Post by K.I.S.S. on Jul 23, 2014 22:11:10 GMT -6
Two days, and Tempe, Arizona had come calling. Having arrived early because of a request made by UWA Head of Talent Samuel Johnson, Bethany Kenyon walks with her usual, “family unit,” Arsenal, Jeszika Gautier, Nikki Peltier and Ashley Kenyon, along with UWA World Heavyweight Champion, Aerynn Donnelly, through the street in front of some hole in the wall night club none of them have ever been to. The directions on the tickets claimed this was the place, however, so the girls, head towards the seemingly deserted building. As they step inside, like going from black and white to color in the Wizard of Oz, the outside world vanishes into the inner sanctum of what looks like an old school type Jazz club that you’d see in old Rat Pack or Gangster movies set fifty years ago. Tables filled the place all around with a long formal bar lying across the wall on the right side. A stage sat against the far wall with curtains on either side kept up the feeling of class the place was obviously going for.
The clientele ran the gamut in terms of dress, with business people seemingly mingling with goths, country people, black leather-clad people and every other make and model of human visage known to the state of Arizona. As they step forward into the building a large hispanic man holds his hand up to slow them down.
Bouncer: Sorry ladies, private mic night tonight. You got tickets?
Jeszika pulls her ticket out of her pocket and hands it over.
Jeszika Gautier: I have mine.
Nikki, Ashley and Bethany each present one as well with Aerynn the last to present hers.
Bouncer: Ah! Good good!
The large man takes the tickets and opens a hand for them to enter behind him.
Bouncer: ...Drinks are on the house tonight, and Jayni and Michael Sullivan are gonna be performing last. Enjoy your night!
Jeszika Gautier: That’s the plan.
As they walk inside, Ashley leans over to no one in particular.
Ashley Kenyon: Are we supposed to know who that is?
Bethany watches as Jeszika shrugs.
Jeszika Gautier: The performers? Maybe... but I don't, do you guys?
Ashley shrugs as Bethany glances around. While everyone else seems interested in the place, Aerynn's kept quiet, even more quiet than usual. Her head down, hood pulled up over head with her blonde hair buried inside, Aerynn was near unrecognizable and something told bethany this was how the champion wanted things to be tonight.
Nikki Peltier: From the looks on everyone's faces I'd say, no... and I'd say Aerynn doesn't care even if she does know.
Jeszika Gautier: And me... I just wanna go get a drink. Anyone else want? My shout.
Ashley Kenyon: Whatever whiskey they got...
Jeszika Gautier: Anyone else?
Bethany Kenyon: Are you sure that's a good idea? As nice as this place is...
Ashley Kenyon: I'll drink if I want to, thanks!
Jeszika Gautier: Worried you'll catch someone off the glasses B?
Bethany Kenyon: No, I just...
Aerynn Donnelly: Jameson whiskey.
Jeszika inclines her head to her acknowledging her order.
Jeszika Gautier: B? Nik? You guys too?
Bethany Kenyon: I'm ok for now.
Nikki nods.
Nikki Peltier: Me too.
Almost immediately, Bethany regrets her answer.
Ashley Kenyon: Oh, so now you're too good to drink with us too?
Jeszika Gautier: I'm don’t think that’s what they meant Ash...
Nikki Peltier: No, she's right, beer.
Nodding, Bethany accepts that she needs to do this and not come off as a standoffish bitch tonight.
Bethany Kenyon: ok.
Jeszika Gautier: What will you have, B?
Bethany Kenyon: Beer.
Jeszika Gautier: I'll be back soon then.
She starts heading over to the bar. bethany glances around taking the place in, for the most part, the people in the small club were ignoring the group of girls as they all entered together. When Jeszika moved to the bar to get their first round of drinks, a woman with short blondish red hair smiled warmly from her group near the stage. With her were three men, one of whom seemed to be heavily intoxicated already. Near the opposite side of the stage a man in a leather jacket and hood lifted his hand and put it on his face in the darkness bathing his visage, turning his back to the group of ladies while kicking his feet up. Bethany pays most of this no mind as she follows Aerynn, Ashley and Nikki to a table in the middle of the whole place. Sitting down, Ashley shakes her head.
Ashley Kenyon: Man... what are we doing in this fuckin place?
Bethany sighs.
Bethany Kenyon: Samuel probably figured if we went to the type of place we normally go, there would violence involved.
Ashley Kenyon: Samuel's not as dumb as he looks...
Aerynn pulls her cell phone out and stares at it for second, her jaw clenching as she does so.
Aerynn Donnelly: Nae, he's no'.
Bethany Kenyon: So...
Just as she starts talking, Jeszika returns with their drinks.
Nikki Peltier: Who was that talking to you by the bar, Jez?
Jeszika shrugs.
Jeszika Gautier: Just a fan. No one special. her name was Jayni.
Bethany Kenyon: Like... as in the chick they said was playing here tonight?
Jeszika Gautier: I suppose it was, B.
Aerynn looks up from where she had been staring down at the table and looks at each one of them in succession now that they were all at the same table.
Aerynn Donnelly: I wanted tae thank ye.. All o' ye.. Fer nae lettin' tha Children kill me.
She looks down at her hands again leaving Bethany, Ashley, Nikki and jeszika to all stare at her in momentary shock. A second later, Jeszika recovers, looks over at Aerynn and smiles.
Jeszika Gautier: Was the least we could do. Thank you also, without you we wouldn't have survived as long as we have either. You're the one who's done the most work here.
Taking in the look on the champion’s face, Bethany frowns with worry.
Bethany Kenyon: Aerynn, has something more... happened?
Aerynn nods acknowledgingly to Jeszika before coming to Bethany. Almost the second she comes around, her gaze falls upon her hands on the table again.
Aerynn Donnelly: Logan's gone.
Bethany can’t believe her ears.
Bethany Kenyon: WHAT?
Jeszika Gautier: Gone? Like taken?
Aerynn shakes her head.
Aerynn Donnelly: Nae. No' taken.
Jeszika lowers her head.
Jeszika Gautier: He left you? Because of what happened last week?
Barely managing a nod, Aerynn reaches out, drags that shot of whiskey to her and downs it quickly.
Bethany Kenyon: Oh my God…
Ashley sneers at her sister.
Ashley Kenyon: Like you care…
Bethany nods, finally seeming sure of herself again even as a commotion seems to break out between the redhead and her companions by the stage.
Bethany Kenyon: Ok, let’s just put it all on the table now. Yes, I lied to you about Mama. She was dying and I could have helped her but she wouldn’t let me and she and Daddy decided it would be best to just tell you nothing could be done. They were trying to protect both of us and I hated them for it. I didn’t tell you because I didn’t want to admit I hated Mama for not letting me fight for her or that I hated myself for not doing it anyway. Now, anybody else got something they wanna hash out, let’s go...
Silence bathes their table again until Jeszika nods.
