The Sin Hunter: Double or Nothing

Together Again

The Sin Hunter crashed through the door into the Hotel space as Cynthia leapt with fright, claws extending from her hands and ears pricking behind her goggles as she arched her back, swinging around in alarm. Jack waved his hands, laughing. "Hey! Easy, Doc! We found some stowaways while we were out for a walk." Cynthia retracted to her formal stance, eyes raised and leveled in expectation. "Stowaways? What kind of-" she started, but before her thoughts could finish themselves, Deck pushed through the door, arms waving in surprised and gleeful arrival. "Golly gee! Do all Humans live in places like this?" Cynthia stopped short, eyes widened in shocked silence. Her hand moved to point a finger at the bronze-tanned surfer entering her room, but before she could formulate what was really happening, more bundled figures pushed into the room after Jack and her daughter.

To be specific, a very dusty and properly dressed plague doctor stepped through from behind the disguised demon, brushing back cobwebs off of their shoulders. Crow pushed through, dusting off his hat before resting his goggles on the elegant mother figure in the room. "Oh. My. God." he gasped. Cynthia's face vibrated with a wide smile and even wider, outstretched arms as she rushed forward, the Plague Infector and former Scientist embracing tight. "Crow! You're here?" she cried, as the PLague Infector rolled his sleeves back, embracing just as tight. "Back like I was never gone!" he replied, while a much shorter, reasonably stanced Shrap ducked through the arch, then readjusted, cracking his neck and fixing his tie. "Right," the disgruntled salesman sighed, "forgot I'm not a hulking mass of wires and strings like in Hell."

Cynthia broke away, rushing past her daughter to greet the lanky limbed businessman of the Second World War. "And you must be Shrap. I'd recognize a fashion statement like that anywhere in Hell or in Heaven." Shrap chuckled, bowing with deep stride before returning himself to full height, a very polished six and half of a foot. "Well, y'know what all the greats said, Doctor. Better you dress for the occasion than not dress at all." Cynthia shrugged, grinning through her tinted red glasses. "I'm sure at least someone has said that. But it's good to see you again." Cynthia turned to face a very beaming Jack and an equally cheery Jules, both admiring the trio maneuvering around their room in various displays of bizarre behavior.

Cynthia crossed her arms, keeping a near silver hand out to gesture to the room. "Now where did you find these three? Don't tell me you just ran into them in the street." Jack turned with a smile, winking to his pal with a certainty most detectives would give anything for. "Trust me, Doc, if I'd bet on that, I'd be stiffed however much I owe ya." Cynthia dropped her shoulders in shock while Deck gently cradled a large vase, Crow helping the demon to inspect a piece of pottery not bloodied or damaged in any way. "Yup. Jack seems to know these old guys, so I guess we can roll with them." Jack turned in a shocked offense, clasping a glove across his shirt. "My word! 'Old guys?' Jules, these are the finest, most eloquently distinguished businessmen in all of Hell, renowned for their wit, prowess and persistence at the tables of Beelezbub's finest halls!

"I've personally known them for as long as I have entered Hell and returned, and they certainly have centuries more experience than I ever will in centuries beyond." Crow laughed, turning to face Jules while tipping the beak of his mask to the young detective. "Trust me, kiddo, your mom knows us all too well. Interesting fact, really, but your mom actually tried killing us a long time ago! Remember that, Cynthia?" Jules could feel her jaw striking the rug as she turned to face her mother. Cynthia blushed, laughing with a hand against her mouth in an entertained manner. "You almost KILLED Jack?!" she shouted. Jack clamped a hand over her shoulder, laughing with the rest of the room. "Ah, relax, Julie. Those were far different times. And besides, Cynthia was a different person then. You'd understand through her lenses."

Jules was stubborn to the truth at first, realizing the possibility of things she didn't know about her mother becoming even more realistic. However, when Cynthia moved her hand over the young Sin Hunter's shoulder, Jules turned in silent appreciation. Cynthia fixed her glasses, a warm smile illuminating the room with silver light. "Crow's right, honey. And sure, I may not be proud of the things I've done, but that's in the past now." Jack stepped forward, helping Shrap with his briefcase by the table next to the window. "She's right, Jules. Each and every one of us has done things we're not proud of, but we don't let those hold us back." Jules turned to face the tanned surfer reclining in the chair by the fireplace, swirling a glass of water as the flames danced across their pit vipers.

"I mean, guys, I'm pretty sure I haven't done anything bad," he chuckled, but as the room grew quiet, the younger man turned with puzzled silence. "What? C'mon, let's be real. Of all y'all crazies, I gotta be at least the most morally sane, right?" After clarification hit the silence, Jack turned with a glove, nodding. "When you word it like that...yeah, okay. Oky, I'm willing to see you through that." The rest of the hotel guests nodded in unison while Jules chuckled, crossing her arms. 'So these are the people my mom and Jack spent so many years with.' As the dusty Plague Doctor moved a large fern across the room to the corner to make space on the dining room table, and shuffling brought the room into a lively motion, Jules helped the surfer man move an extra chair to the table. A pair of pit vipers shone in the sunlight outside, and for a moment, Jules almost dropped the chair in terror.

Through the tinted lenses, Deck revealed pale gold skin, sunken amethyst eyes and curls of streaming green hair. Deck laughed when he saw the young Sin Hunter's reaction, removing his glasses. "Oh? Looks like Jack taught you how to tell a Demon from a Human. You're a good pupil, learning the ropes from him," Deck grunted, sliding the last set of chairs beside the table while Shrap leaned out in his chair, arms cracking and shaking while Crow slid into his seat across from Jules. Cynthia moved beside Jules, tying back her hair while Jack remained standing, moving in toward the center. Clearing his throat and silencing the murmurs around the table, Jack cracked his own knuckles while smiling. "Here are the facts," he began.