James sat in his office in the station. Looking through the window on his door at the desolate station, he knew he was well past the time that he should have been there, yet he needed to verify what Xavier said was true. If he agreed to kill a man, he needed to know the system had already failed, that he should have already been put away, but was stopped.
Typing 'Charles Lazard', he stopped just before clicking enter and quickly deleted it. Getting up and making his way to a random computer, he used a fake login, a secret amongst the force, to look into things without having his name associated with it.
Typing in the name a second time, it didn't take long for a result to pop up. James stared, his gaze getting colder. 'Falsifying identification. Prostitution. Sex trafficking. Blackmail.' The list was long, and reading the description of the crimes, James's frown deepened. What he was charged with was what they could get him for. There was more, and James didn't doubt it to be true.
'Xavier didn't lie.' James sighed and carried on reading, his hand freezing. 'It was meant to go to trial but was stopped at the last moment.' Looking at Charles' crimes, he couldn't be sure whether he had blackmailed someone to get out or was being protected. All James knew was that, once again, the system had failed.
Reaching for his gun in his holster, James stroked it and stared at Charles' picture, taking a deep breath and clicking his tongue. Despite what he told himself, he knew he couldn't be the one to pull the trigger; it was the line that would break everything and make him no better than those he had criticised.
'Maryland...' James took a deep breath and opened up the internet. Looking up Chicken Head, he followed his motives for his actions. If he could, he would have preferred to approach him and point out where to strike, but it didn't work like that. Maybe someone like Brightsmile would be happy to comply, but to James, Chicken Head was on a personal crusade of his own, and not doing what he did for some noble reason.
James read for an hour, trying to understand the motives. Checking the police database, he used whatever he could and smiled. 'He is a reactionary, it seems. Mainly targets the Gentleman Society, but luckily, he goes after others as well. Prefers crimes related to drugs, but...' James looked at Charles' record again, 'He wasn't caught, but they did try to get him on it.'
Staring at everything he could use, James smiled. His grip with vigilantes had always been that they didn't know the reality of the situation the force faces, and acted as if they were better. But this way, with him directing, even if he never met Chicken Head in person, meant that someone who knew was in control. It wasn't perfect, but it was enough.
James downloaded everything, sending it to his burner phone and quickly shutting down the computer. Nodding goodbye to those on the graveyard shift, he rushed home and pulled out his computer. Opening the Newport News page, he found their tip line and sent everything he knew about Charles' crimes and the corruption in the police force surrounding the case. With that, he took a final look at the wall he had made, printed a picture of General Otto Waltz, and stuck it on the wall, tying a red thread to Cain.
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The next morning, James got into his car and drove to Maryland, finding Secret Desire and parking a distance away. Turning the radio on, he switched to Newport News and waited. "Now we will be accepting calls, based on the breaking news we received the previous night." There was a pause as Kate received a call, "And we have Paul on the line. Paul, if you may."
James pulled out a cigarette and waited, happy that they actually ran his story. He would have been surprised if they didn't with the amount he gave them.
"Hi Kate. First, I want to commend the whistleblower. We knew the rot that exists in the system, but I think this is the first time he had been openly shown." James frowned and felt his phone vibrating. Pulling it out, he saw Xavier's number.
"James. What are you doing?" There was a slight crack in Xavier's tone, and James was able to pick up a hint of annoyance.
"Dealing with it," James replied, ignoring Xavier's mood
"James, you know this isn't what I meant when I said deal with it. I don't want him in prison."
"Who said he was getting locked up?" James coldly replied, taking a drag of his cigarette, "As you did with me, I'm outsourcing to someone else. In a way that won't be traced back to either of us."
Xavier was silent before laughing, "Oh, you are a cunning man. Although it's not what I wanted, it works. Just make sure the leak isn't traced back to you." Xavier paused again, "Don't watch Secret Desire, but the man's personal address. I'll send it over now. Although he is an arrogant person, this may even be too much heat for him."
James wondered how he knew where he was, but remembering Xavier's ability pushed the question aside. The call ended, and seeing an address in Maryland, James sped off. His phone rang again, and seeing the Captain call him, he sighed and picked it up.
"What are you doing?" The Captain said with certainty, and James tensed up, wondering how he knew.
"What do you mean?" James was surprised that his voice didn't shake and give him away. There was a crash on the other side as the Captain slammed his fist into the table.
"Don't play cute with me, James. You were smart not to use your real account to get that information, but you made the stupid mistake of not hiding which computer you used. Terminal 5b. Now it was only a matter of time before someone found out." James rubbed his eyes, releasing his mistake, "Luckily for you." The captain's next words surprised him, "Only I and someone else found this. And he wants this Charles guy gone."
James felt as if he had been given a lifeline and took a deep breath, unable to suppress his relieved smile. "Give me your other number." James quickly told him, and the captain hung up. A new number he didn't recognise rang his burner, and James picked it up, "What are you doing?" The captain asked.
"Xavier needs a favour, but I am not his gun. Luckily for us, there is a loose cannon in Maryland who acts without much thought." The captain groaned, already knowing what he meant.
"James, you never interacted with that man, but he isn't stupid; in fact, he's very smart. Sure, he's a brute, but you can't launch a one-man war against all crime without thinking. Don't worry, he will strike, but it may not be how you want."
"I know." Weakly saying, James hung up. Arriving outside Charles' apartment, he turned the car off and watched. Hours passed, and at midday, he got a message from the captain.
'He hit Secret Desire, didn't find who he wanted. Another massacre.' It was followed by a few pictures, and upon seeing it, James finally understood what Rose meant when she described the scene she had seen. Bodies lay all over, their limbs bent in unnatural directions. The walls dyed red as the original floor couldn't be seen anymore, only a pool of blood. James covered his mouth and took a deep breath. He couldn't be sure if it was somewhere innocent or not, and couldn't help but feel he had messed up. He knew, however, it was too late and quickly closed his phone, unable to look any longer.
Turning back to the apartment, a mustang, ignoring all laws of the road, skidded around the street in front, parking in the middle of the road. Stepping out, a man in a bomber jacket, wearing a plastic chicken mask, stepped out. He was covered in blood with part of his mask torn apart, but not caring about his appearance, Chicken Mask went to his boot and opened it, carefully running his hand across it before pulling out a fire axe.
James activated his eyes and watched. The aura inside the man was strange, like millions of green spiders crawling around his body. It almost felt alive, as if a second organism were using his body as a vessel.
Chicken Head moved, kicking the door to the apartment down and climbing the steps, vanishing inside. James waited and looked at his watch. 'One Minute, two.' After the fifth one, he heard numerous gunshots being fired, followed by a scream of pure terror and pain. Looking up at the window to Charles' apartment, where the gunshots came from, he saw the silhouette of a man wielding an axe swinging down over and over, blood flying out after every swing.
Four police cars came and stopped before the apartment, a squad of officers taking cover and holding their guns to the door. James ducked, just in case he would be seen. Chicken Head strolled out, unothered by the sight before him, casually walking over to his car. The officers screamed at him to stop moving, and when he didn't, they opened fire.
James thought that he would see the man drop dead, but was shocked when he didn't. Looking with his eyes activated, he saw the man's aura move to every place a bullet had landed, repairing it, the bullets stuck inside, destroyed by his aura. 'He's immortal?' James took a sharp breath, never seeing something so insane. Getting into his car and not worrying about the wounds, the mustang sped off, quickly chased by the four police cruisers.