Jeszika Gautier: Fine, I'll go. Look guys, I know I'm not perfect and I know playing Brody how I did was a mistake, a mistake I regret daily. And Aerynn, when I first met you I hated you so damn much, hated Brody too. but I try my best to do what I think is right, and you must understand that with what I did to Brody I was only trying to help him see the error of his ways, help him see what he had done to so many girls in the past. I never meant for the 2 of us to actually fall in love like we did. I never meant for it to be as bad as it was. I'm sorry for the pain that I've caused to all of you over this.
Aerynn calls over to a waitress and orders a whole bottle of Jameson. Quickly, the bottle arrives at the table. Aerynn quickly refills her shot glass and looks to Jeszika while pointing the rim of her glass towards Bethany and Ashley.
Aerynn Donnelly: Their problems are jus' tha'.. Theirs. They need tae figure this out 'tween them. As fer me an' ye.. I dinna care tha' ye dinna like me. At tha time, I was doin' me job. But yer no' tha only one tha' was tryin' tae help Brody see whot he was doin' wrong, Jeszika. We both were. Only.. Ye did it in a way tha' destroyed tha man..
She downs the shot and sets the glass back on the table.
Aerynn Donnelly: Ye wanna know whot really pissed me off at ye, Jeszika? Since we are layin' it all out...
Jeszika nods.
Jeszika Gautier: Lay it on me, I need to hear this...
Aerynn refills her glass again and downs another shot almost as quickly as the first two. She puts the glass back down, her eyes raising up to look at Jeszika.
Aerynn Donnelly: I dinna care whot ye do in yer personal life. Ye wanna ove Melissa, we're all happy fer ye. But ye could've done it a bit less publically. Did ye really think Joshua wasna gonna use tha' tae torture Brody? Ye gave him ammunition.
She refills the glass and downs yet another shot.
Aerynn Donnelly: We're at war, Jeszika.. An' ye handed tha enemy a gun.
Jeszika looks down, guilt written all over her face. She closes her eyes and sighs before she speaks.
Jeszika Gautier: I know I did, and it's a decision I am regretting every day...
Knowing this was coming, Bethany swallows hard.
Bethany Kenyon: Can any of us say we haven’t walked right into one of his traps?
Ashley cocks her head.
Ashley Kenyon: One?
Bethany nods slowly, acknowledging it’s been way more than one for her. This seems to disarm Ashley.
Ashley Kenyon: You’re right… I’m sorry...
Jeszika Gautier: We've let them do this to us... I know you're pride will deny it, but we have all provided ammunition, some more than others.
Guilt crosses her face as she says this.
Jeszika Gautier: I don't know how we can make this right, but I intend to fight and try and at least repair some of the mess...
The commotion near the stage dies down as the redhead gets a text and moves into action. With that, Jeszika nods toward the stage.
Jeszika Gautier: Seems the show is finally starting.
Jayni Sullivan: Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Firelight! I am afraid there has been a change of plan.....Travis will not be performing with us tonight. So it will be an acoustic set.
Bethany Kenyon: So Logan’s gone, Carrie’s hurt, Melissa’s captured… have you found Billy yet?
Ashley shakes her head.
Ashley Kenyon: No.
Jeszika Gautier: An acoustic set... great... I need another drink now...
She gets up from the table.
Jeszika Gautier: Anyone else need a fresh drink?
Being six or seven shots into a big bottle already, shakes her head looking to Ashley.
Aerynn Donnelly: Yer guy's missin', also?
Ashley Kenyon: Yes. I've tried calling all his usual haunts and dealers... nothing.
Jayni's brother Michael takes one final text message, then covers the mic and whispers to her. Her eyes widen with shock as she looks over at where the man in the leather outfit had been sitting. He had moved, climbed up onto the stage and shifted his position behind the curtain.
Jayni Sullivan: For all of our regulars....clap to the lights please!
Aerynn glances up to the stage at the mention of the set being acoustic as if this means something to her.
Aerynn Donnelly: Hmm.
Jeszika leaves the table and goes to buy a round of eight shots. As she returns, Bethany notices a change in her friend’s demeanor. The two people on stage begin to play an acoustic guitar and violin, setting the crowd, obviously full of regulars, into a quiet frenzy of rhythmic clapping. Aerynn knocks back one more and looks around at the gathered women, watching Jeszika go up to the bar and then came back.
Aerynn Donnelly: We're a Motley Crew aren't we?
Bethany nods, enjoying the music even if she wasn’t really paying much attention to it at all herself. talking this out with her friends was more important.
Bethany Kenyon: I’m afraid Carrie’s gonna leave me too.
Ashley can’t believe her ears.
Ashley Kenyon: What?
Bethany nods.
Bethany Kenyon: Her head…
Jeszika Gautier: I'm afraid if we ever get Melissa back, she will too. I shafted her for months to sleep with a man while she waited at home. I'm afraid this may all be too much for her now, she's there cause of me...
She knocks back a quick shot.
Jeszika Gautier: I just want this all to be over. All I can wish for is some kind of do over but I know those type of things don't exist. I wish it hadn't got this bad. For Logan, for Melissa, for Carrie, for Billy, for Brody and for us all...
Suddenly, a male voice coming from somebody not immediately visible on stage begins singing.
Male Voice: When everything has turned to black....you don't know where to go. You need something to justify your soul. Silences are broken. Confidence is gone. When everything you're holding onto falls.
Bethany Kenyon: I'll admit... I don't know what to do...
As a strange look comes over Jeszika, Aerynn leans back a bit and glances at Bethany.
Aerynn Donnelly: Ye wake up. Ye put yer pants on one day at a time.. Ye do e'erythin' ye been doin'.
Jeszika Gautier: Will it be that easy? To just go on living like that when your reason for living is gone?
Jayni and her brother continue to look off to the left in disbelief. The blondish red head seems to have a couple of tears rolling down her face as she continues to play in tune with her brother, the crowd clapping with each flash of the light.
Male Voice: All the people selling truths on every corner now. They wait until the fear has knocked you down. All the rules are changing now. you're living in sin....and everything around you is caving in.....and all you're holding onto slipping like water through your hands....yes....
Ashley Kenyon: Sounds like we all have to ask that question... cept Nik...
Aerynn downs yet another shot and lowers her head before stealing a glance at the stage. Frowning slightly in almost the same way Jeszika was, Aerynn quickly disregards her glass and drinks straight from the whiskey bottle.
Jeszika Gautier: Yeah I feel ya there...
Jeszika fires down another couple of shots herself, looking more and more unsteady as the song goes on.
Ashley Kenyon: We're lucky this is all we can get here...
Jeszika Gautier: Agreed... God damn I could go for something stronger right now...
Suddenly, Jeszika just shakes her head. What was going on here?
Jeszika Gautier: I... I need some air...
She pushes up from her seat and begins for the door. The male voice falls silent so Jayni steps forward to the microphone stand. Her voice joins in.
Jayni Sullivan: And you sing....La La La La. La La La. La La La La La La La. Yea, you sing La La La La. La La La. La La La La La La La.
