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Stepping through the door, the sound of ongoing conversations play to Matt’s ear, his intentions residing elsewhere for the moment. “How’re you doing?” Matt inquires, stopping at Darlene, her shoulder leant against the doorframe, arms folded as she watches the circle in the middle of the room continue to chat amongst themselves. “I’m good… scary is all” Darlene replies, her head only aimed towards Matt during her answer, returning to the group immediately thereafter.
“Go have a seat” Darlene urges Matt, the man turning towards her with a beguiled look. “I’m fine right here, thank you” Matt replies, surprised at the woman’s lack of opposition. Remaining silent, Darlene allows the man to remain stood away until a feminine voice calls out from the circle, Matt’s name being lifted into the room. “Matthew Tory?” the woman calls out, metaphorically grabbing the man’s ear, “we were told you would be joining us today!” With glee, the woman pulls an empty chair into the circle, expanding the circumference of the group as she ushers the man to his seat. “I gave you a chance to do it yourself, didn’t I?” Darlene mocks, flashing the man a smile as he shakes his head in disapproval, putting on a brave face as he nears his seat in an effort to not be rude. “Ladies and gentlemen, let’s all welcome Matt to the group” the woman exclaims, the innermost thoughts Matt holds being fear that she’ll get too used to him being involved. “I’m just here to learn about all of this” Matt explains, the woman’s intrigue in him only growing with each word he lets fall from his lips, “I think it would be a great learning experience.” “Okay, then” the woman replies, the two words being the only one she would answer Matt’s explanation with before turning her head to the group, silently expressing her lack of convincing. “Tonya, why don’t we start with you?” the woman at the head of the group calls out, a young woman, likely between the ages of thirteen and seventeen, beginning to speak with aa lack of confidence, one arm pulling another close to her body, a wall being put up the longer she speaks. “I’m Tonya, and my mom and dad were users” Tonya replies, introducing herself. At first, Matt’s head begins to pound, a headache coming on and dulling out the sounds of the group’s voices. In a moment of clarity, a gentle nudge of an elbow into his arm returns him to the present, his eyes looking to the side, the woman in charge of the meeting having jolted him out of his spell without even needing to look at him, her eyes still directed towards the younger speaker. “It’s been a hard road… Learning everything about the world on my own” Tonya explains, taking a pause and a sigh before concluding her statement, “I don’t really know if it’s possible yet.” Without hesitation, another voice calls out from the opposite side of the circle, the voice directing itself towards the internally battled young woman. “It is” a more mature voice explains, the man speaking with both hands against the sides of his chair, “it’s just more difficult to see in your shoes.” “I think now is a perfect time to introduce yourself” the woman replies, the thirty-or-so year old man stepping out of his chair, the gesture not necessary, just one that he does for the point of it. “My name is Marc, I’m thirty six years old. My mother died of an overdose when I was seven and my father molested me until he died in a car accident when I was twelve” Marc replies, hitting the group with an emotional gut punch immediately out of the gate. “Many men don’t usually consider themselves victims of sexual abuse openly, Marc” the woman explains, clutching at her leather-wrapped notebook tightly, “how do you have such courage to act differently?” Even without wanting to be present for the meeting, Matt begins to take more interest in the stories being told once Marc steps up, captivated by the difference in Tonya’s story from that of Marc’s. “There are places where you can blame your past for setting up your future pretty often… I just try to make it so that those places are so few and far between that they don’t really exist anymore” Marc replies, putting smiles on the faces of all, including Matt. “It’s not really bravery, it’s acceptance… I suffered through what I suffered through” Marc explains, confidently returning his stare towards Tonya, “I take pride in being my own man in spite of that, not because of that.” “That’s a big change between your situations” Matt proclaims, expecting the statement to just be one of unimportance, falling upon deaf ears as the conversation rolls on. Much to his chagrin, the still-unnamed woman singles out that response, turning towards him with a wide smile. “Look around you, Matthew… People of all different ages, sizes, shapes, backgrounds, etcetera” the woman explains, “their stories are as diverse as they are.” Fighting off the urge to become invested, Matt allows himself to settle in slightly, giving the woman a brief nod before leaning inwards, patiently awaiting further discussion. = Kings of Cambridge is created by Zachary Serra, all rights to the series belong to Zachary Serra and his entity of Pacer1 from the start of Season 1 onwards = “We’ve got her boys!” Tyrell shouts, a phone held into the air, clutched within his hand as he enters the rundown hanger, a chorus of cheers greeting him upon his declaration. “You’ve got the misses?” Danny asks, extending his arm out to catch the phone Tyrell tosses to him, a slate of messages offered up as individual proof. “How the fuck did you do it?” one of the table’s crew calls out, an amused Tyrell remaining silent, allowing his shit-eating grin to do the talking. “You’re gonna get the first lady of the second-largest cartel in the northeastern chunk of the country into position for an assasination, and then you’re gonna not tell us how you did it?” another voice calls out, finally breaking the man. “Alright, alright… It wasn’t that difficult truly” Tyrell explains, “I got in contact with one of their dealers, took care of him and made contact all the way up the ladder until I climbed high enough to find someone important. I took it from there.” “So what do they think’s going on?” another voice calls out, Danny still reading through the text messages, his face souring with each line of dialogue he reads further into. “They think their supply is being tipped off to authorities and want to set up an earlier exchange time” Tyrell replies, his hand lifting into the air, one finger pointing towards Danny, “the show’s all yours from here, buddy.” “This isn’t going to work” Danny replies suddenly, his negative declaration only serving to bring down the mood of the entire crew, Tyrell’s enjoyment plummeting. “Why won’t this work?” Tyrell inquires, patiently awaiting the man’s call, annoyed at his work being discredited, but still keeping the wherewithal to take in all differing opinions. “They told you… Outright told you, a random street dealer, that they’d be moving earlier” Danny replies, both arms thrown outwards, “that makes no sense.” “No, no, no… This is their highest-level street guy” Tyrell explains, Danny’s posturing remaining unchanged, if anything, only appearing to be more confident in his original disapproval. “Perhaps so, but it’s still a street guy” Danny replies, tapping the knuckles of his fingers against the phone screen, “why would they tell some street seller what their big move is gonna be? Again… It makes no sense!” With a sigh, Tyrell plants both hands by his waist, looking at Danny with a challenging stare, remaining stood by his own approach. “I’ve got this chick under the assumption that her captain fucked up and tipped off the cops… She’ll want to speak with him, and the only way to do that is to beat the cops to the punch” Tyrell explains, “so one way or another, even if she switches herself out with someone else, there’ll be someone of importance approaching that ship.” “Maybe you’re both right” another voice calls out from the other side of the hanger, one of the crew stepping away from a getaway car with oil covering his face. “Maybe she’s bound for the ship ahead of schedule but also doesn’t want to clue a street guy in” the man exclaims, “perhaps she’s rerouting the ship to another port?” With a smile, Tyrell looks at Danny, who appears to take on more confidence with such a suggestion. “Tristan’s got a point!” Tyrell exclaims, his shoulders shrugging towards Danny as he inquires into the next steps, “what’s the call, D?” Looking around the room, Danny is left perplexed, the reminder of what they’re beginning sticky well onto his mind as he makes his decision. | As stories continue to be recalled, Matt remains hunched forward in his seat, listening into everything, taking every detail down in his head and patiently taking his time to digest these new pieces of information and advice. “I guess that boils it down to you” the woman calls out, her words aimed towards Matt, who fails to notice this at first, surprised upon his story being called upon next. “Oh, I’m just here for the new experience” Matt explains, quietly brushing off the woman’s suggestion, passing himself off as just another counselor looking to sit in and learn. The room silent, Matt looks back to the woman, feeling her warm eyes call him out on his bluff, the rest of the room also noticing the urge in Matt’s body language, his subtle hints at not wanting to speak. “I think the group would disagree” the woman explains, watching Matt’s face slightly lower, hands rubbing against themselves as he resides within a corner he’s backed himself into, nowhere left to run. Giving in, Matt slides his fingers over the palm of his hand, taking his time before standing up, fixing his shirt with his change in stance. “My name is Matthew Tory, and my parents were hard drug users” Matt replies, his head hanging as he goes silent, the group silently watching on. “I grew up very lonely, my brother and I were very distant and cold to each other, and I was raised by other people” Matt explains, his voice becoming more stern the longer he speaks. “My little brother eventually got hooked on some stuff and died shortly after my twenty-first birthday” Matt continues, noticing Darlene watching from out of the corner of his eye, “every day, I remember him as a druggie bastard by parents never had the balls to raise. I blame him and not them.” With a sigh, Matt pulls his eyes away from Darlene and returns them to the group, not yet satisfied with the story he’s crafted, his intentions becoming that of a man wishing to hammer his own point home. “I went to college and never really looked back… I may have carried blame on my brother, but I carried a lot of disdain for my parents… And I mean a lot” Matt explains, “I fell into what I fell into and have just kept moving… My parents are dead to me, and I’m sure I’m dead to them too.” Not really certain what point to touch upon first, the woman in the middle of the room attempts to ease Matt’s spirits, her efforts soon to fall upon deaf ears. “Many people think their parents view them differently than they actually do, Matthew” the woman explains, her final portion of the statement inciting an immediate response from the man. “Don’t call me that” Matt says calmly, his chin lifting as he addresses her concerns, “and it’s not what I think, it’s what I know.” With a deep breath, Matt gazes back at the middle of the therapy clinic, the garden just outside, as filled with death as it is, brings closure upon Matt. “They could never love the man that I am… It’s against who they are in every conceivable way” Matt explains, head turned to the group so they can’t see his eyes shut, “If I’m not dead to them, I’d be better off dead for them.” His eyelids violently pressing together, Matt embraces the rush of anger that comes over him before settling himself down, eyelids parting to reveal the same dead garden as before. With a nod, Matt turns his body and returns to his seat, hands politely folded in his lap as he looks throughout the room. “Okay” Matt exclaims, turning towards the woman with a smile, “where were we?” | “It’s all going to go down real quick once they arrive, so be prepared” Danny explains, he and his crew camping out in a vehicle a fair distance away from the meeting point. “Here they come” Danny calls out, watching a fleet of vehicles arrive, driving in one line, each car dawning flags with the cartel’s logo on it as if they were the presidential motorcade. “I told you I knew what I was doing” Tyrell jokes, nudging an amused Danny as an eighteen wheeler strolls up. “If we’re killing the matriarch, we might as well collect ourselves something in the process” Danny explains, giving the signal for his crew to prepare their strike for after the drugs have been loaded. “We’re starting a war tonight, D” Tyrell quips, Tristan whispering his pleasure in taking their rightful place atop the northeastern drug trade, a fistbump accepted by both Danny and Tyrell. Emerging from the vehicle, the matriarch, dawned in a large fur coat, struts up the steep ramp towards the entrance of the boat, one member of her cartel following her at a time. “Start advancing, boys” Danny calls into the radio, their window of opportunity having been offered, a line of doors opening a few yards away allowing his small army to emerge, one prinary objective in