[ a surprised gasp violently rips from her throat, and roxy scrambles to her feet in a cascade of beads and the clip of her mary janes against the ceiling roof tiles. cool ocean air slips between all four of her limbs as she spreads her stance and lifts both fists to protect herself. ]
Who the devil are you? [ roxy relaxes a little around her hips but her shoulders stay tense, pink eyes searching over this handsome stranger's expression. ] If you're one of them, don't think your shiekish looks'll save you. I've a right mind to pop a few of your teeth out for sneakin up on me.
[ Red eyes snapping immediately to the opening, Samatoki waits before he says anything, slowly taking a drag off of his cigarette as he stands there, other hand flipping the bottom of his jacket out of the way so he can slide it into his pocket. No one seems to notice the commotion up top, leaving the two of them in their solitude above them for the time being.
At first he'd been thinking she might have been with the party below, considering how she's dressed. But taking another look at her, he's certain, now, that she's not. Different sort of wariness, definite gumption. ]
Right bearcat, ain'tcha. If you're looking to spy, well, better to keep a lookout on your backside. [ Double entendre. ] But I'm not with them, no - I'm here to crash their shindig.
[ and just like that, roxy lets her fists fall down to her sides, her entire frame relaxing. her eyes glance over him, brow furrowed for a moment before she clears her throat and leans forward to pick up her discarded bottle. ]
Nice innuendo, but the bank's closed. [ god, two seconds in already flirting. rose always said that roxy's a little too free with the fellas and it's gonna bring hell down on all of them one day.
roxy often tells her to mind her own manners.
she glances down at the gathering again, glad to see that no one has been alerted to their presence, but there's something that doesn't sit right with her. as roxy takes up her seat again, legs crossed, she gives this guy a curious look. ] What kinda business you here for? Crashing, sure, but why?
[ Watching her stand down, Samatoki's glad that he doesn't have to square off against a girl. Not because hw doesn't think that she's weak - on the contrary, if she's scrappy enough, he imagines she'd go down swinging and taking a chunk out of him - but because his mother taught him better, and his father taught him wrong. ]
Too bad. [ He takes a drag off his cigarette again as he meanders forward leisurely, exhaling a stream of smoke like a lazy dragon as he peers down into the cigar-misty room below them. ]
They've been moving into the wrong turf, causing the wrong kinda trouble. Someone needs to step in before somebody that doesn't deserve it gets hurt.
[ thankfully, roxy's not entirely run by her desire to flirt with anyone who'll look her way, and she's not as much of a dumb dora to get distracted by a cute face for too long. she can smell that cigarette smoke even from here, even with the wind blowing the opposite way, and her eye lingers on samatoki's expression more than those features. ]
You think they're bootleggers?
[ roxy prides herself at being able to read people fairly easily, and maybe it's the shadows cast by the moon above them and the lights around them, but she can't get a read on what's on this guy's mind.
one thing's for sure, roxy doesn't feel like rose would be spending her time with a bunch of rum runners. ]
Some of 'em. [ Eyes down, narrowing slowly like he can pierce through the haze that's made from cigars and cigarettes, Samatoki cocks his head slightly and brings his own cigarette back to his mouth. He's looking for familiar faces, hoping to catch them in the din - and instead, he sees a blonde little thing at one of the card tables. This angle doesn't allow him much, but he does slide a glance to his companion out of the corner of his eye. ]
Got the bigwigs and dames down there that wouldn't be caught dead at a bootlegger shindig. Heard one of the mayor's aids was gonna be here, but I ain't seen him yet.
[ Another stream of smoke, and he watches her through it as he asks: ] And what're you doing here, ready to come to blows like you are?
[ well... roxy supposes there's no use playing coy; she catches that look of comparison. if he's going to tell her his business, even if its not a complete truth, she can share a little about her own.
plus, if he is telling the truth and the mayor's aide shows up, things will have a very high chance of going pear-shaped once the police get involved. if she shares her side, maybe rose can come out the other side unharmed. ]
...My sister's down there. I wanted to see what bimbos she got herself surrounded by.
