The Smooth Criminal (Michael Jackson Fan Fiction)

Chapter 8: Safe House

Regina parked her car outside of her apartment leading Michael and Harry inside, she locked the door behind them and went over to the couch where she dropped from a twinge of pain from her forehead, she felt a small bump and something warm leaking out of it, she looked at her fingers to see scarlet drops, Michael gave Regina a damp paper towel and lightly dabbed her forehead.

"Now will you tell me what happened." Regina asked as she held the paper towel on her forehead.

"Yes, I'll tell you." Michael replied as he sat next to her.

"Mr. Big is a drug lord that recently came back into the business 2 years ago. Back in '98 when he planned to sell his products around the city, even to children, the police had no power against him because he would pay them to look the other way to conduct his business.

"That's not surprising, the police can be very greedy. But I can't believe he would sell drugs to little kids, he should be stopped." Regina scoffed.

"I was able to catch up to him one night and booked him, the police charged him with drug trafficking and other accounts of organized crime." Michael continued.

"What are you? An undercover cop?" Regina applied pressure to the damp towel.

"I worked with the cops unofficially, so I guess you can say that in a way."

"Okay, so you worked with the cops and had him arrested, so I'm guessing that's the reason your shop burned down today. Retaliation ?"

"Sadly yes." Michael dropped his head in hand, thinking about the shop.

"Had it not been for you, we would have been charred," Harry interjected as he joined them on the couch.

"So why would he try to take you guys out? Something's not adding up." Regina pondered.

Michael took a deep breath. "Me and Costello Emery or as he liked to be called "Mr.Big"  have had some history together, when I was younger I intervened onto a deal between him and his goons. I saw too much going on with his operation, and my parents' lives were taken from me because of it." Michael's jaw tensed as he spoke. "There's not a day that goes by that I think about them paying for what I unintentionally did, I didn't mean to see it, but I had to help that man they captured."

Regina moved closer to Michael and placed her hand on his shoulder, Michael placed his hand on top of hers as he continued to speak. Harry placed his arm around his friend and gave a reassuring squeeze. "It's not your fault, and your parents didn't deserve that."

"Thanks, but ever since then it's always been bad blood between us. I tried to save a victim, and he made my parents victims." Michael sighed. "But they weren't the only victims of his, We had another brief encounter during that time, I tried to save a little girl from getting injected with a lethal drug, but this time I managed to save the girl, he fought hard to get needle into her neck, but I wasn't going let him do it, so we were basically pulling this girl like game of tug of war. By this time, someone called the police and he escaped as he heard the sirens. The little girl eventually got back to her parents and that's when I and the police eventually started working together for a brief time."

"Now that's he's out of prison, things aren't going to be pretty. We're already hit, now there's no telling how much damage he'll do." Harry frowned.

"Don't worry, hopefully there must be some way we can get him out of the city." Regina reassured.

"We?" "No, I'm sorry Regina, I don't want to put you in any more danger that I already had." Michael protested.

"Well you can't take him down by yourself, and the police are already seedy enough as it is, so who knows what side they're on, as long as they're getting paid."

"She did help us escape death, I say she would be a good ally, Michael." Harry reassured.

"You need help, and I'm willing to give it to you." Regina smiled.

"But why, I don't want to interrupt your life for my past history." Michael grabbed Regina's hands and held them with concern.

"I find others to help, but you definitely need it in order to take this man down."

"I say you're too generous, and I appreciate your concern but I don't know."

"Why don't we think about this, and then we'll get back  to you on this." Michael and Harry locked eyes.

"Sure, I'll give you time to think. I should go think about this as well." Regina got up from the couch and went to her room. As she sat the bed, she took a deep breath and tried to slow down her racing mind. Maybe it was an emotion that made her offer her help to a man she just met last night. Or maybe it was the near experience she just had hours ago, or maybe it was the right thing to do. She did have a job and friends and family to think about, but she knew she couldn't just abandon them for a stranger. As she collapsed onto her pillow, she thought about the small things she could do, like put out flyers of write up a story to turn it in the local newspaper printing station. She thought about her decision all day until she finally concluded that she was going to help, but she wasn't going to go too deep unless it directly impacted her.