mind. “Here we go” Danny calls out, emerging from his vehicle as the rest do the same, weapons adorned as their feet carry them to the ship. “Hey!” one of the opposing cartel guards calls out, a bullet fired from Danny’s gun before he can speak another word, the man’s brains being spilled onto the concrete within a moment’s notice. “This is where it all gets brutal, motherfuckers!” Tyrell shouts, firing off multiple rounds towards the cartel, each side beginning to find cover. Low on available men, those on the Gilcrest’s side are quickly outnumbered by Matt’s men, the invading cartel swiftly taking control of the grounds outside the ship, picking off one man after another as they deboard. Without issue, a portion of the Table’s forces begin to advance towards the loading bay, entering the ship and firing at everyone that doesn’t sport the same dark shade of black as themselves. One after another, muffled gunshots ring out from the ship, screams and whales of agony emerge from the boat’s depths, Danny, Tyrell and Tristan left to only hope for the best as they wait patiently for results from the outside. “Keep your eyes out, let’s not get hit from behind!” Danny shouts, adding specific orders to steer clear from the motorcade line as gunshots become more spaced out, silence filling the air more often than any other noise until silence is all that’s left. As a few seconds pass, no further gunfire is exchanged, allowing Danny the confidence to call out for a response from within the vessel. “We’ve got ‘em!” one of the Table shouts, a roaring cheer coming over Matt’s cartel on the outside, a look of relief coming over Danny’s face as Tyrell pulls him into a hug. “Tristan, go sweep the cars for any trace of us” Danny calls out, taking a deep sigh of relief as he begins to slowly approach the loading ramp. “The right call was made tonight, D!” Tyrell shouts, arm resting over the shoulder of the quiet man, the sounds of war staying with him for the moment, his joy slowly coming over time. “We still started a war… Now we’re in it” Danny replies, eyes turning towards Tyrell, his warnings carrying dread opposite to that of Tyrell’s temporary victory, “they’re gonna come firing back on all cylinders and we need to be ready for that.” “We will be, brother” Tyrell replies, matching the emotion of the man beside him, patting his chest, “we only got one dude left and then they’re done… We can handle this.” With a nod, Danny pulls in Tyrell for another hug, patting him on the back and congratulating him on a well-earned victory, a single crewmate of the Table emerging from the ship in a mad dash. “She’s not here!” the crewmate shouts, standing in the entry to watch his fellow men begin to slowly lose their appetite for celebration, Danny immediately asking for clarification. “Are you telling me she’s dead somewhere out here, or are you telling me she’s not here period?” Danny replies, holding out the strongest of hopes for the prior option to be the response. “She’s not here period” the crewmate replies, bringing a barrage of confusion and dissatisfaction over the crew, questions that need answers being left without any in the moment. “What about the woman in the fur coat?” Danny asks, his heart skipping a beat as the crewmate explains that it was just another one of the Gilcrest’s men. “What kind of guy wears a fur coat on a drug run?” Tyrell calls out, Danny turning back towards him with his eyes widened. “A fucking decoy” Danny replies, watching Tyrell’s jaw drop before glancing towards Tristan, their fellow crewmate continuing to open the door to each individual vehicle. “Tristan! Get away from!-” Danny shouts, his warning call disrupted by a massive fireball spitting out over the port’s midnight air, each vehicle bursting into flames, allowing Danny to watch his friend become engulfed by the inferno within an instant. As they start to regain their hearing, the crew watches the inferno continue to burn amidst the backtrack of distant sirens. “Tristan!” Danny shouts, his face feeling the pulsating heat of the fire as he calls out, holding onto hope that the man would have emerged alive, even if slightly burned. His arm being taken into the grasp of Tyrell, Danny is led away from the scene, his hope fading as the Table retreats. | “Come in” Darlene calls out, affording Matt the pleasure of entering her office, his concerns obvious as made evident by his facial expression. “You’re here to talk to me about the results again, right?” Darlene inquires, Matt breaking out into a smile, both shoulders lifted. “The tests came back negative! Isn’t that important to you?” Matt replies, the busy woman shuffling through papers with a pen pressed between her knuckles. “Apparently not as much as it is for you” Darlene replies, already used to the smiles given to her well before she met Matt. “Listen, no one else goes for a cancer screening and comes back to a roar of applause when it’s negative… Why should I?” Darlene asks, leaving Matt without much of a reasonable response. “You’re different” Matt replies, watching Darlene’s eyebrows lift as she moves her glasses further down on her face, “it’s okay to be different… It’s okay to not be everyone else.” With a huff, Darlene lets her pen fall to the keyboard, her glasses being removed from her face and tossed upon a stack of books. “Which Matt am I getting right now? The therapist Matt or the person Matt?” Darlene asks, the man’s shoulders falling upon her quam. “The person Matt” the man replies, one finger remaining held in the air, “he just so happens to speak a lot like the therapist Matt.” With a chuckle, Darlene stands out of her seat and walks around her desk, casually approaching the man at the opposite end of the room and staring into his eyes. “You’re hiding something behind those” Darlene explains, watching Matt’s pupils dilate, his hands becoming tense at the idea of secrets being uncovered. “You’re hurting inside” Darlene explains, Matt only left to patiently await the conclusion she’s come to, “you’ve never forgiven yourself for how you view your family.” Struck by a wave of relief, Matt lets out a deep breath, nodding to himself as he walks past the woman, creating a distance between them. “It’s not your fault for the way that your family conducts themselves” Darlene explains, Matt’s back turned towards her so she can’t see him smirk, his intentions remaining on keeping his backstory the same as he presented it in the earlier meeting until the woman says something that brings him a sudden anger. “You’re not your family… You’re your own person” Darlene explains, unaware of Matt’s visual change in expression, his nose scrunching as he takes in deep breaths, trying to collect himself. “You have no clue who I am” Matt replies, the anger he carries prompting him to share more than he would otherwise like to, the truth gradually slipping out in vague statements. “I know what you’re willing to do for other people, and it’s a lot more than most” Darlene replies, noticing the man’s voice to have changed in complexion. “I do as much for people as I do to them” Matt replies, only further confusion Darlene, the woman’s words intended to help the man, only to result in a worsening of the man’s attitude. “What are you talking about?” Darlene asks, looking off in confusion until Matt turns around, returning to her side. “My parents weren’t users, they were sellers… I’m not a child of addicts, I’m a child of addict makers” Matt replies, revealing a piece of himself to Darlene that he often couldn’t even admit to himself. “I try to help people battle their demons because my folks helped people give into them… I help people give into them…” Matt explains, forcing himself to regain his composure, the mask of anonymity beginning to slip away with every revelation, “I’m obligated to do this job.” Staying silent, Darlene lets Matt vent, taking his words to be nothing more than his way of trying to blow off steam, refusing to hold him back. “I have somewhere to be” Matt says calmly, turning around and leaving the office, Darlene’s attempts to persuade him back falling short, her door slowly gliding shut with Matt on the other side. Emerging from the building, Matt sets his eyes upon his parked car, the lights flashing as he reaches for his door, noticing a familiar woman walking off. “Excuse me?” Matt calls out, the leading woman from the meeting before turning around to see the man approaching her. “Matthe-” the woman begins, correcting herself as the man laughs at his earlier remarks. “Go ahead, you can call me whatever you want” Matt replies, his hands tucked into his pockets as he comes to a stop just before her, “I shouldn’t have reacted to you in that way back there and I apologize for that.” Her head shaking, the woman promises to have not taken the replies personally. “You’ve got a lot of stuff in your life to be worked up over… Some people never get away from it fully” the woman explains, “don’t let that persuade you from moving on in life.” With a laugh, Matt promises that his past has never kept him from moving forward, admitting it to have been the only reason for his survival at times. “There’s was too much going on back there… Stuff I didn’t want to get involved in” Matt explains, struggling to find the words to adequately paint what he’s trying to say, “I would’ve died if I went back… There wasn’t anything to go back to, so the only choice was to keep going forward.” “Some people don’t move forward and don’t go back… They just wallow in the same pit for as long as it takes them to do something else” the woman explains, lending the man a useful piece of advice. “Even if you don’t feel like you moved forward to the right thing sometimes, just saying you moved forward is a lot more than most others can relate to” the woman concludes, beginning to walk back to her car. “Hey, I never did get your name!” Matt calls back, watching the woman turn around with a smile. “I’m Claudia” the woman replies, turning back for her vehicle upon wishing the man a good night. Whispering her name back to himself, Matt turns back for his vehicle, eventually pulling his door open and placing his foot into the vehicle. Before Matt can sink into his seat, the sight of a parked car across the street suddenly driving off without any lights strikes him as odd. Reaching for his phone, Matt types into his phone before pulling his vehicle onto the road as well, keeping his eyes peeled for any unwanted attention. Pulling onto the side of the road, Matt exits his vehicle and walks a few blocks back to his home, entering to an already-illuminated flat. Acknowledging the oddities of the day, Matt reaches into his briefcase and removes a pistol from one of its many pockets, taking aim at the foyer and proceeding forward with caution. “Show yourself or I’ll fire on sight” Matt warns whomever may be residing within, a confused call of his name emerging from the living room. With a sigh, Matt shakes his head and places the pistol on his kitchen counter, uncoupling his sleeve cuffs and approaching his fish tank, half-heartedly greeting Danny on his way in, his right hand man slumped in his seat on the couch. “What happened tonight?” Matt asks, Danny feeding him one bullet point after another, all whilst Matt nonchalantly feeds his fish. “The cars went up, Tristan was taken out, and we retreated” Danny concludes, a scowl coming over Matt’s face upon the declaration of their loss. Not wishing to be a pain in the ass to his most trusted ally, Matt uses the fish tank’s reflection to assist in his removal of the unflattering look, only turning back to the man upon its removal. “Any word from the Gilcrest’s?” Matt asks, rolling his sleeves up, a silent shake of the head coming from Danny as he mutters, “not yet.” With a sigh, Matt looks towards the skylight above his living room, shaking his head and asking any gods above what he did wrong. Pouring Danny and himself a glass of scotch, Matt takes a seat in his recliner, both he and Danny keeping their eyes forward, not wanting to look at each other as losers. “So we’ve started the war off with a wet fart, and now it’s turned out to be a real shitstain” Matt whispers to himself, his words slightly echoed as he speaks them into the cup in his hand, “ain’t that just comical?” Biting his lip, Danny shakes his head in the upmost disappointment as he downs the entire drink in one chug. “Why did you ‘okay’ the move?” Matt asks, his head finally turning to acknowledge Danny, eyes squinting as the man responds, confused. “What?” Matt asks, head slightly arched forward, Danny unable to wipe away the defeated smile on his face. “I said… I didn’t okay the move” Danny replies, prompting Matt to push his footrest away, leaving his chair and walking over to his second in command. “I employ you with the expectation that you are the only other man responsible for making calls, second only to me” Matt begins to exclaim angrily, “have I not made this clear enough in the past?” “You have” Danny replies weakly, resting his glass upon the table beside him as he climbs to his feet. “Why did you not make the call then, Daniel!?” Matt shouts, the anger-fueled dialogue of the Table’s head only matched by Danny’s loud-voiced, yet shout-less tone. “It wasn’t my call to make, Matthew” Danny replies, the man opposite him completely disregarding the name used, both hands thrown out by