[ her suddenly somber tone communicates even to a stranger that usually rose is a lot smarter than this. ]
[ That explains that, then. With some measure of consideration, Samatoki straightens up and withdraws his other hand from his pocket. Juto wouldn't lie to him, and neither would Sasara. Anyone else is too scared of him to try it, or his sister, full of wide-eyed determination to make sure he comes home alive every night.
If she were down there, he wouldn't have even bothered with climbing to the roof - he'd be kicking in the goddamn door and threatening every single person in that room within an inch of their life. ]
No place for a sister. [ Some trace of respect, and also agreement. ] You just planning on tailing her, or you thinking of busting up the joint?
[ and gals. and if some of them are bootleggers then they absotively have mob connections, which means guns. which means more danger. roxy can feel her stomach twist itself into a knot.
but even through her worry, she catches that note in his voice, the sound of an understanding older sibling. dirk often sounded that way too when he worried he was spending too much time with his cars and not enough with dave. ]
Guess following was on the docket, seein what she was up to. Then... I dunno, fighting about it when she got back home.
Prob'ly wouldn't end well. [ Them's the facts. If she's decent enough in a fight - and he wouldn't be surprised if he was right in calling her a bearcat - she could do well enough, but not in a room full of rummies and palookas. Especially if any of them really are runners, or possibly police in their plainclothes.
Neither Nemu nor Juto could tell him how many officers would be in attendance, but if there's at least one aide...
Shit. He rolls his cigarette from one side of his mouth to the other, thinking. ]
I'm here to do my job. [ Which usually entails going in guns blazing and primed for a fight. More than once, he's been the last man standing through sheer determination, pride, and spite; that's why they send him on these jobs in the first place. ] If your sister's in there, then you'd better get her out before shit hits the fan.
[ doesn't matter that the slang was more 1930s than 1920s ok we're just going with it ]
[ the silence that greets samatoki's statement is agreeable, at the very least. roxy presses her tongue to the back of her teeth as she watches the game start to wrap up, laughter echoing up to the rafters as some guy gathers up all the chips owed him over the game. cigars are put out, ladies are kissed on the cheek and only two of them are sent on their way.
one of the men at the front of the table draws out a book, casually fingering through its pages but the writing is so small and roxy and samatoki are so far away that it's impossible to make out what's scribbled on the pages. and that's not even the most weird part of the evening. as the discussion ramps up, a small barrel is wheeled in on a cart, a side door creaking shut. glasses are passed around; wine glasses, by the shape of them, and roxy's brow furrows. the men laugh but roxy feels a tight rubber band pulled down the length of her spine, ready to snap at any passing moment. something about this cask is off, and when the spigot is opened to let the wine pour, roxy draws in a heady breath and looks away. ]
... Hell. [ the wine is too dark. it sticks to the sides of the glasses as its poured in. too viscous, it leaves a stain on the lips of those who never wore lipstick. ] .... That's not wine.
[ Considering his profession, considering his childhood, even from a distance Samatoki knows blood. He's washed it out of his white white hair, from under his nails, had Nemu stitching him up when he couldn't risk going to the hospital and seen it staining her favorite dresses.
(he stood in a pool of it, once, at sixteen - )
Even before the glasses touch someone's lips, he knows that's blood. And his skin crawls, all in the same moment that his skin goes cold in the dying light of day, his cigarette dangling loosely from his lips for that second, two, of realization. She has it, too. Even from here, even if they can't see the pages of the book below them clearly, the cigar smoke is starting to clear up as the focus goes from card games to whatever the fuck they're doing down there.
He thinks he sees the mayor's aide. He thinks he sees a few of the cops that work in the station Juto does, that Nemu works clerical for.
He doesn't care, suddenly. The book holder is talking, but Samatoki can't hear him from here. Taking his cigarette from his mouth, he flicks it across the roof and steps forward, dropping down into a crouch. ]
What the fuck are they doing? [ This isn't about bootleggers encroaching on the mob's turf anymore. This isn't just about some girl's sister getting into trouble with the wrong side of the law.
