“Or I could not give you the money and not care,” said Malcolm. “I’m leaving all my options on the table.”
Danny nodded slowly. He didn’t say anything, which left Malcolm time to consider just how shitty a situation his brother was putting him in. He would feel the weight of so many deaths on his hands if Danny became Hothead again and started killing without restraint.
Then again, if Malcolm gave him the money, he would have to scramble just to make rent that month. He’d been paying for his apartment with a fund he’d set up shortly after his mother’s death, and it was running dangerously low. Malcolm had been counting on his salary as a champion to make ends meet, but with the local headquarters destroyed, he wasn’t sure where his next paycheck would be coming from.
“Fine,” said Malcolm, with a sigh. “But you have to promise me that you will never kill anyone again. I’m not giving this money to you as a kind brother. I’m giving it to you in exchange for services.”
“And the service is not killing people?” asked Danny, voice sober.
“…Yeah.” Malcolm shrugged. “People have spent money on worse things.” He walked into his bedroom. “Is a check okay?” he asked, sarcastically.
“Actually, yeah,” said Danny. “One of the banks is advertising the fact that monsters are welcome through its doors now. Can you fucking believe that? A week with the champions gone and it’s a different world.”
“The champions aren’t gone,” said Malcolm. “Just… biding their time.”
Malcolm found his checkbook, signed a check, and pushed it into Danny’s hand.
“Thanks, little bro,” he said. “I can’t tell you how much this means to me. I’ll pay you back if I can, I swear.”
Malcolm massaged his temples.
“Pay me back by never showing your face around here again.” He locked eyes with Danny, glaring at him slightly.
Danny chuckled as though it were a joke.
“Righto, bucko,” he said. “I guess that’s my signal to fuck off. Mind if I take the rest of the beers?”
“Just… get out,” said Malcolm.
Danny nodded to him. He slipped the check into his pocket, picked up what remained of the six pack, and slipped out into the hallway. Malcolm closed the door as soon as he was out of sight and leaned his back against it.
Why the hell did I just do that?
Malcolm walked over to the couch and sat down on it. He still had a little beer left in the bottle he’d been drinking from. He sipped at it, trying to parse through his interaction with Danny, and whether there was any hope of his brother turning over a new leaf.
A couple of minutes went by. Malcolm turned on his PS4, too annoyed to think about his brother any longer. Another knock came at the door just as he was getting in-game and he swore under his breath as he paused it and stood up.
“I told you,” Malcolm said, swinging the door open. “I never want to see…”
He’d been expecting his brother. Instead, a petite blonde woman stood in the hallway, her emerald eyes sharp and alert. She wore a brown leather jacket over a white blouse and jeans, an outfit that showcased her trim figure and modest curves.
“See what?” asked Tapestry. “Expecting somebody else?”
Malcolm winced.
“I got into an argument with the pizza guy earlier,” he lied. “Over his tip.”
“Really?” Tapestry brushed past him and into his apartment. “Where’s the pizza?”
Malcolm gestured to the box on his kitchen counter, which he’d ordered late last night. There were still a few slices left, if Tapestry insisted on more proof. He frowned and closed the door, considering his fellow champion as she surveyed his apartment.
Tapestry had been suspicious of Malcolm almost since his first day as a champion. She was one of the few people who knew about his secondary ability, which let him absorb the powers of other champions, oftentimes her power.
She’d been there during the fight with Hothead, and knew that the demon was actually Malcolm’s brother, Danny. She also knew that he had other secrets, things that he kept even from her, and it fed her suspicions of him, though they were still on friendly terms.
“Are you expecting to find a dead body in my apartment, Tapestry?” asked Malcolm. “Maybe a couple of kilos of coke lying around?”
She shot him an indecipherable look and continued on, stopping in front of his bedroom door.
“May I?” she asked.
Malcolm grinned.
“Far be it for me to stop a beautiful woman from entering my bedroom,” he said. “Here, I can give you a demonstration of the softness of my bed.”
Tapestry glared at him. She opened his bedroom door for long enough to take stock of what was on the other side, and then closed it firmly.
“You aren’t as funny as you think you are,” she said.
“I think you just have an old-fashioned sense of humor,” said Malcolm.
Tapestry’s mouth dropped open, surprise and offense evident in her expression. Malcolm kept smiling, though he knew he’d just made exactly the wrong kind of joke.
Despite appearing to be in her late teens or early twenties, Tapestry was far older. She was 98, and kept eternally youthful as a side effect of her regeneration power.
“Thanks for proving my point,” she said.
“Oh, come on, Tapestry,” said Malcolm. “Lighten up.”
He sat back down on the couch, briefly turning his attention back to his game while letting Tapestry continue her investigation. There was nothing to find in his apartment, and there hadn’t been for more than a week now, aside from Danny’s brief visit.
I should be happy about that, shouldn’t I?
Rose, Malcolm’s friend and occasional spryte lover, had defected to the other side. He didn’t like to think about what that meant for him personally, given how the conflict between the Vanderbrook champions and Rain Dancer’s faction was intensifying.
It was partially his fault. Malcolm had pushed Rose into seeking out her sister, inadvertently introducing her to the Awakened Children cult, and the two monsters, Rain Dancer and Shield Maiden, at its head. He still wasn’t sure what he would do if put in another situation where he had to fight Rose.
“Satisfied?” asked Malcolm, glancing at Tapestry as she took a seat next to him on the couch.
“For now,” said Tapestry. “But I’ve got my eyes on you.”
Malcolm paused the game and met her gaze.
“Good to know,” he said.
CHAPTER 3
“Anyway, I thought you said you’d be by earlier,” said Malcolm. “It’s past noon.”
“I had to take the bus,” said Tapestry. “The last time I drove my car, someone almost tailed me home. Rain Dancer and the rest of the monsters are getting bolder.”
“That’s brazen,” said Malcolm. “And also fairly creepy.”
Tapestry folded her arms, glaring at the wall.
“What’s creepy is what I’ve been hearing about Shield Maiden’s activity on the world wide web,” said Tapestry.
Malcolm chuckled.
“The world wide web,” he said, trying not to mock her too much with his tone. “Sometimes I forget that the internet is still a new thing to you.”
“Melanie keeps me informed,” said Tapestry. “I don’t see a real need for it.”
Malcolm shrugged. They’d had this conversation before. Either out of stubbornness or an inability to attempt new things, Tapestry remained deeply hesitant to give the internet, including just browsing the web on her phone, much more than the occasional try.
“She showed you the video, though, right?” asked Malcolm. “The one of the… young spryte?”
“She didn’t have to,” said Tapestry. “It was on the news.”