his sides. “They’re all your calls to make!” Matt shouts, wide-eyed. “This one wasn’t my call to make!” Danny replies, still not shouting. “Who made the fucking call then!?” Matt replies, still shouting. “Tyrell made the call.” Danny responds, again, not yet shouting. “Why the fuck did Tyrell make the call!?” Matt shouts back. “Because he did the work and I didn’t had two equally-reasonable choices” Danny replies, his tone now slightly increasing. “He doesn’t get the blame for shit like this, YOU DO!” Matt shouts back, now practically screaming. “That’s why I’m here and he’s not!” Danny calls back, now beginning to shout. “Then he shouldn’t be making the call!” Matt screams. “Well, he did!” Danny shouts back. “Why did you let him!?” Matt screams in response. “Because I chose to!” Danny shouts in retaliation. “Tyrell should not have been the one making that call!” Matt screams back. “That’s tough shit, ain’t it!?” Danny now screams back. “Tough shit!? Why is that!?” Matt screams. “Because I fucking said so, jackass!” Danny screams harshly. For one second, and only one second, there is silence. In a burst of anger, Matt turns away from Danny and launches his partially-filled glass into the kitchen, allowing it to shatter beyond the shadows. Looking away, Matt’s head turns back to Danny’s, both men speechless as their chests puff up and down to make room for the air in their lungs. Unwilling to keep the screaming match going, Matt waves his hand, calling off the conversation and walking away. “Call Levi, tell him there’s no room to make the run anytime soon” Matt proclaims, leaving his kitchen and walking for his bedroom. “He’s dead” Danny responds, prompting Matt to turn back, placing his eyes upon the man, watching his friend depart the living quarters and approach him with the embroidered logo of the rental car company in his hand. “I showed him the cooking site and offered him the spot… Just like you asked of me to do” Danny explains, holding the evidence-carrying hand up, “he said no.” Pushing the logo into Matt’s chest, Danny pulls his hand away and allows Matt to look at the patch himself, a blood-stain on the bottom half of it confirming Danny’s story. “I took him out back and put him down… Used the acid to dispose of him” Danny explains, locking eyes with Matt before leaving his home, “but yeah, you go ahead and tell me how awful it is to sit back and work a nine-to-five while the rest of us figure out how falling asleep works.” With that statement, Danny leaves, slamming the door shut on his way out as Matt remains stood in the hallway, automatic lights turning out overhead until only one remains, surrounding him in a sea of black. == Kings of Cambridge ==
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“The little shit’s actually serious” Danny explains, one of a select few bodies surrounding Matt in the comfort of the therapist’s lofty estate, “he wants the empire to himself, nothing more, nothing less.” Clearing his throat, Matt claps his hands together, sliding his palms back and forth, “this is the strangest method of ‘flying the nest’ that I’ve ever seen” Matt replies, standing from his chair and approaching his fish tank.
“Should I start getting ready for ‘dope hunting’ sir?” Brutus asks, Matt looking over his shoulder, gravelly voice becoming present with each swig of scotch he takes down. “No, Brutus… Not yet, at least” Matt replies, extending his arm towards a bottle of fish food neatly placed amidst a table full of prescription pill bottles. “If he wants us doing anything, he’s gotta prove he’s good for his word” Matt explains, popping the bottle cap up and sprinkling the water with flakes. “His mom and pop aren’t exactly known for keeping their end of a deal” Matt explains, head drifting over his shoulder again, flakes no longer falling from the bottle, “let’s make sure that apple fell far from the tree.” Limited on options, Danny weighs the openings they could have, a thought coming over his mind. “Why doesn’t he just stage a coup if he’s serious?” Danny asks, Matt’s head drifting towards his direction, “if he wanted the empire so bad, why not take it himself?” “Supplies” a man in the back quickly replies, gaining the attention of all in attendance, “if he stages a coup against his own parents, everyone his cartel does business with will fear his ability to lead.” With a laugh, Matt takes his attention to the back of the room, arms held by his side. “We’re glad to have you back, Tyrell!” Matt exclaims, a wide grin from one ear to the other greeting the longtime associate, “go ahead and say it one more time, my dear friend!” “If he does the deed himself, every runner, supplier and connection he has will fear they could fall to the same fate as his folks” Tyrell explains once more, “if we do it, his status as ‘heir to the throne’ is only questioned by a rather-heavy drug addiction.” Head nodding, Matt continues to look at Tyrell as Danny comes to a similar conclusion. “He’s giving us the territory so our rep isn’t damaged by taking out those on the other side” Danny explains, earning Matt’s focus once more, “even if we look bad, we’re the only crew to work for in town.” His smile not having faded, Matt lifts his face towards the sky and mutters loud enough to himself for the rest of the crew around him to hear, “I got myself lucky with these guys.” “That still leaves one problem” Danny admits, his eyes falling upon a map at the very back of the room, multiple different colors shading every inch of land pictured. “Where is he setting up next and how is it going to come back to bite us?” Danny asks the group, Matt’s eyes falling upon the image. “Good question, Danny” Matt replies, swiftly spinning around, the smile again having failed to fall from his face, “grab a crew and find that out for me.” = Kings of Cambridge is created by Zachary Serra, all rights to the series belong to Zachary Serra and his entity of Pacer1 from the start of Season 1 onwards = “I come unarmed” Stucky exclaims, both hands lifted into the air, arms bent at the elbows, a small fleet of armed henchmen approaching him cautiously. “Thanks for coming” Danny replies, walking away from the open engine panel of his small cropduster with a towel in hand, wiping the grease from his palms as he nears a table. Cleared, Stucky walks further into the hanger, taking a seat on the opposite side of the table to Danny, the cringe-worthy smile on his face never fading. “Did you call me here looking to make a deal?” Stucky asks, his dominant hand placed upon the back of a metal chair, Danny already having taken his own seat, “because my terms aren’t changing.” Lifting one hand from the table, Danny gestures for Stucky to take a seat, the man doing as instructed with a chuckle, allowing Danny to begin their conversation. “There’s no re-negotiating here, Stuck… We’ll gladly whack your parents” Danny replies, the statement his words put out holding no care for life, “we just want to make sure you can’t go back on your word.” With a nod, Stucky admits to the man that he had assumed this to be a subject to bring up, both hands lifted into the air in a gesture of surrender, “I’m not my parents… I keep my word to anyone I offer it to, Mr. Danny.” “Okay, kid” Danny replies, leaning forward with his hands folded atop the table, “give me some reason to believe what spills from your mouth.” Unable to hold back his amusement, Stucky applauds the phrasing of Danny’s suggestion, reaching for his bag and unzipping the closest pocket. “I have to give it to you, Mr. Danny… You’re good at your job” Stucky replies, an unenthused ‘thank you’ being used to respond to Stucky’s approval, Danny’s eyes watching a folded map emerge from the bag. Turning the map upside down, Stucky presents a map of the southern states, boundary lines drawn in specific places, circles and other markings adorning the paper. “It’s complicated for a reason, but be lucky I knew enough to be as vague as I was… You actually get to see it first-hand now” Stucky explains, a single finger pointing towards the most spacious part of the area. “This is Macon… Georgia” Stucky explains, a marker-drawn circle surrounding the entire length of the city’s borders, “this is where I’ll be taking the head of my operations to.” Reading the map carefully, Danny watches the paper slowly fold back upon itself, Stucky not willing to allow Danny to read any further than he allows him to. “I’m going to take over the South, so you can have everything up here” Stucky explains, “I may be a druggie, but I’m a wizard when I need to put together a plan.” Unable to downplay the man’s well-planned efforts as suggested by the mapping, Danny leans back in his seat, arms folded, eyes reading Stucky for everything he’s worth. “How certain are you in this plan?” Danny inquires, watching Stucky’s head tilt, a silent request for more specifics, “your mother and father did so much just to get their empire up and running… How certain are you that you’ll be able to do everything they did and more?” Either because of chills or his latest fix winding down, Stucky begins to shake violently, slowly coming to a stop within moments, the smile never leaving his face for a second, eyes as bloodshot as they always are. “That’s not really much of your concern now, is it?” Stucky asks, watching Danny match the addict’s smile, arms still folded upon each other. “No” Danny replies, a satisfied shake of his head, “no, it is not.” | “Come in!” Darlene calls out upon a set of knocks, Matt emerging from the other side of her door. “Are you in need of assistance?” Darlene asks, Matt’s face sporting confusion, his head tilting to one side as if to ask for clarification. “I don’t believe so” Matt replies, a nod coming over the woman that signs his paychecks. “Good, save it until after my lunch” Darlene replies, her feet resting upon a second chair as her attention is given fully to the program running on her television. “I was just going to ask what the whole incident between you and that guy was the other night” Matt replies, Darlene’s teeth stopping, the food in her mouth remaining unchewed as she reaches for the remote. “How much of it did you see?” Darlene asks, looking down at her lunch as the television powers off, fork imbedding itself into crunchy lettuce as Matt answers. “How much did I see?” Matt asks, purposefully putting emphasis on the ‘see’ portion, “all of it” he answers. Her chewing getting slower, Darlene asks another question. “And how much of it did you hear?” Darlene asks, adding emphasis to ‘hear’, to which Matt responds, “all of it.” With a nod, Darlene continues to stare at her salad as she replies to Matt, refusing to pull her attention away from her food for the moment despite obviously losing her appetite. “He was the guy that quit last week” Darlene replies, stabbing at her meal with the plastic fork, “he was the reason for why I chose to hire you.” Taking a seat on the opposite side of the woman’s desk, Matt continues the conversation, his employer continuing to refuse him eye contact. “You seemed flustered” Matt explains, his response instantly prompting Darlene to freeze, the fork hanging in mid-air, the only thing moving being her chest, expanding to allow her to breath. “Are you oka-” Matt begins, cut off mid-sentence by Darlene, the woman answering not with anger, but rather the subtly she had been answering with through the duration of their conversation. “He was keeping me from a doctor’s appointment” Darlene replies, keeping the information she offers brief and vague, a cold shoulder being given to the man intentionally. “A doctor’s appointment in the middle of the night?” Matt asks, watching Darlene put the bowl down upon her desk, eyes finally making contact with those of Matt, her expression appearing very unsatisfied. “Are you trying to interrogate me?” Darlene asks, defensive, treating Matt as if he were a nosy family member she was tired of interacting with, “what does anything about my conversation with Perry have to do with you?” With a deep breath, Matt hangs his head with his hands folded, a brief smile flashed towards the woman. “I’m sorry for prying” Matt responds, leaving the chair and heading for the exit, the only thing stopping him from leaving being a declaration from Darlene. “Wait!” the woman calls out, her words carrying both a want for him to stay and a disdain for the dialogue’s continuation, “come back.” Doing as asked, Matt returns to the chair, Darlene swallowing the remaining food in her mouth before returning the container to the mini-fridge beside her desk. “My sister is a doctor and she keeps her office partially open for me whenever I need a checkup” Darlene explains, turning her chair towards the man on the other side of her desk as she continues, “I was going in for a follow up.” Squinting, Matt looks on at the woman with confusion. “Why did you need a follow-up? What was wrong the first time?” Matt asks, the woman’s face refusing to change on principle, not willing to hold back information that’s asked for, always determined to remain as open of a book as she can manage to be. “They found a lump on my breast and they thought could have been cancerous” Darlene replies, her eyes aimlessly gazing around the room, “I’m just waiting on the results.” “Wait, wait… You could have cancer?” Matt replies, a shrug being the only physical response the woman can