The male voice returns.
Male Voice: Far off in the distance, somewhere you can't see. Allegiances have formed your destiny. Opposition all around, feeding off your soul.....trying hard to swallow up your hope....and the demons all around me waiting for me to sell my soul...
Jayni Sullivan: And you sing....La La La La. La La La. La La La La La La La. Yea, you sing La La La La. La La La. La La La La La La La.
Jayni finishes the song as the male voice's microphone suddenly static's like it’s been dropped, or even thrown. Nikki, Bethany and Ashley all stand up to go after Jeszika but Bethany pauses.
Bethany Kenyon: Aerynn... come on, let's go before we all do something we'll regret and he uses against us later.
Aerynn glances back to the stage and shrugs before standing up and heading out. As they get outside to find Jeszika in tears, Bethany notices something missing.
Bethany Kenyon: Dammit, left my phone on the table...
When Bethany returns to the bar she sees Jayni and the man in the leather jacket walking back toward the bar everyone patting him on the back on the way.
Jayni Sullivan: You didn't have to do that, Brody.
Man: I know, but I couldn't leave you hanging after all you and your brother have done.
Jayni Sullivan: But they were here!
Man: I know...
Bethany glances at the table and then nods to the two standing before her.
Bethany Kenyon: Hey have you guys seen my phone...
The man freezes, Bethany looks him in the face for the first time and almost falls over dead right there. The hair was longer and stubble covered his cheeks, but it was him.
Bethany Kenyon: Holy shit...
Broderick Montgomery just stares back.
Brody Montgomery: .....Hey Beth.
Unable to believe what she’s seeing, Bethany just shakes her head as she fights to find the words.
Bethany Kenyon: But... but, Aerynn... Jezzy... they're looking for you... what... what's going on?
There was no hostility in his eyes that bore into her from the darkness of that hood but no real humanity either.
Brody Montgomery: .....It's good to see you too?
Without thinking about it, Bethany hugs him. For a moment there was nothing, then his own arms lift and hug her back.
Brody Montgomery: Yea...it's really me.
Bethany Kenyon: You really did get away!
Brody Montgomery: ....They left the shed unlocked one night....I've been on the run ever since. Jayni and her brother found on the highway....I've been with them for....
He pauses as if he doesn’t really want to admit how long it’s been.
Brody Montgomery: .....Almost Six weeks.
Bethany nods slowly.
Bethany Kenyon: How come you wouldn't show us you were here?
Brody Montgomery: You know what it's been like Beth? What he did? You, I can talk to… them? They can all burn.
Bethany shakes her head, guilt and anguish crashing into each other over exactly the subject to which they were referring.
Bethany Kenyon: No... I can't say I know what it was like for you. I can say almost all of us wish what happened with you had never happened.
Brody Montgomery: Somehow I doubt that. He made me watch....you have stepped up your game to help...the others are too focused on their own petty problems....you should get back to them Beth....before they know you're missing.
Pleading slowly creeps into her voice.
Bethany Kenyon: We need you, Brody. We need you back. Everything and everyone is falling apart...
Brody Montgomery: And they will have to fall apart without me. I… am doing what I can do and after that, I will fade back into the background.
His hand comes out and touches the side of her head gently.
Brody Montgomery: Go.
Bethany nods sadly, grabs her phone and turns on her heel. Halfway to the door, she pauses and looks back.
Bethany Kenyon: It's nice seeing you're ok.
Brody Montgomery: You as well Beth....you as well.
As Brody turns, walking back towards the stage, Bethany hurries out the door and re-joins the others.
- - - - - - -
Two days after the night at Firelight, Bethany returns to her Tempe, Arizona hotel room where Jeszika Gautier awaits in her early morning pushing lunch time hangover. The previous night, Jeszika had gone out to the hotel bar and gotten wasted with Bethany’s younger sister, Ashley Kenyon. As Bethany walks back into the room with coffee, she nods to her friend. Jeszika sees the coffee and happily sits up.
Jeszika Gautier: You are a lifesaver, B... God I need this!
She takes coffee from Bethany with a grateful look on her face.
Bethany Kenyon: Just how you take it too.
Jeszika Gautier: Lifesaver!
She takes a deep breath inhaling the sweet coffee before taking a sip. Bethany laughs, looking amused and yet kind of sad as well as she watches her friend staring into the brown abyss.
Bethany Kenyon: Big night, was it?
Jeszika Gautier: Oh yeah...
Jeszika then frowns as she looks over at Bethany.
Jeszika Gautier: Everything ok, B?
Shrugging, Bethany ponders the question.
Bethany Kenyon: Wish I’d gone to get drunk…
She pauses, nodding slightly.
Bethany Kenyon: Or high…
She pauses, nodding again.
Bethany Kenyon: Or both…
Setting her coffee down in mild alarm, Jeszika stares at her friend.
Jeszika Gautier: Uh oh? That’s never good, what’s up, B?
Taking a deep breath, Bethany prepares for the worst,
Bethany Kenyon: I told Aerynn about Brody at the bar when I met her for coffee this morning.
Jeszika nods slowly, expectantly, knowing there has to be more to this story.
Jeszika Gautier: How did that go?
Bethany shakes her head.
Bethany Kenyon: How do you think it went? The last time I saw her... she was making a beeline up the street, probably looking for a shot of whiskey and spoiling for a fight...
Jeszika Gautier: Shit, that’s not good. I pity the poor soul that crosses her...
Bethany nods knowingly.
Bethany Kenyon: She was hungover too. I don’t think she stopped loading up at all in the last couple of days.
Jeszika Gautier: Her and I both... I couldn’t sleep last night, so I went to the bar, again. Talked to Ash while I was down there.
Bethany nods slowly.
Bethany Kenyon: That was probably an experience, talking to Ash while getting drunk now.
Jeszika Gautier: It wasn’t too bad, really.
Jeszika look at her over the coffee.
Jeszika Gautier: So did Aerynn say anything when you told her?
Bethany Kenyon: She…
Bethany shakes her head.
Bethany Kenyon: It was scary…
Jeszika frowns in confusion.
Jeszika Gautier: What was?
Bethany nods.
Bethany Kenyon: Watching her…
Taking another deep breath, she turns and looks her friend in the eyes.
Bethany Kenyon: One minute, I'm having coffee with Aerynn, my friend and co-worker who I had just offered to let stay at my place. The next, she wasn't there anymore. The look in her eyes... the Aerynn that got tattooed with us wasn't sitting there anymore... and I don't really know what was...
Jeszika Gautier: Did she lash out at you? Or just storm off?
Shaking her head, Bethany can’t help but wonder if those reactions would have been better in retrospect.
Bethany Kenyon: Neither really, she just kind of excused herself and wandered off down the road.
Jeszika manages a small disconcerted nod.
Jeszika Gautier: Ok, now that’s more of a worry...
Bethany nods back.
Bethany Kenyon: I can only hope she gets her head screwed back on before the match with the Sin City Knights but…
Jeszika Gautier: But...?