[ roxy can't look for too long, her stomach isn't strong enough for it. she can't look in case rose takes a sip from that cup too. she doesn't want to see if this is some kind of initiation ceremony or if this is something else entirely; she can't look. she won't look. her face is in her hands as she forces herself to push the image from her mind, wanting to pay attention to what she can do to help get her sister out of this.
down below, the ceremony is quiet, simple. wine and chatter, a promise shared between everyone. indeed, the only one not drinking is rose, but the tall woman she's with places an arm around the blonde's slender waist, hand rubbing in supportive circles along the small of rose's back. all in all, it seems as though it's nothing more than drinks with friends, except for what, exactly, the drink is. ]
... I can get you down there, [ roxy finally whispers, pulling her hands down and looking sideways at samatoki. ] Unseen. My dogs are pretty quick and quiet, mom used to say that I was just a ghost in the house.
[ she's rambling. dear god she's rambling but she can't help it. the less time she spends silent the less time she feels as though her insides will become her outsides. ]
Promise me we'll get her out first before you do what you gotta do.
[ For as often as he acts first, thinks later, Samatoki is stone still and silent. There's an otherness here that he can feel, raising the hairs on the back of his neck as he just watches - he feels the disgust, but it's less stomach-churning, more disdainful. Whatever the hell it is that they're doing, whether this is some kind of initiation into something more or their idea of a swell time... it doesn't matter.
He can just barely see Roxy out of the corner of his eye as he watches them like a hawk, see the way she shies away from watching. That's her sister down there. Making her watch that would be fucking cruelty.
His weight tips back onto his heels, eyes finally tearing away from the scene below as he watches the blonde and her tall companion for that final second longer so that he can look at the older sister that's stricken next to him. If he were in the same situation as her, he'd get it: he'd want to get Nemu the hell out of there, faster'n anybody's ever seen, fast enough they'd sure enough get whiplash from it. Whatever this is, it's a different kind of hell when family is involved. ]
Once she's out, you take those dogs of yours and run like hell with 'em. Don't you fucking look back, girl, whatever you hear, whatever you think you see when you're leaving. Because you've peeped at plenty enough tonight.
[ Samatoki stands straight again, shrugging off his jacket so he's down to his waistcoat. His gun holsters are visible that way, and a hell of a lot easier for him to reach. ]
We get in, you get out. I'll leave on my own time.
[ the knot in her stomach becomes more and more dense, sinking into a deep pit that hollows her out. her lungs shake with each breath she draws in as though trying to strangle her from the inside. she almost doesn't hear what samatoki has to say; it registers a minute later and roxy turns her head up. ]
Why are you keen on helping me?
[ she shouldn't look a gift horse in the mouth, but her curiosity has never been stopped before. ]
[ Flicking the straps keeping the pistols in place, one at a time, Samatoki pauses on the one that's closest to her. He takes a bit of a moment to answer, assessing her, thinking of a white bob and happy, red eyes, and hoping against hope someone else would get her out of trouble if he wasn't there to come in guns blazing. ]
If it were my baby sister, I'd do anything to get down there and get her the fuck away from these people.
[ And he moves past her, starting to make his way to the rooftop access. ]
[ that's all he needs to say, all that needs to be exchanged between them before roxy can trust that this guy will do as he say he will. they share the protective instinct of an older sibling, and roxy knows how strong that can be.
hopping to her feet, she scuffs silently behind samatoki, tapping his shoulder to tell him which way to go to remain unseen, deep in the shadows even when the streetlights come flooding in with soft yellow. once on the ground she hesitates, glancing every which way to get her bearings. ]
[ As they descend, it's easy to cross draw one of the pistols from a side of his holster. For someone that doesn't trust many at his back, Samatoki obeys when Roxy gives him a tap, thumbing the hammer back on the gun but keeping his finger on the trigger guard and not the trigger. Better to avoid the risk of firing on someone in surpriae, but regardless be ready to shoot if you have to.
Instinct tells him that everything is all wrong. The otherness - he can't sense it, but he also can't shake the way blood stained smiling lips, how they all drank so willingly and freely from that goddamned cask. That's enough for him to know that things are inherently wrong, so ass over end.