comfortably give. “You could have cancer, too… It’s just a matter of whether or not they find any indication” Darlene replies, “the only difference between you and I is that they found an indication with me. That’s all.” Strong and massively stubborn, Darlene continues to prop up her facade, a gesture which appears harder to see through than it does in most others, but still partially fragmented to Matt’s view. “You’re scared” Matt replies, Darlene’s eyes reading him up and down, impressed at his conclusion. “You’re damn right I’m scared” Darlene replies, slumped back in her chair with her arms leant over the armrests, “but I’m not gonna run off and cry about it… There’s nothing I can do but hope.” Head hung, Darlene cracks a smile, playfully picking on the man. “You starting to care about my well-being, Matthew?” Darlene asks, the man looking up, a slightly visible amusement on his face. “I do, Darlenety” Matt replies, the woman’s head pulling further back in her chair than she would have thought possible. “That’s not my full name” Darlene replies, Matt picking himself up from the chair as he responds, “I know.” Returning to the door, Matt intends to leave before stopping in the doorway, turning back to call for Darlene once more. “Let me know if you need anything from me” Matt replies, a subtle nod coming from the woman across the room. “I need you to get back to work, Matthew” Darlene replies, an agreement coming in the form of Matt’s closing of the door behind him. | Feet propped up on a wooden chair, Danny feels his knees jerk to the direction of a hefty hand, Tyrell shoving his feet to the floor before taking a seat next to him, his own feet occupying the spot. “How’ve you been, D?” Tyrell asks, a depressed-looking Danny slumped in the couch responding with an unamused wave of his hand. “Same old shit, different fucking day my friend” Danny replies, his head turning towards the newly-returned man, “how was Cuba?” “It was a good place to avoid capture” Tyrell replies, handing his fellow table member a cold beer, “the grocery stores depressed me the fuck out, though.” Lifting his bottle into the air, Danny takes agreement with the statement before taking a sip. “I see you own a strip club now” Tyrell explains, looking around the establishment, “now is the part where I ask how the fuck that happened.” “I slept with a real estate agent” Danny replies, earning a curious look from the man, who tilts his head to the side and looks at him awkwardly, “she wasn’t very keen on deals having happy endings.” With a chuckle, Tyrell downs a good portion of his drink, pulling one hand over the back of his head, eyes taken by the sight of a half-naked woman dancing a good twenty feet away from them. “How’d it go?” Tyrell asks, watching Danny curiously glance off to the side at him, “after your folks died?” Amused, Danny raises the bottle to his lips, not a word leaving his mouth until he’s down the entire bottle. “Almost got sloppy on that heist you’ve probably heard so much about by now” Danny replies, tossing his bottle to a random spot on the floor, “but it’s pretty much been a crapshoot since then… Tensions on both sides, each pulling me in a direction my body can’t handle.” Pushing his head against the back of the couch, Tyrell brushes off an offer from one of the women. “Fuck off, pretty mama… Come back in a bit” Tyrell exclaims, waving the woman off as he keeps his attention on Danny. “You mean that literally or figuratively?” Tyrell asks, watching Danny pull his shirt up, revealing the scar from surgery he’d had done following the job. “I mean that both ways” Danny replies, dropping his shirt, “I don’t got a clue about what comes next.” “Speaking of which, I’ve heard through the grapevine that Matt’s planning on going back” Tyrell replies, an amused smile coming over Danny’s face. “Of course that’d be his fucking plan” Danny mutters to himself, both hands pulling behind his head, acting as a pillow, “he blew up a tanker carrying half a metric shit-load of powder, why the fuck wouldn’t he go back for the rest?” Leaning back in his seat, Tyrell inquires about the wound Danny had sustained, looking for clarification. “Well, we got aboard the ship the day after it docked, unloaded all that we could and were supposed to dive off the edge and into the water...” Danny replies, watching Tyrell silently ask for more, “...I missed the water.” A grimace peering through his teeth as they clench, Tyrell looks back at Danny, a sudden intrigue coming over him. “Was it Matt?” Tyrell asks, watching Danny glance back at him, the wounded veteran showing his physical exhaustion. “He saw me floating there in the water… He said I was face down, but I was out like a light” Danny replies, looking off into space as he continues, “so he jumped back into the water and pulled me to the boat before the bombs went off.” Wide-eyed, Tyrell sinks back into his seat, staring off at the depths of the building, lifting his bottle back to his lips. “This crew is so strong, even the head of the table says ‘no brother left behind’” Tyrell exclaims, shaking his head in disbelief, “tickle me fuckin’ pink.” Staring off at the strobe lights, Danny mutters to himself beneath his breath, words kept from catching Tyrell’s ears. “Yup” Danny whispers to himself, “no brother left behind.” | “Why did you get into psychology?” Brook asks, leant against the wall as Matt remains sat at his desk, the man taking genuine interest in her question. “I like helping people that exist in dark places” Matt replies, choosing his words very carefully, “it’s really fulfilling to help them find something brighter to hold onto.” “Have you ever seen what those dark places look like?” Brook asks, watching the smile spread across the man’s face. “Yes, I have” Matt replies, Brook’s posture changing, her interest in the man’s experience visually obvious. “What was it like for you?” Brook asks, Matt’s expression beginning to change with the reflection of his past, his refusal to mince words with his past experiences proving to be something Brook holds respect for him because of. “My parents were users… There wasn’t a day that went by where they didn’t have someone coming over to the house to exchange money for their fix” Matt explains, “that dark place was a very lonely experience.” Head bowing, Brook asks another question, perhaps taking more intrigue in his answers to this one than the one she had just asked. “How did you get out?” Brook wonders aloud, watching Matt’s nose flare with amusement, “how did you get out of that place?” “That’s a good question… I didn’t” Matt replies, watching Brook’s expression change into one of confusion, “in a way, I sort of turned that dark place into something brighter.” “By figuring out that you wanted to help others?” Brook asks, Matt’s reflection dying down upon the rising of that question, his expression shifting into one of uncertainty. “Yeah, something like that” Matt replies, attempting to ask a further question until his attention is taken by a knock at the door. “Enter!” Matt calls out, watching Darlene peer her head through the opening, the woman offering a quick apology for interfering with their session. “Is there any chance you can give me a ride after work?” Darlene asks, Matt hiding an oncoming smile well, however, he is unable to keep his face from lighting up with satisfaction. “Of course” Matt replies, watching Darlene nod towards him before shutting the door behind herself, Brook cutting the momentary silence between them to point out her findings. “You like her, don’t you?” Brook asks, catching Matt off guard, the man not having expected such a question to be asked. “She’s a kind person that I didn’t give enough credit to at first” Matt replies, noticing the unconvinced look on Brook’s face. “I meant in the romantic way” Brook replies, the surprise on Matt’s face intriguing her, the awkward situation being laughed off by the man, who refuses such a notion. “I’m gay, there’s no interest in that way” Matt replies, Brook’s face still stiffened, as unconvinced now as she was just prior, “but as a person, she’s a lot more likeable than I had originally thought she would be.” Rubbing his hands together as he looks through different folders upon his desk, Matt calls out to the young girl beside his desk, “where did we leave off?” | “Hey, Levi!” Danny calls out, returning to the rental store he had just recently been kicked out of days prior, keeping his distance by meeting with his fellow tablemate off of the premises. “Look, Danny… I’ve already told you… I ain’t the mole!” Levi shouts back, Danny cutting the man short by putting his arm around his neck, leading him away from his car and further down the road. “I’m not here accusing you again, I’m merely here with an offer” Danny replies, watching the perplexity spread across the man’s face in real time. “I find your offers to be rather bipolar, Danny” Levi replies, “it’s either something really, really good… Or it’s something really, really bad.” Laughing off the man’s gesture, Danny removes his sunglasses and carries them in the same hand draped over Levi’s neck, assuring the man that this one will be something worthy of consideration. “Alright, let me hear it” Levi replies, Danny patting the man on the side of the face as he continues walking, appearing as casually arrogant as he can muster. Ducking into an alleyway, Danny checks each direction he walks down before tapping his knuckle against the rear-entry of a burger shop, waiting patiently for a man inside to answer. “Is this Levi?” Danny is asked by the unnamed doorkeeper, only responding with a silent wink. Moving to the side, the man allows Danny and Levi entry, the fumes of chemicals pressing together blasting them in the face the moment they walk inside. “What the fuck is that smell!?” Levi calls out, “are you fuckers making a nuclear reactor or something!?” Handing the man a pair of goggles, Danny pulls a pair of his own over his eyes, departing from Levi and standing in front of a massive set of stations, all of which swarming with workers. “Welcome to where the magic happens, rental boy!” Danny calls out, arms extended in grandeur, turning his body towards the stations to see the room filling with smoke, a sight he takes joy in. “This is one of the many places the table crafts it’s goods” Danny explains, talking slightly louder than usual, battling for audible supremacy with a rather loud pressing machine. “In order for these guys to make products, they need the ingredients we supply them with” Danny explains, “now, they’re well off for the next few months… But at some point, they’re going to need more to work with.” Having lost track of where the conversation is supposed to be heading, Levi asks for clarification from the man responsible for leading him there. “How does any of this work into an offer for me?” Levi asks, Danny’s teeth appearing from behind his lips, the menacing grin appearing as so when accompanied with the massive set of goggles over his face. “Every so often, the table makes a big push to get a whole fuckload of these ‘ingredients’ all at once” Danny explains, approaching Levi and placing his hands upon each of his shoulders, “these runs are done with very small crews and pay very good money.” Nodding, Levi concludes Danny’s offer on his behalf, attempting to beat him to the punch. “So you’re offering me a place in the next crew?” Levi asks, a silent nod preceding Danny’s further explanation. “I don’t understand the need you have to work at that rental place, and I don’t really need to” Danny explains, glancing back at the tables of stations behind him for a kick of pleasure, “but what it comes down to is this… If you accept my offer, you and your family will be set for life.” Pondering over his decision, Levi looks towards the ground until ordered to look back at Danny, the man doing what he can to convince the rental worker. “Your job as a father and as a husband is to give them the best life possible… All at whatever cost” Danny explains, taking another look back at the stations set up behind him, “if working three or four days out of the year is that cost… It’s a pretty fucking good cost.” Considering his options, Levi keeps his eyes glued to Danny, the right hand man of the table asking for the final verdict. “What’s it going to be, Levi?” Danny asks, allowing one hand to fall to his side, fingers crossed on the lowered hand as the opposite rests upon Levi’s shoulder. | “You ready to go?” Matt calls out, Darlene throwing her jacket over her shoulders as she reaches for her bag. Silently leaving her office, Darlene walks beside Matt as they head for the exit, a conversation remaining unstarted until they leave the building, Matt speaking the first word. “Did your car break down or something?” Matt asks, the woman surprisingly replying otherwise. “My car’s perfectly fine” Darlene responds, earning a look of bewilderment from Matt. “Why did you need a ride?” Matt asks, Darlene looking back at him with widened eyes, challenging his stance from earlier in the day. “Because my appointment is to get the test results” Darlene replies, stopping at the bottom of the stairs upon reaching the final step, “I don’t want to hear them alone.” With a nod, Matt silently continues to walk, only for his progress to be halted upon Darlene calling out his name. “Who was that guy you were talking