Bethany shrugs, searching for the right words.
Bethany Kenyon: But I don’t know if she can. She didn’t look like she had much control left what with Brody turning his back on her, Logan turning his back on her and Joshua threatening to make us all suffer even more.
Jeszika Gautier: We all have our breaking points... And he will find them... Hell even I've got more cracks than I can count, its only a matter of time before he breaks us all...
There is a note of sadness in Jeszika’s voice. Bethany nods slowly, knowingly.
Bethany Kenyon: How much coke did y’all do last night?
Jeszika Gautier: A little bit, not much, why?
Bethany shrugs.
Bethany Kenyon: I just figured you would.
She pauses, wondering if this is really a good idea.
Bethany Kenyon: Got any left?
Jeszika Gautier: What we did last night was Ash's but...
She grabs her handbag from next to the couch and pulls out a vial.
Jeszika Gautier: I do happen to have some of my own. God knows I've needed it in the past few weeks.
Bethany stares at it, and almost bursts into tears at the sight.
Bethany Kenyon: You haven’t done this… every night, have you?
Jeszika's head drops.
Jeszika Gautier: Not every night... but a lot, yes...
Bethany accepts the vial and stares at it intently.
Bethany Kenyon: Oh my God… I don’t know which scares me most…
Jeszika Gautier: Out of what?
Bethany Kenyon: That everyone but me, of the four of us, got ripped out of their heads last night or that I really wish I had and really, really wanna dive into this thing right now…
Jeszika Gautier: I don't blame you for either fear. It scares me that I have to, that I can't survive right now without it...
Bethany nods, her eyes moistening.
Bethany Kenyon: Did Ash look like she had been a lot or like this was a special treat for her?
Jeszika Gautier: I... I actually didnt notice to be honest...
Bethany nods.
Bethany Kenyon: Carrie used the word “space” with me last night while you were gone.
Jeszika Gautier: Oh no... Really?
Jeszika puts down her coffee and hugs her friend.
Jeszika Gautier: I'm so sorry for this, B... If she wasn't protecting Melissa... If I hadn't been with Brody, if I hadn't baited Joshua... None of this would have happened...
A tear trickles down Jeszika's cheek.
Jeszika Gautier: I'm sorry...
Unable to hold them back anymore, tears start down her face as well.
Bethany Kenyon: What are we gonna do, Jezzy?
Jeszika Gautier: I don't know, B... I just don't know anymore...
- - - - - - - - -
Bethany Kenyon sits before her laptop pondering the past, present and future especially where UWA is concerned. Things were going crazy and she just couldn’t help thinking they weren’t going to calm down any time soon. She fires the computer up and then turns on the webcam.
Bethany Kenyon: You know, as much as everyone wants to downplay Joshua McBride as just this or just that, you all seem to be talking about him and you all seem to think you know better about how to fight him. It’s almost funny how all of you seem to think you know what he can do and what we should be doing to either stop him or at least to stop giving him ammunition to use on us. Silver Baron is just the latest guy to do it and at least he didn’t sound as delusional and borderline retarded as Kyle Travis did when all he could do was call me and my sister mercenaries who don’t believe in anything because, well…
He pauses, shrugging apologetically.
Bethany Kenyon: Sorry, but we’ve all noticed he just doesn’t pay attention to much of anything and even when he does pay a little bit, it’s just enough to let us all know he has no idea what he’s talking about. He’s the kind of guy who tell the world that Silver Baron and Fraser Freeman are both useless, talentless hacks, unworthy of sullying his ring even though Baron’s never lost here and Fraser has done things Kyle there could not. I’m sure Fraser will jump on the train soon enough, God knows everyone else does so why not him too?
Her head droops for a second, her eyes leaving the camera and jumping to the floor.
Bethany Kenyon: At least he can say he’s done... something...
Her gaze moves up and fixes on the camera, glaring through it with a fiery hatred.
Bethany Kenyon: The rest of you talking all that shit can all kiss Aerynn and Arsenal’s asses! Yes, Joshua McBride has gotten to us. Of course he has, he went after things he knew would hurt and then he stabbed them as hard as he could and twisted the knife just to see if we’d scream louder! The question in that circumstance isn’t will you scream, it’s how loud, how high and how long and there’s nobody in this place that can honestly say they wouldn’t have screamed if he did this to them. If he’d come after you Baron, for one, you wouldn’t be undefeated anymore, but two, you also wouldn’t be holding onto anything resembling sanity anymore. You’d be in the looney bin dribbling onto a big while everyone there hoped you didn’t choke on your own tongue because Joshua found whatever means something to you and systematically destroyed it while he made you watch! Your buddy knows this to be true, it’s why he bothered to help us for five seconds and why he called his other partner in. He knows, sooner or later, if we can’t hold out anymore, Joshua is gonna come for everyone else and he’s gonna need somebody who won’t end up staring out his window into the sun because he’s too busy drooling to notice the searing pain in his eyeballs anymore!
She nods knowingly.
Bethany Kenyon: That’s why he called the other guy, Baron, because as much as you swear you’re on the same page and everything’s all good, he doesn’t really trust that you’re in the same book series, much less on the same page of the same volume! he knows eventually, somebody is gonna make you crack like an egg and he doesn’t wanna be there to try and put Humpty Dumpty back together again with nothing but a spatula and some used condoms because that’s all you have left!
She stands up, glaring into the camera.
Bethany Kenyon: But passed all that, let me ask you and everyone else who’s telling us how to fight our battles for us like some pussy ass pissant backseat driver, where the fuck were you when we started this? Where were you when the Children walked in and started taking people down? he’s not just threatening us, he’s threatening the whole company, everybody in it and all of our outside business interests. And just so you don’t misunderstand me, I’m telling you, genius, that Joshua McBride threatened the Pleasure Dome and like Nero, you just watched because you couldn’t believe the man can do the things he’s done and he damn sure couldn’t do them to you, right? Well what he did to Brody Montgomery would tend to say that you’ve fucked up just as bad as we have because where we recognized the enemy at the gates, all you did was sit back and say, it’s not my fight, let him have those people. You watched the invasion from afar through a haze of your own making and by the time you realize he’s there, it’s gonna be too late. All of you people need to realize that the Children aren’t just fucking with us, they’re paving the way to destroy the entire empire and the only reason they haven’t is because we walked in front of him and said, no more. This far, no further and if you want to go further than this, you’re gonna have to kill us!
She leans in, her glare becoming more and more intense as she moves in.
