ASHWIN "ASH" BLYTHE
age / d.o.b.: 57, March 4, 1966 height: 6'4" gender & pronouns: Cis man, he/him sexuality: Bisexual hometown: Ormiston, Saskatchewan affiliation: Falcon of the Cartel job position: Hotel Manager of the Bowery Hotel education: N/A relationship status: Single children: None
BIOGRAPHY -
No one knows where Ash was born, or to whom, but he was found at 9 years old, walking barefoot in the woods outside of Ormiston, Saskatchewan. The farmers who happened upon the lost and freezing kid brought him in for a warm meal and got him a thick blanket. He wouldn't - couldn't - talk, and no one recognized him. Without the means to keep him on, he was sent off to work and live with other unfortunate orphaned children in a workhouse in North Dakota.
Ash got a name over time. A capable and strong boy - and incredibly tall when he hit puberty - he was sent off as an extra stablehand, a manure shoveler, a miner. No one wanted him in their family, but they could use his sheer force. Ash rarely spoke, but he collected stories from other teens. Tucked them away for some day.
At 18, Ash was sent off on his own. He's created his name into something resembling a normal one - Ashwin Blythe. Ashwin to sound more credible for work. Blythe, after the boy in Anne of Green Gables. An aimless wanderer much like when he'd been found as a child. This time, he had workable hands and the conviction of someone desperate to make money and survive. On his own, be damned. Solitary was fine.
He works where they'll have him. Permanent callouses on his hands by 20. Often the coal scooper on the train, the gas station attendant. He slowly travels inward - an elongated tour of the United States.
At 30, he's servicing cars in a podunk little town in Minnesota. Drugs are passed around and he watches it all from under a broken Chevy or behind a dinging cash register. He's given hush money. Pulled in without ever confirming his interest. Soon he's carrying it to places outside of town. Tucking grams into old work gloves and appearing for hand-offs. He sees handguns tucked into the backs of jeans. Knives on holsters off worn leather belts.
It's all unofficial, and when he finally gets a new job at 36, he's passed a bundle of cash to keep quiet - something Ash has never had a problem with. But something slips. Something changes.
He meets someone at a bar - a someone who entices him to talk. Stories of his younger years, funny anecdotes. And out comes his time at the gas station. It's the first person Ash trusts to open up to. Someone he sees for months and months after.
At 37, Ash is working in Wisconsin when familiar forms come streaming out of a car. Four men hold him down, and hack his tongue with a blade. No more talking. No more slipping.
The warning is unforgettable. Ash leaves town- leaves the state. He finds a motel in Michigan that doesn't ask questions. He works for his room. Mute and spooked, he does his job well. Soon enough, he's managing it all. By 40, his resume looks... okay.
It's on a spontaneous trip to New York City that he sees the gorgeous Bowery Hotel. Not even able to stay in it - just stares in awe from the outside. On a limb, he goes in and applies - and starts as a bellhop.
Ever trustworthy, ever diligent, Ash once again moves up. All the while, he meets many who come in and out. A Cartel member happens upon him when he's 42. Tall, intimidating, quiet. He's pulled into the world again over drinks and another night in the shadows. Running drugs, running notes. A messenger as he becomes a hotel concierge.
With more money and more resources, Ash has his tongue looked at and reconstructed at age 50. He still does not talk much if not ever, and his voice is rough and husky. Still, it has given him freedom to make connections.
At 52, Ash is made Hotel Manager. Soon after with new information always at the ready and connections to be made, Ash is given the jump to Falcon. The eyes and ears that never sleep.
WANTED CONNECTIONS / PLOTS:
Cartel friends - He'd treat them almost like family. He's never had his own, so being part of a community like the Cartel is the closest he's got
The one who brought him in - Someone saw something in him about 15 years ago and pulled him into the Cartel while he was just a concierge at the Bowery. Preferably someone he might've had a dalliance with.
Connections - The ones he meets with on the fly over a desk or at a fancy table at the hotel's bustling restaurant
The one teaching him to speak - Ash is shy about his voice due to being nonverbal for years from his badly injured tongue. This would be someone he trusts implicitly who helps him form words and learn to talk again.
Ones from his past - He's lived all over. North Dakota, Wisconsin, Michigan. Worked at old gas stations, in mines, on farms. These could be people who recognize him. Friends or enemies.
Lovers - Occasionally he will be swayed into a hotel bedroom or a bathroom stall. He's a solitary being but secretly yearns for closeness of others. Messy, simple, complicated - all of the above!