to here the other night?” Darlene asks, watching Matt stammer over his words. “Oh, that guy? His name was Stucky… I mean, Chris… People just call him Stucky apparently” Matt replies, his answer not being a lie, though, it does feel so regardless. “And what did this ‘Stucky’ want, exactly?” Darlene asks, nothing more than a shrug coming from the man. “He’s an addict… I couldn’t make heads or tails of half of what he was saying” Matt replies, watching Darlene nod as she catches up with him. “There’s a group session that the clinic is putting on for children of addicts tomorrow night” Darlene explains, raising information Matt was already privy to once more, “you should go.” “Yeah, okay” Matt says sarcastically, finally reaching his car, the lack of enthusiasm in his voice challenged by Darlene. “I’m serious, Matt” Darlene calls back, opening her door as Matt’s fingers rest upon the handle, “you should go” the woman calls back as she takes her seat. Looking off into the distance, Matt rolls his eyes and shakes his head, intending to enter the vehicle before noticing something that strikes worry in him. Wrapping his fingers around his knuckles, Matt yanks off his golden ring, quickly tucking it back into his pocket as he sinks into his seat, slamming the door shut behind himself. “You good there, tiger?” Darlene asks, curious as to the violent nature of his entry, a question that prompts Matt to cool himself off. “Just… I just pulled too hard” Matt replies, laughing off the situation as he turns the key in the ignition. Backing out of his spot, Matt exits the parking lot and drives down the street, passing a row of cars parked along the sidewalk, one of which remaining occupied. Reaching for her notepad, Candy jots down the name of the building, model of car, and a description of the second passenger she saw Matt with. Pleased with her findings, Candy turns on her headlights and leaves her spot, driving in the opposite direction of the man she’s now grown to be very enamored with. == Kings of Cambridge == Rain coming down harder than it has all day, Matt emerges from his vehicle, slamming his door shut with eyes firmly cemented upon the hidden entry. Not bothering to hold an umbrella over his head, Matt lets the rain fall from his head as he reaches outwards, his hand placed upon a door handle disguised as a tipped over metal pipe, entering a room bathed in harsh light, the door slamming shut behind him.
“Why the fuck did Stucky just show up at the clinic, Danny!?” Matt shouts, a confused man looking towards Matt in confusion, his eyes squinting as the question is uttered. “Huh?” Danny replies, the short reaction doing nothing to quell Matt’s anger, his soaked leather shoe pressing against a cheap wooden table before shoving it back, the legs scraping against the floor towards the other side of the room. “You heard me, Danny” Matt replies, squatting down in front of his friend, hands folded as he repeats himself slowly, “why did Gilcrest’s new kid just show up at the clinic threatening to start shit all over again?” Lips parting, Danny shakes his head as his hands are held up in surrender, refusing to pull punches with the man opposite him. “I have no idea, Matt” Danny replies, watching his friend’s head sink, “I haven’t heard anything from Gilcrest’s guys since the ship job.” Huffing, Matt simmers, Danny looking on, not wanting to say anything stupid, but desperately wishing for words of reassurance to be jogged to mind. “I have no idea why Gillcrest would be coming after us” Danny explains, his eyes looking around the room, mirroring his thoughts, bouncing from one side to the other, “I have no idea how any of them would even know who you are.” A wave of anger rushing over him, Matt grabs a plastic cup stood upon the floor into his hands, quickly chucking it at the wall, its pieces flying throughout the room as it obliterates upon contact. “I am not going to let a spineless pig’s druggie son expose everything I’ve worked on for the last few years because ‘you don’t know how he found out’, Danny” Matt replies, his frame now towering over Danny, the man waiting for Matt to conclude, “we’ve come too far to fall now.” Shaking his head, Danny visually disapproves of the notion, pushing himself out of his seat to equal his frame with that of the other man, his voice softening as he speaks. “We’re too big to fail now… This isn’t like it was when we first started out” Danny replies, watching Matt walk away from him, pressing his hands against the opposite wall with his head hung. “No one is too big to fail, Danny” Matt replies, his teeth clenched, head racing with a million different thoughts, the stress noticeable on his face until it disappears in an instant. “All it takes for a tower to fall is one brick in the wrong place coming loose” Matt explains, taking in a deep breath as he stares towards the sky, his body turning towards Danny before he concludes his thought, “we’re responsible for overseeing infrastructure on this tower twenty-four seven.” “I know, boss” Danny replies, his statement of assurance being questioned by Matt. “Do you, Danny?” Matt asks, his back pressing against the wall as he folds his arms, expression souring, “because until a minute ago, you thought we were invincible.” Standing by his statement, Danny doubles down, staring Matt in the eyes and speaking clearly. “Of course we’re invincible” Danny replies, a smile appearing through the corner of his mouth, “no one’s better with infrastructure than us.” Pleased with the certainty in the man’s response, Matt’s fleeting moment of accomplishment sours as he falls back to earth. “We have been thus far… But it seems like a crack’s formed somewhere in the place” Matt replies, his eyes directed towards the floor, arms still folded as he removes himself from the wall. “I need you to figure out where that crack in our tower is, Danny” Matt explains, slowly approaching his friend and placing a hand on his shoulder, “then I need you to plug it.” With a nod, Danny silently walks away, returning to the dark interior of the club, leaving Matt behind, the stuffy room leaving very little to find comfort in. Anger coming over once more, this time with nothing to inspire him to keep his composure. Turning around, Matt takes the cheap table into his hands and lifts his knee into the air, pressing his kneecap through the center and shattering the piece of furniture in two, splintered wood falling upon the floor to the sound of a yell. = Kings of Cambridge is created by Zachary Serra, all rights to the series belong to Zachary Serra and his entity of Pacer1 from the start of Season 1 onwards = “I never hide it, it just doesn’t come up a lot” Brook replies, one arm leant against a book case, Matt pacing on the opposite side of the room, walking from one side to the other, then back to his original place before repeating the process. “I’m not much of a religious person… I’ve got my beliefs of what’s moral and immoral, but that’s about it” Matt explains, stopping in the middle of the room with his head turned towards the girl, “but I know Satanism doesn’t go over well with the parents.” Her breathy laughter noticeable, Brook stares off towards the window as the conversation changes, Matt redirecting the discourse to a more deep-rooted aspect of the conversation. “What about your parents?” Matt asks, Brook’s pleased expression gradually shifting as the relationship is called into question, “do you think they care about you enough to not kick you out if you were to tell them?” Shaking her head, Brook glides her finger through her hair, making sure to pull the loose strands behind her ears. “My mom wouldn’t like it, but my dad wouldn’t care that much” Brook replies, Matt patiently hearing the girl out before interjecting. “I’ve explained what satanism actually is, and they kind of get it, but they also kind of don’t” Brook explains, pulling her head back against the wall as she stares out at the sun-soaked city in the distance. “But they wouldn’t kick me out if they found out I wasn’t on the same line as them religiously” Brook replies, pausing for a moment, thinking to herself before blurting out, “at least dad wouldn’t.” With a nod, Matt squints his eyes, folding his hands behind his back as he leans against the wall, directly opposite Brook. “Tell me more about your dad” Matt replies, watching Brook’s eyes peer into the corner of her eyelids towards him, “what’s he like?” “He’s fine” Brook replies without issue, stopping her response there, much to Matt’s intrigue. “He’s… fine?” Matt replies, head leaning towards his shoulder, the girl already noticing his lack of satisfaction with her answer. “What makes him… fine?” Matt asks, stepping away from the wall, pulling the new chair from behind his desk and taking a seat in it, eyes kept steadily on the young woman. “He’s not as overbearing as my mother” Brook replies, watching Matt’s large frame lean back in his seat, arms draped over each armrest, waiting for her to finish her response. “My mother’s ashamed of me… So I don’t think she’d really be surprised at anything I’d have to say anymore” Brook responds, pushing her head to the side momentarily, forcing the strands of hair falling over her face away, “my dad isn’t as… well… my dad isn’t my mom.” Nodding, Matt puckers his lips as he leans forward, hands folded atop his table as his chin presses against the knuckles on his thumb. “So your mom is overbearing and your dad is your dad” Matt recaps, a smile coming over his face as his eyes deviate away from the girl, only returning when he’s ready to resume his line of dialogue, “and from that answer, you’d think I was asking about your mom.” With a laugh, Matt notices the change in the young woman’s demeanor, a more reserved side being shown from the typically sturdy youth. “Everything okay?” Matt asks, the posture of the young woman changing upon the verbalization of the question, her brave face returning as if it never left. “Yeah, I’m totally fine” Brook replies, tucking her hands into her pockets as her eyes flutter from one side of the room to the other, weighing her thoughts. | His boots tapping upon the linoleum floors, Danny walks into a car rental facility as if he owned the place, eyes set on the figures at the front counter. “Hey, Levi!” Danny shouts, removing one hand from his pocket, lifting it into the air with his fingers spread, greeting the uniformed man. “I’m sorry, sweetheart… Can you give us a second?” Danny asks a random civilian, moving the woman out of the way without her response, his question having been more of a demand. “Danny, I’m on the clock” Levi replies, the green shirt over his dark skin making him stand out amongst a majority-white workforce, his conversation only helping add to such status. “I don’t care, we got issues at the top” Danny replies, watching Levi’s expression shift, confliction coming over his face like he’d just seen the after effects of war. “The king’s got eyes on him?” Levi replies, voice lowered to a hush, such a tone mimicked in that of Danny’s. “No, the king doesn’t have eyes on him” Danny replies, walking around the counter without approval, taking Levi’s shirt into the palm of his hand, “the king’s got eyes out on all of us.” Noticing this picture, the manager removes himself from his desk, calling out to the sweatshirt-covered man leading his employee into the backrooms. “Hey, you can’t be back here!” the manager shouts, watching the middle finger lift towards him courtesy of Danny’s right hand. “You don’t think it was me, do you?” Levi asks, pushed into a dark room with only one poorly-lit lightbulb above, Danny slamming the door shut behind them. “I don’t know who it is, I’m looking in every direction I can” Danny replies, Levi’s composure restoring itself, his intentions fully set on clearing his own name. “I’ve got a wife and three kids, Dan… The king pays me too much to keep my mouth shut!” Levi replies, his head shaking as he explains himself. “I don’t know enough about how your brain works to know whether or not you’re telling me the truth” Danny replies, hands placed on his hips. “What do you mean ‘the truth’?” Levi asks, his arms thrown to each side of his body, “I’ve invited you to every single one of their birthday parties!” “Not the fucking the family, you nimrod! The loyalty!” Danny shouts, rolling his eyes as he reminds Levi of his cover. “You work a rental job when you’re paid six figures just to keep up appearances!” Danny furthers, “it may be dedication to the cover, but it isn’t exactly necessary. I don’t know what you do or don’t want to do!” “Well you can bet every buck that you’ve got that I don’t want my family getting put in no crosshairs, Dan!” Levi shouts, watching Danny’s shoulders drop, slight defeat coming over him. “What if they already were and this was your only way out?” Danny asks, watching Levi’s attitude shift, no offense or defense in his demeanor, only an impossible question raised to him. “Then I’d do what I had to” Levi replies, his voice confident, no lack of certainty in his tone upon answering. “The cops are going to be here any minute!” the manager shouts as he opens the door, Danny’s back still turned towards him as he’s given his ultimatum. “Leave right now or you’ll be taken away in handcuffs!” the manager shouts, the timer having run out on his interrogation. Without a word, Danny backs away, walking