Bethany Kenyon: Now I’ll admit he’s done a damn good job trying to push us to the brink, he hasn’t managed to shove us off the pass and over the cliff yet so you can all take your advice and cram it back where it came from unless you’re willing to grab a rifle and get your ass in line with the rest of us up here. When you go to war, there are gonna be times where it seems like it’s all crashing around you, but you brush yourself off, stand back up and go right back to staring death in the face because it’s the only thing you can do. Aerynn Donnelly and I have been doing it for a long time now, maybe too long, but at least we’ve had the gumption to stand up and fight. We have, Sentinel did, Brody did, Jeszika Gautier has and my little sister Ashley has and you, Baron, you haven’t had the balls to do a goddamn thing but complain about a little noise. You may be a great competitor Baron, but right now I think the saddest thing is that when it comes to the things flying around UWA, as much as you claim you’re a big man, Aerynn and I still have bigger balls than you ever will!
The clientele ran the gamut in terms of dress, with business people seemingly mingling with goths, country people, black leather-clad people and every other make and model of human visage known to the state of Arizona. As they step forward into the building a large hispanic man holds his hand up to slow them down.
Bouncer: Sorry ladies, private mic night tonight. You got tickets?
Jeszika pulls her ticket out of her pocket and hands it over.
Jeszika Gautier: I have mine.
Nikki, Ashley and Bethany each present one as well with Aerynn the last to present hers.
Bouncer: Ah! Good good!
The large man takes the tickets and opens a hand for them to enter behind him.
Bouncer: ...Drinks are on the house tonight, and Jayni and Michael Sullivan are gonna be performing last. Enjoy your night!
Jeszika Gautier: That’s the plan.
As they walk inside, Ashley leans over to no one in particular.
Ashley Kenyon: Are we supposed to know who that is?
Bethany watches as Jeszika shrugs.
Jeszika Gautier: The performers? Maybe... but I don't, do you guys?
Ashley shrugs as Bethany glances around. While everyone else seems interested in the place, Aerynn's kept quiet, even more quiet than usual. Her head down, hood pulled up over head with her blonde hair buried inside, Aerynn was near unrecognizable and something told bethany this was how the champion wanted things to be tonight.
Nikki Peltier: From the looks on everyone's faces I'd say, no... and I'd say Aerynn doesn't care even if she does know.
Jeszika Gautier: And me... I just wanna go get a drink. Anyone else want? My shout.
Ashley Kenyon: Whatever whiskey they got...
Jeszika Gautier: Anyone else?
Bethany Kenyon: Are you sure that's a good idea? As nice as this place is...
Ashley Kenyon: I'll drink if I want to, thanks!
Jeszika Gautier: Worried you'll catch someone off the glasses B?
Bethany Kenyon: No, I just...
Aerynn Donnelly: Jameson whiskey.
Jeszika inclines her head to her acknowledging her order.
Jeszika Gautier: B? Nik? You guys too?
Bethany Kenyon: I'm ok for now.
Nikki nods.
Nikki Peltier: Me too.
Almost immediately, Bethany regrets her answer.
Ashley Kenyon: Oh, so now you're too good to drink with us too?
Jeszika Gautier: I'm don’t think that’s what they meant Ash...
Nikki Peltier: No, she's right, beer.
Nodding, Bethany accepts that she needs to do this and not come off as a standoffish bitch tonight.
Bethany Kenyon: ok.
Jeszika Gautier: What will you have, B?
Bethany Kenyon: Beer.
Jeszika Gautier: I'll be back soon then.
She starts heading over to the bar. bethany glances around taking the place in, for the most part, the people in the small club were ignoring the group of girls as they all entered together. When Jeszika moved to the bar to get their first round of drinks, a woman with short blondish red hair smiled warmly from her group near the stage. With her were three men, one of whom seemed to be heavily intoxicated already. Near the opposite side of the stage a man in a leather jacket and hood lifted his hand and put it on his face in the darkness bathing his visage, turning his back to the group of ladies while kicking his feet up. Bethany pays most of this no mind as she follows Aerynn, Ashley and Nikki to a table in the middle of the whole place. Sitting down, Ashley shakes her head.
Ashley Kenyon: Man... what are we doing in this fuckin place?
Bethany sighs.
Bethany Kenyon: Samuel probably figured if we went to the type of place we normally go, there would violence involved.
Ashley Kenyon: Samuel's not as dumb as he looks...
Aerynn pulls her cell phone out and stares at it for second, her jaw clenching as she does so.
Aerynn Donnelly: Nae, he's no'.
Bethany Kenyon: So...
Just as she starts talking, Jeszika returns with their drinks.
Nikki Peltier: Who was that talking to you by the bar, Jez?
Jeszika shrugs.
Jeszika Gautier: Just a fan. No one special. her name was Jayni.
Bethany Kenyon: Like... as in the chick they said was playing here tonight?
Jeszika Gautier: I suppose it was, B.
Aerynn looks up from where she had been staring down at the table and looks at each one of them in succession now that they were all at the same table.
Aerynn Donnelly: I wanted tae thank ye.. All o' ye.. Fer nae lettin' tha Children kill me.
She looks down at her hands again leaving Bethany, Ashley, Nikki and jeszika to all stare at her in momentary shock. A second later, Jeszika recovers, looks over at Aerynn and smiles.
Jeszika Gautier: Was the least we could do. Thank you also, without you we wouldn't have survived as long as we have either. You're the one who's done the most work here.
Taking in the look on the champion’s face, Bethany frowns with worry.
Bethany Kenyon: Aerynn, has something more... happened?
Aerynn nods acknowledgingly to Jeszika before coming to Bethany. Almost the second she comes around, her gaze falls upon her hands on the table again.
Aerynn Donnelly: Logan's gone.
Bethany can’t believe her ears.
Bethany Kenyon: WHAT?
Jeszika Gautier: Gone? Like taken?
Aerynn shakes her head.
Aerynn Donnelly: Nae. No' taken.
Jeszika lowers her head.
Jeszika Gautier: He left you? Because of what happened last week?
Barely managing a nod, Aerynn reaches out, drags that shot of whiskey to her and downs it quickly.
Bethany Kenyon: Oh my God…
Ashley sneers at her sister.
Ashley Kenyon: Like you care…
Bethany nods, finally seeming sure of herself again even as a commotion seems to break out between the redhead and her companions by the stage.
Bethany Kenyon: Ok, let’s just put it all on the table now. Yes, I lied to you about Mama. She was dying and I could have helped her but she wouldn’t let me and she and Daddy decided it would be best to just tell you nothing could be done. They were trying to protect both of us and I hated them for it. I didn’t tell you because I didn’t want to admit I hated Mama for not letting me fight for her or that I hated myself for not doing it anyway. Now, anybody else got something they wanna hash out, let’s go...
Silence bathes their table again until Jeszika nods.
Jeszika Gautier: Fine, I'll go. Look guys, I know I'm not perfect and I know playing Brody how I did was a mistake, a mistake I regret daily. And Aerynn, when I first met you I hated you so damn much, hated Brody too. but I try my best to do what I think is right, and you must understand that with what I did to Brody I was only trying to help him see the error of his ways, help him see what he had done to so many girls in the past. I never meant for the 2 of us to actually fall in love like we did. I never meant for it to be as bad as it was. I'm sorry for the pain that I've caused to all of you over this.
