(Edited with Grammarly on 8/12/2026)
It was some time later when a small, pained groan filled the space, completely overwhelming the barely perceptible murmuring from the next room over. The man tried to move, tried to stretch in a fashion so natural and automatic that a look of genuine confusion flashed over his face. Before realization slammed into him, a desperate, near animal-like fear clawed at him.
In horror or thriller movies, a lot of people often scoff at someone panicking uselessly when they come to handcuffed and in a vulnerable state. Most people would snort at the scream and say how stupid it was to panic, as the only thing it did was alert their jailers that they were awake. And would often go into great detail about how if they just stayed calm and pretended to be asleep, it would provide them with enough time to actually come up with a better solution.
But in reality, far away from their unrealistic expectations, waking up and finding oneself restricted in the slightest was enough to send a jolt of dread down anyone's spine. And the only thing going through their mind then was just trying to figure out how to wriggle out of whatever constraints were holding them. There was no room for anything deeper, just a desperate need to move freely.
Nothing good came from being bound; being left to the mercy of another human didn't really sound all too appealing. For what else in this world had the greatest capacity for evil than humanity itself?
"I wouldn't do that if I were you." Mr. Aslan spoke up, instantly causing the thrashing man to freeze. One arm raised and the other getting ready to twist further away, as though trying to muster up as much distance as possible to either cause the pipes to break or shatter the chains. But in reality, even with all his strength, at most he would be able to either dislocate his shoulder or maybe even break his own wrist. Both very painful injuries that could've easily been avoided. "But who am I to stop you? Please, go ahead. I can wait."
"…" Keegan paused for a beat, mind probably spinning a couple miles per minute before he tried to puff out his chest. In some vain attempt to look larger and more intimidating, and perhaps it would've worked too. He was a pretty tall man already, easily able to loom over most people, but a lot of those advantages were rendered null when stuck on his back and naked as the day he was born. Despite that, there was so much hate in his glare that it almost had a tangible weight to it. As though he wanted nothing more than to make the whole world bend and burn to his will. "I don't care who the fuck you think you are; you're going to let me out of this. Do you know who I am? What will my family do once they find out what you're doing?! They won't care if you're fucking cripple!"
"No," The old man shook his head calmly, allowing those threats to do nothing but splash around him harmlessly. After all, what kind of threats could work on someone who'd seen so much? Someone who'd lived a full life and had seen plenty of hot-headed people like this who enjoyed throwing their weight around. Clumsily, he might add. "I don't think I will. I have a few questions for you, and then I'll be on my way."
"And why the fuck would I answer any of them?" Keegan tried to spit, a nasty, gurgling, hacking thing that dragged up every bit of filth, only for his own positioning, with his face practically sitting on his chest, to cause it to only fly a few feet before landing pitifully with a sickening splat on the tiled floor. Despite his failure, he still had the nerve to grin in defiance. A desperate tactic to hide the fear just under the surface.
No matter.
"Gould-Itou Kouki." And just like that, with those simple words, all the color drained from his face. All that bravado and defiance fled just as suddenly.
"H-how?!" His voice cracked, taking on a higher pitch that he barely covered up with a false cough. "How do you know that name?!"
"It's not important." Mr. Aslan simply pulled out a small notebook barely larger than his leather-gloved hands and a simple pen. He glanced over his thin wire-frame glasses at the large man. "Before we begin, Kouki or Keegan?"
"…" The glare he sent was scathing, one final spike of defiance welling up from within his very bones as he tried to force an answer to his question. Only after a few seconds of suffocating silence did even that little bit of energy flush out of him. His shoulders sagged as best they could, before a whisper left him. The bitter and resentful defeat in his voice was clear for all to hear. "Keegan...Only my family calls me Kouki."
"Very well." The pen's scribbling was loud in the deathly silent bathroom, like nails raking across a chalkboard. Looking up, Mr. Aslan looked at the man hard. Lips firming up into a thin but neutral line. He could already feel his tongue begin to split, incorporeal venom seeping through his every word. After all, why should someone like this benefit from some self-imposed restrictions? "Keegan Gould, tell me this. Do you have any idea why you're in this situation?"
"...I can imagine...Revenge?"
"Hmm."