through the down and leaving the way he came in, Levi watching him walk off from afar, every step taken being caught by the family man’s eye. | “Packing it up for the night?” Darlene is asked, the voice calling for her originating from the doorway of her office. “Good evening, Perry” Darlene says with a cold shoulder, the formerly employed man rolling his eyes at the lack of enthusiasm in his response, “how’s the new job suiting you?” With a sigh, Perry lowers his hand from the doorframe and tucks his knuckles into his pockets, watching the woman prepare her bags to leave as he continues the conversation. “They value me greatly there and it feels accomplishing” Perry replies, Darlene’s demeanor not changed one bit, her head nodding as she returns a simple reply. “That sounds great, Perry” the woman calls back zipping up her bag and tossing it over her shoulder on her way back towards the door. Flicking off the light switch, Darlene emerges through the entrance, walking past the man without acknowledging him, a gesture which reads Perry the stance she has on him without confusion. “Darlene, everyone moves on in their career” Perry calls out, putting his second plan into action upon the original, more friendly introduction’s failing. “They certainly do, and I wish you nothing but the best in yours” Darlene replies, continuing to keep her eyes fixated on the exit ahead of her. “Why are you taking this so personally?” Perry asks, continuing to walk beside the woman, each step taking them closer to the exit, that only destination that matters in Darlene’s eyes. “I have no idea what you’re talking about, Perry… I just wish to go home for the night” Darlene replies, still not looking towards the man beside her. Suddenly, the woman begins to walk alone, Perry having pulled back, stood in the middle of the hallway as the woman continues walking. “You’re no longer employed in this office, you should probably leave the building before someone calls the police” Darlene quips, her hand pressing against the doorknob, allowing her to be embraced by the crisp, nighttime air. “Why are you such an entitled ass?” Perry shouts, the woman having already left the building, his feet still stood where they stopped as the door slowly begins to slide shut. Each new inch bringing a further look of anticipation, Perry keeps his eye on the moonlit night as the crack that it peers through grows smaller and smaller, shrinking with each new distance the door closes. “Come on” Perry whispers to himself, the crack continuing to shorten until an umbrella pierces the open space, keeping the door from shutting completely as a hand pushes the metal frame open. “Entitled? Is that the one word you’re able to shrink me down to? Entitled?” Darlene quips, a confident Perry standing by his statement. “You consider yourself accomplished, as you rightfully should, for having gotten this far in your career” Perry explains, taking one step forward with his finger raised towards the woman’s face, “but there’s a respect you think you’re owed that you just fall flat on deserving.” Lips puckered, Darlene only opens her mouth to address the man’s stance, speaking slowly to ensure the man heeds to her warning. “Get your finger out of my face and keep it away for the rest of your life, or else, I will cut it off and toss it into the fast food joint’s chili bowl down the street” Darlene says, Perry’s confidence falling as quickly as his hand does. “I’ve done more than anyone I’ve ever met with a lot less than they had” Darlene explains, her own finger now lifting towards Perry’s face, his partial confidence being gently tucked into the grave. “I’ve fought more, pushed through more, and outright been more than you ever would… And that includes whatever goals you have your heart set on accomplishing, it will still be nothing in comparison” Darlene replies, Perry’s head pulled back, “so watch where you walk before you start stumbling.” Nostrils flaring, Darlene turns around, returning the umbrella to her bag before pushing the door in, returning to the night as the door slowly shuts, not a peep coming from the man inside the second time around. | “You wanted to see me?” a young voice calls out from afar, prompting Danny and his small group of bodyguards to raise their attention. “Stay right there” Danny calls out, watching Stucky stop when told, an equally small group of protection stopping behind him as Danny pulls a bag from inside a small duster plane. Walking into the center of the room, Danny tosses the duffle bag of cash into the middle of the old hanger they meet within, his hand aimed towards it. “There’s half a million bucks in that bag, kid… Take it and stay the fuck away from the Kings” Danny exclaims, watching Stucky slowly break away from his group, walking up to the bag. Unzipping the top, Stucky peers inside, a smile coming over his face, initially bringing ease over Danny until the younger man clarifies his expression. “You think I’m in this for money?” Stucky replies, glaring at Danny as he pulls the straps into his hands, tossing the cash back to its owner. His expression souring, Danny watches the bag topple across the ground until it falls to his feet, his head slowly lifting towards Stucky, a scowl draped across his face. “Didn’t your boy tell you what I wanted?” Stucky asks, Danny’s grimace keeping hold until being forced apart, his jaw forcing itself apart in order to speak. “He said you were a pain in the ass and needed to be dealt with” Danny replies, the hysterical response from Stucky standing out. “The way you phrase it makes it sound like he wants me dead!” Stucky shouts, hood halfway over his head, bags under his eyes from yet another drug-fueled sleepless night bathed in light. “Keep pushing his buttons and he just might” Danny responds, Stucky continuing to laugh as every other man in the room remains silent and stubbornly present in the moment, “that is if he hasn’t already.” Hunched over in laughter, Stucky pushes himself back to his feet, allowing one arm to fall to his side as the other breaks through the air, pointing a finger in Danny’s direction. “You’re a funny guy” Stucky exclaims, an unamused smile coming from the face of Matt’s right hand man. With a shrug, Stucky sniffles a few times before continuing the conversation, correcting Danny’s assumption upon the first chance he gets. “I told your boy the same thing I’m gonna tell you right now” Stucky replies, hands tucked away in his back pockets, shoulders protruding as he leans ever so slightly forward. “It’s not over, but it can be” Stucky calls out, watching Danny’s head lift as the words leave his mouth, already having assumed the worst in Stucky’s intentions. “My folks have completely lost it… There’s no empire for them to run” Stucky explains, a smile breaking through his lips, “it’s my turn to… take my inheritance.” Sucking on his teeth, Danny tucks his hands in his own back pockets, head turned towards a portion of his group. “You want us to kill your parents… That’s what I’m taking away from this conversation” Danny replies, continuing to make his point as Stucky fails to hold his grin back, “you’re willing to set yourself up to fight for control of the trade you can’t even keep your own hands off of? What gives you the idea that any of your goons will take that graciously?” Doing a little dance, Stucky turns his back towards Danny, giving the nod towards one of his men in the back of the hanger, an unnamed man being dragged into the middle of the hanger by his ankles, hands and feet bound by rope. “This is my pop’s handler” Stucky exclaims, pulling a gun from the waistband of his pants, Danny and his crew standing back in anticipation for what comes next. “This man changed my diapers when I was a baby... Raised me when my parents never would, or at least, never could” Stucky explains, kneeling before the gagged man, eyes of desperation staring back at the entitled druggie with fleeting hope. “This man was my provider when my father couldn’t provide for himself… My guidance when my mother lost her way” Stucky explains, pressing his forehead against the restrained man beside him with a wide smile. “He taught me everything I know, and he never gave up on me” Stucky explains, closing his eyes as the man beside him begins to squirm, failing to escape. “I asked him ‘if it came down to me or my father, whose side would you choose’?” Stucky explains, pleading groans coming from the near-elderly man as Danny’s crew continues to watch, “he said, ‘my loyalty lies with the man that has stayed loyal to me.” Peeling his eyelids apart, Stucky looks back at Danny, pulling his head away from the man beneath him as he stands to his feet, the smile across his face remaining through every moment a word doesn’t leave his mouth. Without a word, Stucky laughs at the man’s desperate pleas to help, not a singular coherent word leaving the rag between his teeth, the cries just as understandable regardless. Without hesitation, Stucky takes the gun and places it against the elderly man’s head, firing once at point-blank range, the suffering pleas ending in a mere moment, Stucky’s father-figure dropping lifelessly to the ground. “He wasn’t willing to abide by me… So he must be disposed of” Stucky explains, lifting the gun to his lips and blowing on the barrel, the weapon returning to his waistband immediately thereafter, “anyone that doesn’t abide by me will fall at my hand.” With a nod, Danny reaches down for the money-filled duffle bag and tosses it back into the cropduster, his attention being left upon Stucky. “Let’s say we do this… We get the job done and all goes according to plan… Exactly as you’d wish for it to be” Danny explains, cutting the distance between the two men in half, “we’d be holding up our end of the bargain… What would your end look like?” An uncomfortable nod resonating from the psychopathic head-figure ahead of him, Danny watches Stucky close his end of the space between them, coming within inches of his person as Stucky pleas his half. “There may be a lot that you folks have accomplished, but there’s still that one big pot of gold you’re looking for at the end of the rainbow” Stucky replies, both hands folded behind his back as his face comes within inches of Danny’s, “I guess that makes me your leprechaun!” Expression shifting, Danny squints at the younger man in confusion, only one word leaving his lips, “Cambridge?” With another sadistic laugh, Stucky’s drug-fueled words are slurred as he runs through both sides of the deal, his ramblings just barely coherent enough to pick up on. “I’ve heard of these kings fighting for thrones that don’t belong to them for years… I never understood it until now” Stucky explains, his voice lowering to a whisper, “this can be your kingdom.” “So, we give you the right to inherit your kingdom… And you deliver us Cambridge? Full and undivided… Straight up… all of Cambridge?” Danny asks, watching Stucky’s hands uncouple, both hands thrown out by his sides as his grin returns. “I’m in a rather giving mood right now, if I do say so myself!” Stucky replies, patting both sides of Danny’s chest as he steps away, walking backwards to return to his group. “Go ahead and let the big guy know to contact me when he’s made up his mind!” Stucky shouts, the first to exit the barn, his crew quick to follow his lead, leaving the table behind. | “You look like shit” Candy calls out to a customer sat at the bar, street clothes draped over her frame as she approaches the counter. “Thanks, that’s a wonderful introduction” the man replies, lifting a glass to his lips as Candy takes a seat beside him. “You’re drinking at a club, you didn’t come here for pleasantries, you came here for tits” Candy remarks, a chuckle emanating from the man mid-sip. “If only you knew how wrong you were” the man replies, a nod coming from the woman’s head, her hand extending to graciously accept her drink. “I’m Candy” the woman exclaims, holding her hand out towards the man for a handshake, a gesture which the gentleman refuses to return, keeping one hand tucked beneath his arm, the other with its fingers wrapped around his glass. “Matt” the man replies, finally meeting the woman Danny’s been hung up over in recent days. “So what brings you down here, Matt?” Candy asks, looking at the topless women just a few feet over her shoulder. “I’m in for business reasons” Mat replies, eyes scanning the assortment of liquor propped up on the shelves just ahead, “...and drinking reasons.” “I see” the woman replies, taking notice of the man’s appearance, embracing the oddities within it. “Not one for conversation?” Candy asks, watching the man glare at her without emotion, a cold look appearing on his face, not out of hatred or appreciation, but out of nothing at all. “I don’t speak with the work for reasons of my own” Matt replies, keeping the facade up as fully as he can muster, “it’s nothing about you… just a standard I give myself.” “A standard?” Candy replies, taking disrespect in the man’s phrasing, “so you’ve got standards that put you on a place higher than me?” Turning towards the woman with the glass in his hand, Matt attempts to speak before quieting himself down, considering his potential responses before changing his original answer. “Yes, I do” Matt replies, taking the woman’s disrespect and turning it into something real, downing the rest of his drink and ending the conversation. “Well, have fun up there” Candy replies, stepping out of her seat as Matt slides a few hundred dollar bills across the counter, her eyes having been taken by the man’s hand. “I will, thank you so much” Matt replies, his fingers extended without him realizing, a golden ring on his thumb with a lion’s head in the center of a crown illuminated in the spotlight. Her lips slightly parted, Candy watches Matt grab at his jacket before walking away without a fuss. Out of the corner of his eye, the bartender gives Candy a look, quietly telling her to go about her business without a question. At a loss for words, Candy keeps her cool, putting up a pretty face and tossing her bag over her shoulder, nodding to the bartender before approaching the exit, having become privy to information she’s not sure she should have. == Kings of Cambridge == Removing his rain-soaked flat cap, Matt enters the Kings of Cambridge offices with a briefcase and umbrella in hand, a small, stone-floored area covered in water between the lobby and front doors. Clearing his throat, Matt removes his wet jacket and carries his belongings with him, turning the corner to approach the front counter. “Hello?” the woman stationed at the front desk asks, a counter with a half-closed window between herself and the clinic’s newest therapist.