Aerynn calls over to a waitress and orders a whole bottle of Jameson. Quickly, the bottle arrives at the table. Aerynn quickly refills her shot glass and looks to Jeszika while pointing the rim of her glass towards Bethany and Ashley.
Aerynn Donnelly: Their problems are jus' tha'.. Theirs. They need tae figure this out 'tween them. As fer me an' ye.. I dinna care tha' ye dinna like me. At tha time, I was doin' me job. But yer no' tha only one tha' was tryin' tae help Brody see whot he was doin' wrong, Jeszika. We both were. Only.. Ye did it in a way tha' destroyed tha man..
She downs the shot and sets the glass back on the table.
Aerynn Donnelly: Ye wanna know whot really pissed me off at ye, Jeszika? Since we are layin' it all out...
Jeszika nods.
Jeszika Gautier: Lay it on me, I need to hear this...
Aerynn refills her glass again and downs another shot almost as quickly as the first two. She puts the glass back down, her eyes raising up to look at Jeszika.
Aerynn Donnelly: I dinna care whot ye do in yer personal life. Ye wanna ove Melissa, we're all happy fer ye. But ye could've done it a bit less publically. Did ye really think Joshua wasna gonna use tha' tae torture Brody? Ye gave him ammunition.
She refills the glass and downs yet another shot.
Aerynn Donnelly: We're at war, Jeszika.. An' ye handed tha enemy a gun.
Jeszika looks down, guilt written all over her face. She closes her eyes and sighs before she speaks.
Jeszika Gautier: I know I did, and it's a decision I am regretting every day...
Knowing this was coming, Bethany swallows hard.
Bethany Kenyon: Can any of us say we haven’t walked right into one of his traps?
Ashley cocks her head.
Ashley Kenyon: One?
Bethany nods slowly, acknowledging it’s been way more than one for her. This seems to disarm Ashley.
Ashley Kenyon: You’re right… I’m sorry...
Jeszika Gautier: We've let them do this to us... I know you're pride will deny it, but we have all provided ammunition, some more than others.
Guilt crosses her face as she says this.
Jeszika Gautier: I don't know how we can make this right, but I intend to fight and try and at least repair some of the mess...
The commotion near the stage dies down as the redhead gets a text and moves into action. With that, Jeszika nods toward the stage.
Jeszika Gautier: Seems the show is finally starting.
Jayni Sullivan: Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Firelight! I am afraid there has been a change of plan.....Travis will not be performing with us tonight. So it will be an acoustic set.
Bethany Kenyon: So Logan’s gone, Carrie’s hurt, Melissa’s captured… have you found Billy yet?
Ashley shakes her head.
Ashley Kenyon: No.
Jeszika Gautier: An acoustic set... great... I need another drink now...
She gets up from the table.
Jeszika Gautier: Anyone else need a fresh drink?
Being six or seven shots into a big bottle already, shakes her head looking to Ashley.
Aerynn Donnelly: Yer guy's missin', also?
Ashley Kenyon: Yes. I've tried calling all his usual haunts and dealers... nothing.
Jayni's brother Michael takes one final text message, then covers the mic and whispers to her. Her eyes widen with shock as she looks over at where the man in the leather outfit had been sitting. He had moved, climbed up onto the stage and shifted his position behind the curtain.
Jayni Sullivan: For all of our regulars....clap to the lights please!
Aerynn glances up to the stage at the mention of the set being acoustic as if this means something to her.
Aerynn Donnelly: Hmm.
Jeszika leaves the table and goes to buy a round of eight shots. As she returns, Bethany notices a change in her friend’s demeanor. The two people on stage begin to play an acoustic guitar and violin, setting the crowd, obviously full of regulars, into a quiet frenzy of rhythmic clapping. Aerynn knocks back one more and looks around at the gathered women, watching Jeszika go up to the bar and then came back.
Aerynn Donnelly: We're a Motley Crew aren't we?
Bethany nods, enjoying the music even if she wasn’t really paying much attention to it at all herself. talking this out with her friends was more important.
Bethany Kenyon: I’m afraid Carrie’s gonna leave me too.
Ashley can’t believe her ears.
Ashley Kenyon: What?
Bethany nods.
Bethany Kenyon: Her head…
Jeszika Gautier: I'm afraid if we ever get Melissa back, she will too. I shafted her for months to sleep with a man while she waited at home. I'm afraid this may all be too much for her now, she's there cause of me...
She knocks back a quick shot.
Jeszika Gautier: I just want this all to be over. All I can wish for is some kind of do over but I know those type of things don't exist. I wish it hadn't got this bad. For Logan, for Melissa, for Carrie, for Billy, for Brody and for us all...
Suddenly, a male voice coming from somebody not immediately visible on stage begins singing.
Male Voice: When everything has turned to black....you don't know where to go. You need something to justify your soul. Silences are broken. Confidence is gone. When everything you're holding onto falls.
Bethany Kenyon: I'll admit... I don't know what to do...
As a strange look comes over Jeszika, Aerynn leans back a bit and glances at Bethany.
Aerynn Donnelly: Ye wake up. Ye put yer pants on one day at a time.. Ye do e'erythin' ye been doin'.
Jeszika Gautier: Will it be that easy? To just go on living like that when your reason for living is gone?
Jayni and her brother continue to look off to the left in disbelief. The blondish red head seems to have a couple of tears rolling down her face as she continues to play in tune with her brother, the crowd clapping with each flash of the light.
Male Voice: All the people selling truths on every corner now. They wait until the fear has knocked you down. All the rules are changing now. you're living in sin....and everything around you is caving in.....and all you're holding onto slipping like water through your hands....yes....
Ashley Kenyon: Sounds like we all have to ask that question... cept Nik...
Aerynn downs yet another shot and lowers her head before stealing a glance at the stage. Frowning slightly in almost the same way Jeszika was, Aerynn quickly disregards her glass and drinks straight from the whiskey bottle.
Jeszika Gautier: Yeah I feel ya there...
Jeszika fires down another couple of shots herself, looking more and more unsteady as the song goes on.
Ashley Kenyon: We're lucky this is all we can get here...
Jeszika Gautier: Agreed... God damn I could go for something stronger right now...
Suddenly, Jeszika just shakes her head. What was going on here?
Jeszika Gautier: I... I need some air...
She pushes up from her seat and begins for the door. The male voice falls silent so Jayni steps forward to the microphone stand. Her voice joins in.
Jayni Sullivan: And you sing....La La La La. La La La. La La La La La La La. Yea, you sing La La La La. La La La. La La La La La La La.
The male voice returns.
Male Voice: Far off in the distance, somewhere you can't see. Allegiances have formed your destiny. Opposition all around, feeding off your soul.....trying hard to swallow up your hope....and the demons all around me waiting for me to sell my soul...
Jayni Sullivan: And you sing....La La La La. La La La. La La La La La La La. Yea, you sing La La La La. La La La. La La La La La La La.