"...Did I do something to your daughter, niece, or something? Because if so, I'll apologize and everything! What do you want? Some kind of monetary compensation? Ten thousand? Fifty? Just-just name your price and I-I swear I won't do it again! You just gotta give-"
"Gould." Holding up a lone hand, the blabbering rant died just as it began to pick up momentum. This kind of reaction was normal; people like Keegan only ever knew of a few ways to handle all their problems. For them, using their wealth was a good enough tool to allow them to skate past a lot of the more dire but well-deserved consequences of their actions. "I don't want your money."
"T-then what do you want?"
"The truth."
"A-and you'll let me go if I answer all your questions?"
"Truthfully."
"Right, right...Okay, that sounds like a deal." He grinned just then, a wry thing that he probably expected to bring a bit more levity to the situation. "I would shake your hand but…"
He wiggled his handcuffed wrists to emphasize his point, grinning wider as he waited. Mr. Aslan knew a smile was warranted here, a small one at that, and it would probably do wonders to get the answers he sought...but Albert couldn't even stomach the idea of laughing with such a person. He had no idea how Batman could've laughed in The Killing Joke, especially after all the Joker had done. After the family he had destroyed, he had destroyed an entire family just to try and prove his own sick worldview.
But this situation, he felt, was different in many ways. First, Malaya wasn't someone he'd watched grow and trained up for years, treating her as something akin to a daughter. And Keegan wasn't his arch-nemesis.
And even then, the teen couldn't even spare a hint of amusement or empathy for the man. It was hard to even see him as a human. So how Batman could laugh at one of the Joker's jokes, after all he'd done, was completely alien to him.
It wasn't smarter to grin and bear it.
But in that moment, he didn't feel like being 'smarter'. And if that got him called childish? Then so be it.
Instead, he allowed the silence to grow uncomfortable. For that grin to slowly drop, and for the solemnity of the situation to really strike home.
He was not a friend. He wasn't a colleague or even a stranger open to casual conversations. And only after the moment passed did he pull at the seams. Enclosing himself in that persona once more.
"Let's begin, Gould." Mr. Aslan nodded once before holding up the small phone aloft, finger twitching to continuously scroll through the massive line of open text threads. "How did this happen? Why target Mrs. Barton? In fact, why does it seem that your entire MO is women with spouses?"
"Who?" Keegan's face went slack for a moment before his lip upturned in a grin so smarmy that it looked nice and ready for a punch or kick to force it away. "Oh, you mean Malaya? And as for the how? It was easy; I just whispered some sweet nothings in her ear, promised her the world, and it wasn't long before she was underneath me. There was barely anything to it! Why wouldn't I go after her? She might be a little bit plain-looking, but she got everything you could ever need or want in a woman! I'm actually more surprised that no one else had tried anything, not that I'm complaining. I got a taste of that jackass was keeping all to himself!"
"And I don't particularly target married women; I just find someone I'm attracted to, and if they just so happen to be married, then her husband or boyfriend or whatever can only blame themselves. Besides, just the thrill of taking some random shmuck's wife is enough to keep me going for an entire year. Just knowing that through nothing but charm and my dick, I can break an entire relationship...It's a feeling I'm sure you know quite well."
"But it wasn't through your charm."
The old man flipped the page, continuing the scribble away in a seemingly continuous looping stroke.
"What the hell are you trying to say?"
Keegan's eyes narrowed at the insinuation and actually had the nerve to put on a confused expression as if he didn't know wha-
'He actually doesn't? Strange.' It was clear the man genuinely looked confused here and even sounded a bit offended. Somehow, despite everything, he actually didn't seem to understand. 'Or maybe he's somehow deluded himself?
"Explain to me, how do these sorts of...relationships begin for you?"
"Well, I know that simple flirting won't really get them to cross that line to cheat on their partner with me...Most of the time anyway, those that fall so easily just tend to be a fling. But women that are really committed? No, they require something more to push them over the edge. Sometimes I just buy a lot of stuff for them, expensive stuff, so when I get touchy, they feel more obliged to let me. And each time, I just push more and more until eventually, they fall. Other times, when they won't accept gifts or anything, I find out if they have anything broken their useless boyfriend or husband won't fix, and I do that. And if they have a list? I complete it, giving me more than enough alone time to make my move."
"And if that still doesn't work?"