“Greetings, my name is Matt Tory… I’m the new therapist” the man replies, prompting the woman to stand away from behind her desk, a piece of paper carried in her hand. “This is the door code” the woman replies, the nameplate on her desk reading ‘Angela Steiner’, affording Matt the most familiarity he is going to receive. “Have a wonderful first day!” the woman replies with glee, returning to her desk without another word, leaving Matt to figure things out himself. With a chuckle, Matt nods to himself and walks towards the door at the back of the room, a large area of offices and other various rooms kept locked away behind it. In the corner of his eye, Matt locates an older teenager in the corner of the waiting room, her hair as soaked as her clothes are, arms folded as her eyes stare off at a random corner of the room. Glancing back towards the window, Matt considers the time for the moment before taking the time out of his day to approach the woman, not yet certain of how to begin a conversation. “These kind of things come in handy at times like these” Matt proclaims, his umbrella being the center of the conversation, the man pointing to the woman’s clear exposure to the world’s elements. “I’ll keep that in mind” the young woman replies, her voice soft and demeanor unfriendly, “thanks.” With a nod, Matt begins to consider walking away, his eyes having different plans of their own in the moment, latching onto a ring on the woman’s finger. “That’s a nice piece of jewelry” the man explains, pointing to a wedding ring wrapped around her third finger, “just how old are you?” Her arms tightening their grip upon each other, the woman stares at Matt, her eyes not leaving the man until she answers his question. “Twenty five” the woman replies, a clear lie being noticed the moment the number leaves her lips, Matt playing along with the response anyway. “I’m glad you’re twenty five… Getting married isn’t exactly the best idea for the young at heart” Matt replies, taking the seat opposite the girl, his briefcase and other belongings being left to the floor. “I’m really glad I’m not young at heart then” the young woman replies, watching Matt’s smile precede a nod. “But you’re still pretty young, right?” Matt replies, the woman not offering an answer, instead opting to stare at the man ahead of her, feeling herself being judged by the man she’d only just encountered. “I made a lot of mistakes when I was younger, but I can’t say marriage was one of them” Matt replies, folding his hands upon his rain-soaked lap. “Am I supposed to feel sorry for you?” the girl replies, watching Matt’s head slowly shake from one side to another. “You don’t need to feel anything for me, that’s not the point” Matt replies, his eyes directed towards the floor, “but the people that precede us always come with lessons they’ve learned… Their job isn’t to let the next generation make the same mistakes, it’s to use their experiences accordingly to make sure the younger generation never even needs to know their troubles exist.” “Tell that to the boomers” the girl replies, watching the smile come over Matt’s face, his laughter hidden well beneath his breath. “I can tell that to any generation… They all failed in their responsibilities to their successors” Matt explains, the girl interested in the teaching’s she’s taking part in, “the generation that birthed you failed their responsibilities then, as will your generation fail the ones that are birthed from them… It’s inevitable.” “Why?” the girl replies, curious as to how such a perspective can be taken, “I find it hard to believe the purpose of one generation is something that’s impossible.” Nodding to himself, Matt tells the woman that the world makes anything that comes perfectly impossible. “Mistakes will happen… Those that are imperfect, much like us humans, are bound to be imperfect in nature” Matt replies, “nothing is made perfect in the world, thus, nothing can live perfectly… Not even the world itself.” Eyes turning away from the man, the young girl looks out at the center garden of the complex, the entire lobby empty aside from herself and the man she occupies the room with. Assuming the conversation to be over, Matt leans down to retrieve his belongings, the young girl ahead of him suddenly speaking up, a question being directed to the man who’s shown to be very generous with his time. “When do our mistakes stop mattering?” the girl inquires, Matt having already left his chair, now looking down upon the girl with his belongings in hand, “when do we get to move on?” Parting his lips, Matt thinks twice and shuts his mouth for a moment, looking off at the garden in the middle of the clinic, a massive plot of flowers and other plants all in their final days as winter nears, the certainty of his answer as short-leashed as the remaining life in the budding saps just outside. “I think most people… Myself included… Are still trying to figure that one out” Matt replies, offering a half-smile to the girl before returning to the door at the back of the room. “Who are you?” the girl calls out, Matt turning back around after punching in the locked doors’ keycode. With a smile, Matt replies in kind. “I am ready for our session in just three quick minutes” Matt replies, squinting towards the young woman, “that is, if I’m right in assuming that you’re Brook Kessler?” “I… I am” the young girl replies, her head tilted back and eyes peeled, surprised by the response, “how did you know that?” Opening the door, Matt points out the tattoo and wedding ring on the woman’s finger as documented in her report. “Seventeen years old and from Salem, Massachusetts” Matt explains, nodding to himself as the woman leans slightly forward in her seat, watching the man walk through the doorway as he concludes, “It’s a pleasure to meet you.” = Kings of Cambridge is created by Zachary Serra, all rights to the series belong to Zachary Serra and his entity of Pacer1 from the start of Season 1 onwards = “How much do you know about me?” Brook replies, stood across the room from the already-seated Matt, his hands folded in his lap as he answers each question asked of him. “Whatever you told the other therapist in your intake last week” Matt replies, pulling open his drawer and removing a file of paperwork from within it, “and whatever you’ve gotten documented over the numerous other clinics you’ve been to in the seven years.” Her head tilted, Brook becomes overwhelmed with shame as if she were being bullied, Matt quickly noticing this and explaining his approach. “I’m not calling you out on anything per se, but I don’t know that my job here is to help dig through the clutter in your life with you” Matt explains, shrugging to himself as he considers the topics in the folder before him, “and there seems to be enough clutter to go around.” “Okay, therapy man… What’s your plan then?” Brook asks, feeling the need to grow stern with the man on the other side of the desk, feeling the need to defend herself by default. His hand leaving the surface of his desk, Matt points towards the seat in front of him, watching Brook attempt to sit down before directing her otherwise. “Pick the chair up” Matt replies, Brook looking at the man with confusion, ultimately giving into what he says, “pick it up and toss it.” Eyebrows lowered, Brook glances around the room for cameras, Matt assuring her of the genuinity in his directions. “You’ve got a hard exterior to get through and this is my first idea on how to soften it just enough to start chipping away” Matt explains, leaving his chair and taking the back into his own hands, “you’ve got plenty of reason to feel restrained and that’s not what’s going to be going on here… Take your chair and just toss it somewhere.” Unsure of the importance in the activity, Brook gives into what is requested of her, taking her seat a few inches from the ground and shoving it forward, watching it gently bounce onto its side. “Very good, but you’ll get the hang of it the longer we go on” Matt replies, lifting his rolling chair into the air, allowing Brook to stand off to the side before hurling it across the room, letting the seat skip across the carpet before coming to a stop at his door. With a smile, Brook nods to herself, Matt walking away from one side of his desk and pacing around the room, refusing to allow either figure to feel held to one place. “Walk around, venture wherever and only sit when you feel like you want to” Matt explains, every wall open to be walked beside, not a piece of decor obstructing either inhabitant’s path aside from the desk at the back of the room. “What do we talk about then?” Brook asks, Matt considering the possibilities before glancing at the ring, Brook having expected the line of dialogue to be one of the first things addressed. In a surprising twist, Matt takes the conversation elsewhere, the sudden weight upon Brook’s chest being lifted away in the blink of an eye. “Let’s talk about you” Matt responds, watching a more-comfortable Brook begin to increase the pace in her stroll, “who are you?” | “Water on the rocks, please” Danny calls out to the guy manning the bar, his arms tucked together as they fall upon the shiny counter. “Did you get what you wanted last night?” a feminine voice calls out from afar, Danny’s eyes drifting towards its direction until finding the woman from the prior night approaching his seat. “You again?” Danny quips, watching the woman take the open stool beside him, “you think I wanted Julio dead?” “You threw him to the literal wolves… What am I to suspect?” the woman replies, holding up two fingers, the signal for the bartender to make a second drink of Danny’s choice. “I did what I had to when I was called upon” Danny replies, graciously accepting the second glass slid across the countertop, lifting it to his lips as he finishes his point, “you should suspect that I was doing what was necessary.” Leaning forward, the woman presses her breasts against the clean countertop, her eyes drifting towards Danny, who takes notice of the gesture. “This is what ‘doing what’s necessary’ looks like” the woman replies, lifting herself up before placing her fingers together like a gun, pressing her thumb down to mimick firing a singular shot at Danny, “that’s what ‘murder by betrayal’ looks like.” Shaking his head, Danny mutters “you just don’t understand” into his glass, the second party beside him challenging him to explain. “If I’m so out of touch, break it down for me” the woman replies, her voice soft and non-confrontational, but the bitter-heavy bite in her words shine through in each letter, “show me just how different the two are.” Laying his glass upon the counter, Matt lifts one finger into the air, not pointing at anything in specific, instead, referring to the club as a whole. “I don’t have tits to press against a counter to get what I want… I have to make tough calls” Danny explains, holding a second finger into the air, this one on his opposite hand, “one choice keeps the club afloat, the other tears it down with ease… I chose to keep the place running.” Watching Danny take the glass back into his hand, the woman makes a conscientious effort to beat him to the punch, wrapping her fingers around the same glass and pulling it away from Danny’s tense fingers. Keeping her eyes locked onto Danny’s, the woman takes a swig from the man’s glass as he watches, silently taking the show of disrespect with honor. “What’s your name?” Danny asks, the woman quickly returning the cup to her lips and downing what remains. “Candy” the woman replies, watching the smile appear through the man’s chapped lips, laughter emerging from his mouth. “I meant your real name, dear” Danny replies, his hand in the perfect position for the woman to reply as wished. Shattering the cup over Danny’s hand, Candy watches the man pull his entire arm into his chest, confused at the show. “None of your business, dear” Candy replies, pushing her stool back and returning to the floor, an injured and bloody Danny sitting back, watching the woman vanish into