Shifting, he puts his shoulder into the wall. It affords some coverage as she orients. ]
[ something's not right, something more than just a cask of blood wine getting passed around a table of laughing kooks. roxy tiptoes closer to the door, body bent forward to make herself as small as possible. she wasn't lying earlier, when she said she could move quietly as a ghost.
tipping forward little by little, roxy peers around the corner and into the warehouse to find: ]
[ A wildcat ready for a fight, but quieter than a mouse. Samatoki watches her, covers her from his spot, feeling thay same prickle along his skin and up his spine that leaves him itching for anything to break the cloying silence.
That -
That definitely counts as something, but definitely not a something he wanted to hear.
If they're gone, then he's not dealing with the bushwa of steslth. His stride is brisk, his step clipped in noise as he comes to join her. Hand braced on the warehouse door, the creak of hinges could be mistaken for the breeze, but he aims the gun in instead of to the dimming sky.
Nothing. ]
How in the name of - [ Samatoki is at a loss, but doesn't raise his voice yet. ] Another room?
[ so baffled is she that roxy can't figure out anything to say, eyes scanning around the empty room once more. no one, not even her precious sister is there. has she already failed before they've even had a chance? ]
There's... There's a door on the side, I think.
[ the side room where they brought the barrel from. ]
She mentions the door, and he steps around her, eyes sweeping before settling on the door itself. They couldn't have scattered so fast, it didn't take that long to get to the ground floor. And there would be more evidence here, that people were here.
Samatoki stops at the door, reaching for the handle and looking her way. On three, he mouths.
And then he counts, mouthing the numbers before he pulls, swinging his body in time with opening it, gun leading the way by momentum - ]
[ tension coils through her muscles, filling her with that need to swing out, to fight, to pop her solid fist into the face of some big palooka for ever daring to get her little sister involved in this. roxy stays behind samatoki, flexing her fingers and steeling herself for when he kicks the door in. dust and wood splinters shower the air around them but nothing is more dangerous than the acrid smell of old blood that washes over the both of them.
blood, rust, poorly cared-for steel; its a mix of metals and roxy feels her eyes sting. the darkness hides any confirmation for whether the source of the blood is still there in the room, but in the shifting light that pours in, roxy can see small tufts of wool scattered on the floor.
choking on her own breath, roxy gives up the fight and takes a few steps back, hands covering her mouth. she's no shrinking violet: she's seen sheep and horses torn to bits by predation, but this is older. this has history, layers of fresh blood on top of dried, oxidized blood and its stronger than fresh viscera strewn across the pasture grass. ]
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Who the devil are you? [ roxy relaxes a little around her hips but her shoulders stay tense, pink eyes searching over this handsome stranger's expression. ] If you're one of them, don't think your shiekish looks'll save you. I've a right mind to pop a few of your teeth out for sneakin up on me.
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At first he'd been thinking she might have been with the party below, considering how she's dressed. But taking another look at her, he's certain, now, that she's not. Different sort of wariness, definite gumption. ]
Right bearcat, ain'tcha. If you're looking to spy, well, better to keep a lookout on your backside. [ Double entendre. ] But I'm not with them, no - I'm here to crash their shindig.
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[ and just like that, roxy lets her fists fall down to her sides, her entire frame relaxing. her eyes glance over him, brow furrowed for a moment before she clears her throat and leans forward to pick up her discarded bottle. ]
Nice innuendo, but the bank's closed. [ god, two seconds in already flirting. rose always said that roxy's a little too free with the fellas and it's gonna bring hell down on all of them one day.
roxy often tells her to mind her own manners.
she glances down at the gathering again, glad to see that no one has been alerted to their presence, but there's something that doesn't sit right with her. as roxy takes up her seat again, legs crossed, she gives this guy a curious look. ] What kinda business you here for? Crashing, sure, but why?
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Too bad. [ He takes a drag off his cigarette again as he meanders forward leisurely, exhaling a stream of smoke like a lazy dragon as he peers down into the cigar-misty room below them. ]
They've been moving into the wrong turf, causing the wrong kinda trouble. Someone needs to step in before somebody that doesn't deserve it gets hurt.
1/3
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You think they're bootleggers?