"If they still turn me down after that, well...you gotta see, a no doesn't always mean a no, you know? Sometimes, women like to play hard to get, but really they want you to make the first move. So I do. A kiss, and that's usually enough to make them let me get what I want."
"Where's their spouse when this often happens?"
"Gone." Keegan shrugged, well, tried to anyway. "I only try that move after a few weeks or months, when they trust me enough to leave me in the house alone."
"…"
"I don't like the way you're looking at me." He snapped, gritting his teeth in a near snarl. "I've never forced myself on anyone who didn't want me to! Why else would they accept a random man into their homes while wearing those skimpy clothes? Why else would they leave themselves so vulnerable and open if they didn't want it?!"
'Because you got them to trust you. Because you put yourself in a position that made them feel that saying no was more than it was worth.'
"…" It was simply better to stay quiet then and just allow the silence to hang between them. Growing heavier with every passing second, the man squirmed suddenly. That spark of anger petered off into nothing under the deafening quiet. "What are some of your other tactics?"
"I've never forced myself on anyone!" Keegan repeated, more vehemently this time. "Everything I've done was simple charm...sure, there are some women out there that are a bit more closed off. Whether they're shy or just stuck up, they all tend to loosen up with drinks. Nothing too strong; I don't want them black out drunk, but a little tipsy and more open to my advances? Yeah, I don't see an issue with that!"
"And if they still don't want anything to do with me, a little bit of leverage is enough for them to at least be open to getting drinks with me."
"Like what?"
Mr. Aslan tried not to lean forward at this turn; this was what he wanted. Some clear evidence directly from the man's mouth. But showing such keen interest would surely show his hand a lot sooner than was safe. He already knew what kind of person this was; give them even a small bit of power and they would abuse it. Just like Gould had already done multiple times in the past.
"Well, it depends, you know? There sadly isn't just a guide or something to follow; instead, you just gotta go by feel. For instance, there was this one time I was messing with a college girl. She'd been dating this guy since they both were in high school, but because he was a dumb-ass, he got himself held back a year. And back then, I just so happened to know a few tutors who could easily get him caught up. So, I used the fact that I could get him help as an in with her. And well, the rest was history. I got what I wanted, and they both got what they wanted."
"Why the cameras?"
"What?" His head snapped back as if stuck, probably completely thrown off-kilter at the sudden change in subject. He paused for a moment, lip curling as he properly took in the question at hand. "Oh, those? Yeah, I like to keep track of my conquests. I know I'm not always going to be able to do this, and I want something to remind me fondly of these days. Of course, I make sure they're completely aware of them. In fact, once they get to this stage, they're actually all for them."
"Do they get a copy?"
"Of course!" Keegan beamed, eyes narrowing and grin growing wide enough to split his face in twain, in all too similar fashion to a fox. "And if their husband, boyfriend, or crush just so happens to see it? Then so be it, mistakes happen. You can only blame them for being too curious for their own good."
It was a lie, and not just a lie of omission but an actual, bald-faced lie. There was no accident or mistake. His game plan was plain to see, a sadistic thing that only fed into his own sexual gratification.
Oh, how right it had been to follow Willow's wisdom.
"Then where do these come in?" Mr. Aslan waved over a small bag filled with a handful of neon pills, each of them seeming to glow that iridescent pink under the bathroom light.
"Those? Yeah, those are new. I had no idea you Americans had stuff like this over here. We only had aphrodisiacs where I'm from, but this Bodhi Sap? That's the good stuff. Usually, I would have to put in a lot of work to get women into some of the more extra shit I'm into. But with this? Malaya stood no fucking chance...I think the tape we could've made today would've easily topped any of my other stuff, by a large margin too."
"You sound proud."
"I am, who wouldn't be? It's not every day you have some crawling on all fours to you, worshiping you like you're their god or something."
"Then why do this to people in committed relationships? I know for sure there are plenty of couples that are into this kind of thing. Swinger parties and the sorts."
"I'm not a fucking cuck!" He snapped, that jovial expression evaporating instantly and exposing the carefully buried anger underneath a foggy compliance. "I'm a fucking man! Why should I ask permission or get another man's blessing to sleep with their woman? And on that note, what kind of man goes around sharing his woman with dudes? I don't share with anyone! If I ever could, one of my women, my conquests, ever cheating on me? Yeah, no, I would fucking kill whoever they cheated on me with!"