the crowd, at a loss for words. | “I hear the first meeting went well” Darlene exclaims just as Matt enters her office, the tidy room appearing very polarized in comparison to Matt’s own. “I’m not sure how you would know, but I’m glad to hear that nonetheless” Matt replies, taking the seat just in front of Darlene’s desk, his eyes falling upon the woman as she finishes up writing a report. “Angela said Brook was smiling after the appointment” Darlene replies, removing her eyes from the paper, “Brook never smiles.” “I charm the pants off of everyone I meet” Matt says with a smile, Darlene only rolling her eyes with a grin at the gesture, bringing her pen back to the stack of copy paper. Looking around the room, Matt takes in the environment, looking along each colorful wall with his heart set on investigating every single picture frame, countless drawings and photographs lining every direction the office can offer. “Any of this your kids’ stuff?” Matt asks, Darlene looking up for a moment to find the subjects of Matt’s inquiry, explaining otherwise. “I don’t have children, and I don’t think I ever will” Darlene replies, watching Matt glance back towards her with confusion, “those are from my patients… They’re all my kids as far as I’m concerned, just not in the traditional way.” “Why do you say that?” Matt asks, watching Darlene’s eyes squint before he clarifies, watching her expression become one of disappointment, “why do you say you wont have kids?” Removing her reading glasses, the terribly-sighted woman leans back in her seat, finger still pressed between her fingers as her hand dangles off the arm rest. “My family has a history of breast cancer… I’m afraid my genes likely aren’t much better than theirs” Darlene replies, looking off at the darkest corner of her room, its place shaded by the lack of sunlight through the rainclouds just outside, “I’m not going to sentence a child to that kind of torture.” Coupling his hands together, Matt lets his arms fall to his lap, apologizing for the insensitivity of his question. “Don’t apologize for wanting to know more” Darlene replies, watching Matt’s head lift up, his posture having previously looked like a disappointed child, “it’s never a bad thing to want to know more.” With a nod, Matt places his tongue against the corner of his mouth as he considers further questions, his mind continuously coming back to the cancer revelation, his intrigue being stolen by every aspect of the potential conversation. “What are the chances you have it?” Matt replies, watching Darlene’s head turn towards the window, her eyes gazing out upon the dreary city just beyond her cold window. “The odds are pretty high, but I get tested fairly regularly” Darlene replies, her head being held up by the base of her hand, the woman now leaning against the desk with her elbow placed firmly upon the surface. “I’m thirty six right now, so the chances that something shows up before I’m thirty are pretty likely” Darlene replies, nodding to herself as she glances back at Matt, “the only question is whether or not we’ll catch whatever it is quickly enough.” With a deep breath, Matt nods to himself, the air escaping his lungs as the woman asks a question of her own. “Why are you so interested?” Darlene asks, watching Matt look up at her with confusion, “it’s fine that you are, but I’m curious as to why.” “It’s just hard” Matt replies, choosing his words carefully, “thinking about someone you care about being on a timetable… It’s not an easy thing to hear.” Pulling her head back slightly, Darlene takes intrigue in Matt’s chosen words, picking at them as if they were an inflated balloon, a metaphorical thumb tac clutched between her fingers. “We’ve known each other for a day and you already care about me?” Darlene asks, Matt looking away from the woman for a moment. “Yes” Matt replies, the word coming out sounding more like a breath than anything else, head turning back towards her, “you gave me this opportunity, I care for you out of appreciation for that.” Pulling her bottom lip between her teeth, Darlene nods to herself, head lowering as her hands place the glasses back over her face, intentions placed on returning to her work. Returning to the door, Matt places his hands upon the wooden surface, the entrance opening a few inches as the man glances back towards Darlene. “Before I forget, I’m going to need a new desk chair” Matt proclaims, Darlene removing her glasses ass she stares at him in confusion, “I had to give her some reason to feel like she could open up!” Matt now gone, Darlene’s picks up on Matt’s drift, shaking her head in disapproval and returning to work. | Performing for the high-paying clients, Candy pulls in great money the larger her crowd grows, men lining up around her stage further and further until her attention is called for from the back of the room. “Got time for a private session?” Danny calls out, a stack of cash held in the air, flaunted in the spotlight to ensure his offer appears unmistakeable. “I think you’re gonna have to get in line” Candy calls back out, returning to her character, Danny refusing to allow such move to commence. “As the owner of this club, I don’t think lines exist for me” Danny calls out, Candy halting her dance once more, eyes aggravatedly darting back to the bigshot in the back of the building. “I’ll say this one more time, just to make sure I’m not mistaken” Danny exclaims, removing a pistol from his waistband and holding it in the air, “either get the fuck back here or I’m gonna make sure this show gets shut down a.s.a.p.” With a groan, Candy leaves her pole and struts down the stairs, brushing off gropings and other touches as she pushes through the crowd, continuing her angry pace every step closer towards the man. With a smile on his face, Danny grabs at a silky red curtain and moves it out of the woman’s way, Candy refusing to acknowledge him as she marches onwards, walking wherever the voice behind tells her to. The further she walks, the more she loses track of what room she’s in, the dim red lights surrounding every inch of the interior rendering the building into one big maze with nothing more than an easily recognizable center stage. Dragging her long heels upon the carpet at times just to make herself aware of the surface she walks upon, a rush of light suddenly comes over her upon a final curtain being walked through, a room tucked away within the building’s bowels proving to be her destination. “I’ve never seen this room before” Candy exclaims, turning towards Danny at the sound of a latch locking into place behind her. “You’re not supposed to… It doesn’t exist to anyone other than a select few as far as the head of the table is concerned” Danny replies, watching Candy’s expression fall. “This isn’t your club?” Candy exclaims, a rush of honesty coming over Danny in the moment, owning up to the white lie he’d become ready to reveal. “It’s mine in everything other than payments… Other than that, this place belongs to the head of the table” Danny replies, watching Candy’s face light up. “This is the big guy’s club?” Candy replies, eyebrows lifted nearly as far as they can, only to lift further as another realization dawns upon her, “you know the big guy!?” Rolling his eyes, Danny tells the woman to ask the questions suddenly dawning over her at another time, instead instructing her to listen. “I’m not pleased with the decision I made last night, but I’m not in any position to make decisions based on what’s right and wrong” Danny explains, taking a seat on the sofa, “the only choices I make are between what’s best and what’s worst.” Puzzled, Candy gives into the man’s desire for dialogue, taking a seat opposite him and hearing out his side of the story. “Julio was like a brother to me, but he was never family” Danny explains, both hands laid upon his knees, “the only family I’ve ever known is the one I have here, and I couldn’t let Julio have a chance at taking that away.” “So, you were given a choice?” Candy asks, the answer from Danny coming in a recitement of the options he was given. “I could either betray the table, or I could betray Julio” Danny explains, “on one hand, I become the table’s number one enemy… On the other, well, I’m still alive.” Letting out a sigh, Candy apologizes half-heartedly, feeling her response to the man’s decision to still be warranted. “You shouldn’t have been put in that position, but I’m not apologizing for what I said” Candy explains, “regardless of how you make peace with it, what you did was act as a conspirator to murder, that much I am correct on.” “But that’s not the only thing that I am” Danny replies, leaning forward, making sure he cuts slightly into the space between the pair, “I didn’t want our first interaction to be cut down to just… that.” With a nod, Candy runs her tongue over her lips, eyes taken by the floor as she ponders her following question. “Why are you telling me this?” Candy asks, eager to hear Danny’s reasonings, “I know you’re supposed to keep things pretty tight-lipped, so what does it matter whether or not I think you’re an asshole?” “I don’t really know” Danny replies, stumbling over his words, stopping and starting his responses before Candy’s mouth drops, already predicting where the man is taking the conversation. “I’m a high-cost stripper, Danny” Candy calls out, hands placed firmly upon her lap, “if you’re about to tell me that you’re getting feelings or something, stop before you open your mouth again.” Taking Candy’s advice for what it’s worth, Danny closes his lips tight and nods to himself, “okay” he mutters beneath his breath. “Wonderful” Candy replies, continuing to silently nod to herself for another few seconds before standing up, immediately taking herself to the door the pair entered moments prior. The metal latches squeaking as the door shuts, Danny is left to ponder his own thoughts as the only inhabitant of the near-empty room. | Adjusting his raincoat, Matt emerges from the building with his eyes set on his car, the appearance of a man on the younger side of twenty standing beneath heavy rain capturing his focus. “Can I help you?” Matt calls out, umbrella held over his head as he stands at the base of the staircase, the kid remaining silent, refusing to respond to the man at first. Falling with such intensity that it splashes upon the ground with force, the rain accompanies a cloudy night sky, both men staring at each other, caught beneath the tears from the heavens above. “If you’re just going to stare at me, I’ll be on my way” Matt calls back, walking away from his position as the worrying figure remains stood there, just watching the man return to his car. “It’s not over, but it can be” the man calls out, prompting Matt to stop walking once more, his eyes returning to the figure stood in the street, hands nonchalantly tucked away in his pockets. Expression changing, Matt steps away from the parking lot and turns back, cautiously stepping closer to the cloaked figure with intrigue. “What did you just say?” the man asks out, calling for the man to repeat the words he heard very clearly the first time around. “I said, it’s not over… Even if you think it is” the man replies, his hands still tucked away in his pockets as he finally steps forward, doing his part the close the distance between himself and the therapist before him. Head covered by a long hood, the figure approaches Matt, only a few feet separating the pair by the time each set of feet stops progressing forward. With a better look at the man’s face, Matt nods to himself as the voice finishes it’s statement, listening carefully to each word said by the younger man. “But it can be over if you’re willing to do what’s necessary” the man concludes, watching Matt’s eyes narrow, knowing his words to be directed at the properly intended individual. “What’s your endgame here?” Matt calls out, his chin tilting upwards slightly, the change in his posture providing very little, but now sporting conviction. “We both know my family has lost touch… I want it all now” the man replies, taking a few steps closer to Matt, both men now only inches away from each other. “You’re Chris Gillcrest?” Matt asks confidently, watching the smile come over the cloaked-man’s face. “You can call me ‘Stucky’” Chris replies, his head lowering, eyes still kept steadily towards those of the man before him, “I think you and I could do great things together, Table Man.” With a brief chuckle, Stucky backs away from Matt, turning his back to the individual whom he’s come to know the true identity of, walking the path he took to get to the scene in reverse. “I’m certain that you know where to find me” Stucky calls back, unaware of the change in Matt’s expression, the revelation of his identity being known by the kid not sitting well with the man. With a scowl, Matt turns back towards his vehicle, his feet stepping over the wet concrete on his way back to his car, a set of overwatching eyes kept upon him from afar. Sat at her office window, Darlene watches Matt enter the parking lot, enter his vehicle and drive in the opposite direction to that of which the young man walked, suspicious of the man’s interaction. Staying silent, Darlene turns away from the window, returning to her work with her mind caught upon the sight she’s witnessed. == Kings of Cambridge == |
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