[ roxy prides herself at being able to read people fairly easily, and maybe it's the shadows cast by the moon above them and the lights around them, but she can't get a read on what's on this guy's mind.
one thing's for sure, roxy doesn't feel like rose would be spending her time with a bunch of rum runners. ]
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Got the bigwigs and dames down there that wouldn't be caught dead at a bootlegger shindig. Heard one of the mayor's aids was gonna be here, but I ain't seen him yet.
[ Another stream of smoke, and he watches her through it as he asks: ] And what're you doing here, ready to come to blows like you are?
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plus, if he is telling the truth and the mayor's aide shows up, things will have a very high chance of going pear-shaped once the police get involved. if she shares her side, maybe rose can come out the other side unharmed. ]
...My sister's down there. I wanted to see what bimbos she got herself surrounded by.
[ her suddenly somber tone communicates even to a stranger that usually rose is a lot smarter than this. ]
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If she were down there, he wouldn't have even bothered with climbing to the roof - he'd be kicking in the goddamn door and threatening every single person in that room within an inch of their life. ]
No place for a sister. [ Some trace of respect, and also agreement. ] You just planning on tailing her, or you thinking of busting up the joint?
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[ and gals. and if some of them are bootleggers then they absotively have mob connections, which means guns. which means more danger. roxy can feel her stomach twist itself into a knot.
but even through her worry, she catches that note in his voice, the sound of an understanding older sibling. dirk often sounded that way too when he worried he was spending too much time with his cars and not enough with dave. ]
Guess following was on the docket, seein what she was up to. Then... I dunno, fighting about it when she got back home.
[ even she realizes how weak that plan is. ]
You got any bright ideas?
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Neither Nemu nor Juto could tell him how many officers would be in attendance, but if there's at least one aide...
Shit. He rolls his cigarette from one side of his mouth to the other, thinking. ]
I'm here to do my job. [ Which usually entails going in guns blazing and primed for a fight. More than once, he's been the last man standing through sheer determination, pride, and spite; that's why they send him on these jobs in the first place. ] If your sister's in there, then you'd better get her out before shit hits the fan.
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doesn't matter that the slang was more 1930s than 1920s ok we're just going with it]no subject
one of the men at the front of the table draws out a book, casually fingering through its pages but the writing is so small and roxy and samatoki are so far away that it's impossible to make out what's scribbled on the pages. and that's not even the most weird part of the evening. as the discussion ramps up, a small barrel is wheeled in on a cart, a side door creaking shut. glasses are passed around; wine glasses, by the shape of them, and roxy's brow furrows. the men laugh but roxy feels a tight rubber band pulled down the length of her spine, ready to snap at any passing moment. something about this cask is off, and when the spigot is opened to let the wine pour, roxy draws in a heady breath and looks away. ]
... Hell. [ the wine is too dark. it sticks to the sides of the glasses as its poured in. too viscous, it leaves a stain on the lips of those who never wore lipstick. ] .... That's not wine.
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(he stood in a pool of it, once, at sixteen - )
Even before the glasses touch someone's lips, he knows that's blood. And his skin crawls, all in the same moment that his skin goes cold in the dying light of day, his cigarette dangling loosely from his lips for that second, two, of realization. She has it, too. Even from here, even if they can't see the pages of the book below them clearly, the cigar smoke is starting to clear up as the focus goes from card games to whatever the fuck they're doing down there.
He thinks he sees the mayor's aide. He thinks he sees a few of the cops that work in the station Juto does, that Nemu works clerical for.
He doesn't care, suddenly. The book holder is talking, but Samatoki can't hear him from here. Taking his cigarette from his mouth, he flicks it across the roof and steps forward, dropping down into a crouch. ]
What the fuck are they doing? [ This isn't about bootleggers encroaching on the mob's turf anymore. This isn't just about some girl's sister getting into trouble with the wrong side of the law.
This is a little too above their pay-grade. ]
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down below, the ceremony is quiet, simple. wine and chatter, a promise shared between everyone. indeed, the only one not drinking is rose, but the tall woman she's with places an arm around the blonde's slender waist, hand rubbing in supportive circles along the small of rose's back. all in all, it seems as though it's nothing more than drinks with friends, except for what, exactly, the drink is. ]
... I can get you down there, [ roxy finally whispers, pulling her hands down and looking sideways at samatoki. ] Unseen. My dogs are pretty quick and quiet, mom used to say that I was just a ghost in the house.