"What if it's their spouse?"
"As if!" Keegan scoffed, the disgust on his face plain for anyone to see. "Those cucks are usually so broken up with having their clear failures shoved in their faces and leave altogether, or they pretend like nothing happened! Either way, none of my women would ever, ever even dream of sleeping with someone else after everything I showed them. After I gave them the pleasure that had been kept from them all their lives!"
"If that's the case, then why are you wanted in Japan?"
"That's…" The man froze, gaining a slight glaze to his eyes as a series of emotions flickered in and out of existence. Disbelief. Confusion. Hurt. Betrayal. Before it finally settled on something greater than just simple anger. Hate, absolute and complete as the color black. "That's a misunderstanding. I was framed. Those bitches would do anything but accept that they're simple fucking whores, that they cheated on their spouses on their own fucking merit. If it hadn't been me, they would have cheated anyway with someone else! Like I keep saying, I never, ever once forced myself onto anyone! I never held them down or anything! But no! Instead of people seeing them for the cock hungry sluts they were, they tried to put me in jail! They tried to convict me of rape! Me! After all I did for them? And this is how they wanted to treat me? They-they ruined my life! All those fake friends turned their backs on me, those goddamn reporters kept throwing lies in my face, and even my own family was giving me the side-eye! And no matter what I told them, no one believed me! They just took the word of some sluts over mine!"
"Then how did you escape?"
Just as those words left Mr. Aslan's lips, he knew it had been a step too far. From the way Keegan's shoulders tensed as one and how his expression turned as blank as could be before he shook his head vigorously, as though trying to shake cobwebs out of his hair.
"Listen, I'm innocent. You've gotta believe me. All this, whatever you think is going on, I can assure you that all this is completely consensual. That much, I can promise. And if you just let me out of this, I can make it worth your while. Money? You got it. Cars? No problem...Despite not seeing her too well, I can even help you with your woman. She's a bit too big for me, but I can see why you keep her around…Do you really think you'll be able to please her while you're useless from the waist down? I can teach you, show you how you can tame her. Let me out of this, and she'll be yours forever."
"Gould. Let's do a little thought experiment."
"I don't want to play any more games!" Keegan tried to prop himself up, as though in some attempt to appear larger and more intimidating. Visibly shaking off those carefully woven threads from his psyche, that compliance was quickly fading. "Just get me out of these fucking cuffs."
"If you hadn't done those things. If you hadn't maneuvered yourself into a position of power over them, hadn't been so pushy, hadn't gotten them intoxicated or anything like that...then do you think any of those women would've slept with you?"
"…"
"Matter of fact, have you ever been with a woman without assaulting them?"
"…" If before that hateful glare had been reserved for all those Gould deemed 'guilty' in his memories, now it was focused solely on Mr. Aslan. Face growing red hot, he looked like he couldn't wait to get out of those cuffs to beat the 'older' man to death. Wheelchair or not, it seemed, didn't matter to him. "Fuck you! Fuck you! Fuck YOU! MALAYA! GET YOUR FUCKING ASS IN HERE, RIGHT NOW! I KNOW YOU CAN FUCKING HEAR ME, YOU SLUT!"
"I wouldn't do tha-"
But he was beyond reason, being faced with the ugly truth, naked without his long laundry list of excuses and justifications to cover it up. Sighing, Mr. Aslan moved himself further away. Pushing himself right up against the sink, he waited for the storm.
"MALAY-"
The bathroom door swung open with so much force that it created a strong enough breeze to ruffle his graying blonde hair. And through the frame, a large shape dressed in black stalked forward. A blank face that did nothing to hide the hate that easily devoured Gould's.
She passed the wheelchair without a second glance, a visible vein pulsing up her arm from how tightly she clenched a large fist.
Keegan tried to scramble away, tried to kick at her legs in some vain attempt to keep her at bay, but it was for naught.
"You're scaring her."
It was a hiss like a steam engine building up momentum.
She loomed over him before cocking her fist back and slamming it down. Hard. Causing a meaty thud to fill the room, along with a sudden pained gasp. But if he thought he was getting away with just one hit, he would've sadly mistaken. Like pistons, her arms flew out. Striking out with meaty thumps after meaty thumps. Each coming down with a silent fury that threatened to burn the whole world down.
