ he stands, gives himself a once over to see if he's actually hurt or got any bits of glass stuck in him, and dusts himself off as he turns to follow evan's voice back inside the building. despite himself, he can't help but breathe out a quiet chuckle at evan's complaint. ]

[ it was fun, what can he say? ]

[ fist he's gotta help get this guy inside though. david ducks by the window and wraps his arms around the guy's legs like he's hoisting a roll of carpet, entirely ignoring the way he wriggles and tries to kick as he preps himself to lift the guy up as evan, presumably, pulls him through from inside. ]

[ david's entertained by all this. of course he is. he takes a real sort of joy in anything like a fight, evan knows, but even here and now he won't take things seriously. it makes him want to turn and beat him down for it, but there's more important things at stake here.

he'll rip him a new one later. for now he settles with a solid glare and drags the contact back inside, back toward the room he ran from, where he ensures there's not going to be a second escape attempt by hurling him to the floor and slamming a foot down on one knee.

he hears a noise that's close enough to a crack, and the scream rips through the empty building - and possibly out through the newly-opened window. evan glances that way, but opts not to drag him further in just yet. if someone comes peeking around they won't have a choice. still - he's hoping this won't take very long. ]

You can start talking, or I can make that a lot worse. [ evan rolls up his sleeves, even though the whole point of wearing this shitty jacket was to make sure it didn't matter if he got blood on him. ] Doubt he's gonna intervene on your behalf.

[ him being david. and of course david won't. he's here for the same reason. to get this done. to hurt someone. ]

Maybe if this prick didn't make me chase him through a wall and a fuckin' window.

[ david dusts off the front of his hoodie for emphasis — a lot seems to come off, and yet seems to make zero difference to the state of him. ]

[ he walks around the perimeter of the room, looking for somewhere he can hear if anyone decides to come down here. maybe somewhere he can see too, but that feels like a pipe dream. in the end david picks a spot where he can see the broken wall and the windows, where ideally he'll be able to hear anyone coming up the nearby hallway. ]

Might change my mind if he gives up anything worth our time.

[ spoiler alert: he won't. ]

[ later on evan might - might - appreciate that it wasn't him who went through dust, plaster, and glass to stop him. he won't mention it, but it does leave him in a slightly better state, more ready to deliver the coming beatdown.

he doesn't expect david to intervene. he expects him to join in, eventually. provided evan gives him an opening. ]

The fronts. I want names.

[ there's arguments, despite the pain. that there are no new names. that evan already knows. but all it takes is one more kick to the busted knee, breaking it further, to get a few more names. a few more places to look into. even something that's not in process yet, just planning. and that's something. it's enough that evan doesn't grind his heel into that knee, making sure it falls apart even more.

instead, he pulls him up off the ground by the collar of his shirt. one-handed. he needs the other hand, after all. ]

That's a start. [ he is, in that moment, every inch his father's son - and he looks it. if anyone ever told him, he'd probably kill them on the spot. ] Now let's hear about the guns.

[ david is completely unfazed by the violence. he, himself likes to take a more psychological approach sometimes, because sometimes the fear of pain is muuch more powerful than the pain itself, but it's evan's show. david just takes the opportunity once the guy's been lifted off the ground to come over and pat him down and fish a phone out of his pocket. ]

Don't mind me. Just wanna borrow-- [ he grabs their hand to use their thumb to unlock it. ] This. Cheers.

[ there's some confused whimpering on that dude's part, but david ignores it, trusting that evan will get him focused again quickly enough. ]

[ david takes the opportunity to scroll through this guy's messages, socials, etc. looking for anyone they might've colluded with. or anyone they might not wanna see get hurt. after some more useless, borderline weepy babbling, david helpfully pipes up. ]

Maybe we should give Desirée a call, yeah? Ask her to come down? [ he definitely looks a bit panicked at that. ] Seems like she might know a little something.

[ judging by their messages, they seem close. if pain doesn't motivate this dude enough, david's willing to bet the fear of his friend/girlfriend/whatever getting hurt will give a little impetus. ]

[ evan glances at david, annoyed, when he pulls out the phone and gets into it, but even he knows the value of a psychological angle. it's just that outside of a few particular circumstances, he's not very good at it. they have other people to do that ... and in this case, david, apparently.

it flies in the face of his belief that david's a fucking idiot, because genuine idiots can't do this kind of thing at all. but that's something to argue with himself about later. ]

You don't have much to stand on now. Where's everyone hiding out?