Jayni finishes the song as the male voice's microphone suddenly static's like it’s been dropped, or even thrown. Nikki, Bethany and Ashley all stand up to go after Jeszika but Bethany pauses.
Bethany Kenyon: Aerynn... come on, let's go before we all do something we'll regret and he uses against us later.
Aerynn glances back to the stage and shrugs before standing up and heading out. As they get outside to find Jeszika in tears, Bethany notices something missing.
Bethany Kenyon: Dammit, left my phone on the table...
When Bethany returns to the bar she sees Jayni and the man in the leather jacket walking back toward the bar everyone patting him on the back on the way.
Jayni Sullivan: You didn't have to do that, Brody.
Man: I know, but I couldn't leave you hanging after all you and your brother have done.
Jayni Sullivan: But they were here!
Man: I know...
Bethany glances at the table and then nods to the two standing before her.
Bethany Kenyon: Hey have you guys seen my phone...
The man freezes, Bethany looks him in the face for the first time and almost falls over dead right there. The hair was longer and stubble covered his cheeks, but it was him.
Bethany Kenyon: Holy shit...
Broderick Montgomery just stares back.
Brody Montgomery: .....Hey Beth.
Unable to believe what she’s seeing, Bethany just shakes her head as she fights to find the words.
Bethany Kenyon: But... but, Aerynn... Jezzy... they're looking for you... what... what's going on?
There was no hostility in his eyes that bore into her from the darkness of that hood but no real humanity either.
Brody Montgomery: .....It's good to see you too?
Without thinking about it, Bethany hugs him. For a moment there was nothing, then his own arms lift and hug her back.
Brody Montgomery: Yea...it's really me.
Bethany Kenyon: You really did get away!
Brody Montgomery: ....They left the shed unlocked one night....I've been on the run ever since. Jayni and her brother found on the highway....I've been with them for....
He pauses as if he doesn’t really want to admit how long it’s been.
Brody Montgomery: .....Almost Six weeks.
Bethany nods slowly.
Bethany Kenyon: How come you wouldn't show us you were here?
Brody Montgomery: You know what it's been like Beth? What he did? You, I can talk to… them? They can all burn.
Bethany shakes her head, guilt and anguish crashing into each other over exactly the subject to which they were referring.
Bethany Kenyon: No... I can't say I know what it was like for you. I can say almost all of us wish what happened with you had never happened.
Brody Montgomery: Somehow I doubt that. He made me watch....you have stepped up your game to help...the others are too focused on their own petty problems....you should get back to them Beth....before they know you're missing.
Pleading slowly creeps into her voice.
Bethany Kenyon: We need you, Brody. We need you back. Everything and everyone is falling apart...
Brody Montgomery: And they will have to fall apart without me. I… am doing what I can do and after that, I will fade back into the background.
His hand comes out and touches the side of her head gently.
Brody Montgomery: Go.
Bethany nods sadly, grabs her phone and turns on her heel. Halfway to the door, she pauses and looks back.
Bethany Kenyon: It's nice seeing you're ok.
Brody Montgomery: You as well Beth....you as well.
As Brody turns, walking back towards the stage, Bethany hurries out the door and re-joins the others.
- - - - - - -
Two days after the night at Firelight, Bethany returns to her Tempe, Arizona hotel room where Jeszika Gautier awaits in her early morning pushing lunch time hangover. The previous night, Jeszika had gone out to the hotel bar and gotten wasted with Bethany’s younger sister, Ashley Kenyon. As Bethany walks back into the room with coffee, she nods to her friend. Jeszika sees the coffee and happily sits up.
Jeszika Gautier: You are a lifesaver, B... God I need this!
She takes coffee from Bethany with a grateful look on her face.
Bethany Kenyon: Just how you take it too.
Jeszika Gautier: Lifesaver!
She takes a deep breath inhaling the sweet coffee before taking a sip. Bethany laughs, looking amused and yet kind of sad as well as she watches her friend staring into the brown abyss.
Bethany Kenyon: Big night, was it?
Jeszika Gautier: Oh yeah...
Jeszika then frowns as she looks over at Bethany.
Jeszika Gautier: Everything ok, B?
Shrugging, Bethany ponders the question.
Bethany Kenyon: Wish I’d gone to get drunk…
She pauses, nodding slightly.
Bethany Kenyon: Or high…
She pauses, nodding again.
Bethany Kenyon: Or both…
Setting her coffee down in mild alarm, Jeszika stares at her friend.
Jeszika Gautier: Uh oh? That’s never good, what’s up, B?
Taking a deep breath, Bethany prepares for the worst,
Bethany Kenyon: I told Aerynn about Brody at the bar when I met her for coffee this morning.
Jeszika nods slowly, expectantly, knowing there has to be more to this story.
Jeszika Gautier: How did that go?
Bethany shakes her head.
Bethany Kenyon: How do you think it went? The last time I saw her... she was making a beeline up the street, probably looking for a shot of whiskey and spoiling for a fight...
Jeszika Gautier: Shit, that’s not good. I pity the poor soul that crosses her...
Bethany nods knowingly.
Bethany Kenyon: She was hungover too. I don’t think she stopped loading up at all in the last couple of days.
Jeszika Gautier: Her and I both... I couldn’t sleep last night, so I went to the bar, again. Talked to Ash while I was down there.
Bethany nods slowly.
Bethany Kenyon: That was probably an experience, talking to Ash while getting drunk now.
Jeszika Gautier: It wasn’t too bad, really.
Jeszika look at her over the coffee.
Jeszika Gautier: So did Aerynn say anything when you told her?
Bethany Kenyon: She…
Bethany shakes her head.
Bethany Kenyon: It was scary…
Jeszika frowns in confusion.
Jeszika Gautier: What was?
Bethany nods.
Bethany Kenyon: Watching her…
Taking another deep breath, she turns and looks her friend in the eyes.
Bethany Kenyon: One minute, I'm having coffee with Aerynn, my friend and co-worker who I had just offered to let stay at my place. The next, she wasn't there anymore. The look in her eyes... the Aerynn that got tattooed with us wasn't sitting there anymore... and I don't really know what was...
Jeszika Gautier: Did she lash out at you? Or just storm off?
Shaking her head, Bethany can’t help but wonder if those reactions would have been better in retrospect.
Bethany Kenyon: Neither really, she just kind of excused herself and wandered off down the road.
Jeszika manages a small disconcerted nod.
Jeszika Gautier: Ok, now that’s more of a worry...
Bethany nods back.
Bethany Kenyon: I can only hope she gets her head screwed back on before the match with the Sin City Knights but…
Jeszika Gautier: But...?
Bethany shrugs, searching for the right words.
Bethany Kenyon: But I don’t know if she can. She didn’t look like she had much control left what with Brody turning his back on her, Logan turning his back on her and Joshua threatening to make us all suffer even more.
Jeszika Gautier: We all have our breaking points... And he will find them... Hell even I've got more cracks than I can count, its only a matter of time before he breaks us all...
