Darkness Girl: Trickster God

Chapter Fifty-Seven: Circus Troupe

Ashcroft watched Regan's lips pull back into a sick, nasty smile and shuddered. She saw Trevellian was watching her warily from his seat behind the table. 

'I guess Unity doesn't like playing with broken toys.' 

'When it became apparent that my injuries couldn't be fixed, I took an extended leave of absence; I thought it prudent.' 

'You crawled out the back door so they wouldn't throw you on the garbage with your throat cut to stop you spilling your guts.' 

'That was unkind.' 

'There are severe limitations to my sympathy for someone who had me tortured and tried to kill me.' 

'I feel that your moral high ground is somewhat eroded by the fact that you stabbed me in the spine.' 

'You hung me from the ceiling for days and broke two of my fingers.' 

'Which have now healed, and once again, you stabbed me in the spine.' 

'Could we pass over the recriminations?' said Latimer. He was crouched next to Walsh, who was propped up near the door. The other investigator's breath was coming in difficult wheezes that sounded like he was trying to breathe with a heavy weight on his chest. He was throwing regular unfriendly glances in Regan's direction. 

'Am I boring you?' said Trevellian. 

'If this is your source, then you're in worse shape than I thought,' said Regan. 'Trevellian's only redeeming feature is that someday he's going to be dead.' 

'I've been driven to him in the same way I've been driven to you. If I had a choice, I wouldn't work with either of you, but that's the way things are, so there's no use complaining about it.' 

Trevellian smiled. 'It's nice to feel appreciated.' 

Latimer stood up. 'Between the two of you, we've got the last chance to do something about Unity. After this, there's nothing.' 

'What does he stand to gain from it?' said Forester, motioning to Trevellian with his chin. 

Forester and Sarafina stood a little way apart, as if they weren't sure if they were still supposed to be part of the conversation. Sarafina was examining a shallow graze on Forester's arm, where it had been cut from the falling glass when he shattered the one way mirror. 

'Protection,' said Ashcroft. 'Organisations like Unity don't usually let you leave with all of their secrets in your head.' 

'Not unless you're also willing to leave the realm of the upright and mobile,' said Trevellian. 'I suddenly find myself with a very personal reason to be invested in my former employer's destruction.' 

'Do you see why we need to move now?' said Latimer. 'Trevellian's information will only be current for a short time. We can't afford to second guess ourselves here.' 

Regan made a noise somewhere between a laugh and a bark. 'Wishful thinking isn't a substitute for certainty.' 

'But you agree that he's genuine?' 

Regan shrugged. 'That's true at least.' 

Latimer looked satisfied at that. He nodded his head like he'd found a new piece of a complex puzzle. 

Trevellian sat back in his chair and placed a hand behind his head. 'You're more of a sly old fox than I thought, Latimer. You used her to validate me.' 

'Like she said, certainty is important. All she's done is convince me that this is the right course of action.' 

'What information does Trevellian have that makes you think now is the time to make a move?' said Sarafina. Her cheeks reddened as Latimer looked at her. 'Sorry.'