[ the focus only lasts a few more long, incoherent seconds before evan starts to see red - and david gets a name that draws panic. evan stays focused on the mark but he's ready to smack that phone out of david's hand if he needs to. they only want one person getting involved here. if it's just a threat, then - fine.

besides, they could use that phone. ]

You want me to tie you up while we get her down here? Show her what it means to get involved with a dumbass like you?

[ there's chairs somewhere, and he might tie him up anyway. but the threat needs an edge. and evan's reputation probably precedes him: he's never had a problem hitting women. ]

[ david, on the other hand, doesn't like hitting women — in a fight it's one thing, but situations like this? it makes him feel too much like his father — but that doesn't mean he won't. he'll beat the shit out of anyone if that's what he has to do to get things done. ]

[ so david fully expects the knowledge he's trapped here with two people who wouldn't hesitate to brutalise his little friend to get an answer out of him. he'd rather not actually call her down here, that adds a lot of potential complications he doesn't want to deal with, and would probably push evan over the edge on keeping his shit together, but this idiot doesn't need to know that. ]

[ --and he doesn't, by the sound of it. by the way david can see fresh panic bloom in his expression when david gets his own phone out to, presumably, copy her number. ]

Let me give her a call, yeah? See if she's busy. I'm sure she'll come in a real hurry when she hears this--

[ david kicks the back of their shattered knee. the scream is short, almost surprise as it is pure agony, but judging by the way the guy sobs afterward and what david thinks sounds like a weak "okay, okay", that sounds like he's hit breaking point to david. ]

[ he smiles at evan, pats him on the arm like one might a friend as he passes by to find a chair and drag it over. ]

And you thought he'd be uncooperative.

[ evan watches david grimly, but the look he gives the hand on his arm for the brief moment it's there is pure poison.

which doesn't go missed by their target, although evan doesn't realize that just yet. no, he's too busy watching david go to find a chair, and then focusing back on the desperate man in his grip, whose hope of escaping in one piece is probably dwindling rapidly. he shouldn't be surprised. if it was his own boss here, it'd be so much worse. people hate traitors.

evan says nothing until the chair is on hand. then he drops their target into it, although he doesn't have any rope, so it'll just have to be a place to sit for now. better than having to carry him on that fucked up knee he's got now. ]

Hope King's got it right, for your sake.

[ and he does, at least in part. evan gets information. not names, but places, and plans, and a few things set for the future that make him raise his eyebrows. when there's a hesitation or a stutter, he belts him with the back of a fist. ]

What else?

[ david is doing his best to be helpful here. trying not to step on evan's toes, making sure not to get in his way. these days he's used to having a lot of independence, to being one of the ones giving orders, so it's like a persistent itch under his skin to have to defer to someone else like this. a constant irritant that he can't just ignore. ]

[ but he does it, and for the sake of presenting a unified front to this shit with the information, david pretends it doesn't even bother him. so it's a good thing he doesn't see the look evan gives him in response to the pat on the arm, that would really annoy him right now. ]

Honestly I dunno why you're botherin' to hold things back still.

[ lighthearted as he comes around the back of the chair and plants his hands on this guy's shoulders. almost a mockery of a friendly gesture for the way his grip is tight enough to bruise, pushes down on them to hold him in place. ]

You really think anything they might do to you is worse than what we can, here and now?

[ evan looms as he watches david try to be convincing in a friendly way, although nobody's buying the friendliness. he's the good cop here, essentially. evan won't do anything but attack and demand; david's avoiding the attacks even while he makes the same demands. he's the nice guy here. the one that isn't evan.

the one who'll cave his skull in evan fucks up, and take all the credit. they both know everything after all.

so he watches the target, eyes dark, waiting for answers. holding off on the pain for now, but the blood on his knuckles and the look on his face promise a hell of a lot more.

and they get more information. it's not good information. it's not what he wanted. but evan also knows this guy isn't that high up in the ranks, or else he wouldn't be so quick to try and turn on them. he has to accept that at some point, the information's going to run out. ]

Not enough.

[ he glances up at david, willing to give him the opportunity to lay down some fury on this asshole. if he doesn't take it, then, well. he's not going to complain about having to do it himself. ]

[ david wouldn't class himself as good cop really. more... affable, handsome cop? that sounds about right. especially not when he leans forward over the guy and grabs one of his wrists, pulls it up with a pathetic little pained whine from him ]

There's what, two hundred bones in a body? Somethin' like that?