[ she's rambling. dear god she's rambling but she can't help it. the less time she spends silent the less time she feels as though her insides will become her outsides. ]
Promise me we'll get her out first before you do what you gotta do.
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He can just barely see Roxy out of the corner of his eye as he watches them like a hawk, see the way she shies away from watching. That's her sister down there. Making her watch that would be fucking cruelty.
His weight tips back onto his heels, eyes finally tearing away from the scene below as he watches the blonde and her tall companion for that final second longer so that he can look at the older sister that's stricken next to him. If he were in the same situation as her, he'd get it: he'd want to get Nemu the hell out of there, faster'n anybody's ever seen, fast enough they'd sure enough get whiplash from it. Whatever this is, it's a different kind of hell when family is involved. ]
Once she's out, you take those dogs of yours and run like hell with 'em. Don't you fucking look back, girl, whatever you hear, whatever you think you see when you're leaving. Because you've peeped at plenty enough tonight.
[ Samatoki stands straight again, shrugging off his jacket so he's down to his waistcoat. His gun holsters are visible that way, and a hell of a lot easier for him to reach. ]
We get in, you get out. I'll leave on my own time.
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Why are you keen on helping me?
[ she shouldn't look a gift horse in the mouth, but her curiosity has never been stopped before. ]
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If it were my baby sister, I'd do anything to get down there and get her the fuck away from these people.
[ And he moves past her, starting to make his way to the rooftop access. ]
C'mon, bearcat. Let's go get yours.
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[ that's all he needs to say, all that needs to be exchanged between them before roxy can trust that this guy will do as he say he will. they share the protective instinct of an older sibling, and roxy knows how strong that can be.
hopping to her feet, she scuffs silently behind samatoki, tapping his shoulder to tell him which way to go to remain unseen, deep in the shadows even when the streetlights come flooding in with soft yellow. once on the ground she hesitates, glancing every which way to get her bearings. ]
Hold still a sec.
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Instinct tells him that everything is all wrong. The otherness - he can't sense it, but he also can't shake the way blood stained smiling lips, how they all drank so willingly and freely from that goddamned cask. That's enough for him to know that things are inherently wrong, so ass over end.
Shifting, he puts his shoulder into the wall. It affords some coverage as she orients. ]
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tipping forward little by little, roxy peers around the corner and into the warehouse to find: ]
Th... They're gone!!
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That -
That definitely counts as something, but definitely not a something he wanted to hear.
If they're gone, then he's not dealing with the bushwa of steslth. His stride is brisk, his step clipped in noise as he comes to join her. Hand braced on the warehouse door, the creak of hinges could be mistaken for the breeze, but he aims the gun in instead of to the dimming sky.
Nothing. ]
How in the name of - [ Samatoki is at a loss, but doesn't raise his voice yet. ] Another room?
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[ so baffled is she that roxy can't figure out anything to say, eyes scanning around the empty room once more. no one, not even her precious sister is there. has she already failed before they've even had a chance? ]
There's... There's a door on the side, I think.
[ the side room where they brought the barrel from. ]
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She mentions the door, and he steps around her, eyes sweeping before settling on the door itself. They couldn't have scattered so fast, it didn't take that long to get to the ground floor. And there would be more evidence here, that people were here.
Samatoki stops at the door, reaching for the handle and looking her way. On three, he mouths.
And then he counts, mouthing the numbers before he pulls, swinging his body in time with opening it, gun leading the way by momentum - ]
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blood, rust, poorly cared-for steel; its a mix of metals and roxy feels her eyes sting. the darkness hides any confirmation for whether the source of the blood is still there in the room, but in the shifting light that pours in, roxy can see small tufts of wool scattered on the floor.
choking on her own breath, roxy gives up the fight and takes a few steps back, hands covering her mouth. she's no shrinking violet: she's seen sheep and horses torn to bits by predation, but this is older. this has history, layers of fresh blood on top of dried, oxidized blood and its stronger than fresh viscera strewn across the pasture grass. ]
Oh, god ...
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