There is a note of sadness in Jeszika’s voice. Bethany nods slowly, knowingly.
Bethany Kenyon: How much coke did y’all do last night?
Jeszika Gautier: A little bit, not much, why?
Bethany shrugs.
Bethany Kenyon: I just figured you would.
She pauses, wondering if this is really a good idea.
Bethany Kenyon: Got any left?
Jeszika Gautier: What we did last night was Ash's but...
She grabs her handbag from next to the couch and pulls out a vial.
Jeszika Gautier: I do happen to have some of my own. God knows I've needed it in the past few weeks.
Bethany stares at it, and almost bursts into tears at the sight.
Bethany Kenyon: You haven’t done this… every night, have you?
Jeszika's head drops.
Jeszika Gautier: Not every night... but a lot, yes...
Bethany accepts the vial and stares at it intently.
Bethany Kenyon: Oh my God… I don’t know which scares me most…
Jeszika Gautier: Out of what?
Bethany Kenyon: That everyone but me, of the four of us, got ripped out of their heads last night or that I really wish I had and really, really wanna dive into this thing right now…
Jeszika Gautier: I don't blame you for either fear. It scares me that I have to, that I can't survive right now without it...
Bethany nods, her eyes moistening.
Bethany Kenyon: Did Ash look like she had been a lot or like this was a special treat for her?
Jeszika Gautier: I... I actually didnt notice to be honest...
Bethany nods.
Bethany Kenyon: Carrie used the word “space” with me last night while you were gone.
Jeszika Gautier: Oh no... Really?
Jeszika puts down her coffee and hugs her friend.
Jeszika Gautier: I'm so sorry for this, B... If she wasn't protecting Melissa... If I hadn't been with Brody, if I hadn't baited Joshua... None of this would have happened...
A tear trickles down Jeszika's cheek.
Jeszika Gautier: I'm sorry...
Unable to hold them back anymore, tears start down her face as well.
Bethany Kenyon: What are we gonna do, Jezzy?
Jeszika Gautier: I don't know, B... I just don't know anymore...
- - - - - - - - -
Bethany Kenyon sits before her laptop pondering the past, present and future especially where UWA is concerned. Things were going crazy and she just couldn’t help thinking they weren’t going to calm down any time soon. She fires the computer up and then turns on the webcam.
Bethany Kenyon: You know, as much as everyone wants to downplay Joshua McBride as just this or just that, you all seem to be talking about him and you all seem to think you know better about how to fight him. It’s almost funny how all of you seem to think you know what he can do and what we should be doing to either stop him or at least to stop giving him ammunition to use on us. Silver Baron is just the latest guy to do it and at least he didn’t sound as delusional and borderline retarded as Kyle Travis did when all he could do was call me and my sister mercenaries who don’t believe in anything because, well…
He pauses, shrugging apologetically.
Bethany Kenyon: Sorry, but we’ve all noticed he just doesn’t pay attention to much of anything and even when he does pay a little bit, it’s just enough to let us all know he has no idea what he’s talking about. He’s the kind of guy who tell the world that Silver Baron and Fraser Freeman are both useless, talentless hacks, unworthy of sullying his ring even though Baron’s never lost here and Fraser has done things Kyle there could not. I’m sure Fraser will jump on the train soon enough, God knows everyone else does so why not him too?
Her head droops for a second, her eyes leaving the camera and jumping to the floor.
Bethany Kenyon: At least he can say he’s done... something...
Her gaze moves up and fixes on the camera, glaring through it with a fiery hatred.
Bethany Kenyon: The rest of you talking all that shit can all kiss Aerynn and Arsenal’s asses! Yes, Joshua McBride has gotten to us. Of course he has, he went after things he knew would hurt and then he stabbed them as hard as he could and twisted the knife just to see if we’d scream louder! The question in that circumstance isn’t will you scream, it’s how loud, how high and how long and there’s nobody in this place that can honestly say they wouldn’t have screamed if he did this to them. If he’d come after you Baron, for one, you wouldn’t be undefeated anymore, but two, you also wouldn’t be holding onto anything resembling sanity anymore. You’d be in the looney bin dribbling onto a big while everyone there hoped you didn’t choke on your own tongue because Joshua found whatever means something to you and systematically destroyed it while he made you watch! Your buddy knows this to be true, it’s why he bothered to help us for five seconds and why he called his other partner in. He knows, sooner or later, if we can’t hold out anymore, Joshua is gonna come for everyone else and he’s gonna need somebody who won’t end up staring out his window into the sun because he’s too busy drooling to notice the searing pain in his eyeballs anymore!
She nods knowingly.
Bethany Kenyon: That’s why he called the other guy, Baron, because as much as you swear you’re on the same page and everything’s all good, he doesn’t really trust that you’re in the same book series, much less on the same page of the same volume! he knows eventually, somebody is gonna make you crack like an egg and he doesn’t wanna be there to try and put Humpty Dumpty back together again with nothing but a spatula and some used condoms because that’s all you have left!
She stands up, glaring into the camera.
Bethany Kenyon: But passed all that, let me ask you and everyone else who’s telling us how to fight our battles for us like some pussy ass pissant backseat driver, where the fuck were you when we started this? Where were you when the Children walked in and started taking people down? he’s not just threatening us, he’s threatening the whole company, everybody in it and all of our outside business interests. And just so you don’t misunderstand me, I’m telling you, genius, that Joshua McBride threatened the Pleasure Dome and like Nero, you just watched because you couldn’t believe the man can do the things he’s done and he damn sure couldn’t do them to you, right? Well what he did to Brody Montgomery would tend to say that you’ve fucked up just as bad as we have because where we recognized the enemy at the gates, all you did was sit back and say, it’s not my fight, let him have those people. You watched the invasion from afar through a haze of your own making and by the time you realize he’s there, it’s gonna be too late. All of you people need to realize that the Children aren’t just fucking with us, they’re paving the way to destroy the entire empire and the only reason they haven’t is because we walked in front of him and said, no more. This far, no further and if you want to go further than this, you’re gonna have to kill us!
She leans in, her glare becoming more and more intense as she moves in.
Bethany Kenyon: Now I’ll admit he’s done a damn good job trying to push us to the brink, he hasn’t managed to shove us off the pass and over the cliff yet so you can all take your advice and cram it back where it came from unless you’re willing to grab a rifle and get your ass in line with the rest of us up here. When you go to war, there are gonna be times where it seems like it’s all crashing around you, but you brush yourself off, stand back up and go right back to staring death in the face because it’s the only thing you can do. Aerynn Donnelly and I have been doing it for a long time now, maybe too long, but at least we’ve had the gumption to stand up and fight. We have, Sentinel did, Brody did, Jeszika Gautier has and my little sister Ashley has and you, Baron, you haven’t had the balls to do a goddamn thing but complain about a little noise. You may be a great competitor Baron, but right now I think the saddest thing is that when it comes to the things flying around UWA, as much as you claim you’re a big man, Aerynn and I still have bigger balls than you ever will!
