Deus Ex Human Revolution: Shadow's Showdown

Chapter 33: The Avalanche.

Detroit.

It had been almost a week since Laura's return, spent on sitting in an empty dark apartment with her cat, which even when its owner was in a deep depression was only interested in eating and checking if anything in the house was bouncing. The woman couldn't count how many messages from Faridah and Connor she got and how many times Frank called her. She turned off the phone and put it in a drawer. Laura was leaving the company anyway, so it didn't matter to her how much she was behind in her work. She silently waited for the moment when Adam will knock on her door, but he didn't come, which made her feel even worse. Moreover, memories of her time with Kratos began to come back. She could hear his screams in her head, feel the cool metal barrel of the gun against her temple. He had said then he was going to kill her and squeezed the trigger laughing at her terror. In thoughts, Laura promised herself that someday this fucker would pay for everything, but she was too weak to carry out her threats. She also remembered how he forced her to play Russian roulette. She remembered the characteristic click emitted by the gun's cylinder. She remembered the stench of drugs, alcohol, and vomit. She remembered the loneliness and the narrow streams of pale light breaking through the gaps in the curtains when she wasn't sitting in the basement. Damien wouldn't let them open, so she rarely saw the sun. On weekends they went to Lemon-Lime, and she always said with a smile that she was the luckiest woman on earth.

Soon Joe discovered the truth, though it cost him a lot of time and effort. Thanks to the patient pretending Navras bought Damien's trust and was allowed to enter his nest. At least that was what Joe was thinking. Kratos knew perfectly well what was going on and decided to act accordingly. He forced Joe to see Laura in the most intimate and humiliating moments. Damien forced him to even help in his violent plans. Navras promised to find a way to get her out of there. He was willing to pay for it with his life. For Laura, the price was too high anyway.

The woman lay back on the carpet. It was a wonderful feeling not knowing what day, season, or time it was today.

***

Sarif Industries.

Adam constantly and furiously walked around his office. Fortunately, everything had gone great in Washington. Laura had done a professional job, and Connor basically didn't have to fix anything. He found out that no one had seen Laura at the company for almost a week. The one when Francis barged into his office slamming the door in the process. That was just the beginning of the avalanche. For over an hour he yelled almost non-stop about how Adam should stay out of his business and leave his employees and their decisions alone. He yelled about a stick in his ass, about how the ex-SWAT didn't know shit about computers and that Megan was the only reason he could work here.

It was far too much. Even Faridah became distant like the Andromeda galaxy. They rarely talked, and if they did it was more about company matters. By the time he went to lunch, she'd already returned so they kept passing each other. In fact, no one, not even Connor, knew what was going on with Laura. Jensen was haunted by his darkest thoughts especially after she had tried to take her own life. Instead of going to her or at least calling he preferred to disappear from Laura's life. He could feel that anxiety hanging in the air with a cloud of thick smoke. Everyone decided to retreat fearing they might see the worst. It was cruel, inhumane, and reprehensible, but understandable. He had seen a lot himself, but the second sight of Laura lying in a pool of blood would not stand.

Immediately after work, he went to the store to replenish the supplies. The saleswoman already knew him well, and he always felt in her behavior the excitement of his presence, as if he were some famous person. He managed to get used to the fact that he could appeal to women, although he considered himself a man of average look. He was just leaving the alley, pushing a cart, which already contained a carton of Golden Icarus cigarettes and another with bottles of whisky, when he noticed a woman resembling Laura. He wanted to go over and say hello, but he wasn't sure if it was her. She disappeared too quickly among the shelves of cereal. He could have gone to see if he was right, but he felt the fear of this encounter so he turned toward the dairy section looking for milk.