"S-st-" Keegan's voice came out in some sobbing whimpers, blubbering as he tried to get his next words out. "S-stop! I-I'm sorry! I'm sorry!"
"Willow, dear." His voice was soft and smooth, despite how his heart drummed against the inside of his chest. This was the first time he ever saw her lose control like this. She hadn't even reacted when those people were being mauled by that massive dog, Man-Killer. He even vividly remembered her quickly escorting him out of that underground fighting ring before he could've witnessed someone else getting mauled to death. "Please."
Maybe his voice cracked a bit near the end, no longer holding the same mature air he'd been going for when first crafting this persona. Despite that, it didn't sound afraid but more concerned than anything else.
When they had their talk, he'd sworn not just to her but also to himself that no matter what happened, Willow wouldn't be responsible for taking a life that day. Swore that he wouldn't use her as a weapon to keep his own hands clean.
It would've been easy, so goddamned easy to just stay quiet. To just allow her to vent all that anger onto Keegan, to allow all those phantoms of her past to overlap atop of him and let her end this scum's life.
But he couldn't do that to Willow. Wouldn't do that to her.
Her body froze, her fist pausing in the air for a single heart-stopping moment. Her shoulders heaved up and down, and at first, it was a complete toss-up on whether or not she would even listen, but when she stepped away from the crumpled heap, he only just barely resisted the urge to let out a sigh of relief.
"I will be right out, and then we can leave."
The woman, looking a bit dazed, tried to avoid his gaze and simply nodded robotically and stumbled out of the bathroom. Closing the door shut and leaving the two of them all alone.
Sobbing filled the room, and actually looking down, Albert...No, Mr. Aslan was a bit surprised. He'd expected there to be nothing but minced hamburger meat where Keegan's face should be. But instead, his face had been left entirely alone. Other than the heavy streams of tears running down his cheeks, he looked completely untouched.
His chest, though? That was an entirely separate matter. Large, bright red welts were scattered all across his chest, stomach, and even under his arms. And from how hard he'd been hit, it wouldn't be all too surprising if they'd turn a dark purple or black by the end of this.
It seemed that even through her anger, she'd been exceedingly careful to avoid striking at his face. Probably in hopes of not accidentally causing any head trauma that could possibly turn this into a murder scene.
"Gould." Mr. Aslan interrupted the sobbing and blubbering man, and for a moment, if he didn't know the kind of man Keegan was, maybe seeing him as he was would be enough to spark some pity in his chest. Naked. Handcuffed with arms above their head and quickly darkening bruises forming all across their abdomen. With lines of snot and tears running down their face, their own legs curling up tight as though trying to huddle in closer to themselves. "What did you blackmail Malaya with?"
It was obvious what, but hearing it firsthand was just better. And unlike before, there was no need to rely on his 'forked' tongue. The beating was enough to make anyone talk.
"I-I-" Keegan sniffed loudly, swallowing back phlegm as he tried to collect himself enough to answer. "I-I told her I would fire her husband if she didn't let me do what I wanted to her...Told her I would-would blackball him so he could never find meaningful work here again…"
How easily the answers came made him feel so incredibly dirty. There was no finesse, no wordplay or anything clever or thought-engaging. It was an animal-like instinct to never go through such pain again.
"Was he involved in any way? Did you two come to a deal or understanding?"
Again, he knew the answer already. But he needed to hear it. Needed to know for sure so that Isaac could forever be put to rest as a possible accomplice. No matter how vehemently against 'sharing' Gould was, there could always be a chance he made an exception here.
"N-no...He-he had nothing to do with this...I swear, just please don't send her back in here…"
Just like that, relief filled Albert's body, and with it came bone-deep exhaustion that made him just want to close his eyes and sleep for the next ten to twelve hours. But just because he was at the finish line didn't mean he could relax in the slightest.
"That is all I needed to know." Mr. Aslan turned, beginning to maneuver his wheelchair towards the door. "Goodbye, Gould. We will not be seeing one another."
"W-wait!" Keegan called out desperately just as his gloved fingers touched the doorknob. "You-you said you would let me go if I answered your questions truthfully…"
"I don't believe I did."