[ he wrenches his thumb back suddenly, hard enough to break it. keeps his grip tight around that wrist so that no matter how much he tries to struggle, tries to pull free, david doesn't let up even a little. ]

Dunno if I've got the patience to go through 'em one by one, but we could find out together, eh? One broken bone for every time your info in't worth shit.

[ a more philisophocal person might muse on the strength of the human survival instinct here. no way is this guy getting out of here alive, he must know that by now, but he keeps on stringing this out. piecemeal bits of information to keep living that little bit longer, maybe he thinks someone will save him if this takes long enough. ]

[ evan watches david work. flashy and showy, as he expected. but he has to begrudgingly admit, it's not ineffective. the thumb's broken quickly and painfully and elicits a noise he's used to. and david doesn't lose his grip, either, despite the flailing and thrashing.

so he doesn't make a comment, or even change his expression, even if the urge to look disdainfully at what david's doing is stronger than it probably should be. he just watches their soon-to-be-corpse-problem with a flat, unimpressed look. listens to the babbled information that has some worth but not very much.

there's not much more to get, but he doesn't have enough for his own liking. that's irritating him. so's dealing with david. so's waiting for this to be done. so's the whole fucking world. ]

Five more. None of that was new.

[ the look he gets is violent and terrified. evan only raises an eyebrow. ]

[ five more, huh. david purses his lips in a light shrug and gets straight to it, no messing around. the four fingers on that hand go, each with a weak sobbing cry of pain and protest. it's nothing compared to the way he howls when david takes his arm and hand firmly in each hand and snaps his wrist. ]

[ he seems relatively unbothered by the reaction, it's nothing new for him. david just keeps that tight grip on his arm and looks over at evan, waiting for the noise to fade before he speaks. at this point it just seems like drawing this out for no good reason, neither of them are enjoying this. and if this guy's holding on to any information that's worth beating out of him, david would be impressed. ]

You think he's got anything left?

[ he has to have something. he has to make this fucking excursion with david king worthwhile. sure, what he has will help a hell of a lot, but it doesn't feel like enough. maybe it's just because david's here. under other circumstances, evan would have considered it enough a while ago.

but the rage is still seething. he fights with himself over wanting this to keep going, to get those last dregs out even though all he can hear being mumbled over and over is i don't know i don't know, or to just end it.

he should probably keep going. his father would. ]

Doubt it.

[ evan sneers at the bloody wreck in the chair in front of him. even if he walks away now, he's got nowhere to go. he could lie to his bosses about how he got in that condition, but they'd find out, and he'd be dead. evan and david won't take him in. and there's no way out of this shit, once you're in it. he can't just go to the hospital. ]

Get the card out of his phone.

[ evan's not exactly technologically advanced, which is one of the macmillan family's weak points, or at least the weak point of father and son. he knows that the kings probably won't share all the information they can find on it, but that's a risk he has to take. ]

[ that hits david with a combination of deep anger at evan for just issuing orders at him like that, and confusion at the actual order itself. does evan think everything's still stored on sim cards? they're about the same age, aren't they? how does he think this shit works? ]

[ david genuinely doesn't know how to respond for a moment, but like always the anger wins out. david might be playing nice, letting evan take the lead, that doesn't mean he gets to talk to him like he's a subordinate. giving orders like it's all him? fuck off. learn to show a little appreciation, how about that? ]

[ he tilts his head, eyebrows raised when he looks at evan. angry, challenging. ]

You wanna run that one by me again?

[ david's reaction catches evan off-guard. partly because he doesn't understand why he wasn't understood, and partly because david's been accommodating enough so far that he assumed he'd just do whatever he was told until this was over.

but this is over now, isn't it? the look he david is annoyed, just as angry as the one being given to him, and just a little surprised. ]

You don't want what's on it, then I'll take it. Figured you wanted something else out of this.

[ evan can feel the tension between them again. the same way he always does when they meet, when the world lines up to one perfect moment of them beating the shit out of each other. and maybe that's what would happen if the contact didn't see this as his own perfect moment to try and escape, by slipping off the chair and limping godawfully toward the door. he makes it about a foot before he collapses thanks to the damage to his knee.

evan snaps, just enough. and he has a target to take that rage out on that's slightly more acceptable than david right now.

he starts beating the fallen man, delivers a punch to the back of his head that hurts to give as much as it does to take, and then just doesn't stop. there's no screaming this time, partly because evan goes after his skull first, and partly because there's hardly any strength left to scream with. he doesn't stop when the bastard stops moving, either, or at least not until the blood starts seeping across the floor. ]

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